"What?" Lucian's voice suddenly cut through the heavy silence. His brows slowly pulled together as his eyes moved from one Regent to another, because after Hraezar's words, something strange had happened. Nobody spoke. Nobody volunteered their own continent. Instead, almost at the same time, one gaze after another had quietly shifted toward him. Elessa. Valerion. Sylvara. Aurelion. Even some of the Regents who had looked uncomfortable only seconds ago were now staring in his direction. Lucian's expression hardened with every pair of eyes he caught. He already knew exactly what they were thinking.
"Why…" His jaw tightened. "Why are all of you looking at me?" No one immediately answered, and somehow that silence irritated him more than an answer would have. His palm pressed against the armrest of his throne as he leaned forward.
"No." The single word came hard.
