80: A coiling need

Rune’s POV

I stood outside the restaurant, my body tense, heart pounding against my ribcage as if it was trying to break free.

The street was alive around me, bustling with human activity… laughter, conversations, the clatter of dishes and cutlery from the nearby tables. But none of it registered. My entire focus was on what I sensed inside, on her. Alora.

I could feel her. It was undeniable. The same pull I had felt for years, the connection that had once bound us so tightly it seemed impossible to break.

Even now, standing here after weeks of searching, of wandering through the world without a clear direction, that connection flared to life inside me with a heat that nearly knocked me off my feet.

How could I have thought I could stay away from her? Every second of the past few weeks had been a slow descent into madness without her presence. The city was just a blur around me, just another human environment that I didn’t care about, didn’t understand.

All I cared about was what