Chapter 361: Dangers In Human Form
Dawn slowly crept towards them like a thief, chasing away the veil of night above them.
The sun rose slow and golden behind the 27th Peak, its light crawling across the mountain’s frozen face like a jealous lover. Snowflakes glimmered like sparks in the pale light, and the wind, though still sharp, had gentled with the coming of morning.
The makeshift camp was already gone. The tents had been packed, the fires stamped out, and the smoke that had curled lazily just hours before had now dispersed.
What remained was a crowd of hopefuls, lean figures wrapped in cloaks, armored men and women with hard eyes, young prodigies brimming with energy, all gathered before the great sealed gates of Carthage.
Ren stood with Lilith and Thorn at the outer edge of the crowd, his gaze sweeping over the field of competitors.
He’d spent the time scoping out every warrior he could see, and his senses, honed after a year of surviving the mountains, were ready for the task. It didn’t take long to pick out the threats.
"See them?" Ren said quietly, his chin tilting toward a trio standing apart from the rest.
They were tall and grim looking, their expressions unreadable beneath fur lined hoods and ash gray scarves that covered the lower halves of their faces.
Their skin was pale, but their eyes narrow and dark, their cheekbones sharp and high. One had a sheathed blade curved slightly at the edge, an eastern design. They were foreigners. Ren didn’t need to ask where they were from.
"They’re from beyond the Arondale range." He murmured.
Lilith followed his gaze. "Far east?"
"Yeah. I’ve read about them."