Roderick's fingers hovered just inches from Boren's collar when an unseen shift rippled through the air. It wasn't loud or dramatic, and to most, it was barely perceptible. But there was a palpable sense that the next heartbeat wouldn't belong to him.
Then Valeria moved.
There was no shout, no warning, no drawn-out preparation. One moment she stood three steps away by the pillar; the next, she was beside the counter.
Her motion was so clean and direct that several Adventurers later swore they hadn't even seen her cross the distance. She caught Roderick's wrist mid-reach, not roughly or violently, but firmly enough to halt his forward motion as if he had struck a wall.
Roderick blinked in surprise.
He hadn't anticipated resistance, especially not from a woman who had been quietly standing off to the side like mere decoration.
"Remove your hand," Valeria said calmly.
Her voice didn't need to be loud; it carried authority all on its own.
