The whisper was not sound.
It carried no vibration.
Yet Vale felt it brush past his awareness, like a breath just missing the skin.
Don't answer.
He stopped walking.
Around him, disciples continued as usual.
The whisper returned—closer.
If you answer, you will echo.
Vale slowed his breathing.
The Aether Ring tightened—not defensively, but deliberately.
The whisper dispersed.
Later, Elder Rin confirmed it.
"The Covenant tested the grounds," he said. "A probing resonance. You neutralized it without reacting."
Vale frowned. "I didn't block it."
Rin smiled thinly. "Exactly."
That night, Vale understood something frightening:
Silence could be noticed.