The hallway outside his room was dead silent.
Hide stood perfectly still, his back pressed flat against the wall just beside the heavy oak door. His right hand was locked in a vice-like grip around the pitch-black hilt of one of swords the dark mana already beginning to bleed subtly into the air around the blade.
Tap. Tap. Tap. There it was again. A slow, deliberate, unhurried knocking.
Hide's blue eyes narrowed into lethal slits. The faint, glowing ring of violet surrounded his pupils. He slowly reached out with his left hand, his fingers brushing against the cold metal of the electronic handle. In one smooth, explosive motion, he ripped the door open and pivoted into the doorway, his short sword raised to strike.
He stared out into the plush, brightly lit, carpeted hallway.
It was completely empty.
