~LENORA'S POV
"You mistake endurance for permission," he said. "I allow questions because they amuse me. The day they cease to do so, I will stop allowing those who ask them to breathe."
The pressure around his throat vanished without warning, and he crashed to the floor, dragging in air while his body trembled as he forced himself upright.
He lowered himself back into his seat without another word. Though the tremor in his hands had not fully left him, and I could not tear my gaze away, my own pulse hammering as if it mirrored his.
Around the hall, eyes dropped and shoulders straightened; I felt the collective breath of those present tighten, a silent agreement that no one would dare ask for clarification.
I steadied the tray against my palm, forcing my breathing to remain even as the echoes of the earlier strike and the dagger's failure haunted my chest.
