Chapter 7
The heavy lid of the bronze strongbox swung open with a dry screech. Inside lay neatly stacked bundles of parchment tied with faded purple ribbons, alongside official wax-stamped decrees bearing the signatures of the city’s ruling triumvirate. Julian reached in and pulled out the top scroll, unrolling it slowly beneath the dim, greenish light of the phosphorus lamp.
The columns of numbers and neat administrative notes immediately laid bare a horrifying conspiracy. The documents detailed how the imperial granaries had been systematically depleted two years prior, not due to drought or poor harvest as the public had been officially told, but through deliberate hoarding and artificial price inflation engineered by the magistrates to bankrupt independent farmers and seize their ancestral lands.
Cassian watched Julian read the scroll, a bitter expression crossing the old man's weathered face. "They wanted total control over the food supply," Cassian explained, his voice weak. "I discovered the discrepancy while auditing the treasury. When I refused to alter the ledgers to hide the missing gold, they arrested me for treason, branded me a heretic, and scheduled a public execution to silence me permanently before the annual senate elections."
Julian’s jaw tightened. The pieces of the puzzle clicked together with terrifying clarity. The execution he had been ordered to carry out today was nothing more than a political assassination disguised as divine justice. The High Priestess had been complicit, trading her moral authority for a share of the seized agricultural wealth. Julian folded the scroll carefully and tucked it inside the dark folds of his embroidered robe.
"We have to get these documents to the public forum before the sunrise assembly," Julian said firmly.
Cassian shook his head slowly, a grim smile touching his lips. "The public forum is a trap, Julian. The magistrates control the city guard and the heralds. If we walk into the open square with these scrolls, we will be cut down before we can speak a single word. We need an audience that cannot be easily dispersed or silenced by the spear."
"Where?" Julian asked.
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"The amphitheater," Cassian replied. "Tonight is the festival of Saturnalia. The entire city will be gathered in the stands. If we project the truth from the high gallery during the festival, thousands will hear it before the guards can reach us."
Julian considered the plan. It was dangerously bold, relying on stealth and perfect timing, but it was their only chance to expose the corruption to the entire populace at once.
