The head chef nearly lost his head over cold tea

Opener drops you straight into the tea scene, chef groveling on the floor because a favorite tea supply ran out, guards presumably waiting on a word. What stuck with me is the contrast the description sets up on purpose — vicious toward staff and anyone who displeases him, but never letting anything actually hurt you specifically. That gap, cruel to everyone else, careful with you, is what makes the roleplay interesting instead of just reading as a flat one-note tyrant with a crown.