"I'm afraid..."

With a racing heart and ragged breaths, exhaustion and fatigue gnawed at him as he ran through the pitch-black darkness, glancing back with intense fear.

"Leave me alone!"

"I don't want to die now!"

A sharp pain and a piercing coldness coursed through his entire body. At that moment, he saw a faint glimmer amidst the pitch darkness. Without any hope of survival, he headed towards it without thinking.

(I'm almost there, I'm almost there)

As he repeated those words in his head, he suddenly lost his balance and fell to the ground with a thud. Despite that, he had indeed arrived.

He coughed continuously, placing his hand over his mouth, then began to vomit the blood rising from his throat. When he lifted his weary gaze towards the source of light, he realized that he could only see with his right eye. Involuntarily, he felt the left side of his face with his hand, and when his fingertips reached his eye, he could only touch emptiness. At that point, panic took over his every thought, and his breathing became more and more rapid until he felt his heart would burst through his chest.

"W... who are you?!" He said it with great difficulty, stammering as he saw a shadow approaching. With each passing second, its speed increased until a pitch-black hand appeared, reaching towards his face.

"Aaaah!" He screamed with all his remaining strength...

                                                   Chapter 1: An Unexpected Path

After opening his eyes, he leaned his head against the tree behind him, placing his hand on his pale face and feeling his eye eagerly. "Damn this nightmare?" His breathing calmed down a bit after he felt some relief, and he began to gather his wits until he managed to stand up with difficulty.

Amidst a stormy atmosphere where the only sound was the howling of the fierce wind passing through the houses stretching as far as the eye could see, he walked barefoot, his will wavering, filled with a sense of despair. Although he hadn't eaten anything in two days, his steps were steady.

"Oh my God, I'm late!"

"I should have left those papers for tomorrow." The girl said this in an annoyed tone as she hurried, and without realizing it, her foot slipped off the step and she fell, but she collided with someone instead of the ground.

"Aaaah!" After regaining her balance, her face was flushed with embarrassment as she bowed repeatedly and quickly. "I'm so sorry, sir."

He seemed to not hear a thing when she looked at him, for he was staring at the stone building with the massive door behind her.

"Sir!"

"Are you okay, sir?!"

She kept calling him and waving her hand in front of his face, but she couldn't make out his features in the darkness due to his head covering.

Without paying any attention to what she said, he turned his gaze towards her and asked in a calm voice, "What is this place?"

"It seems you're a stranger here, this is Sital City, it's..." Before she could finish, he interrupted her, saying, "I mean that." Then he raised his head, pointing to that building.

She smiled a little artificially, feeling embarrassed. "So then, this is the Adventurers' Guild. As expected, it seems you're not from this city." And before he could say a word, she continued hurriedly, "As you can see, the storm is starting to get worse, so we closed it early."

As the first drops of rain fell, she took the notebook she was carrying and placed it on her head as she ran quickly. "I'm so sorry to go now, I would be grateful for your help tomorrow."

"Wait..." He said it in a faint voice, gesturing towards her, but she had already walked away and didn't hear anything.

(Damn it! After finally finding the guild) Fatigue had gotten the better of him as he searched for a place to shelter from the heavy rain. After walking a long way and on the outskirts of that city, he found a tree with dense leaves. Under it, he threw his heavy body down and leaned his back against that black cloak that covered his clothes. With the sounds of the rain showers and its smell, his only hopes were simple at that moment, "I hope I don't catch a cold."

The sun had settled in the middle of the clear sky, and the heat had intensified. After sleeping for more than half a day, our protagonist woke up with a growing sense of frustration. (What is this? It was so cold yesterday.) He sighed heavily and took off the cloak he was wearing to relieve his sweating.

He had long, unkempt hair that was dark brown, almost black - chestnut - and his light brown eyes were lost in thought. There were traces of fatigue and lack of sleep on his slightly pale face. He was of average build but tall, and his clothes were old and tattered, especially the cloak. He also had a sword with a long, worn-out hilt.

Despite the time that had passed since he opened his eyes, the place was eerily quiet. No one had passed by on the opposite road, and the only sound was the murmur of water from the nearby stream. Or so it was.

"Stop!"

