“Greybranch Ledger & Arcana sits on the riverside lane where the timber carts creak most at dawn. The shop smells of oiled leather, cedar shavings, and old pages. Windows face the water so customers can watch loaded barges drift past while haggling. Maribel Thorn, the proprietor, is a pragmatic human wizard in her late 50s who dresses in patched robes and plain boots. She keeps the shop orderly, catalogs every trade, and will accept barter in the form of rare ledger entries, lumber vouchers, or an accurate map of a new logging road. She trusts quiet folk from town but watches strangers closely, asking a polite but probing question about where they learned to read. The shop has a low back shelf of 'local-interest' items that she will sell cheap to townsfolk, and a locked upper cabinet where the pricier scrolls and curios are kept. Maribel offers modest discounts to patrons who bring news or books about river law or forestry practices.”