The violins played the King's favorite melody again, "Lacrimosa". The Lord of Ard Taj never started a meal without his senses being thrilled. Rufus Arus Domini was the most gallant king to have ever ruled the lands of Pangea. His presence was always marked by a strangely epic atmosphere. The King insisted on wearing finely detailed black leather that accentuated the magnificent curves of his body. His cape, with black fur on the shoulder pads, only added to his stature. His height positioned his eyes above everyone else. No one was above the King. Rufus had thin black hair, his eyes, face, and nose were fine, as if sculpted by angels while listening to the sweetest melodies. Despite carrying a tired expression on his face, reflecting the weight of his responsibilities as the ruler of a continent, the King looked at everyone with eyes as green as the forests of Ard Akhdar. His steps were wide and sure, his posture befitting a monarch. When he entered a room, his subjects kneeled not out of fear but out of respect for the man he was. The King was seated at the head of the dining table, leaning against the soft leather that composed his true throne, a piece of wood as gray as steel with a three-meter-high backrest with three pointed ends reaching toward the ceiling. The table, a single rectangular log carefully outlined with marble and black on each side. A golden fabric covered half of the tabletop, indicating the place where meals were served. The King's dining room was a simple square, like all the other rooms in the castle. Rufus despised his minimalist ancestors for having made every corner of the fortress as easy as possible. The King was a meticulous man and considered laziness to be a crime. Upon his orders, most of the castle was renovated as soon as he took power. The monarch attached immeasurable importance to the moment of the meal, which is why he completely transformed the dining room. The floor was intricately detailed with reddish hexagons that gleamed a darkened red when bathed in the morning sun. He had the walls painted brown and added vertical stripes in a lighter tone. Even the curtains had been replaced, substituted with a nearly transparent silk fabric arranged in three layers, so that when closed, they became completely opaque. On his right side, Queen Olympia radiated beauty with her charm. Like the King, she was tall and fair-skinned, with an even finer and more intimidating face. Her eyebrows were meticulously shaped in a way that made the queen's face convey her deadly sternness. Her lips were red as wine, thin, and as well-defined as her eyebrows. Her face was the most beautiful in all of Pangea, but also the most stern. Her hair was golden like the sun, long and flowing down her shoulders, and was never without the diamonds that made it sparkle even more. While the monarch wore a simple seven-pointed gold crown, which had belonged to Philip I, The Victorious, responsible for ending the War of the Kings and unifying Pangea, the Queen had a tiara crafted from white and aqua diamonds, earning her the title of Queen of the Stars. The left side of the King at the table was occupied by his daughter, Princess Cleopatra, a nearly perfect replica of her mother, except for her father's simplicity at her core. While the Queen paraded with the most valuable piece in the continent on her head and dresses sewn with gold threads and dipped in rubies or emeralds, the princess preferred the soft touch of silk. The young girl exuded the innocence of a baby, but deep within her heart, a bitter flame burned, alive, a pain that never left her, caused by the burden of being born a girl. Although she was passionate about royal debates, Cleopatra knew that her role was not in leadership; she could hardly assume the King's right-hand position in decision-making. Both leadership and the final word were male roles. The princess regretted not being born a boy. She knew that if the child her mother was expecting was not a boy, the lament for the King not having an heir would reach the four corners of Pangea. Nevertheless, Cleopatra tirelessly strove to be the perfect daughter. Only two other people accompanied the royal family: Illia, Rufus's right-hand man and also a childhood friend. Hailing from Ard Jabal, Illia was a knight when he decapitated the Blue Lion that had torn open Rufus's chest when he was a young prince of only 14 years old. Illia was the same age. The southerner was incorporated into the Royal Guard for that feat and was later invited to have the final say in decisions that were not made by the King. Illia had dark skin from the south, short hair, a short beard, and a chin that gave him the appearance of the dream men of little girls. His eyes were black, and his eyebrows were thick. As much as he tried to assist his King to the fullest, his greatest challenge was fending off the Queen's devious advances when they were occasionally alone. Illia sat beside Cleopatra, and in front of him sat Margaret, the Queen's sister. The unbreakable bond between the sisters ensured Margaret a prominent place in the royal circle. Her sharpness and ruthlessness earned her the title of Iron Lady, and her opinions fell upon the ears of her sister, who had the closest contact with the King. Margaret was taller than her sister and flaunted her chestnut curls that cascaded down her shoulders, giving her a certain prominence when she walked and undoubtedly a sense of authority when she spoke. Margaret liked to think that, in the end, her decisions were final. The woman had a very strong relationship with her niece and made sure nothing bad happened to her girls. Even the slightest carelessness, when it affected Olympia or Cleopatra, never ended without severe punishment by order of the Iron Lady. When Rufus became aware of some of her orders, he would impose himself and command the woman to cool her head, relieving the situation. The King's audacity sometimes made the Queen's sister even more furious. The last figure always present at the meals was Bob, the fool. The young man had suffered from muscular atrophy in his spine as a child, causing him to grow with a large and heavy hunch on the right side of his body. His legs were longer than his entire torso and head, and his steps were as crooked as his back. Rufus met the young man at a comedy show and decided to adopt him as a court employee. His acerbic comments enraged Olympia and Margaret, which only made the King laugh more. Bob lived at a high standard, shared the castle's food and facilities, but did not dine with the royal family; he was only present to lighten the usually somber atmosphere that surrounded that peculiar group. The fool let his fringe grow over his forehead and always dressed in a single color, with clothes that were always too tight, publicly outlining the imperfections of his body, but the young man was unfazed by this; on the contrary, he himself requested that type of clothing.
The dish of the day was a carrot soup with cooked rabbit and herbs. No matter how hot it was, Rufus insisted that soup be part of his meals. The monarch was very impatient and became severely irritated when his specific demands were not met. He usually didn't abuse his orders, except for a few minor obstacles that got in his way, like the furniture in his castle or a cold plate of meat. That's why soup was his favorite option. And on that day, the soup would forever change the universe of every man and woman living on that continent.