Morning draws the household toward the Forum. Aurelia carries the corrected account, Nestor bears the sealed exhibition contract, and Valeria walks beside them; Castor and Pollux remain to guard the house.
Aurelia
Lawful payment is safer than private promises. Before a magistrate, the figures must stand without a creditor’s cloak around them.
Near the basilicas, a public writing table stands beneath the colonnade. The creditor arrives after them, bringing his disputed tablet and a face composed into injured dignity.
The Clerk
Set both accounts here. I will compare the seals, the interest, and the dates before anyone claims what the household owes.
The clerk studies Nestor’s corrections, then opens the exhibition contract. His stylus pauses over Valeria’s name and the promised purses attached to Myrina.
The Clerk
This contract places a public name beside a private household debt. Is Valeria Asiaticus the contracting fighter, or merely the woman who answers for her?
Nestor
The contract names Myrina, but the advance was paid to this household. Let the record distinguish the stage name from the person who bears its consequences.
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure legal protection for the household from the creditor’s disputed claim
“"Myrina is simply my stage name. You will find it registered among the rolls of gladiators kept by the Colosseum. My true name is Valeria Asiaticus, and you have seen me here before."”
SUCCESS (Legendary Oratory, rolled -1)
Valeria Asiaticus
Myrina is simply my stage name. You will find it registered among the rolls of gladiators kept by the Colosseum. My true name is Valeria Asiaticus, and you have seen me here before.
The public clerk looks from Valeria to the sealed contract, then marks both names in the margin. Around the writing table, passersby slow to listen.
The Clerk
Then the distinction is established. Myrina is the registered arena name; Valeria Asiaticus is the contracting woman and household debtor.
Nestor
Record that the Colosseum rolls can confirm it. The name is not borrowed to conceal an obligation, but used openly in the arena.
The clerk sends a junior copyist toward the Colosseum archives with a wax request for the gladiator rolls. He adds the request to the public record before touching the disputed account.
The Clerk
The rolls shall be consulted and attached to this comparison. Until then, no creditor may treat Myrina as a separate debtor, nor alter the household’s lawful account.
Director's note
I should have been a lawyer, Valeria thinks, but wait, women lack the virtus needed to quibble over contracts, we are only allowed to kill people.
The public clerk sands the fresh inscription and sets both accounts beneath a stone weight. The creditor watches the passing crowd gather around his exposed arithmetic.
Valeria Asiaticus
The clerk’s categories are sharper than a sword. Rome permits a woman to risk her life more readily than to dispute a debt.
The Creditor
I accept the distinction, but the household remains responsible for payment. The exhibition purse cannot become an excuse for delay.
Aurelia
Nor can your altered figures become a claim upon money not yet earned. We will pay the lawful account when the purse arrives.
A junior copyist returns from the Colosseum with a wax impression and a brief memorandum. He places both before the clerk, who compares the registered name with the contract.
The Clerk
The rolls confirm it. Myrina is entered as Valeria Asiaticus, arena name only. The advance belongs to the household, and no separate debtor exists.
The clerk strikes the duplicate interest from the public copy and seals the correction. The creditor gathers his original tablet, but cannot remove the record now witnessed by Rome.
Quest Complete
Secure legal protection for the household from the creditor’s disputed claim