Chapter 158: The Questions That Do Not Wait for Breath
Lyria's POV
Lady Mirelle's gaze remained steady upon me.
It was neither sharp nor cruel, but rather… present.
Her attention did not allow escape, even if there was no hostility involved.
She drew in a slow breath.
Then spoke.
"Your Highness," she said gently, "what are your intentions in presenting yourself as a Moon candidate?"
For a brief moment, I felt the old instinct rise—the one that wanted to explain too much, to soften every edge of my thoughts until nothing remained sharp enough to be judged.
But then I remembered Baron Redwick's voice.
And Duke Thorncrest's quieter warning.
Do not tell them what to think. Let them arrive there themselves.
So I did not rush.
I did not fill the silence.
I allowed it to exist beside me like a second presence.
