"On that fateful day, the Eddy I knew got lost..." Barren said, looking in the direction of Eddy as he started walking toward the city gate.

"It's going to be night soon. Do you guys have anywhere to stay?" Barren asked Theo.

"No, we thought we would just stay at an inn near the guild hall," Eddy interjected before Theo could respond.

Theo took the hint and said, "Yes, after we visit the apothecary, we'll head to the inn."

Kathleen was shocked but didn't interject.

"Let's go. We don't need to visit the apothecary now, so let's head to the inn," Barren said as he started walking fast to catch up with Eddy.

"Sorry about that, but we can't make a mistake now. You told us you didn't know the attackers, right? We still don't know their motive or who they were. As for Ashfell Village, we heard that not a single villager was killed, and nothing was stolen either. The people who got injured were those who actively tried to protect their homes and fight back. It's almost as if the bandits were ordered by someone to destroy the houses and nothing else."

Kathleen was shocked to hear that.

"But… but that can't be. I was there when they attacked. I saw everything."

"They attacked the village and then came to the orphanage. I can still recall the frightened faces of the kids. They came inside, breaking the main door. Everyone panicked and started screaming. I was the only one who could fight them, so that's what I did—I tried to hold them off as much as possible. But then I looked back and saw the sight I will never forget," Kathleen said, starting to weep as she exclaimed.

"I couldn't protect them. They outnumbered me and got inside the house. Then… that woman came."

Kathleen's voice trembled as she continued. "I can still vividly remember what she said."

"Leave those children. We can easily kill them later. She is the one we were looking for," the woman said, pointing at Kathleen.

"Whoever manages to kill this woman, our LORD will bless him with a reward," the woman added with a creepy smile.

"How does it feel knowing that everything is happening because of you? You! Because of your mistake, all the villagers had to suffer and get killed," Kathleen recalled the woman saying, her words cutting deep.

Kathleen stood there, utterly shocked.

"You are the reason those children will die—because of you and you alone!"

"What did I do?" Kathleen shouted, tears flowing from her eyes, yet she still held her sword, ready to attack at any moment.

"What have I done? Tell me!"

"You… you are after me. I made the mistake, right? Then why did they have to suffer? Why?" Kathleen shouted again, her voice filled with anguish.

"That's simple," the woman replied coldly. "Because you think of them as family, and we will not only kill you but also destroy everything you love."

The woman's face twisted into a grin as she gave the order.

"Soldiers, kill this woman now!" she commanded.

Hearing that order, the soldiers began moving toward Kathleen.

At that moment, Kathleen thought to herself, "If these guys are after me, then there's a chance if I start running toward the forest, they will follow me."

Acting on her plan, she started running toward the forest.

As she expected, every single soldier started running, following her. Kathleen's plan worked.

"As she entered the forest, she saw for the last time the orphanage she had called home for the last couple of years."

She kept running, tears in her eyes, and thought to herself, "If I die today, that's okay—if I can give them a chance to survive."

For the entire first day, she ran without stopping, sometimes hiding in the thick foliage.

On the second day, they finally caught up to her and attacked her several times. With the last ounces of her strength, she ran, dodging their attacks, sometimes blocking them. But then, finally, it happened—her legs gave out.

At that moment, she thought, "This is how I'm going to die. But if I die today, at least I gave them a final chance to escape."

As she was about to collapse, she heard a male voice asking her:

"Who are you? And why do they want to kill you? Are you a criminal?"

With her last breath, she said, "No."

"And then I woke up with you guys sitting next to me in the forest," Kathleen concluded, stopping her story.

"I am so sorry," Theo said apologetically.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"Why are you apologizing?" Kathleen asked.

"Because of me, you had to remember that horrible day," Theo said.

"Okay, so we can conclude from the story that they were primarily after you and were ordered not to kill you or any villagers," Barren said, looking back at them.

Kathleen and Theo were both shocked by Barren's sudden intervention.

"Don't be shocked. From the moment I saw that wound, I had a hunch something big happened, and you guys were hiding something from me. So, I used a little spell around us," Barren said.

"Wait, what? Since when?" Theo asked, shocked.

"From the moment Eddy started walking and I followed him."

"Can't you notice the dead silence around us?"

Kathleen and Theo then noticed.

"Now that you've said it, it's like we're in a closed room with no contact with the outside," Kathleen mumbled.

"Yes, it's my sound barrier," Barren said, puffing his chest as if proud of his achievement.

"Barren, listening to someone's secret conversation is rude," Eddy frowned at him.

"Look who's talking! I created the barrier, you noticed it, but you didn't stop me. That means you were listening in too! Don't make me the bad guy here," Barren said angrily, pouting.

"What is this guy? Is he pouting now?" Kathleen thought to herself.

Eddy didn't reply.

"Hey, from now on, I'll call you 'Kath,' okay? You can call me whenever you want," Barren said, smiling.

"Okay then, Kath. From what you've told us, I think it's a very serious matter, and Eddy here knows that too."

"Good to know that inside this tough guy, the good old Eddy I know is still lingering," Barren said, looking at Eddy.

"Stop that. I was just doing what I had to. When they saw me, they started attacking me too," Eddy said.

"That's why when I was escaping from their attack, I used a Gate spell on myself, but she got caught in it and was teleported as well," Eddy explained.

Kathleen looked surprised in Eddy's direction.

"Okay, okay, I understand. You don't have to explain, you big softy," Barren teased.

"As far as I can understand, you didn't choose Luminas City randomly. You could've gone anywhere, but no—you came here. I can clearly see your intention," Barren said, rubbing Eddy's head.

"Stop that," Eddy said, forcefully removing Barren's hand.

"Hey, don't be so mean," Barren said, pouting angrily once again. "You were so sweet back then, and look at you now. You used to smile whenever we rubbed your head!"

"Isn't this guy too sweet for his looks?" Kathleen thought to herself.

"Let's go to a restaurant first. I'm very hungry," Barren said as he started rubbing his belly. "And for this occasion, it's my treat."

As they stood in front of the city gate, Barren lowered the sound barrier, and suddenly, every noise returned. Kathleen and Theo were surprised by the stark difference—it felt like an entirely different world. They could finally hear the soldiers checking and talking with the people waiting to enter the city.

"..........." Barren said something in a very low voice.

"What? Speak up! We can't hear you in this noise," Theo interjected, screaming.

"You don't have to scream, Theo," Eddy frowned. "Talk normally—we're near you."

"Oh, sorry, my bad. I forgot about my own barrier," Barren said embarrassedly and then started talking normally. "This is an aftereffect of my air barrier—everyone forgets how normal voices sound."

"HA HA HA HA," Barren started laughing.

"I'll put up the barrier again once we enter the city. Then, tell me in detail what happened with the woman and the soldiers," Barren said as he stepped forward to answer the soldiers' questions.

After 10 minutes of thorough checks and questioning, they finally entered Luminas City.

Luminas City was as beautiful from the inside as it was from the outside.

With its well-planned roads and architecturally stunning buildings, the city felt like a masterpiece, especially to first-timers.

"Okay, let's do this," Barren said.

"Air, encircle and protect! Barrier of the wind, arise!"

The surrounding sounds disappeared as Barren chanted the spell.

"Okay, now, Kath, explain," Barren said.

Kathleen began explaining everything in detail.

"Okay, now I understand. I was right—they didn't want to kill you at all," Barren said, scratching his non existent beard.

"How can you say that for sure that they were not trying to harm her?" Eddy interjected.

"Okay then, let me explain…."

To be continued