### 1. PROSE EVIDENCE

*   **Quote 1 (Early):** "Beneath the heavy weight of her ceremonial velvet, the Peace Vow hummed against her marrow—a golden, suffocating thread that vibrated whenever her heart spiked with the urge to scream."
    *   *Commentary:* This effectively establishes the physiological stakes of the magic system while personifying the "Vow" as an active antagonist.
*   **Quote 2 (Mid):** "He stood to her left, a towering monument to acquisitive greed, his robes smelling of old parchment and cold iron."
    *   *Commentary:* The sensory details of "old parchment and cold iron" successfully reinforce Reginald’s characterization as a man obsessed with archives and rigid control.
*   **Quote 3 (Late):** "Isabella felt the Peace Vow ripple again, a warning sting in her throat. She clenched her teeth, her internal lashing intensifying as she fought the urge to spit in the old man's face."
    *   *Commentary:* This passage captures the internal/external conflict well, showing the physical price of Isabella's defiance.
*   **Quote 4 (Late):** "I suspect there is a great deal of you that is currently in hiding. The way you trace your wrists... the way you hold your breath. You are a map of secrets, Isabella. And I have always been a very diligent cartographer."
    *   *Commentary:* This dialogue serves as a strong character beat for Damien, highlighting his predatory nature and his role as the "shadow-husband."

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### 2. CHARACTER VOICE AUDIT

**Isabella Voss**
*   **Line:** "Pray, keep your memories of my mother to yourself, My Lord. They are far too precious to be soiled by your tongue."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** YES. (Uses the prefix "Pray" sarcastically). 
*   **Avoids Forbidden Speech:** YES. (Maintains an elegant, regal tone).
*   **Emotional Register Match:** YES. (Matches her 15% arc position as a "legally bound hostage-bride" using survival templates).

**Damien Blackthorn**
*   **Line:** "You look pale, Isabella. The ritual is taxing. Or perhaps it is merely the weight of so many promises? You are trembling."
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** YES. (Uses short, cutting sentences as noted in his profile's speech pattern).
*   **Avoids Forbidden Speech:** YES.
*   **Emotional Register Match:** YES. (Focused on "dismantling Isabella’s composure").

**Lord Reginald Thorne**
*   **Line:** "The union is sealed. The Nightbloom Coven has yielded its finest vintage... A new era of stability begins, is it not?"
*   **Signature Vocabulary/Tics:** N/A (General "commanding" tone), though he adopts Isabella's "is it not?" tag, which might be a mocking mimicry or a shared class tic.
*   **Avoids Forbidden Speech:** YES.
*   **Emotional Register Match:** YES. (Triumphant and acquisitive).

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### 3. STRENGTHS TO PRESERVE

*   **The Hemomantic "Tell":** The physical habit of tracing her wrists to ground herself ("tracing the faint ridges of her old scars through the silk of her thumb") is an excellent tie-in to her character sheet and adds immediate tension regarding her hidden bleeding.
*   **The Peace Vow’s Physicality:** The description of the magic as an "internal lash" (e.g., "a sharp, internal lash of magic struck her ribs, cold and jagged as ice") provides a visceral sense of her captivity.
*   **The Power Dynamic:** The contrast between Isabella's "regal correction" mask and Damien's "predatory vitality" creates a compelling friction, especially in the closing scene.

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### 4. MUST-FIX -- CONTINUITY

*   **ORIGINAL:** "The way you trace your wrists... the way you hold your breath. You are a map of secrets, Isabella."
*   **PROBLEM:** Damien notices her tracing her wrists, but the "Known Secrets" block in the RAG states he only "Suspects Isabella is hiding hemomantic bleeding/scarring." If he sees the physical habit and explicitly calls it out as part of her "map of secrets," the secret is arguably no longer "carried/unresolved" in terms of his awareness—it’s out in the open. 
*   **FIX:** Soften Damien’s observation so he suspects *something* is wrong with her hands without specifically naming the gesture he sees, maintaining the "CARRIED (unresolved)" status of her scarring. 
    *   *Revised:* "The way you favor your hands... the way you hold your breath. There are lines written on you, Isabella, that I have yet to read."

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### 5. MUST-FIX -- CLARITY

*   **ORIGINAL:** "Stability is often another word for stillness, Lord Reginald... And stillness, in excess, is indistinguishable from death."
*   **PROBLEM:** While poetic, the logic of "stillness in excess is indistinguishable from death" is a bit of a tautology. In a scene about an annexation, this philosophical detour feels slightly disconnected from the immediate threat of her assets being seized.
*   **FIX:** Connect her remark more directly to the "forced" nature of the peace.
    *   *Revised:* "Stability is often another word for subjugation, Lord Reginald. And the peace of a grave is quite still, is it not?"

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### 6. OPTIONAL SUGGESTIONS

*   **Optional (Mid-Chapter):** Isabella's panic-repetition "blood blood everywhere" is mentioned in her profile as a sign of panic. While it appears in the internal monologue ("Blood, blood everywhere, a panicked voice whispered"), it could be even more impactful if it interrupted her elegant prose more jarringly.
    *   *Quote:* "*Blood, blood everywhere,* a panicked voice whispered..."

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### 7. FORBIDDEN CHANGES / NON-GOALS

*   **Do NOT change:** Isabella’s use of "is it not?" at the end of sentences (e.g., "The Dais is drafty, is it not?"). This is a documented character signature.
*   **Do NOT change:** The "shattered glass" and "bleeding" metaphors used by Damien; these align with his interest in dismantling her.
*   **Do NOT change:** The use of "Pray" as a sarcastic prefix.

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### 8. VERDICT

**VERDICT: REVISE**
**SCORE: 88**

**Justification:** The chapter is atmospheric and follows the character profiles with high fidelity. However, a **REVISE** is necessary because of the continuity issue regarding Damien’s awareness of her wrist-tracing. According to the RAG, the scarring and bleeding are "Known Secrets" that are "CARRIED" and "UNRESOLVED." By having Damien explicitly point to the specific habit (tracing the wrists) that Isabella uses to hide/soothe those scars, the tension of the "secret" is diminished too early in the narrative. Refined subtlety is needed to maintain the "unresolved" status of that plot loop.