That cry was enough to shatter the relative peace, causing him to look towards the source of the sound. He saw a person running from the horizon, exhausted and sweating profusely, looking back over his shoulder as if he were running away from something. (Like that dream..., is this a coincidence?) His mind wandered for a moment, as if he had seen it before, but it only took him a few moments to realize the situation.

"Hah!"

"A thief?" He whispered to himself, and as the person approached him, passing in front of him, he stuck out his foot. Without realizing it, the man stumbled and fell, rolling on the ground, but that didn't stop him much. He didn't say anything and quickly got up and continued on his way, staggering.

"I did the best I could," he said, and then he got up too. As he was putting on his cloak, he saw something shiny on the ground. He picked it up and examined it. It looked like a green gemstone, like an emerald. It was round and didn't seem to be anything special. "I don't know if it's valuable, I've never seen anything like it before."

After a few moments, he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Involuntarily, and without looking, he clasped the stone in his hand and hid it. He suspected that it might be something stolen.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"Hello," came a weary voice, followed by rapid breaths. He turned his head towards him and saw a young man with short blond hair, combed neatly on all sides, but with a well-proportioned height and wide, light blue eyes. He had a handsome face and average height. His clothes were divided in colors between white and sky blue, embroidered with gold threads and decorations. He looked like a nobleman or something.

He stared at the young man with a surprised face, as if he had seen something that aroused his interest.

"You! Isn't that Ro..." But he closed his mouth and didn't finish his sentence.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but have you seen anyone pass by here a few minutes ago?" the boy said quickly, looking nervous.

"Yes," he pointed with his thumb to the road behind him. As soon as he did, the young man took off again without saying a word.

"Wait..." he said when he remembered the stone, but the young man didn't even look back and ignored him completely. "Damn, he's gone," he sighed heavily, thinking whether to leave the stone here and go or wait for the boy to return (I'm such an idiot, I shouldn't have interfered from the beginning, all I wanted to do was slow him down).

"Here I am wasting another day," he sat down again, resting his forehead on his fist.

(This person has two elements, I didn't know that was possible, it seems there are still many things I don't know) While he was lost in thought, two people passed by on the same road that the young man had come from. Light breezes blew, causing the girl's golden locks of hair to fly, and the sad expression on her face, with eyes that resembled emeralds, was a mixture that was difficult to describe because of her beauty. She walked lightly despite her loose dress, followed by a girl with short black hair and clothes resembling those of a servant.

The maid's gaze was so sharp that he felt like she was going to pierce him, so he looked away. Only a few moments passed before the boy returned, looking frustrated. "I'm sorry, Isabella, I couldn't catch up to him."

The girl smiled with her lips only, but the rest of her face remained depressed. "It's okay, you did your best." She was silent for a moment, unable to stop the small tears from welling up in her eyes. "It's my fault, I was careless."

"My lady, we can ask the guild to issue a notice for anyone who comes up with any information." That was the suggestion of the maid, who stood helplessly before her mistress's tears. "We can't bother them with something as trivial as this." As soon as the girl finished her sentence, the maid responded with some emotion, clasping her hands together. "But I'm sure they'll understand, especially if they know that Mr. Edward is your uncle." That sentence angered the girl, causing her to shout slightly at the maid. "Claudia, I told you not to mention that again. I won't use my uncle's name for something personal."

All this while he was sitting watching them in silence, and finally he decided to intervene. "You!" He called out to the young man. "You're here?! Sorry, I didn't thank you properly before," the boy said in a calm tone, smiling, putting his hand on his head, and approaching him slowly. He then bowed. "Thank you."

He looked away from him, visibly tense, as if he felt embarrassed. "No... it's okay," he said in a hesitant voice. He extended his hand. "Is this yours?" As soon as the boy saw the stone, his voice rose. "Impossible! Where did you find it?"

This made the girl look up, after being uninterested, and in a quick moment she snatched the stone from his hand and held it to her face, her eyes watering. "I thought I would never find it again." Her happiness was mixed with some sadness.

The boy asked him, "Where did you find it? I thought that person had stolen it and run away with it." He was silent for a moment, thinking, then said, "It doesn't matter where I found it, you got it back, didn't you?" The girl clasped the stone in both hands and hugged it to her chest tightly. "I don't know how to thank you..." He interrupted her firmly, "It doesn't matter, now that you have what you wanted, go." The girl got angry. "Can we at least know your name?"

When he heard that, his mind wandered as if the question was difficult. "Name?...""

