"Another day, another scowling demon lord." Eliana tossed a stack of parchments onto the table, the delicate scrolls scattering across the polished obsidian surface. "Honestly, Sebastian, you'd think after two years they'd at least pretend to be happy about having a human queen."
Sebastian chuckled, the sound a low rumble that vibrated through the room. He crossed the chamber, his footsteps silent despite his imposing size, and gathered the scattered documents. "Patience, my love. Centuries of mistrust are not so easily forgotten. They test you, these lords, probing for weakness."
"Weakness?" Eliana scoffed, snatching back a scroll detailing a border dispute in the southern marshes. "I've negotiated treaties that would make your generals weep, stared down assassins with nothing but a rusty letter opener, and I still have to prove myself?"
