The cart moved steadily toward the outer districts.
Resme sat at the front with Metheea, reins in hand, alert but unhurried. Another cart followed behind them, Kalistra and Fiona riding together, close enough to keep pace.
"We'll only stay for two hours at most," Resme said. "Just enough time to help in the slums, then we leave."
Metheea looked at her. As part of the festival, charity events were always held by the royal family. She hadn't needed to come herself, but she had wanted to see it with her own eyes.
She had read the reports before, many of them carrying Resme's family name, records of food runs and charity visits that had been happening for years. She knew Resme didn't speak from paperwork alone. Resca's people went there often, quietly, without ceremony, long before the court ever paid attention.
Metheea nodded. "I've never been there," she said. "Tell me more."
Resme glanced back at her briefly. "Of course, Your Highness."
