"This reeks of a demon's work."
Raye muttered those words quietly.
The moment he did, the atmosphere around the table changed.
Lycus, Sofia, and Jerusha all stopped moving. Their hands paused mid-reach toward their foods, their thoughts immediately aligning with Raye's conclusion.
None of them argued.
None of them laughed it off.
They all felt it too upon hearing the story about the meadow.
'Looks like this won't be a normal stop by.'
The same thought passed through everyone's mind almost simultaneously.
The silence stretched for a brief moment, heavy but not uncomfortable. It was the kind of silence that came when people reached the same conclusion without needing further explanation.
"So, what's our plan?"
Lycus broke the quiet first, his voice low but steady.
Raye shifted his gaze toward him. He did not hesitate.
He opened his mouth almost immediately.
