Smile
The Olvafordt, Freiresval
Xu
Music began playing as one man started to play the violin. Immediately, Xu felt a low-level projection of qi that would have manipulated her emotions, likely suppressing hostility. Based on the man's silken livery, he was from the Archipelago of Okken, but he was playing a Northern song.
Geopolitically, Okken could have been a natural ally of Aviye, but their politics had taken an imperialist turn. With the old powers weakened by the Continental War, the growth of Okken's military was signaling a desire to create an empire out of the East.
Xu gave the man a wide berth, deciding to test the waters by projecting an antipathy field around herself. It had been a long time since she relied on it, especially since she had something far, far better. But the time for that was not now.