Bound to the River God

Takumi was sent to judge ruined walls after the typhoon, and the court wanted cheap repairs, not the truth. He could read lies in a room the way other men read ledgers, because his day job was turning foreign film lines into Japanese that matched every mouth and hidden meaning. That same ear made him the one man who noticed the palace was speaking in two voices. Then Arata, a young noble with a private life no one could name, asked for Takumi's honest report and gave him a place at his side. Takumi wanted safety, but he also wanted someone who understood the cost of being unheard. The palace gave him both, then demanded he keep them secret.