"Eat," he prompted quietly, but there was a firmness to his tone. He watched as she absently stirred her spoon in her soup, the act so out of character it gnawed at him.
"Why aren't you eating?" he asked, more sharply this time.
She drew a shaky breath, her gaze cast downward. "I don't think I can stomach anything for a while," she replied, her voice barely a whisper.
Though he could guess the reason, he asked anyway. "Why?"
After a long pause, Salviana lifted her gaze to meet his, her expression pained. "Those hounds… they're dead," she said quietly.
"Yes," he confirmed, unflinchingly. "I killed them."
Her spoon clattered onto the plate, and she looked at him, wide-eyed. Knowing it was one thing, but hearing him admit it so casually made the reality of it sink in, unsettling her.
"Alaric…" Her voice broke, uncertain, and her words stumbled over themselves, her thoughts tangled with confusion. "They were innocent."
