The dismissal was absolute, almost insulting in its casualness. Aries's expression did not change, but August, watching closely, caught a flicker of something cold and dangerous in the Regal Young Master's eyes. It was there and gone in an instant, but August had seen it.
Before Vanne left, he paused. For the first time, his gaze shifted from Aries to Narmer Brander, who had been standing in the background, his face pale and his shoulders hunched in defeat.
Vanne's eyes swept over Narmer with a cold, clinical detachment. There was no anger in his gaze, no rage. There was only the calm, terrifying intensity of a man assessing an opponent, calculating weaknesses, cataloguing sins.
