Chapter 9: BLACK MARKET AND BORROWED KNOWLEDGE

Chapter 9: BLACK MARKET AND BORROWED KNOWLEDGE

The village appeared through the trees gradually, the way small settlements did, smoke first, then rooftops, then the actual place itself spreading out in a clearing with the relaxed energy of somewhere that the war hadn’t found yet and was quietly hoping to keep it that way.

It was modest but alive. A blacksmith worked near the entrance, hammer rising and falling in a steady rhythm, the clang of it carrying clean through the morning air. A woman arranged fruit on a low wooden table outside her hut, stacking them with the focused precision of someone who had strong opinions about presentation.

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