Cedric
A few days had passed, and Gwen had made my life in the palace an absolute nightmare.
She ignored me whenever I tried to speak to her. Gave me the cold shoulder during shifts without so much as a glance in my direction. Sent me on pointless errands that seemed designed specifically to be as inconvenient as possible. She acted like I didn’t exist unless it suited her, and then only to give me another task. The library books needed dusting again. The east corridor needed checking. The tea from the kitchen was apparently the wrong temperature.
It was exhausting in a way that went beyond the physical. I could handle the work. It was the deliberate indifference that got under my skin more than I wanted to admit.
By Friday evening I had convinced myself I was imagining it. That maybe
