At the temple, Elias found himself cautiously settling into the strange, oppressive atmosphere. The eerie quiet, the sense of being watched, and the cryptic behavior of the cloaked figure all kept him on edge. Yet, compared to the chaos of the past few days, the stillness was almost a relief.
That morning, the cloaked figure appeared at Elias's door just as he was finishing a meager breakfast. "Elias," the figure said, his tone light but firm, "meet me in the praying hall. I want to test something."
Elias looked up sharply, suspicion flaring in his chest. "Test what?"
The figure's hood shifted, as though he were smiling beneath it. "You'll see. Don't worry—it won't hurt."
Elias narrowed his eyes, his instincts warning him against complying. But his system, which had been eerily quiet for a while, suddenly chimed in with a single word: Comply.
Grumbling under his breath, Elias pushed back his chair and stood. "Fine. Lead the way."
