The citadel had fallen quiet.
The courtyard training had ended hours ago. Sariel had gone somewhere to nap—or annoy someone. Velvet was reading old assassination novels in the sun. Ciela meditated. Levia bathed. Erika sulked. Asmodeus had seen it all in passing, but none of it held his attention.
Not the politics.
Not the letter from Grigor.
Not even the way Sariel had pressed against him earlier.
He was thinking about the girl who hadn't spoken to him once in three days.
Riel.
She'd vanished after training. Again. She always vanished these days.
Not dramatically—she didn't cry, or shout, or pout like Erika. She just... faded. Her figure blended in with the crowd, as if to avoid his glance.
It bothered him more than it should've.
She wasn't loud, nor powerful.
