Chapter 79 - Chapter 79: The Palace Audit

The inner sanctum of the Western Emperor did not resemble the grand marble amphitheater of the High Arbiters or the frantic, smoke-choked floors of the Grand Exchange. It was a low-ceilinged, octagonal boardroom built from thick blocks of unpolished basalt, tucked deep beneath the palace's residential wing where the city's tectonic heat-lines kept the stone floors radiating a dry, heavy warmth. There were no tapestries of ancient conquests, no gilded crests, and no high judges' benches. In the center sat a massive, circular slate table rimed with a border of dark brass routing tubes, surrounded by eight low-backed leather chairs.