Lomia proved to be a place of happiness and peace, and here Gabriel was, laughing with the patrions of the bar he and Kyra were currently in.

They had ordered enough soups, stews, grilled meat, bowls of rice, and cups of ale to feed a group of a dozen men, but most of it was for Kyra, and she ate like never before.

The said girl paused, took a breather, and resumed eating. Gabriel watched on endearingly. However, he averted his gaze when Kyra looked at him weirdly.

“Anyways,” Gabriel spoke as he turned his attention towards the other patrions sitting at their table. Kyra’s absurd amount of food beckoned them closer, so they could observe her finish it all. “What’s the best inn in town?” He asked.

A scrawny man with tanned skin and shabby brown eyes turned towards the prince, his brown eyes twinkling as he answered.

“That’ll be Crescent Dawn Inn,” he answered. “It’s a bed and breakfast with amazing rooms and beds, if you and your girlfriend are interested,” he added. Gabriel’s eyes widened as his face erupted in a deep crimson shade. Kyra, on the other hand, choked and began laughing.

“That’s the funniest thing ever! Me and him?! No, no, no, and no.” She said, motioning her arms in an x signal. The tanned man’s face dropped before looking awkwardly at Gabriel, who looked offended more than anything.

“And what’s wrong with dating me?” He pushed.

“Do you really want me to list out all things wrong?” She replied. Gabriel sank back in his chair and grumbled under his breath, shaking his head. “That’s what I thought.”

******

The two exited the tavern after paying for the meal and made their way down the snowy path towards the Crescent Dawn Inn. Kyra waddled around, shimming her way to speed up the digestion. She had eaten more than she needed to, and her stomach was paying for it.

The inn was in view, and it was the third largest building in the town, other than the two castles that sat on the mountaintop. The tavern had a pale blue exterior with white railing, windows, and doors.

A massive crescent moon sign hung from the side of the building, with the name of the inn written underneath in a wonky font.

They finally reached the door and entered the establishment. Kyra was immediately creeped out by the darkness of the black-walled interior. There was no light switch on and no candle lit. The inn seemed to be solely relying on the natural lighting.

However, that was the only thing that creeped Kyra out. There were no other customers but themselves. Maybe they had already checked in.

Gabriel grabbed her wrist and dragged her to the reception, where a tall, muscular man in a black suit, with pale skin, grey hair, and a monocle on his right grey eye, was standing. Kyra unhandled herself from the prince and stood to the side, waiting for Gabriel to book them in.

Her eyes wandered around the establishment and landed on a massive portrait hanging from the wall on their left. It was a portrait of a grey-skinned woman with white hair that was braided into a bun. She had sharp red eyes and wore a gothic gown with exquisite jewellery decorating her chest.

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The woman’s arms were crossed over each other, and her stare was so cold. Her eyes wandered down to the gold brass label attached to the portrait.

Lady Magnolia, Mayor of Lomia.

The painting reminded her of her father. The cold stare and the importance they tried to portray through it. All of it reminded her of her father.

Kyra quickly peeled her eyes off the portrait and watched as Gabriel grabbed a single key.

“One key?” She asked, raising an eyebrow.

“One room, two beds, all for a cheap price.” He answered, grinning. Kyra shrugged before snatching the dangling key.

“He says much?” She then asked. Gabriel shook his head.

“I did all the talking. I mean all. the. talking.” He replied, looking back at the zombie-like man. Kyra nodded and let out a huff.

The two then made their way upstairs, Gabriel walking in front of her. However, just as she was about to take a step forward, she caught a glimpse of an unreadable emotion painted on the receptionist’s face. It was there for a split second before it went away.

Kyra almost thought she was imagining it, but Kyra was no one to doubt her own thoughts. Something was up.

******

They finally entered their room after walking down a creaky, dull hall with dimmed candle chandeliers hanging low over them and various portraits of the same Lady Magnolia hanging from the same walls.

She would be in a one-piece swimsuit with the same cold expression and gothic background for one portrait. A fencing suit for another, and a wedding and funeral gown for the last two portraits Kyra saw.

Kyra was slightly intrigued by the lady. How was someone so cold the mayor of a place where most of the people they had come across were chipper?

Was she still alive?

Was she still mayor of the town? Kyra shook her head, stopping the spiral that she was about to throw herself into. She needed to sleep, eat, sleep again, and then leave this town and onto the next.

There was the fact that she had thought about journaling her convoy. If she wanted to be in the history books as a famous adventurer, then she needed to start writing down all her stories. That way, historians wouldn’t speculate or twist her words.

“Ah hah, room 293.” Gabriel spoke, bringing Kyra’s attention back to her surroundings. She looked up at the prince and gestured for him to step aside.

The green-eyed girl then inserted the key into the room and entered with an eager prince on her tail.

She then closed the door and walked towards Gabriel. The room was spacious, with a single cabinet, two double beds with white linen sheets, and a single window by the beds. It was humble but far from the luxury the folks at the tavern advertised.

Click.

Kyra and Gabriel’s attention went to the door, and a look of dread coated their expression. The prince rushed towards the door and turned the key.

It refused to budge. He turned the handle, and it didn’t turn. They were stuck. Kyra should’ve trusted her instincts and left when the creepy receptionist’s expression changed.

The prince walked back to the young warrior and shrugged.

“We need to escape, and that window is our only way out. Who knows what this inn has in store for us?” He said.

Kyra nodded, agreeing with him. The duo then began walking over to the window. However, just as they took their first step, the floor opened up, and they dropped down a pitch-black hole and landed on concrete ground with a loud thud.

Kyra cursed as she watched the light above them disappear, leaving the duo in nothing but darkness.

“Learning fire as your second base would have been so much better than wind.” Kyra groaned out.

“You’re right,” Gabriel replied, defeated.

They were officially screwed and trapped.