CHAPTER EIGHTY FOUR - IN THE MANSE, YOU EARN YOUR KEEP

Allistair led Karina through a maze of corridors, the silence broken only by the echoing of their footsteps. They finally arrived at a heavy oak door, its surface adorned with intricate glyphs that seemed to writhe in the flickering torchlight. Allistair gave the door a hesitant knock, then pushed it open to reveal a dimly lit office. A lone figure sat behind a massive desk piled high with scrolls and weathered tomes. This was Lady Becky, even more imposing in person than she had appeared in the ritual chamber. Her stern expression softened a fraction as she saw Allistair, but remained cold and unforgiving when her gaze fell upon Karina. Karina, mindful of Zaya's advice, took a seat with perfect posture, her hands folded neatly in her lap. Silence stretched between them, heavy and suffocating, until Becky finally spoke. "So," she rasped, her voice like dry leaves rustling in the wind. "You managed to calm the beast down, haven't you?" There was no warmth in her words, no hint of gr