"Yes, that's right, I haven't used it in a long time, but isn't it polite for you to introduce yourselves first?" The boy replied with a slight smile. "You're right, my name is Ren, and this young lady is Isabella, Lady of Longrad Manor, and that's her assistant Claudia, and I'm her personal knight."

"I'm... Jin."

"Just Jin."

They all fell silent and turned their eyes to him, their faces clearly confused, which made Jin feel strange. "Is something wrong?" He asked them, but only Ren answered, a fake smile on his face and his voice becoming melodious. "No, nothing, Jin, it was nice to meet you." He then extended his hand to shake his, but Jin ignored him. "You don't seem happy at all, anyway, you don't owe me anything, even if you consider the stone matter important, I don't." Jin stood up calmly and then continued in a sharp tone, "It's time to say goodbye now."

They walked away from him without saying anything, then stopped and talked about something. (Are they arguing about something? No, it's more like a debate.) Claudia was talking excitedly, and after a short while the two returned and approached him, but Claudia waited away. "What are you doing in this place?" After Ren said that, Jin closed his eyes, and his face showed annoyance. Then he said sarcastically, "Are you interrogating me now or what?" Ren quickly realized his mistake, "No, no, I misunderstood. It's just that Isabella insisted on returning the favor to you. The matter of the stone means a lot to her." He paused here, and Isabella continued, "Yes, it's the last thing I have left of my late parents."

Jin put his fingers between his curly hair and sighed heavily. "Can you guide me to the location of the guild? I've lost my way." Ren and Isabella looked at each other and smiled. "Are you an adventurer?" Ren said that as his eyes widened with excitement. "No, not yet, but I hope so. Maybe if you guide me to it, we'll be even."

"Listen, we talked about it..."

"What do you think about working in my uncle's mansion?"

That was surprising to Jin. "Huh!" He had barely said anything when a scream rang out in the air, "My lady!"

"We shouldn't trust a stranger like this!" Claudia's feelings were a mixture of anger and anxiety. They had all seen it.

"Claudia! Don't be rude. He helped us, and the decision ultimately rests with him."

Then Isabella looked at Jin again. "What do you think? Isn't this better than irregular work at the guild? And if you don't like it, you can leave."

Jin's mind was scattered, and he didn't know whether to accept their offer or go to the guild. But even so, he found it a good opportunity (In the end, maybe I don't have to start from scratch to meet that person).

"I'm sorry, but no." The two frowned and felt a little disappointed. Then Isabella asked him, "Can I know the reason?"

Jin replied quietly, "You may be right that it's better than going to the guild. But I don't know how to do anything. I'll be a burden." She laughed lightly, just like the reflection of the moonlight on the lake. "You fool, I thought it was about principles or something. Don't worry, we'll find you a suitable job."

"I guess there's no escape from it in the end." It wasn't Isabella and Ren's insistence that made Jin accept, but he found it a good opportunity. He realized that this girl was not an ordinary person, and maybe this was a shortcut to achieving his goal. The two were happy with his approval, except for Claudia, who was only more worried and confused.

It didn't take them long to reach the carriage pulled by a brown horse. Ren drove the carriage, and Jin sat next to him, while the girls rode inside. The road was long, and the night had fallen. There was only the faint light of the stars, and Jin could not distinguish any features of the road.

"Jin! You seem lost in thought. Are you okay?" Jin was staring at the sky with a pounding heart, full of mixed emotions. He didn't know when this had started, but these feelings had become his constant companions. "Yes, I'm fine."

"Don't worry, the others at the mansion are kind. I'm sure you'll get along with them." Ren was silent for a moment, then his face changed. "Who are you, Jin?" Jin closed his eyes and leaned his head back, expecting him to ask that. "Me?... I wish I knew. Maybe I'm just a fool who lost his way and doesn't know where he's going."

"Hahaha, you're really eccentric, but you're not a bad person."

(This is a huge house. No wonder they call it a mansion.) Jin was amazed when he saw it, probably because he had never seen anything like it before. Most of his travels had been in villages and forests. A large house with many floors and windows, surrounded by an iron fence around its large garden. The carriage entered its surroundings and stopped in front of a large wooden door that was bigger than the one at the guild. Ren knocked on the door with metal rings attached to it, and when it opened, there were several people standing in front of the door.