The hours after the Clan Lord's decree moved with deliberate weight. Outside the pavilion the Azure Phoenix observation teams settled into their positions with the quiet efficiency of people who had done this work before. I counted six fixed posts within line of sight of the guest compound and at least three mobile patrols that rotated through the bamboo paths at irregular intervals. Their monitoring talismans brushed against the outer edges of Lydia's detection formations like probing fingers, never quite pushing hard enough to constitute an open breach, yet never fully withdrawing.
Inside the privacy seals the four of them worked without wasted motion.
