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The city has a way of watching everyone without eyes. News about John's void magic had drifted to the city and the nobles by noon (earlier than day). Even to places John would never visit. Runners whispered. Boys with fast feet traded details for cents. A porter near the academy took coins to remember faces and more coins to forget them. A small, sharp eared woman by the baker's corner said, "Room three," and the words walked to Brann before sundown.
Brann worked the way he always worked. First, he listened. He sent Rusk to the academy gate to ask a boy about a plain coat and an orange glow. He sent Edda to speak to a food seller near the square. The food seller saw everything because everyone stopped for food and water. Edda learned the name "John," the word "village," and the fact that a priestess had given him a letter properly. She also learned the funny bit boys repeated wrong: "He has a black ball in his hand." She did not laugh. She filed it.
