Cling! Clang!—

  The bell attached to the door jingled as it swung open, signaling a customer’s arrival.

  “Welcome,” a tired, rough voice called from behind the bread-filled display. It belonged to a woman. “Please wait a minute. I’ll be right there.”

  From the other side of the display, she was busy pulling out a freshly baked batch, sliding a new one into the large stone oven. The heat inside was almost unbearable, but the aroma of warm bread filled the air, making it worth it.

  Nur’s gaze swept over the golden loaves, comparing them to the ones he had eaten when he first arrived. these looked much more appetizing.

  He turned to Kayle. “How much does a loaf of bread cost here?”

  “About five Copa each. With the fifty Sills I have, I could buy ten!” Kayle grinned.

  Welcome, how can I help you— kayle!

  The woman before, in an apron rushed toward them, her face filled with concern.

  “Kayle! Are you okay?”

  “Y-Yes, Ms. Mary. What happened?”

  “Don’t try to hide it, Kayle. I know what happened.” She wiped her hands on her apron, her expression tense.

  Nur narrowed his eyes. She already knows?

  “Smith has already warned us all,” she added.

  That guy. Nur wasn’t surprised, but he wasn’t pleased either.

  “A thief entered the village disguised as a doctor,” she continued. “I hope he didn’t do anything else.”

  “We were safe! Brother Nur protected us!” Kayle declared proudly.

  “Brother? Protected?”

  “Yeah, he fough—!”

  Before Kayle could finish, Nur quickly clamped a hand over his mouth.

  Ms. Mary placed her hands on her cheeks, eyes filled with confusion. She looked Nur up and down, frowning slightly.

  “And who is this young man? I’ve never seen him before. Isn’t he… a little too old to be your friend?”

  Nur stood frozen, his insides crumbling.

  Gasp!

  Breaking free from Nur’s frozen grip, Kayle quickly spoke up.

  “Ah! Let me introduce you—this is Brother Nur. He’s new here and staying at our house for now.”

  Ms. Mary turned to Nur. “Nur, Sorry if I made you feel bad. As an apology, I’ll give you an extra loaf. Wait, Kayle, you don’t have to pay for today.”

  She sighed, wiping her hands on her apron. “What happened yesterday must have been terrifying. Your grandmother might still be worried. You can take the bread.”

  “No, Ms. Mary! I have brought Earns. You don’t have to worry,” Kayle insisted. “Grandmother will get mad if she finds out I came without paying.”

  “It’s okay, it’s okay, Kayle, my child. Don’t make me repeat myself—I’m getting old too.” Ms. Mary smiled gently. “I’m always grateful when you come here. Think of this as my apology to the young man over there.”

  “Umm… ah… well… th-thank you very much, Ms. Mary,”

  She chuckled. “It’s okay.”

  Packing some fresh bread into a brown paper bag, she handed it to Kayle.

  “Well, I have to take out the next batch,” she said. “You boys better get going—your grandmother might be lonely.”

  “Yes! Thank you very much, Ms. Mary! See you later!” Kayle said, bowing slightly.

  Seeing him, Nur hesitated for a moment, then followed his lead, bowing as well. “Thank you.”

  Ms. Mary smiled. “Take care!”

  Cling! Clang!

  As they stepped out of the shop, the doorbell chimed behind them. The road outside was livelier than before. Earlier, only a few people had been sitting on their balconies, but now, in the cool evening air, many gathered outside for snacks, chatting with one another.

  Nur could feel their stares.

  “Don’t worry,” Kayle reassured him with a grin. “They don’t mean anything bad. They’re just curious about the new face in town. Hehe!”

  Nur walked beside him in silence. Though the stares annoyed him, he wasn’t particularly fazed.

  As they continued down the road, the street widened. More people were out—children ran around, laughing and playing, while women stood together, deep in conversation. The old men who had been chatting earlier had moved to a different spot, still engrossed in their discussions.

  Bump!

  “Ouch! My bad, I’m sorry!” A voice came from behind Nur.

  Nur turned toward the person he had just bumped into.

  The young man had orangish-yellow hair and was struggling to carry a large crate.

  “Oyy, Diego! What are you doing? Be careful!” A loud whisper cut through the air.

  The voice came from in front of him—his companion, who was helping him carry the crate, hissed in concern.

