Capital City
In the dusk, the city walls stood firm. The sky had not grown completely dark yet, and all sorts of lanterns were already lit, twinkling and merging into a sea of lights. Later, even once the curfew for entering the night began, it would only mean the gates between wards were closed; the wine shops, teahouses, and brothels within the wards would still bustle with crowds as usual.
Above a residential area in the suburbs, the cry of an eagle suddenly rang out in the night. Someone was still not asleep yet, and upon hearing the sound, looked out through a half-open window. Nothing could be clearly made out in the pitch-black night sky, though after a moment, in a daze it seemed as if a large bird had flown past.
I don't know what's been going on lately, there are so many eagles flying and crying out every day. The man stared for a while, muttering to himself.
However, whether there were many eagles or not did not have much to do with him. Thinking of this, the man casually closed the window and intended to go to sleep.
Other people who heard the cry of the eagle basically had this same attitude of having nothing to do with themselves and hanging it high.
Besides, having an eagle fly past was not considered a strange occurrence, nor was it worth making a fuss over.
Even less did anyone notice that at a courtyard in the far suburbs outside the Capital City after nightfall, something suddenly dropped down from the sky, landing on the ground and making a sound.
When this thing landed, it rolled on the spot, then sprang back up. Its bright, sparkling eyes looked up at the sky, and it chirped twice, not knowing whether