They had previously interacted with the king.
Back then, he was nothing like the man standing before them.
The memory flashed across Quinlan's mind. His random decision to give Felicity a sudden call. Her flustered expression, the king's calm voice from beside her. That man had seemed warm. Patient. Almost too gentle for someone of his status. A father doting on his daughter, not a ruler staring down a continent.
But the man before them now…
Was something else entirely.
The pressure rolled off his body like heat off the desert sand. Subtle, invisible, and overwhelming. His back remained turned to them, posture unchanging, arms still calmly clasped behind him. Not a single word was spoken. And yet, Quinlan's throat tightened, his heartbeat already pulsing in his ears before he caught himself.
He had met strong people before.
Black Fang, whose gaze could strip a man of all courage and a robotic tone that made her seem more of a perfect construct than a flawed human.
