The Last Envoy of Numidia

When King Jugurtha sends the young envoy Naris into the Roman camp, his mission seems simple: negotiate a surrender that spares a Numidian settlement from ruin. But the Romans already have another offer on the table, one that promises gates, grain, and soldiers in exchange for protection, from a man with his own designs on the town's future. Inside the settlement, Naris finds no unity, only elders desperate to preserve what little remains, defenders loyal to a crown that may not be able to protect them, and a storekeeper who refuses to let comforting lies stand in for hard truths. As he bargains with captains who do not trust him and commanders who do not need to, Naris must shape an agreement fragile enough to break at the first broken promise, and lasting enough to let people keep their homes. What he secures is not the victory he was sent to win. It is something smaller, costlier, and far harder to carry back to a king who must now decide what his kingdom is willing to lose.