Night fell on the Dorne estate like a blanket soaked in ink. No stars. No moon. Just the dull hum of swamp insects and the occasional plop of something slipping beneath the murky water outside.
I couldn't sleep. That in itself wasn't unusual.
But the reason I couldn't sleep this time wasn't just paranoia.
It was instinct.
There was something off about this place. Not cursed, not magical—just wrong. The kind of wrong that made your skin itch and your instincts scream that something was watching from behind the trees.
And maybe it was.
Footsteps in the Hall
I rose from bed silently, tugging on my coat and blade. The manor's corridors were dim, lit by lanterns that flickered as though disturbed by more than wind.
As I stepped into the hall, I heard voices.
Low. Hushed. Urgent.
I turned the corner and nearly bumped into Felix.
He jumped back, wide-eyed. "Professor?! What are you—?"
"I could ask you the same thing."
He glanced down the hallway. "I… I just needed to walk."
