---
The clerk returned faster than most men could run when money was involved.
He came with two assistants, a lacquered tray, and the expression of someone who had just witnessed a customer walk into a fruit stall and casually ask for the entire orchard.
"Sir," the clerk said, bowing slightly, "the Contract Market acknowledges your intent to seal two separate agreements. Please follow. We will conduct the sealing under Contract God authority."
Auri's gaze flicked over the assistants first, then the tray, then the clerk's fingers. Her instincts were simple and effective.
If a man held a pen like a dagger, he was still holding a dagger.
Sekhmet nodded once and followed without hurry.
They moved through a short corridor and entered a sealing chamber that looked like a courtroom that had been designed by an accountant.
