'Just keep looking. Just keep looking.'
The silence in the corridor pressed in on Eli's ears, so heavy it made the sound of his own breathing feel deafening. Each inhale seemed too sharp, each exhale too shaky.
Step by step, they advanced—Caelen leading, Eli shadowing him.
The gargoyles loomed on either side like ancient sentinels, their massive wings half-curled, claws extended in mid-swipe, as if someone had frozen them in the middle of striking.
Every pass brought Eli's gaze across another pair of jagged stone teeth, another set of hollow eyes that seemed too aware.
The details were too perfect—the cracks along their hides looked less like erosion and more like old battle scars. Their muscles, carved from granite, looked coiled… ready.
From the corner of his vision, Eli stole a glance at Caelen. The man's movements were smooth, calculated—his golden eyes fixed ahead, not even flicking toward the statues.
His breathing was steady. His posture didn't waver.
