They did not look back as they moved through the hidden passage, because there was nothing to see that would change what had already been decided, and even if there had been, turning around would only slow them down and dishonor the choice Vorde had made, so they pressed forward through the narrow descent until the suffocating stone corridors gave way to the damp, uneven tunnel that Patrick and Vorde had originally used to infiltrate the city.
The air changed first, less controlled, less suffocating, carrying with it the faint scent of earth and stagnant water, and though the darkness remained thick, it no longer felt like a prison but like a path that led outward, and they followed it with quiet urgency, every step carrying them further away from the collapsing chaos of the castle behind them.
