Chapter 14: The Imperial Loyalty Codex, Article 9

The morning's first four cases were class ones.

Kael worked through them before the commissary opened, before the Bureau floor filled, before Tael arrived and settled her binder on the desk with the particular soft precision that marked the start of her working day. Four class ones, sequential, none requiring the extended methodology. He logged, notated, submitted. The queue diminished by four. The queue replenished by six.

By mid-morning he had reduced the gap to two.