"Let us see what kind of silence lives here."
Lucian did not wait for agreement before stepping forward.
The others followed without needing to be told.
The street ahead narrowed as they moved deeper into the older residential section. The shift was gradual at first, almost unnoticeable if someone wasn't paying attention. But Lucian was.
The further they went, the more the district stopped feeling like part of the capital at all.
It did not feel dangerous.
It felt forgotten.
Buildings leaned slightly into time instead of resisting it. Stone walls carried uneven repairs where someone had clearly fixed what was broken without caring if it matched the rest. Lantern hooks still clung to the walls, rusted into place, no longer serving anything but memory. Windows stayed shut even where no one seemed to be inside them, as if the houses had learned long ago not to open themselves unnecessarily.
Lucian's gaze tracked it all without slowing.
Nothing about it demanded attention.
