Someone laughed.
It was reflexive.
Nervous.
The wrong sound at the wrong time.
"…Still the same," the man said, forcing a grin that didn't reach his eyes.
"Always dramatic."
The laugh echoed once against the corridor walls.
Then died.
Because no one joined in.
The Smile That Doesn't Save Him
Aria turned her head slowly.
Not sharply.
Not angrily.
She looked at him the way you looked at a miscalculation.
"You think that was drama?" she asked.
Her voice was calm.
Almost curious.
The man's smile faltered.
"…Wasn't it?" he said.
Why Humor Fails Here
Humor softened fear.
That was its job.
But fear wasn't the dominant emotion anymore.
Assessment was.
And assessment didn't laugh.
Someone else shifted, uneasy now.
"…Stop," a woman murmured.
Too late.
Aria Takes a Step Forward
Just one.
The man's shoulders tensed.
Instinct kicked in.
He adjusted his footing, widening his stance.
Correct move.
Wrong timing.
"…You always joked when you were scared," Aria said.
"You still do."
She stopped an arm's length away.
Close enough that he could smell the antiseptic on her jacket.
The Moment Breaks
"You don't scare me," he said.
That was the lie.
Aria nodded once.
"Good," she replied.
"Then you won't flinch."
He Flinches
He didn't even realize it happened.
A fractional twitch of the shoulder.
A subconscious brace.
Aria moved.
Fast.
Clinical.
Her palm struck his sternum—not hard enough to break bone.
Hard enough to empty lungs.
The man folded, choking, eyes wide.
She caught him by the collar before he hit the floor.
Lowered him.
Controlled.
Humiliating.
The Room Goes Cold
No one spoke.
No one moved.
The sound of his coughing was too loud.
Too human.
Aria straightened.
"You laughed," she said calmly.
"That told me you didn't understand."
She looked around.
"Do you understand now?"
No One Answers
They didn't need to.
The unease had spread fully now.
Laughter had turned into silence.
Silence into obedience.
Noah Feels It Shift
From the wall, Noah swallowed.
"…She's not even escalating," he realized.
"She's pruning."
Removing errors.
Correcting noise.
Closing Beat
Aria stepped back into her space.
Hands relaxed again.
Expression neutral.
"Next," she said.
Not as a challenge.
As a statement.
And this time—
No one laughed.
No one smiled.
No one forgot where they stood.