Raphael Earhart
— This way, my lord.
The maid bowed respectfully, while the two Sengrim knights standing on either side of her silently pushed open the massive doors at the end of the corridor on the estate's penultimate floor. I had never been here before, not that I had much opportunity to explore the family's domains aimlessly. But it was immediately clear that this corridor was drastically different from the rest of the residence.
While most of the estate was decorated in a traditional, elegant manner—light-colored walls, expensive carpets, exquisite ornaments made from rare minerals whose worth could sustain an entire family for decades—this place exuded a completely different atmosphere.
The estate showcased the power of a ruling lineage, standing on equal footing with royal dynasties of other nations.