He heard everyone's surprised exclamation. Some of them even looked at him subtly like he had lost his mind. When he looked at Roksolana, there was no reaction to whatever she was feeling in her eyes. Jamal knew that was even worse than her showing what she felt. And if he had to guess, he would say that she was thinking about a thousand ways she could murder him and get away with it.

"The competition has come to an end. All can be dismissed now," Jamal told the people.

"I can't ...