" So tell me, my sweet," the reigh demanded softly. "What did you think of the council?"

"It is a brutal affair, my lord," she replied with honesty. "I would lie if I said I did not find it disturbing."

His expression turned mysterious, almost...amused. "Indeed, I can imagine not everyone has the stomach to endure the sight of cut-off limbs, but give yourself time. Practice makes perfect. In a few weeks, you will not stir when a guilty man is being punished. "

― Astrid Jane Ray , The Queen of Aessarion