The next day didn't start in the training hall.
That alone told Dreyden something had shifted again.
He noticed it when he stepped into the corridor and didn't hear the usual direction in people's movement. Normally, mornings had a kind of flow to them. Even when things were tense, there was still a pattern underneath it. People moved toward something.
Today, they moved around each other.
Not avoidance.
Not exactly.
More like… hesitation without stopping.
Dreyden slowed slightly as two students approached from the opposite end. They both adjusted their path at the same time, then corrected again when they realized they'd made the same choice.
A small thing.
But it lingered.
He kept walking.
Lucas was waiting near the stairwell, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. He looked like he hadn't slept enough, but not in a way that slowed him down.
"You feel it?" Lucas asked as soon as Dreyden got close.
"Yes."
Lucas exhaled.
