Valeria returns home with Marcus Flavius, her clean cloth still secured over the irritated palm. The magistrate retains the tablets, while Herennius remains under lawful escort.
Aurelia opens the door, and Nestor rises from the household table. Neither mistakes the adjournment for an ending; the sealed inquiry has merely entered its next interval.
Aurelia
You are home safely. That is welcome news, but not yet a victory. What remains in the magistrate’s hands?
Marcus Flavius
The confession must be corroborated through the proper records. The court will compare the notice, impression, custody entries, and Marcellus’s summoned answer.
Nestor
Then we preserve strength and spend nothing needlessly. A household survives inquiries by keeping its papers, witnesses, and patience in order.
Marcus Flavius reports that Herennius stayed behind under guard, while the Examiner carried the packet back toward the Colosseum archive. No one from the household was detained.
Marcus Flavius
Your veteran bout remains scheduled. Until the next summons, we can rest your hand, review the terms, and endure the delay without abandoning the case.
Have Herennius’s confession formally corroborated
Prepare for the scheduled veteran bout