Remilia walked through the rickety door before her, a gate hiding the endless hall that would lead into the forum. Gazing into the darkness made her sure of one thing: she was in the right place. The busy ambience expanded as Remilia sauntered down the hall, distancing itself from her until it could only be reached from far beyond anywhere she could reach; though there was nothing she could see but nothing itself, Remilia knew that the narrow corridor had gradually grown into a large chamber. She looked around curiously: Is there really nobody to attend to me here?

Surprised, Remilia took another step forward—

Ouch! Huh?

There they were. Remilia had crashed into a rack placed in her way, but what was lined up on it piqued her interest: a collection of Laberges. She picked one up and examined it carefully; these were an older brand than they had used in the Second Forum, she noted. The grating on its face felt noticeably different, and the dials were—

Remilia froze. No way. This model was much older than Remilia had originally thought. The Laberge concealers were first patented by political scientist Henri Laberge during the Reformation period in Juria. A major aim at the time had been to move into genuine self-governance by establishing public forums where ordinary citizens could directly influence their own laws and customs. Much debate sparked over its viability, but Laberge would eventually push away from that discourse with an unusual proposal. Laberge insisted that granting people anonymity while participating would open up discussion and ; this saw the entrance of the Laberge concealers, wearable devices that altered people's voices, and bans on light sources in public forums.

The original line of Laberge concealers