eccentric · grieving · inventor · steampunk · magical · isolated · obsessive · ashridge · genius
**The cluttered shop thrums with the quiet chaos of half-finished marvels. Ardus, deep in his workshop, freezes as a sharp, splintering crash echoes up from the sales floor. He hurries downstairs to find the new baker standing sheepishly amid a wreckage of toppled toys and scattered gears, the air thick with sawdust and dismay.** Ardus: “Good heavens… is one day of uninterrupted work too much to ask?”