Silence lingered for a few seconds, broken only by the faint clinking of cups.
Then Amelia leaned back slightly in her chair and smiled. "You've been a bit on edge lately. Training too hard?"
Alice blinked. "Is it that obvious?"
"You're trembling," Amelia said, motioning gently to Alice's hands. "And I don't think it's just the tea."
Alice exhaled through her nose. Caught red-handed.
"Maybe. The match earlier... kind of got to me."
"Because of your attendant?"
"Because of how close he got," Alice muttered. "He shouldn't be able to do that much damage with limited skills and mana restrictions. But he still pushed me."
Amelia tilted her head, lips curling in amusement. "You're telling me the great Alice Draken is frustrated because her 'helpless attendant' almost beat her?"
"He didn't beat me."
"But he made you work for it."
Alice didn't respond.
Instead, she reached for the teacup again—stopped halfway—then sighed and leaned back.
