As the sun began to set, I heard a knock at the door.

“Uh, hey Caidi. Halron and I are going to head—” I opened the door before he could finish. With a touch more weariness in his voice, he continued, “—to the tavern, to talk more about the job if you... wanted to join?”

Without a word, I stepped out and started walking, the two of them trailing behind me. What a drag; I have to work with these losers. I made my way to the tavern.

The door was painted red, with the words "The Drunken Dragon" etched into it—a stark contrast to the last tavern I had visited earlier. As I opened the door, the scent of fresh booze wafted through the air, and once again, the eyes in the room weighed heavily on me. Ugh. I made my way to the nearest table, where a man was sitting. Towering over him, I said, "Move." He looked up at me with concern and quickly scurried away. I took my seat.

“--Ookkaayyy…” I heard Azkar say as he slowly approached the table.

The waiter came over as the two of them settled in. “Ale, for all of us,” I said, raising my hand to dismiss him. Annoyance was clearly visible on the faces of the two men sitting across from me. I turned my head away, crossed my arms, and tried to ignore them. I could hear them murmuring to each other, with bits of conversation about the job.

The waiter returned with the drinks. “Hey, um, sir! I have a few questions,” Azkar muttered immediately. The waiter placed the drinks down in front of each person. “Yeah, what’s up?”

“Have you heard the rumors about shadows in the woods? Have people actually gone missing—”

“Shh... Keep your voice down. Yes, the rumors are true, unfortunately. One of my regulars... he hasn’t shown up in quite some time, and no one else has seen him either. I’m genuinely worried and scared about what’s going on.”

I close my eyes mid-conversation, trying to listen in on the surrounding tables.

“I’m worried about Cousin Donny. He left earlier today and was supposed to meet us at a quarter to seven, but it’s almost nine now. I’m worried,” one voice says.

“I’m sure he’s fine, maybe just had to run some errands,” another reassures.

I snap back to the conversation at our table.

“Okay, but do you know what it is? Is it some kind of beast?” Azkar’s eyes widen, a hint of fear creeping in.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“I... I don’t know, man...” The waiter stammers, a bead of sweat rolling down his forehead.

I think back to Morwenna's warning about what I might face. “Alright, after we leave the tavern, we’ll do a quick walk around. First thing tomorrow, we’ll head out and check the woods. I assume it’s more dangerous at night.” My tone is almost commanding as I grip my ale and take a big swig, scanning the two in front of me.

“You know what? I like this one,” Halron chimes in with a smile, taking a sip of his ale. Azkar follows suit, slowly drinking from his mug.

“Hey, if you find anything out during your job, please let me know. I care about the people in this city. Name’s Christian. I’m here all day, every day.” He nods and steps away.

I sit in silence, the room buzzing with chatter around me, faced with my new teammates. I chug my ale. “Alright, I’m out of here,” I say, excusing myself. I place a gold coin on the bar and head out.

As I open the door, I’m greeted by a starry sky. The fresh air gently brushes against my skin as I let out a big exhale. Maybe I’ll have some time without them. I take in the fresh air—it’s refreshing. Ahh, I guess I’ll do a little stroll.

Just as I take a step out, I hear the voices of Azkar and Halron buzzing behind me. I’d better get going. I walk a few blocks down the quiet, empty streets, the distant sounds of people leaving the tavern fading behind me. As I make a right turn, I’m suddenly confronted by a man on the brink of death, deep wounds carved into his flesh.

I rush forward, catching him as he begins to collapse into me. Just then, my teammates catch up.

“Uh, whoa, what's going on? What happened?” Halron stammers, panic evident in his voice.

My head snaps toward him. “We need to rush back to the tavern. I think this is Donny.”

“Donny?” Azkar questions, clearly confused.

“Yeah, I don’t know a Donny,” Halron chimes in.

“Shut the fuck up,” I snap, dragging the man’s body as the others quickly step in to help lift him. We hurry toward the tavern, his weight heavy between us.

As we near the doors of the tavern, I hear the familiar voices from inside, the same ones I overheard earlier. Just as we push through the entrance, a man screams, “Donny!” and rushes over, his face twisted in anguish.

We lay the injured man on the pavement. Halron quickly places his ear to the man’s chest, checking for signs of life. Looking up at the worried man, he reassures him, “He’ll be okay.”

Halron then places his hands over the man’s heart, a glowing bubble forming around him as he begins to heal him. The wounds slowly start to close, but not completely. “I’ve stabilized him,” Halron says, still a bit shaken. “Please take him to the nearest hospital, and meet us here tomorrow at the same time. Relay any information you’ve got.”

The man nods, still visibly distressed, but grateful.

“Hey, it’s getting pretty late. I think we should head back to the dorms and relay this information to Noomba in the morning,” Azkar suggests, his tone slower as he tries to regain his composure.

Without saying a word, I head directly back to the dorms. Maybe now I’ll have some peace and quiet. I let out a sigh of relief.