Chapter 291 - Dead Source

The dying beast's whimper faded into a final gurgle. The silence that followed was different, charged with a new tension. It was no longer the passive waiting of the night, but the precarious calm that follows the first exchange of fire. The air itself seemed weighted by the echo of the two *Cracks* and Julius's perfect Breath, a signature too bright in the dark that would not fail to attract other gazes.