The iron gate of Roland's domain swung heavily in the morning wind, groaning on rusted hinges like a dying beast.
Mathias stood at the front of the Imperial vanguard, his dark mantle snapping around his tall frame. Behind him stretched a disciplined line of armored knights, their spears gleaming under a bleak, pale sky. Everything about the surrounding estate felt unnervingly still—no patrols on the outer walls, no sentries at the gatehouses, not even the distant barking of hounds.
Mathias swung his leg over his mount and dismounted with a slow thud. He stood in the quiet courtyard for a moment, adjusting his leather gloves, his green eyes narrowing as he surveyed the grand stone entrance of Tharon Manor.
*Something is wrong.*
"Stay behind until I give the order," Mathias commanded flatly, resting a hand on the hilt of his broadsword as he walked up the marble steps alone.
