Edwin sat alone in the restricted section of the Alpha’s archive, way past midnight. The air was still stale, heavily laced with dust and ink. A single lantern flickered beside him, casting long shadows across the rows of ancient books and scrolls.
This time, he was all alone, without Ralph. He was not looking for battle reports or military orders. He was trying to looking for a record. Specifically, the financial records for the year before Tiara’s parents were killed, the last peaceful year of their reign.
Because power was one thing, but greed? It would always leave a trail. He scoured through different ledgers marked "Beta George's administration, year of the Full moon."
He flipped between the pages of monthly tax revenue, land holdings, and pack allocations. Still checking, he eve
