The sunlight hit him harder than it should have when he stepped out of the church. Nick squinted, tucking a small pouch of toothpaste tubes.
“I can’t believe they only gave me toothpaste…” he muttered.
Then again, as a person who had money and no toothpaste, the object reward was probably more valuable for him this time.
He could only say that because he had no idea how much toothpaste cost to buy.
The air outside still ominously smelled faintly of roses and incense, and he had a bad feeling that the smell would pursue him until he found time to rinse it off.
The upper quarter was quieter than the lower streets, though not by much. Carriages rolled by in slow procession, their wheels polished enough to catch the sun. Priests and merchants brushed shoulders on the marble walkways, and every other face looked painted or powdered to perfection. Nick stood out like a smudge on clean glass.
He adjusted his hoodie and kept walking. A few people glanced his way. He was used to drawing attention, but something felt… different.
It wasn’t the wary or curious kind of glance he was used to.
One woman dropped her basket when their eyes met. A guard at the corner straightened his posture as if suddenly remembering what posture was.
Nick frowned. “Well then…”
He ducked his head and made for the market road. The air grew thicker with smoke and spices the closer he got to the lower district. Vendors shouted, boots clattered, laughter spilled out from taverns.
The Copper Flask was already half-full by the time Nick pushed through the door. The smell of stew and smoke met him first. Conversations buzzed low across the room, the easy rhythm of people on lunch break.
He slid some coins onto the counter with a quiet thud and nodded toward Tabitha, who was bent over the ledger near the bar.
She didn’t look up. “If it isn’t our latest Champion.”
He groaned. “You already heard about that nonsense? It’s been, what, ten minutes?”
“You’re glowing.”
Nick paused. “I’m what?”
“Glowing,” she repeated, scribbling something before glancing at him. “Did you finally find inner peace?”
He frowned, glancing at his arm. It looked the same to him.
“Literally glowing?” he checked.
Tabitha leaned forward, squinting. She gave him a long, suspicious once-over. “What happened this time? Rumors are spreading like wildfire.”
“I told her not to tell anyone…”
“The rumors aren’t calling you a champion, by the way. Most people are just talking about a beautiful man who appeared out of nowhere.”
“Am I really that beautiful?”
She scoffed. “Beautiful’s one word for it. Half the street’s talking like you walked straight out of a painting.”
Nick sighed. “I was going for a ‘public menace’ image, not ‘public art’.”
“Don’t be dramatic.” Tabitha leaned her elbows on the counter. “I thought it was a bit exaggerated from the rumors, but…” she studied him appreciatively. “Beauty?” she guessed.
He hesitated. “I guess so?” he confirmed. “She talked to me. Through a puddle.”
Tabitha’s lips twitched. “Romantic.”
“Don’t make it weird.”
“I don’t have to. You’re glowing.”
“I’m not glowing!”
Nick groaned, dropping his head into his hands. “Does this wear off?”
“Do you want it to?”
“Umm, excuse me?”
Both Nick and Tabitha looked up.
A young woman stood nearby, clutching a tray of empty mugs like it was a shield. Since Tabitha and Delia were the only employees in the inn, Nick wasn’t sure why she was carrying it.
She looked average in a good way, with freckles and a nervous smile, and perhaps a little too much blush.
“Sorry,” she blurted, “but—uh—I was wondering if I could—um—eat lunch with you?”
Tabitha folded her arms, biting back a grin.
Nick met her gaze calmly. “Just so you know, I’m already married.”
The girl flushed scarlet. “Right! Right, of course you are. Stupid question. Forget I said anything—”
She fled before he could respond, nearly tripping over a chair on her way out.
Tabitha snorted. “Congratulations. You’ve ascended from mediocrity to eligible bachelor.”
Nick groaned. “Kill me.”
She smirked, turning back to her ledger. “Too pretty for that now, sweetheart.”
“…Fuck.”
A quiet cough came from the doorway.
“Language,” said a somewhat familiar voice.
A tall figure ducked under the lintel. Nick recognized the lean man with chestnut hair and sharp, grey eyes.
Sebastian Vale.
He looked like the kind of man who got up before sunrise and judged the rest of the world for sleeping in. Like last time, he wore a sleek, dark jacket over light armor.
Tabitha raised an eyebrow. “Look what the cat dragged in.”
“Aunt Tabitha,” Sebastian greeted with a polite smile, setting his gloves on the counter. “I see you’re still enabling questionable characters.”
She smirked. “He’s prettier than you.”
Sebastian gave Nick a long look, half-amusement, half disbelief. “So the rumors were true.”
Nick sighed. “Not you too…”
“Afraid so.”
Before Nick could answer, a high-pitched squeal cut through the tavern noise.
“Uncle Sebas!”
A blur of curls and apron barreled out from the kitchen. Delia crashed into Sebastian’s legs, nearly knocking him off balance. He caught her, laughing as he ruffled her hair.
“Careful, little knight,” he said. “I need my knees.”
Delia looked up at him with shining eyes. “You promised you’d visit! Nana said you were too busy chasing skirts.”
He cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Well, someone has to keep the roads safe…” he said carefully.
Tabitha rolled her eyes. “She thinks you’re a hero. Why don’t you try and act like one?”
“He is a hero!” Delia insisted. “He fights monsters with a sword!”
Sebastian chuckled. “I’ll bring you a practice sword next time,” he promised. “If you’re good for grandma, I’ll even teach you how to swing it.”
“Deal!” she said, darting back toward the kitchen before Tabitha could scold her.
As the girl disappeared, Sebastian leaned against the bar. “She’s bigger than I remember.”
“Growing like a weed,” Tabitha said, softening slightly. “And her temperament is scarily similar to yours when you were a kid. I’m worried she’ll turn out like you. She idolizes you to a ridiculous extent.”
