The King dismissed every guard from the threshold of the private archive, permitting only Captain Roen to remain posted outside.
The two court recorders remained seated beside the opened dossier, their quills poised to document every syllable spoken in the vault.
Eirwen and Ferra withdrew beyond the golden boundary line, keeping the fitted prayer case securely isolated within its display frame.
Hajin remained standing beside the mahogany table where Didi could see him, resting his bandaged left hand upon the commission scroll.
The royal family's darkest confession was now bound to an official investigation rather than shielded behind a private apology.
Both scribes held their breath as the silence stretched across the vaulted chamber, their pens hovering above fresh parchment sheets.
Didi's hand hovered over the table as pale-blue frost radiated across the polished grain toward her father's signet.
