The white-gold root chamber rested beneath the guest house, beyond a stair carved with old Alder names and fresh Court inspection marks.
Eirwen led them through a narrow arch while Ash walked beside his mother, one hand hovering near the pale Ringlet above his wrist.
The root waited inside a clear stone basin, its branches folded around a dark wound that still held one thin trace of gold.
Hajin stopped several paces away and said, "This is the root that bled under divine pressure, so the wound belongs to the route rather than damage around it."
Eirwen touched the basin and replied, "It opened for one breath, showed a road beyond the Court's maps, and closed before a keeper could follow."
Ferra placed the refusal socket on a low stand and said, "The route may recognize an old refusal pattern, because the socket has been restless since we arrived."
Ash's Ringlet sent a pulse through the chamber, and his mother kept one hand near his shoulder without taking his wrist.
