Morning in Lin'an was anything but peaceful.
At dawn, merchants' cries tore through the air, hooves pounded the cobblestones, voices mingled with the clang of bells. Life pulsed, urgent and alive — yet beneath it all, something strange stirred.
Hei Tian opened his eyes without a word. He never truly slept, not since the village. Sleep came in waves — brief silences between fragments of memory. He rose before the others, tied his belt, checked that Yun Lue was still asleep, and left the room silently.
The city was waiting.
He walked for a long time, avoiding the main roads. He went down sloping alleys, crossed a mossy wooden bridge, watched beggars squabble over a bowl of rice. Everything looked normal. But…
Eyes watched.
Silences stretched.
Street corners emptied suddenly, as if something unseen were passing by.
He stopped at an empty stall. An old man stared at him wordlessly. Not hostile. Not curious. Just… there.
"You're not from around here, are you?" the old man finally said, voice dry and rough like cured leather.
Hei Tian said nothing.
The old man nodded, as if he hadn't expected a reply.
"Remember this. In this city, never look too long into the shadows. You might see something… and after that, it's too late."
He walked away, dragging his feet.
Hei Tian watched him go, silent.
Something was wrong. The city was alive. But under the rooftops, an ancient fear was sleeping.
---
By late morning, he returned to the inn.
On the roof, Yun Lue sat cross-legged, her back straight. She stared at the sky as if waiting for an answer.
Hei Tian climbed up silently and sat beside her.
A long silence.
Then she spoke:
"We're no longer protected here. The world's bigger. Dirtier."
She turned her eyes toward him.
"But we chose this. We decided to go on."
Hei Tian nodded slowly.
"Yes."
She didn't smile. But something in her eased. A little.
The silence stretched. He handed her a dried fruit, again. This time, she took it without looking away.
---
Mu Liang returned mid-afternoon, his face tenser than usual.
"I went to buy bread. Something happened."
They listened.
"A man was taken by the guards. They dragged him off without a word. No one moved. I asked why. A guy just said: 'He broke the pact.' Then he left."
Chen, sitting in the shadows, raised his head.
"You see? The world speaks. Not with words. You just have to know how to listen."
Yun Lue frowned.
"What pact?"
Chen didn't answer right away. Then:
"Every city has its rules. Some are written. Others… you guess, or you die."
A heavy silence fell.
Chen continued:
"You're young. That's your chance. The young can still learn. Me, I just survive."
He stretched, stood slowly.
"But you… you have one month. So we begin."
---
That evening, in the inn's courtyard, he gave each of them a task.
To Mu Liang: run along the ramparts every morning before dawn.
To Yun Lue: listen to the silence of the city, every evening, for one hour.
To Hei Tian, he said only:
"Observe a person. Just one. Choose. Watch them live for three days. Don't speak. Don't judge. Just watch."
Hei Tian didn't respond at first.
"Why?"
"Because one day, your enemy will wear an ordinary face. And if you can't read it… you'll die."
Silence fell like a blade.
Chen turned to leave.
"You start tomorrow. And remember — every day wasted here… is a day stolen from your future."
---
Later that night, as the city slowly drifted into sleep under lanterns and whispers, Hei Tian was still awake.
He watched the empty alley through the shutters.
A single phrase floated in his mind.
"This world has laws.
This world has flaws."
He closed his eyes.
He would find them.
Even if, first…
He had to learn to be silent.
And to see.
---