Her face reddened and she huffed.
"Wh-what? What do you mean I have to cover my face?"
He gave her a patient smile.
"If I'm given more time I can bring in some more of my people who I trust so that next time it won't be necessary. But for the moment, you have the striking and overwhelming beauty of the empress of Nevremia."
He shook his head, still smiling.
"Even if they've never seen you before and even if they don't know how beautiful the empress is, you will no doubt catch their attention and stick in their memory. We can't have that."
He trailed off, making her heart start racing at the way his gaze dragged down her body.
And then he glanced away, gesturing vaguely.
"So. If there isn't time...we will have to cover it. And come up with an excuse for it. Hmm." He tapped his lips. "There was an accident at the quicklime furnace recently. We could cover your face in bandages. But no...that would make you stand out even more. Hmm."