  Stolen novel; please report.

  That man wore a brown, flat cap, his dark blonde hair peeking from underneath. Both of them seemed to be unloading goods from a horse-drawn carriage into the nearby shops.

  A horse-drawn carriage? Nur’s mind blanked for a moment. Only now did he realize how much he had overlooked. After yesterday’s incident, his thoughts had been elsewhere, causing him to miss the finer details of the village. Warehouses, small stalls, vendors—it was as if they had all suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

  But the horse-drawn carriage… that was what truly caught his attention. Something about it felt off. A strange unease settled in his mind as doubts slowly began to take shape.

  “I’m really sorry!” The boy, Diego, apologized again. “I was exhausted and didn’t pay attention. Hahaha.” He let out a weird laugh.

  “It’s okay,” Nur said calmly.

  After another quick apology, Diego and his companion returned to their work.

  “Isn’t that Brother Diego?”

  “Huh? You know him?”

  “Yeah, we know each other. Looks like he didn’t notice me, though.” Kayle shrugged. “Well, that aside, are you okay? It seemed like he accidentally stepped on your foot. Are you hurt?”

  Nur glanced down, brushing some dust off his boots. “No, I’m fine.”

  “So… what’s happening here? These people weren’t here earlier.”

  “Oh, that’s normal. They start working early in the morning, take a break at noon, then return in the afternoon. That’s why when we passed through earlier, it was empty.”

  “I see.” Nur nodded. “And how do you know that guy from before?”

  “Ah, well, Diego and his sister arrived in this village few years ago, just like you, suddenly.”

  “Just like me?, so both him and his sister live alone?”

  “Yeah. Brother Diego and his sister live alone here. He works hard to support her since she’s not in the best health. He’s well-known around the village for his hard work.

  I get along well with Sister Nezrin. I used to visit her with grandma before, and while out hunting in that area.”

  As they walked back to Kayle's home, Kayle chatted and told him many things. Nur remained silent, processing the information—especially the part about the horse-drawn carriage—as they left the bustling streets behind.

  In the distance, Kayle’s house stood in its usual quiet spot. Seeing it brought an odd sense of relief to Nur.

  But as they approached, a figure stood by the door—a bald head glistening in the sunlight, wrapped with a greasy red cloth. His iconic baggy pants were stuffed with tools.

  It was Mr. Smith.

  “Hello there, Kai. And you too, young Nur.”

  “Uncle Rek! How did it go?” Kayle asked.

  “Haha, all done! I replaced the door hinge, and I’ve asked the woodworker to make a new door. For now, this one won’t come off as easily as before.”

  “Thank you! You did a great job as always, Uncle Rek.” Kayle grinned and pulled out a loaf of bread, handing it to him.

  “Hooh!” Smith was amused, “This is fresh… Can I really have it?”

  “Yes! We got a bit extra today. Ms. Mary gave it to me.”

  Smith had already taken a bite before Kayle could even finish. Chewing with his mouth full, he grinned. “Shwe swure caer abwout ywu a lot, dwont she!”

  Swallow it first you loudmouth! Nur thought.

  “Yes, she’s really kind!” Kayle beamed.

  “Well, I’ll get going now,” Smith said, brushing crumbs from his beard. “I was waiting for you two before leaving—I didn’t want to leave your grandmother alone. But now that you’re back, it’s all good.”

  He waved and walked away.

  Kayle and Nur stepped into the house.

  “Grandmother, I’m home! Look, I brought bread!”

  He rushed inside, placing the bread on the table. “Ms. Mary gave it for free.”

  His grandmother sat by the bed, gazing out the window. A small smile formed on her lips. “That’s good. Make sure to thank her properly next time.”

  “Yes!”

  She turned her eyes toward Nur. “So? How was the village? Did you like it?”

  “…Yes. It was really lively. I’d love to go there again sometime.”

  “Hahaha, I’m glad. So… you must have heard it, right?”

  “Yes! But I wasn’t planning to stay here long, so I wonder if giving me a cottage to stay would be necessary.”

  “So you're deciding to leave, not settling here until you recover your memories?”

  “Yes. I can’t stay here. I need to go back to where I came from.”

