Westmarsh awoke different.
Not by sound, but by silence. The kind of silence that comes when something too loud to ignore has happened, and everyone is holding their breath, waiting to see who speaks first.
The Gilded Forum’s events had rippled out like a stone in a mirrored pond—disturbing what had been too still for too long. News passed faster than decrees. Markets opened late. Nobles postponed luncheons. Guild scribes sent more letters in one hour than in the last month combined.
Mina, Correnne, and I returned to our offices before dawn. The fireplace still held the last embers of the night before, and I stood in front of it for a long time, letting the warmth burn off the cold knot in my spine.
Correnne poured herself tea without comment, while Mina spread the reports across the t
