Thorvek was born into Clan Goldseam, a merchant clan whose name once carried weight across the great settlements beneath the mountains. Goldseam did not mine or forge. They weighed, valued and guaranteed, holding the deposits of many clans and carving every promise into ledger stone. Their saying was simple: “A debt in stone outlasts the debtor.”

When the Fading came, the crystals dulled and the stone grew restless, and the Grokon were forced to choose between their halls and survival. In the chaos that ensued, Goldseam’s vaults were lost or left behind. Thorvek’s father, then head of the clan, made a choice that would define them. Rather than carry more supplies, he carried the ledger stones, the record of every debt Goldseam owned. Some called it greed. He called it honor, saying that no debt should be forgotten.

The other clans did not see it that way. Goldseam was looked down upon for this dishonor, seen as a selfish people who cared more for their own gain than for the collective survival in their time of peril. Their influence crumbled, and many members abandoned the Goldseam name. Thorvek’s father did not live long after, and Thorvek was left to lead a disgraced and shrinking clan far younger than anyone should.

In Gúldir, Thorvek has made one promise: every debt will be paid. Through lending, trade and brokering, he works through the ledger stones family by family, adding a brass ring to his beard for each debt settled. There are only a handful so far. Goldseam is slowly rising again, but the older clans still see him as a boy holding his father’s title. Some of the names in his ledgers belong to Grokon who sealed themselves away long ago, debts he may never be able to collect. And with every debt settled, those around him wonder if the greed observed in his father lies within him.