The court empties in a hush of silk and armor. Only Empress Xifeng, Magistrate Wei, and Archivist Shen remain beneath the towering pillars, with Kareem Bishop still at the center of the room and the brass tally gleaming in his hand.
Empress Xifeng
Bring that tally forward. If it serves the realm, it will endure scrutiny. If it does not, it will answer for itself.
She gestures once, and the light seems to narrow around the device. Shen stiffens, while Wei keeps his hands folded, watching Kareem like a man waiting for a blade to drop.
Archivist Shen
That object is not a relic, Your Radiance. It is an imperial key. It should be in archive custody, not in an outsider’s grip.
Magistrate Wei
It was found bound to falsified records and hidden ledgers. If it is an imperial key, then the bureau must explain why it was used as bait.
The Empress studies Kareem, then the tally, then Shen. Her silence feels like a verdict waiting for a name.
Empress Xifeng
Kareem Bishop, tell me this plainly. Are you a tool placed by the Celestial Bureaucracy, or the thing that has been used to expose it?
✓ Quest Accepted
Secure a fragile alliance with the Empress
“"You're majesty, I will be 100% honest with you but it may not be what you want to hear. I am not from here. I am from a completely different world. A world with cell phones, airplanes, roombas, and ICBMs. I know those words mean nothing to you. Basically where I came from is several hundred to more than a thousand years ahead of here in technology. But we ain't got magic. Like at all. We dont have gods. We dont have dragons. And a thousand other things this world has that mine didn't. I woke up here. No idea how I got here. No idea why I am here. Just woke up with a bag of gold and a name. But when I asked about the name people thought I was crazy or had the plague”
SUCCESS (Legendary Diplomacy, rolled +1)
Kareem Bishop
Your Majesty, I will be completely honest, even if the truth is not what you want to hear. I am not from this world.
Kareem explains that his homeland lies centuries, perhaps more than a thousand years, ahead in craft and invention, yet possesses none of this world's magic, gods, or dragons.
Kareem Bishop
I woke here with no explanation, a bag of gold, and a name. When I asked about that name, people thought I was mad or carrying some sickness. I still do not know why I was brought here.
The confession settles over the chamber. The tally's glow remains steady, neither rejecting Kareem's words nor exposing a hidden command.
Empress Xifeng
You speak of another world without disguising uncertainty as prophecy. That is not the voice of a planted herald.
Archivist Shen
Or it is the finest disguise the Celestial Bureaucracy has placed before us.
Empress Xifeng
Then we will test neither his birthplace nor his blood by rumor. Kareem Bishop remains my commissioned reformer, and his testimony enters the imperial record under my protection.
Magistrate Wei
Your Radiance, that protection gives the reforms a lawful shield. I will ensure the record is witnessed and preserved.
Empress Xifeng
And you, Kareem, may keep the parts of your origin that are yours alone. Tell me what your distant homeland taught you about making life safer.
Share practical knowledge from Kareem’s homeland with Empress Xifeng
Quest Complete
Secure a fragile alliance with the Empress