The courtyard gate slammed against the stone wall with a loud clatter.
Alchemist Linnea sprinted across the flagstones, her turquoise guild robes fluttering wildly behind her. Dark purple rings circled her eyes, the unmistakable mark of Fire-Poison Insomnia brought on by three nights without sleep. She carried three leather-bound folios tucked under her right arm and a bundle of fresh parchment under her left.
She stopped right beside Kaelen’s hammock, panting for breath.
“Kaelen!” Linnea gasped, waving a parchment scroll in his face. “Branch Master Orson arrived at the guild council three hours ago. He’s already revoked two bronze badges and seized a merchant warehouse in the south district. He’s coming for your Silver Cauldron Badge this afternoon.”
Kaelen didn’t take off his straw hat. He simply took a slow sip of his lukewarm jasmine tea.
“Afternoon is a terrible time for an audit,” Kaelen said. “The light is harsh, and people are irritable before dinner.”
“This isn’t a joke,” Linnea cried, dropping her heavy folios onto the cedar table with a loud bang. “Orson has memorized every clause in the provincial guild charter. If he tests you on Tier 2 thermal fluctuations or Nine-Step Ash condensation, what will you say? You have to study.”
