The silence the Auditors left behind was not one of peace, but of potential. Aethelburg did not celebrate their departure. Instead, the city exhaled, a collective release of a breath it hadn't realized it was holding. The air itself felt clearer, the hum of witnessed life returning to its normal frequency, though now tinged with a new, hard-won confidence.
Valeria's broken paradigm was a victory, but Elara felt its fragility. A snapped ruler could be replaced by a stronger one. A void, as Alaric had noted, could be filled with something worse.
Finnian's response was not long in coming. It was not another audit. It was a foreclosure notice.
