The following night, Arven's southern district looked even more abandoned than the records suggested. The streets were wide, made for cargo carts, but almost empty. Some warehouses kept lanterns lit at their entrances, more out of habit than any real movement. Others remained closed, with reinforced doors and windows covered by boards. The crisis had emptied that part of the city even before the fall of the former Duchess, and now every idle building seemed to carry the question of how long Arven would still need before it could breathe properly again.
