Tap-Tap !!
A distant tap-tap resounded over the smooth courtyard stones. Victor's ears picked up on it at once—a clear, deliberate beat that tantalized the silence and awakened something deep inside him. His violet eyes narrowed, computing, wary, every muscle tensed with a barely contained tension. The sun of evening spread long, golden shadows through the courtyard, drawing along the lines of his white-and-purple robe. The Lionheart emblem stitched across his chest reflected the light, shining like a muted declaration of authority. He spun toward the sound, every movement fluid, deliberate, as if even the air is willing to bow to him.
