A courier hammered on the fortified registry door, holding Princess Didi's sealed dispatch above his soaked mantle.
Outside the main entryway, the exhausted breathing of a lathered courier horse broke the quiet drumming of the storm.
Sergeant Marrick opened the reinforced door, ushering in a drenched imperial rider wearing the navy mantle of the Crown.
The courier carried an enameled cylinder sealed with the golden signet ring of Princess Didi herself.
"Emergency dispatch for the supreme commander's eyes alone," the rider gasped, his trembling knees nearly buckling upon the flagstones.
"I rode six horses to exhaustion across three hundred leagues of flooded mountain roads to deliver this packet before dawn!"
Hajin caught the swaying messenger by the arm, guiding him gently toward a chair near the glowing hearth.
"Drink this hot broth and rest your legs," he said softly, handing the shivering man an earthen bowl of hot mutton soup.
