The archive search Miraya promised took considerably longer than either of us anticipated, three weeks stretching into a month of careful, tedious correspondence between Temple branches scattered across provinces neither Darius nor I had personal reason to visit, while the ordinary business of governance continued demanding attention regardless of whatever ancient mystery waited to be uncovered.
I spent much of that month buried in the grain policy's implementation, traveling between provincial granaries to oversee redistribution, meeting with local officials whose skepticism gradually, cautiously, transformed into something like genuine cooperation as they watched imperial promises actually translate into delivered reserves rather than empty ceremonial rhetoric.
