Finally settled into Accord, Sean’s work had barely begun. The plan was to take away Lord Truestrike’s powerbase, then move against him, with Hallie working to strengthen their ties with the nobility. Sean knew better than to get involved with that side of things, knowing he’d just say the wrong things to the wrong people.

While Hallie worked on alliances, Sean focused on healing, bringing the conflict with Truestrike to the fore— the Lord tried to use his influence to push Sean out of the healing guild. The attempt failed spectacularly, as not only was Sean not thrown out, he ended with the majority of the guild siding with him.

Having the healers behind him helped Sean do more. Truestrike’s plots to injure the city guard kept being thwarted, and with the healers on his side, Sean was able to save the majors being targeted. His actions in stopping every attempt to destabilize the guards earned him goodwill with Commander Queensblood.

Beyond helping the guard, Sean also enforced a broken Agreement, bringing him before Advisor Mackenzie Earthfoot. He was meant to explain why he’d cost a noble his hand, but Sean did what he always did: he proved his innocence by helping someone. Giving Mackenzie her foot back put her into debt to him, giving him powerful allies just as the gala began.

The gala was a night of politics. Sean healed those his friends brought him to and tried to not react when he finally met Truestrike. The conflict that happened wasn’t with Lord Truestrike, but his daughter, Trisha. After asking Sean for a dance, the Dame accused Sean of killing Darragh back in Oakwood, then shoved him and stormed off the dance floor.

With the gala over, Sean wondered what was going to happen next. He’d made more allies, been recognized before all of society by the Advisor, and his clash with Truestrike was known. The only thing he was sure of was that the Queens would learn about him, and now, his time was running out before they came to Accord.