  “…I shall respect your decision. I was just making sure in case you decided to stay. Please feel free to use that cottage however you want. And you will always be welcomed here, like family—just remember that.”

  Nur stood there, taking in her words. He was glad to hear them. A part of him had been burdened by what they thought of him.

  Kayle had already gone upstairs by the time their conversation begin.

  Nur remained at the entrance, while speaking with her.

  “You should go and freshen up now. You must haven’t had a proper wash in days. Now that the water problem is fixed, go ahead. I’ll get up and prepare some food.”

  At that time, the grandmother was sitting on the bed, leaning against the bed frame, a blanket covering her legs. She seemed to be reading a book.

  It’s late afternoon.

  Nur moved away and went to wash up, following the grandmother’s suggestion. He ended up going ahead of Kayle to bathe.

  As he opened the bathroom door, he found himself in an empty area that led to another door—the actual bathroom. The first section seemed to be used for washing clothes and hanging them to dry.

  Sliding the door open, he stepped onto the cool stone floor. To his left was a simple sitting toilet, and to his right, a stone-carved bathtub. There were shower handles and pipes, but unfortunately, no heating system.

  “...”

  When Nur stepped out, fresh and clean, Kayle was waiting outside, shaking with excitement.

  “How was the bath Brother Nur? Feels good right?”

  “Yes… It feels like it’s been centuries since I last had one.”

  “Hehe! I’m glad you’re feeling better.”

  ...

  Now, Nur sat on the second floor while Kayle was bathing. Sitting on the bed on the floor, leaning towers the window he was lost in deep thought. He was piecing together everything that had happened today—his meeting with the village chief, the strange feeling he had all afternoon, and more. Something felt… off.

  First, the village itself. It was too good to be real, almost like an illusion.

  “...”

  Then there was the village chief—he definitely knew something about Leynard. He was also the one who had sent him in the first place.

  Thinking about Leynard led to think about what Mr. Smith said, an Alchemy product that could grant temporary power.

  “...”

  And then there is this place. It was too old-fashioned. Horse-drawn carriages? In this day and age? It had High maintenance, low efficiency… a huge loss for any businessman or merchant.

  And then what Kayle had mentioned—an empire?, their currency…

  “Now that I think about it, what was their currency called?”

  Nur frowned.

  Whatever it was, Kayle had said they used it throughout the continent—or rather, throughout Erandel. When Nur asked about it, Kayle had explained that Erandel was an amalgamation of all the continents.

  But how? Where was this place?

  Nur’s head hurt trying to make sense of it all. If he tried to remember his past, it hurt. If he didn’t, the confusion still made his brain feel like it was frying.

  All he had were fragments—surface-level memories, hazy and dreamlike. Nothing clear.

  Especially about how he got here.

  Creek…! Creek…! The wooden staircase made sounds

  someone was coming upstairs but their pace was slow. deliberate—almost as if they were taking their time with each step.

  Kayle?

  Creek…! Creek…!

  A moment of silence.

  “Young Nur, are you there?”

  “!… Yes, I am here.”

  Nur stood up and walked toward the staircase.

  But the person climbing up wasn’t Kayle. It was his grandmother.

  Seeing her, Nur instinctively stepped down a few steps to help her climb up.

  Kayle’s grandmother looked far younger than her years. She was over seventy, yet her skin and presence made her seem as if she were still in her forties.

  …

  Now, they sat outside on the balcony beneath the golden sky of the afternoon. A large, aged tree trunk served as their bench, its rough surface worn by time.

  Kayle’s grandmother had a black leather book resting on her lap. She gazed at the sky, lost in thought. Even earlier, when they had entered the house, she had stood by the window, staring into the distance, wondering.

  Slowly, she placed a hand on the book’s cover.

  “Young Nur… I don’t have much time left.”

  Nur understood what she meant. But there had to be more to this visit—she hadn’t climbed all the way up here just to say that.

  If she were truly leaving… then Kayle would be alone. The last family member who had cared for him, the one who had raised him—gone. Nur couldn’t imagine a person who could accepting that.

  Her fingers slid over the book’s edge, gently prying open its leather cover.

  On the first page, in bold, carefully written letters, were.

  “This is our family’s true heirloom—The real record of the Hero’s subjugation of the King in Black. The actual codex of The divines Journey to where the darkness lies”

  …