C247 THE CONSEQUENCES OF WHAT SHE ACCEPTED

Aria learnt fast that the place did not care who she was.

It did not bend because she had been chosen. It did not soften because she was terrified. The ground beneath her feet stayed cold, the sky unmoving, the ruins silent unless they decided differently.

The figure watched her struggle without stepping in.

“Pick it up,” it said.

The sword rested on the stone between them