THE AUREUM TRIAL: BLOOD OATH
Lena continued, “and leverage. Whispers in noble courts. Veiled threats sealed in gold wax. They forge alliances over wine and secrets. Not all of them clean. Not all of them honest. But always… binding.”
Ingrid had stilled beside us now, her gaze unreadable. She said nothing, but I could tell she was listening.
“House Dorne’s estate is in the southern reaches,” Lena added, quieter now, the words threading through the falling snow. “Where winters are gentler and loyalty is sold in handshakes instead of blood. They have ties to a dozen noble families—maybe more—through marriage, trade, and magical treaties. But their oldest, most enduring alliance…” She gave a meaningful pause, eyes narrowing
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