Chapter 301: Failed plots

A man hunched over the desk with a black band stretching over r one of his eyes. His head was tilted slightly forward, his brows furrowed in concentration as he observed the thing in front of him . He scratched lines and loops onto the sheet in front of him—a material far lighter and more pliable than parchment, smooth under his fingertips. It folded with ease and seemed almost frivolously cheap compared to the coarse, brittle parchments he had used his whole life.

He paused mid-stroke, the ghost of a wry smile tugging at his lips. Another southern invention, he mused, thinking of the notoriously resourceful princedom. Their innovations seemed endless, each more confounding than the last, this one however manage to creep into the Empire's burocracy. He ran a finger along the edge of the sheet as if inspecting its secrets.