Chapter 14: what the people saw

The hustle of the marketplace surged around Umbra, who had placed himself at its center. All colors, shiny trinkets, and all manners of people passed-crowds of mages, merchants, and adventurers-but to him, it did not matter. He wove his way through them, his gaze cold and unfeeling, cast downward at the floor as if this world was some sort of muffled noise with all its commotion.

Whispers followed him wherever he went. Some said he looked like someone who had died over and over again. Others muttered that he had the kind of eyes that spoke of endless suffering, like someone who had never known peace. They didn't know the truth, and they didn't need to. It didn't matter. No one understood, and no one ever would.