Chapter 153: The Smile That Means More Than It Says
Lyria's POV
Duke Thorncrest tilted his head slightly at the question, his smile not fading in the least.
"Is it wrong," he asked lightly, "that I smile so often?"
There was no defensiveness in his tone. If anything, there was curiosity—as though he found the question more interesting than offensive.
Lady Mirelle regarded him calmly.
"The people wish to understand," she said, "whether there is a reason behind it."
He considered that for a moment, though the expression on his face suggested he already had his answer long before the question had been asked.
"To be quite honest," he said, "there is no grand reason behind it."
"The world is… rather large," he continued, his tone easy. "And within it, both good and bad things occur. That much is unavoidable."
He leaned back just slightly in his seat, relaxed in a way that seemed entirely natural to him and entirely out of place in such a formal setting.
