Gabriel returned to Eldenreach at dusk.
The gates were open as they always were until darkness crossed the sky. Guards stood against the wooden wall, spears resting loosely in their hands.
They straightened when they saw him approach, eyes lingering longer than usual on the black hair, the dark robe, the faint red glow that never left his irises.
They didn't stop the demon-eyed adventurer. Only whispered to one another after he passed.
The air felt thinner. Each time someone met his gaze, whispered, or bowed their head as he passed, the woman's voice replayed in his mind on a loop.
They listen.
They remember names. Faces. Habits.
The words slid through his thoughts with the same calm certainty they had carried in the fog. Not a warning. A statement.
Gabriel moved deeper into the streets, hooves striking the frozen ground in a steady rhythm. People stepped aside without being asked. Conversations dipped as he passed, then resumed too quickly.
