Shadow of the Gilded Cage

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In the cutthroat, steam-powered metropolis of Oakhaven, Arthur Pendelton is a disposable pawn—a low-tier 'Cleaner' tasked with scrubbing the literal and figurative blood left behind by the city's corrupt high-mage elite. Haunted by the childhood fire that claimed his family, Arthur's obsession with security has left him paralyzed by a debilitating fear of vulnerability. But his mundane, fearful existence shatters when he discovers the 'Emperor's Ledger,' a forbidden grimoire that grants him the unique ability to siphon the residual memories and magic from the corpses he cleans. Armed with this dark cheat, Arthur must ascend the treacherous social ladder of the high-mages. To survive, he is forced to play a deadly game of political espionage, risking the very exposure he fears most. With every secret he uncovers, the stakes escalate, forcing Arthur to choose between the safety of his quiet isolation and a devastating revolution that could either avenge his family or burn the city to ashes.