A screw had jammed itself into Azriel's plan to stir up chaos.
And what screw was that, exactly?
Well, to understand that, one would first have to know what Azriel's plan actually was.
Which, of course, was what any sane prince on a ticking clock would do:
Find the village chief before anyone else did and blackmai—negotiate with him.
From the Plague's words, Azriel knew the chief was strong—someone bound to stand in his way.
And from the map he'd obtained, he also knew the chief was tied to Mirius.
How did Azriel know that?
Simple. The map showed only participants, never figures like a village chief.
Which meant… the chief's presence wasn't marked.
That, precisely, was the screw in his plan.
After asking around the village, Azriel learned the chief hadn't left his house the entire week.
So when Azriel finally tracked down the house's location, he discovered Mirius himself was inside. In the chief's house.
