The evening fell and the group had found a restaurant where they could eat dinner together.
The place buzzed with laughter and the clatter of plates. Warm lanterns flickered against the wooden walls, giving the room a cozy glow.
Axel sat with Sol, Noor and Achie at a corner table near the window, the smell of grilled meat and spices hanging in the air.
At the table beside them, a group of men spoke in low and urgent voices.
"...they say monsters have been spotted again near the border."
"Not just monsters," another added. "The Citar Kingdom's forces are moving too. A war could break out any day now."
"War?" someone whispered. "The border guards won't last a week if that's true."
Axel leaned back in his chair, listening quietly. His expression stayed calm, but his eyes were sharp.
"Things have become troublesome," he muttered.
Noor turned to him. "Are you worried about the mission? Maybe it has to do with defending the border?"
Axel looked at her with a straight face. "I'm worried about the bill after what these guys just ordered."
Sol laughed and raising his cup. "You worry too much man."
"I'd worry less if my wallet didn't feel so empty."
Noor grinned. "I can help. I still have money from working at my aunt's bakery."
Axel's eyes lit up. "Perfect. Then in that case..." he grabbed the menu and began reading out loud dramatically, "I will add one of these, two of those, and… ah, this looks good too"
"Wait," Noor interrupted quickly with her eyes wide open. "I only have two gold coins."
Axel froze and the rest of the table went silent. Then both of them sighed in perfect unison, their faces blank with disappointment.
Then Axel smirked. "Alright then, new plan."
Everybody tilted their heads. "What plan?"
He leaned closer and whispered, "How fast can you guys run after we finish dinner?"
They all burst out laughing and for a moment, it felt like everything was normal. No missions, no secrets, no orders.
Just warmth, food and laughter echoing through the busy restaurant.
This city seemed so pleasant for them, but despite its brightness, it carried whispers of something darker.
Far across the city, Professor Stoker sat in a quiet archive room filled with dust and silence.
He sat under the faint light of an old lantern, surrounded by stacks of parchment like walls, each page filled with forgotten and old history.
A guard stood near the doorway, tapping his foot impatiently.
"Professor," the guard said finally, "it's getting late. The archives are closing."
Stoker didn't look up from the document in his hands. "Just one more page."
"Rules are rules," the guard insisted.
The professor finally leaned back in his chair, a faint smile crossing his lips. "At the end of the day," he said softly, "rules are just a gimmick used in times of peace."
The guard groaned. "Enough with your philosophical nonsense. We're leaving. Now!"
With a quiet sigh, Stoker gathered his papers and walked with the guard into the evening streets.
The city was alive with laughter and light, the remnants of the festival still echoing through the alleys.
"So," the guard said after a while, "what were you looking for in the archives today that was important enough for you to come in person?"
Stoker slowed his pace and turned slightly, eyes gleaming behind his glasses. "If I told you, I'd have to kill you."
The guard blinked out of shock. "W–what?"
Stoker chuckled, waving it off. "Just messing with you."
They walked on, the professor's expression turning thoughtful.
"A few years ago," he began, "there was an orphanage in this city. Rumors spread about a secret room in this orphanage... a room filled with children who were never allowed to leave.
They were treated like objects, used for experiments until they died…"
He stopped under a streetlight, the glow falling over him like a stage spotlight while the world moved on around them.
"What was supposed to be a rumor," he continued quietly, "turned out to be true.
It was exposed by someone who published it in the papers with all the evidence. The orphanage was then shut down."
The guard frowned. "I never heard of it."
Stoker's eyes shifted toward a nearby restaurant window, the same one where Axel and the others were laughing together.
He paused while watching them for a brief moment.
"That's because the evidence and story," he said softly, "disappeared soon after."
The guard sighed. "You overthink too much, Professor. There's probably a simple reason why the place was closed down. Come on, let's get you back to your quarters."
Stoker smiled faintly and followed. The night air carried the sound of music and laughter from every direction.
"I wonder…" he murmured under his breath, his voice barely audible. "What will he do... with this city that will soon fall into chaos?"
The streets were quiet the next morning, eerily so. The second day of the festival had begun.
Where yesterday had been filled with noise, fire and celebration. Today was a day of rest or the remembrance of the dead and the silence that comes with it.
Shops were closed, stalls empty and the few people outside were buying bread for their families' morning meals. Bells chimed softly in the distance, a ritual for the departed.
Inside City Hall however, silence was a luxury no one had.
The lieutenant arrived and hurried through the corridors, surrounded by assistants all speaking at once.
"Sir, the judges want to confirm the festival's closing speech!"
"Sir, the defense budget—"
"Sir, we still haven't finalized the guard shifts for the outer gates!"
"Enough!" the lieutenant barked. "I'll deal with it later," he said as he entered his office.
But when he finally entered, he froze. A man was standing there, waiting for him.
It was the bearded captain with wild black hair and a scar cutting across his cheek from the Fresh Blood Tournament.
"Captain Stefan?" the lieutenant said in shock. "What are you doing here?"
Stefan turned with a cold expression and said, "Lieutenant… let's have a talk."
A short while later, they walked together through a private forest park. It's a quiet place meant for high-ranking officers only.
The trees swayed gently and for a while, neither of them spoke.
Finally, Captain Stefan broke the silence. "Where were you yesterday?"
The lieutenant hesitated. "Handling festival matters. And inspecting the outer walls."
Captain Stefan's eyes narrowed. "Don't lie to me. If that were true, your secretaries wouldn't have been panicking when you arrived this morning."
The lieutenant stopped walking. "Captain, I understand your concern. This city means a lot to you since it's your birthplace. But here, you have no authority over me."
A sudden gust of wind ripped past the lieutenant's face, bending trees and scattering branches. Stefan's punch had torn through the air with such force that it shook the forest.
Slowly, he lowered his fist with a faint purple energy still fading from it.
"Apologies," he said evenly. "I thought I saw a beast."
He then turned to take his leave, but a loud crack echoed above him. A massive tree trunk fell toward him from above. He jumped back, dodging just in time.
Captain Stefan looked back, knowing that the lieutenant threw it at him. So he asked, "You saw a beast as well, lieutenant?"
"No… I was aiming at you," the lieutenant replied calmly.
Stefan straightened, his expression unreadable. But he turned around again and walked away while the air was still trembling from the tension.
When the captain disappeared into the distance, a figure emerged from the shadows between the trees.
A boy with blond slicked back hair and eyes glowing faintly red. It was the boy who had made the pastries during the first day of the festival, the one Axel had helped.
He stepped beside the lieutenant. "You think he noticed me?"
The lieutenant shook his head. "No. Not with his SIN power."
"Good," the blond boy said while stretching his arms. "Is our contact handling things at the orphanage?"
The lieutenant nodded. "Everything's going as planned. You have nothing to worry about, Aiden."
Aiden's eyes flickered brighter. "Perfect. Then I'll finish the last location today. And after that…" He looked up toward the blue sky, his smile faint and chilling. "It's my turn."
The lieutenant said nothing, watching Aiden walk off into the forest with his red eyes fading within the shadows.