“You authorized the exchange without informing the outer routes.”The accusation landed before anyone had time to soften it, and every head in the square turned toward the northern messenger who had spoken. He stood rigid, jaw tight, holding a folded document that bore the seal of his authority. She did not flinch at the tone, but she felt the ripple it sent through the gathered settlement. They had grown accustomed to tension from outside forces, yet this felt different because it suggested a breach of trust rather than a clash of interest.“I authorized coordination,” she replied evenly, stepping forward so her voice carried without strain. “Not control. The outer routes were informed through the standard signal cycle. If that signal did not reach you, then the fault lies in transmission, not secrecy.”The messenger unfolded the document with deliberate care, as though the motion itself were evidence. He explained that a trade corridor had shifted two days earlier to bypass a taxed
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