The village felt different as night descended. The air was cool, crisp, and filled with the scent of pine trees that lined the ridges. The flickering flames of the bonfire cast long shadows across the gathered villagers, their faces a mix of curiosity and skepticism. The space between Kael and the elder remained charged, heavy with the weight of unspoken thoughts, but there was something else too—something new. A possibility. A spark.
As Kael and his companions were led to a clearing by the elder, the villagers quietly assembled around them, their eyes never leaving the strangers. It wasn't hostility that lingered in the air, but uncertainty—a reluctance to embrace something so foreign, so unknown.
