In the lobby of the inn, silence fell so abruptly it seemed to stun the air itself.
A moment earlier, voices had still lingered in the room, low and uneasy, the way they always did when men like Nobusuke and his followers entered a place that did not belong to them yet behaved as though it did. But now no one spoke. No one even dared breathe too loudly. All eyes were fixed on Nathan.
One of Nobusuke's men had already been thrown aside as if he weighed nothing at all, and the second stood frozen a few steps behind Nathan, his hand trembling around the hilt of his katana. Nobusuke himself remained where he was, narrowed eyes locked on Nathan with a look that could not quite decide between irritation and curiosity.
