The calm didn't last.
I should have learned that by now, but some part of me still insisted on believing that after a victory big enough, the world would take a pause. It didn't. It just changed its tone.
The morning began too ordinary for someone who had just won the greatest guild tournament in centuries. The sun shone through the mansion windows with the same indifference as always. The servants performed their tasks in silence. The smell of bread and tea filled the air.
Still, something was out of place.
I went downstairs feeling the weight in my body, but it wasn't pain. It was a deeper sensation, hard to explain. As if I had left something behind without realizing it.
In the dining room, Elara was already seated, staring at the table without really seeing anything. Vespera leaned against the wall, arms crossed, attentive to everything. Liriel spoke quietly with one of the maids, her tone gentle as always. Rai'kanna had not yet appeared.
"She left early," Elara said, without me asking. "Went to train."
"Alone?" I asked.
"Yes."
I nodded. It wasn't hard to understand why.
I sat at the table but couldn't eat immediately. The silence was too heavy. Not hostile, but loaded with unspoken things.
"Scarlet left the city," Vespera commented suddenly.
I looked up. "When?"
"Before dawn. Without fuss."
Liriel turned to us. "She's not the type to stay where she's already proven what she wanted."
"She proved more than she should have," Elara murmured.
I ignored the comment. Not because I agreed or disagreed, but because it didn't matter as much as it had the day before.
After breakfast, I went to the courtyard. Rai'kanna was there, striking a training dummy with excessive force. Each impact made the air vibrate. Sweat ran down her face, her eyes too focused for someone just exercising the body.
"You're going to break that," I said.
"Better it than someone," she replied, not stopping.
I waited in silence until she finally lowered the weapon. Her chest rose and fell quickly.
"You fought well," I said.
She laughed, but there was no humor. "It wasn't enough."
"Still, you went far."
She looked at me then. "And you won."
There was no accusation. Just acknowledgment.
"Not alone," I replied.
Rai'kanna averted her gaze. "I know."
We stayed silent for a few seconds until she took a deep breath. "I'll stay in Vaillor for a while. If that's not a problem."
"It isn't," I replied immediately. "The mansion is too big for the five of us."
She nodded, but seemed too relieved at the answer.
The rest of the day passed slowly. Visitors appeared again. Smaller guild representatives, merchants, messengers. I refused almost everything. Accepted only information.
And it wasn't good.
Reports of strange movements at the borders. Monsters organizing more than usual. Small towns requesting reinforcements even before attacks were confirmed.
At night, we gathered everyone in the main hall. We needed to talk.
"The victory in the tournament changed the balance," I began. "And not just between guilds."
"Do you think the demons reacted?" Elara asked.
"I think they were already reacting," I replied. "Now it's just more visible."
Liriel closed her eyes for a moment. "The Demon King doesn't ignore symbols."
Vespera nodded. "Nor leaders."
Rai'kanna crossed her arms. "Then this was just the beginning."
"Yes," I replied. "It was."
Later, when fatigue finally won, I went to the room. I lay down without hurry. The ceiling seemed higher that night. The space larger than before.
One by one, I felt the presences approach. Elara first. Then Vespera. Liriel in silence. Rai'kanna last, hesitant, but close.
No one said anything.
And maybe that was the most important thing.
As sleep came, I thought of something that struck me with uncomfortable clarity.
Victory had brought us to the top.
But the top was too exposed a place.
And I had the feeling that somewhere far away, something had already begun watching us closely.