“She’s a kid,” he said, waving her concern away. “Once she’s old enough to understand your grumbles, she’ll hate me as much as you want her to.”
Tabitha’s expression softened. “I don’t want her to hate you. I want you to be the hero she thinks you are.”
A tiny smile tugged at his mouth. “And you think that telling her I ‘chase skirts’ will make that happen?”
She rolled her eyes. “So you want me to lie to her?”
He shook his head. “Just… maybe skip the part where I haven’t figured life out. Everybody knows you don’t talk about that stuff.”
“So you want me to lie by omission.”
He opened his mouth, then stopped, caught somewhere between exasperation and amusement. “You really are impossible.”
“Family trait,” she said with a smirk.
The tension faded a little. Then his gaze shifted past Tabitha, toward Nick.
“Finally remembered that I’m here?” Nick said dryly. “I love a little family drama, don’t get me wrong. But that was a little awkward.”
He smirked, but there was a faint ache under it. Families had a way of making the world feel smaller… or at least more manageable.
Sebastian’s mouth curved faintly. “My apologies. I overheard a bit of your earlier conversation and I didn’t want to interrupt your pity party with genuine conversation.”
“Wow. I thought she was being hard on you, but you actually deserve it,” Nick said. “Impressive.”
“It takes practice,” Sebastian replied smoothly, pushing off the counter. “Actually, I came looking for you.”
“Me?” Nick raised an eyebrow.
“Word travels fast. You’re the one who closed the Siege Vault, right?”
Tabitha glanced up sharply, her rag freezing mid-swipe. “Seb, this isn’t about what I think it is, is it?”
Sebastian ignored her and stared fixedly at Nick.
He slowly nodded. “I did.”
“That dungeon’s claimed a lot of lives. Duke Jantzen was the only person we know of who managed to clear it.”
“I’ve heard,” Nick replied. “You trying to make me feel special?”
“I’m trying to make you feel qualified,” Sebastian countered. “Because there’s another dungeon like it and the city’s running out of volunteers willing to die trying.”
He unrolled a small parchment from his belt pouch and spread it on the counter. The map ink shimmered faintly, a red circling marking the hills west of Lake Rovaria.
“A dungeon?” Nick asked.
“Another pseudo-dungeon, we think,” Sebastian corrected. “This one is also fire-themed. We call it the Ember Hollow. No one who’s gone in has come out intact. Armor melts, and some reports indicate that mana itself seems to burn in there. The duke tried it once and he died.”
Nick’s eyes widened. “He couldn’t deal with the heat even though he beat Mortag?”
Sebastian met his gaze. “You’re a fire mage and you beat the final boss of the Siege Vault. I was wondering if maybe you have some way of dealing with whatever is killing adventurers in the Hollow.”
Tabitha’s expression darkened. “After all this time, the reason you finally visit is to ask my customer to walk into a death trap?”
Sebastian didn’t look away from Nick. “There’s a reason. Deep inside the Hollow, someone glimpsed something. Common theory is that it’s a relic, or perhaps a weapon of some sort. The runes reportedly looked old.”
Nick leaned forward slightly. “You’re saying there may or may not be a fire-aspect relic sitting in a dungeon that nobody but me can clear?”
Sebastian nodded. “I’m looking for someone who can clear it and put the mystery to rest. This dungeon is a little unusual—it expands, slowly but steadily. Another few years and the nearby woods will catch fire on their own.
Nick studied the map, fingers drumming lightly on the counter. “Doesn’t this seem a little too convenient? A dungeon that only I can clear shows up just after I reveal myself?”
The adventurer shrugged. “Who knows, maybe it’s fate or destiny or something? I promised that I might give you a ‘little something extra’ before, and this is me making good on my promise.”
Nick looked down at the glowing outline of the Ember Hollow marked on the map, then back up at him. “If I do this, what’s in it for me? Besides the fame and reputation, of course.”
Sebastian chuckled. “Aside from the usual guild rewards? Perhaps you can claim the relic itself. If you can retrieve it, I doubt many would dare to challenge you for it.”
“…I’ll consider it.”
The adventurer gave a small nod. “I’ll keep my ear out for the good news. If you do figure out what that relic is, I hope you’ll let me know somehow. I’ve died a fair number of times challenging that place myself.”
As he turned to go, Delia’s voice echoed from the kitchen. “Bye, Uncle Sebas! Bring me that sword!”
Sebastian laughed over his shoulder. “Next time!”
When the door closed, Tabitha sighed, shaking her head. “You’re really considering it, aren’t you?”
Nick’s eyes lingered on the spot where the map had been. It was just his imagination, but the faint hum of heat still seemed to hang in the air.
He leaned back, letting out a slow breath. “For whatever reason, a lot of the stuff I’ve encountered since I came here has been fire-themed. I’m a fire mage, I guess. And the special traits I inherited are related to fire. And I suppose it’s not too strange that there’s another fire-themed dungeon after the Siege Vault…”
“Maybe that’s your type,” Tabitha said.
“Fire?”
He recalled how he ‘died’ in his previous life.
“Actually… yeah, that makes sense.”
The words came out quieter than he meant them to.
The tavern’s noise faded into a dull murmur around him. Somewhere outside, the city bells marked the hour, the sound soft and distant.
He took one last look at the counter where the map had been before Tabitha slid a plate of food in front of him.
“We talked so long that the food got cold, but here you go.”
“When did you have time to make this? We were talking the whole time.”
She grinned. “An old lady like myself has her ways.”
He blinked, realizing how hungry he was. The food wasn’t fancy, but it smelled real.
A reminder that life, for all its absurdity, still had texture.
He picked up the spoon and smirked faintly.
Maybe that was enough reason to keep going.
Project Knightfall 