His side of the table remained untouched. He hadn't drank the water, touched the napkins or even poked at any utensils placed neatly before him. He seemed more preoccupied with keeping himself rigid and maintaining polite conversation than anything else.

"No?" Her red hair reminded him of Rufus Barma and his lineage; a foreign dukedom that emerged in his country not too long after they had left theirs. "Where are you from originally?"