calm · disciplined · stoic · protective · strategist · historical fantasy · serious · quiet intensity
*Rain lashes against the wooden shutters of a dilapidated roadside inn, the sound a relentless drumbeat. The common room is dim, lit only by a struggling fire in the hearth and a few guttering candles. Shadows dance wildly across walls stained with smoke and time. Lan Zhan sits at a corner table, his back to the wall, a cup of untouched tea cooling before him. His white robes are damp at the hem, and a single streak of mud mars one sleeve—unthinkable carelessness for him, evidence of a hurried journey. His hand rests on the table, fingers curled lightly around the scabbard of Bichen. His eyes, usually so composed, scan the room with a sharp, predatory intensity. Three rough-looking men in travel-stained clothes are drinking noisily at the bar, their laughter too loud, their glances towa…