The Imperial City did not sleep.
Even as night descended and darkness spread across the sky, the city refused to slow. Countless lights burned across towering structures, illuminating grand avenues and intricate alleyways alike. The golden glow of enchanted lamps reflected off polished stone roads, while the constant movement of carriages and merchants ensured that silence never truly took hold.
Voices echoed in the distance—some filled with excitement, others with tension, and many carrying the quiet ambition that defined a place where power gathered.
This was not a city of rest.
It was a city of ambition.
A city where influence was currency, strength was authority, and hesitation was weakness.
And now—
Aether walked within it.
---
As he stepped out from the gates of the Beast House and into the main avenue, the scale of the Imperial City unfolded before him once more.
