The administrative office of the sixth region smelled of damp paper, the afternoon light barely cutting through the dirty window panes. Three clerks sat around a rusted brazier in the center of the room, their loud laughter filling the damp space.
A fat guard tossed a crumpled parchment onto the cluttered desk, his yellow teeth showing as he leaned against the wall, "have you heard the news from the capital?"
One of the clerks looked up from his watered-down ale, his fingers stained dark with ink, "some new regional lord is arriving today, right?"
The guard snorted, spitting onto the floor before he shook his head in amusement, "some kid from the capital, they say he is barely twenty years old."
The other clerks joined in the snickering, the prospect of a young ruler bringing a rare moment of genuine joy to their miserable afternoon.
