I took a breath and let it out slow.
"No point in putting it off."
Reina's fingers brushed against my wrist, a light, questioning touch. "You want me to wait somewhere else? Give you time to explain first?"
I looked down at her. The shirt I'd given her hung loose around her shoulders, and without anything else to wear, she looked smaller than she had in the dungeon. Less like a creature of myth and more like a normal woman with cute horns.
"No," I said. "Come with me."
She smiled, soft and a little uncertain, and fell into step beside me.
The walk from the training room to my chambers felt longer than usual. Servants stepped aside as we passed, their eyes widening when they saw Reina, but none of them spoke. The whispers would come later, after we were out of earshot. I could already feel them, the ripples spreading outward from this moment.
So I decided to nip that in the bud.
"What happens in my estate, stays in my estate, understand?"
