The dinner was to be held in a grand, richly decorated room with high ceilings, ornate gold moldings, and tall windows draped with deep red curtains. The floor was covered in deep red carpets with intricate patterns. Gold detailing ran along the walls and furniture, and the long banquet table stretching down the center of the room was dressed in white linens, set with plates, and centerpieces. Gold-framed chairs with red upholstery lined both sides.
Large golden mirrors reflected the warm glow of elegant candelabras, and a marble fireplace with elaborate gold accents anchored one side of the room. Everything in the space whispered of old nobility and unquestioned royalty.
At one end of the table sat the Count, already in his seat. His posture was serious—composed at a glance—yet those who paid attention would see the tension in his shoulders and the faint tremble of his lips.
