Ezra didnt move.
The gaslight still swayed above the empty street, its glow flickering weakly against the fog-drenched buildings. The shadowless man was goneor at least, he was no longer where Ezra could see him.
But that didnt mean he had left.
Ezra inhaled slowly, counting his breaths. The weight of the city pressed against him, heavier than it should have been. As if Eldenwald itself was watching.
Then, just at the edge of hearing
A whisper.
Not words. Not yet.
Just sound. A presence curling at the edges of perception, threading through the spaces between things.
Ezras fingers twitched toward the book inside his coat.
The Hidden Laws.
It had revealed something beforewhen he spoke the name that should not be spoken. When the ink bloomed across the pages.
Maybe it would again.
Ezra pulled it free, carefully unwrapping the cloth. The black leather cover was cool to the touch, humming faintly with something unreadable. He flipped it open.
Blank. Again.
He clenched his jaw. "Not this time."
He pressed his palm against the page.
And he spoke.
"I seek the First Law."
The effect was immediate.
The book responded.
Ink bloomed across the paper, unfurling like a slow-moving ripple, forming words that had been waiting for him.
"The First Law of the Hidden: Reality is Consensus."
"The world is not solid. It is a story told by many, agreed upon, reinforced by belief."
"That which is forgotten is erased."
"That which is doubted begins to unravel."
"If enough minds refuse to acknowledge something it ceases to exist."
Ezra exhaled sharply.
A cold understanding settled into his bones.
The police reports on Crownevanished.
The records of the deadscrubbed away.
The address on Ashmere Laneerased from the citys memory.
It wasnt just cover-ups.
It was removal.
The Ministrywhoever they were, whatever they truly servedthey werent just silencing information.
They were making it cease to be.
Ezras grip tightened on the book. His pulse remained steady, controlled, but his mind raced.
If reality was consensusif enough people forgot something, if enough people refused to acknowledge itit could be erased.
Not metaphorically. Literally.
His stomach twisted. Had it happened to Crowne?
Ezra turned his gaze back to the city around him. The empty streets. The stillness.
Had it happened to Eldenwald itself?
He closed the book.
The moment the cover snapped shut, the whisper returnedcloser this time.
A breath against his ear.
"Now you understand."
Ezra turned sharply.
But there was no one there.
Just the city.
Watching.