Faye's POV
The tests I had prepared for never materialized. None of the brutal examinations I had envisioned came to pass. For a fleeting moment, I questioned whether fortune had smiled upon me or if this was merely the calm before a more sinister storm.
They positioned me at the head of an imposing rectangular table. Following the shrine ceremony, the council extended an invitation to a welcoming banquet, and I steeled myself for interrogation. Yet none arrived. Every person rose upon my entrance, offered a single bow, and remained standing until I took my seat. No additional oaths were demanded. No piercing inquiries were made.
The abundance before me shattered every assumption I had harbored about northern life. I had anticipated meager portions of meat, rationed in threadbare slivers.
