Portraits revealed through your current reading position.
Orren rescues Carl from Astrid's enforcement, warns that rogue liaisons may abuse their authority, and arranges a one-time meeting with Quasar despite the litigation freeze.
Orren has Astrid bring the unconscious Carl to his office and ejects the two changelings, accepting Pearson's claim that he blocked the door and broke the sink. Carl wakes forty-five minutes later healed but burdened by painful residual debuffs.
Orren says he will leave his in-game office at floor collapse and not return until the ninth floor because one of his duties has become temporarily unnecessary after Valtay's takeover. His people remain on-planet and available if required.
He explains that liaisons are deliberately selected for disagreement with their home nation's objectives, allowing them to defend the game's supposed purpose against host interests. Some become overzealous or corrupt. Without naming the caprid liaison tied to the Skull Empire, Orren warns Carl that not every rule-enforcer is trustworthy.
With crawl litigation frozen and Quasar unable to obtain a messaging order, Orren authorizes a one-time circumvention on condition that he remain present.
A fishbowl-headed official with gloved hands seated behind a wooden office desk.
Orren uses his final pre-ninth-floor authority to warn about corrupt peers and restore Carl's legal communication.
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