"...Nnnnghghh...." A young man stirred awake from his sleep.

He sat up from his bed and rubbed his eyes groggily. Where was this place? Where was he? Who was he? Ah...yes, I remember now...I'm Ian Dolores. Oww...my back! Why does it feel like I was stabbed a couple of times? As he massaged his back, Ian looked around and took in his surroundings. Strange...the room looked vaguely familiar...but where had he seen it before? Maybe it looked like a room he had resided in some time ago. The young man shook his head to rid himself of that thought. He continued to observe and noticed something by the bed. There was a Mithril breastplate complete with Black Steel boots, Orichalum gauntlets, and an engraved Divine Blood helmet. Ah...his equipment...after all, he was a warrior. He scratched his head a bit as he tried to remember what had happened. He remembered being on a ship with his team of fellow heroes sailing to the eastern lands as a friend of his reported of sightings of demons terrorizing nearby cities. Then...there was a storm...and then blackness....

As he massaged his temples, the door opened and an elderly woman walked in. She looked to be in her mid 60s with a petite and fragile figure. Her hair was gray and pulled up in a bun. She had a kind smile on her wrinkled face. She wore a grayish brown colored outfit with a red shawl. When she saw that he was awake, she immediately called out to her husband. Soon, an elderly man entered and the two elderly couple walked to the young man's side. They looked strangely familiar as if Ian had met them before.

"Irwin...Celina?" Ian asked as he observed the two elders.

"Eh? Have we met before? How did you know our names?"

"Ugh...I don't know...maybe a lucky guess."

"I see...well, that's fine. Anyways, we found you and your friends washed ashore in the nearby sea. How are you feeling?" The elderly man replied. He was also short and his back curved with old age. He had short gray hair and a full blown beard. He had a small limp and walked around with a cane. Like his wife, he too wore a grayish brown outfit.

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"Nothing's broken it seems."

"That's good. Do you know who you are?"

"Yes. My name is Ian Dolores...a hero. My friends and I had heard about some demon sightings around here and we came to investigate. Where are my friends?"

"Ah, your friends are having lunch. Come join us."

"Okay." Ian agreed as he got up and followed the elderly couple to the living room. He was starving and strangely in a mood for some chicken and vegetables stew.

As Ian approached the living room, a savory scent wafted into his nose and cheerful chatters resounded in his ears. Whatever lunch is...it must be delicious. When the living room came to view, Ian immediately saw his friends wolfing down what seemed to be some sort of chicken and vegetables stew. What? Wasn't this what he wanted? Strange.... His friends sat at a medium-sized table with a huge pot in the middle. There was Jarol - a ranger from the kingdom of Aladon - and Sheryl - a priestess of the Temple of Vizion. When they saw Ian come in with the elderly couple, they got up to check on him.

"Ian! How are you feeling?" Sheryl asked.

"I'm fine. Many thanks to the care of Irwin and Celina." Ian replied as he nodded to the elderly couple.

"You're welcome dear." Celina smiled.

"You go sit there while we get you something to eat." Irwin replied as he and his wife headed to the kitchen.

"How long have I been unconscious?" Ian asked his friends as the elderly couple left the living room.

"It's been three days." Jarol answered.

"Three days?! Has anything happened while I was out?"

"Yea. Apparently the demon sightings were not just demons."

"What do you mean?"

"The Demon King is also here."

"What?!"

"Yea, the Demon King is here. Apparently, a few miles from here, we found what seems to be his stronghold."

"Then...that means this war will finally be over."

"Yes, hopefully we will win against that Demon King."

The three friends continued their conversation until the elderly couple came back out from the kitchen.

"Here you go." Irwin said as he laid a bowl, a spoon, and a plate of bread on the table near Ian.

"Thanks." Ian smiled.

"It's a good thing we were able to find a safe point here." Sheryl replied.

"Yea, you're right. This is a good checkpoint...untouched by demons." Jarol responded.

Ian jerked his head up at his two friends, "C-Checkpoint?"