"The Northern Frontier has fierce winds and blowing sand, hardly as prosperous and nurturing as the Imperial Capital."
The voice was low, the tone flat—like snowflakes falling into a deep pool without a ripple. Yet within the small space of the waterside pavilion, it stirred an invisible, soul-freezing chill.
The surrounding music of strings and flutes, the chatter and laughter, seemed instantly cut off.
Chapter 331