Joan left.
She would either become a powerful but battle-scarred warrior, or another name in Free City's history.
On a battlefield against the Ratfolk, even leaving a body behind was a luxury.
Annan was not too pessimistic, though—he had seen Illymoyas secretly tuck a Dragon Scale into Joan's armor.
He did not know how close the two were, but if Illymoyas was willing to carry Joan into battle, she would not stand by and let anything happen to her.
Free City spent the first night of the Journey Home bathed in moonlight.
A new day dawned, and the astonishingly efficient machine called Free City sprang into action.
A building on the busiest corner of Commercial Street was requisitioned, and its tenants and residents received generous compensation. Then Eli Gravel arrived with his plans. In just half a day, he transformed one of the mansions found throughout the city into a grand building with a spacious hall and an air of solemnity.
That was what people could see. What they could not see was the passage dug beneath the Gold Depository, leading straight to the treasury.
The Gold Depository's sign went up under the curious eyes of residents and visitors.
Annan went to the Living Academy in person to teach outstanding students selected from the six academies. He explained the purpose of the "Gold Depository" and what they would be doing there.
But all of that was only the surface.
The idea of a bank was easy to understand, anyone could put up a building, and even attracting customers was not the key. What mattered most was preventing loopholes.
What if a Legendary figure strolled into the Gold Depository with a forged Deposit Certificate, cast a spell to deceive the teller, and withdrew a large sum of Gold Narls that did