Rylen did not move to strike again. He did not chase the advantage. He simply lowered Eclipse Mourne to his side, its black edge hanging loosely as though it carried no weight at all. His expression remained unreadable, calm eyes betraying neither satisfaction nor disdain.
The silence that followed was not emptiness. It was domination, the certainty of an ending that had not yet been spoken aloud. It was the silence of inevitability, the hush that comes when the world itself recognizes which side has already claimed victory.
The crowd froze in that silence. Some could not even breathe. Others clutched at their robes as though anchoring themselves against a tide that threatened to sweep them away.
