Chapter 1141

“Mm-hmm.” Amara gave a slow nod. “There are rumors—old family whispers—about certain enforcement methods meant to ensure compliance with the rules. But no one outside the clan leader’s lineage has ever seen them. Whatever they are, they’re passed down in secret, generation by generation. And ever since the Fuller family settled here, not a single merchant who left has dared to defy the clan.” Hazel’s brows furrowed slightly, eyes narrowing in thought. Her brother had once mentioned the decoys—three replicas of Frederick hidden in the ancestral hall's underground chamber. That was certainly one form of control, but she could tell it wasn’t the main one. No, the real method had to be something far more insidious—something that could break Frederick himself, not just manipulate his image. A pressure point hidden in plain sight. Suddenly, a commotion erupted outside. What had been dim, aged lighting in the estate was now washed in a searing brilliance that burst across the night sky, turni