Luckily enough, no city guard was suspicious about the three pieces of charcoal left at the point of impact. The most probable scenario, after all, was a fight between monsters that ended through the instantaneous lethal damage of the cannonball infused with magic. This miraculous creation of magic engineering was effective up to an Lv. 300 monster. It was the principal means of defense in Zolgas but could defend the most common threatening situations. To give an idea, the last Demon King Eric managed to kill with the help of his ex-comrades was lv.500. For these reasons, none had doubt about what happened the previous night. *It definitely would be different if yesterday that aura originated from a dragon or a phoenix… * Tom, the same veteran present the former day when everything happened, didn’t manage to sleep the subsequent night for whatever reason. *Well, that’s not a problem. Both of those races were last observed in the center of the forest to have more mana and get stronger. * Tom was thinking that while the smell of coffee entered his nose, filling him with that little energy he could muster given the lacking sleep he had experienced. ‘’Thanks for the coffee, Claudia! ‘’ He had just finished wearing his clothes and armor and was ready to go to work this day as every day. This sweet routine was sweet honey for him. Waking up, dressing, and eating the love-filled breakfast prepared by his wife. He took his work as a guard very seriously only to protect this…his corner of Paradise. ‘’Don’t push yourself too much today if you’re still tired from tonight. ‘’ The worry was clearly perceived from the words he heard, and for a moment, he felt unsure if he shouldn’t just stay home today and feign some imaginary sickness. Then he mentally shook his head, and his sense of duty regained control. He answered her, a calm smile on his face. ‘’I have to keep the city safe. Don’t worry about me and stay safe at home.’’ At the same time, he stood up from the chair in the kitchen and gave her his goodbyes, kissing her sweetly. Also, her worried face relaxed, and her smile now attracted him to her. *This is always the hardest moment of the day! * Sighing mentally, he left his house and started walking in the city streets. Some drunkards were sleeping between a bunch of trash, some merchants were reading the stalls for the morning market in the Main Plaza, and finally, the fountain, symbol of Zolgas, represented a hawk catching a snake in his sharp claws was waiting for him in front of his usual workplace. *Everything looks as usual, so why do I feel something missing? * This morning, he had to check the people entering the city at the main gate. Merchants and generally people coming with a wagon of some sort had to enter through there and was a never-ending flux, mainly alimented by the many exclusive resources in the Cinder Forest. *Had it not been for the forest, we would have recovered from the war times in at least triple the years. * Usually, infact, confining cities were relatively forgotten by the central government. It can easily be said that the economic interest focused on the Cinder Forest saved the city of Zolgas. Tom felt strongly about that opinion. After all, before he became a city guard, he was able to save the lives of his children, only thanks to the money he earned harvesting medicinal herbs inside the thicket. As time passed, luckily, the economy stabilized, and he felt the moral obligation to keep protecting his family in an even more direct way. Tom, this way, became the more hardworking guard in the whole Zolgas. His turn had begun from around an hour. His attention was slowly dropping, but his willpower was still intact. No matter how hard he tried unconsciously doing this kind of repetitive job, he was usually pickier the first minutes of the day before slowing down, both mentally and in his actions, in order to have a more sustainable output during the rest of his day of work. *And that’s the tenth. Let’s get to one hundred before taking a short break. * After mentally pacing himself, Tom raised his eyes from the piece of paper where he kept track of his work. His eyes were filled with two figures: one slightly above average height and the other on the short side. ‘’Good morning, sir. The market is this morning, right?’’ A voice full of energy but still respectful sounded in his ears. Opening his eyes wider, Tom perceived that voice from the taller individual. Both of the two were wearing a hood covering their face. Even that didn’t manage to hide the golden eyes fixed on him, surrounded by darkness, as the flame of a candle submerged in dark petroleum. ‘’We are a couple of herbalists that find some herbs between the woods and would like to earn enough for a piece of bread. ‘’ While saying this, his hand slowly tapped on the wagon he had clearly carried for quite a long distance. At that action, suddenly, the less tall of the two fixed his eyes on the wagon with undivided attention. *Ah, what an honest, hardworking person! * Luck played a part in it, but the similarity with his own personal story made him take the two into sympathy. ‘’Sure, you’ll find it a couple minutes of walking ahead of you as you enter the city. Let me check the cargo, and you can pass.’’ Apparently immovable, the golden-eyed one nodded while his grip on the cargo was constant, if not slightly tenser at moments. After a few seconds nodded and told them. ‘’The cargo is okay! Ah, I almost forgot. I’ll also need to check your identification cards as a security measure’’ Ready for that question, the herbalist answered him. ‘’We had to leave some of our luggage back in the forest because of a monster attacking us…Is there any way around it? ‘’ Tom’s eyes seemed worried for a moment, but checking quickly for any injury, he sighed, calming himself down. ‘’Sure, you can leave some of your products here as a deposit and return them after you solved the problem at the Adventurer Guild or Merchant Guild. Please be more careful from now on! ‘’ ‘’Thanks for the worry, sir. Have a great day! ‘’ The other answered. ‘’You too. Good luck with the market! ‘’ Tom was happy to have met such a well-mannered person. He wanted to protect the city and do his job correctly, but at the same time, he didn’t like dealing with violence and shouting all the time. Those friendly interactions were another positive part of his job. This way, the two proceeded to walk near the monumental fountain, before turning left towards a darker, smaller alley, far from the eyes of many. Two figures seemed to become three when the cloth over the wagon revealed itself as a similar hooded dress. As the three unidentifiable persons were standing instantly, the wind separated them. Where they were previously now was just a red flower picked in the Cinder Forest.

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