Chapter 203: Before A Storm

Greyvale City thrummed with life, a vibrant creature of stone, light, and sound. Its streets buzzed with activity as the sun dipped toward the horizon, painting the sky in hues reminiscent of smoldering embers.

What was once known as Gryphon District had long abandoned that name, transformed by the influx of adventurers, warriors, merchants, scholars, and opportunists alike. It was now simply called the Adventurer District, a place where fortunes could be forged overnight, where blood and gold intertwined seamlessly, and where the air was thick with the scent of steel and mana.

At its center stood the guild building like an unyielding pillar, a massive structure crafted from reinforced stone and adorned with rune-lined beams. The wide entrance doors swung opened as adventurers flowed in and out.

Inside, the main hall buzzed with overlapping voices, boisterous laughter mingled with heated debates over contracts, while armor clanked and boots thudded against polished floors. Notices were pinned to quest boards, coins exchanged hands eagerly, and clerks worked tirelessly to keep up with the relentless tide of activity.

On the second floor, however, in a lounge reserved for seasoned adventurers and contracted parties, the atmosphere shifted to one of quiet contemplation. While not silent, far from it, the conversations were hushed; movements slowed down. The air carried a palpable tension borne from those who had faced adversity yet persevered.

Tables were spaced further apart; chairs were sturdier; drinks were stronger. Large windows lined one wall, offering a view of the bustling district below while allowing pale light to spill across the room like liquid silver.

———–

In the lounge sat Sage in deep silence. His back was straight; his hands rested on his knees with fingers interlocked so tightly that his knuckles appeared pale.

He bowed his head slightly, eyes narrowed in concentration as he gazed into some distant thought, as if looking beyond walls or even beyond Greyvale itself.

Lost in contemplation. Anyone familiar with him would recognize this posture immediately, it was how Sage looked when he was calculating possibilities or sifting through patterns he couldn’t yet articulate.

Beside him sat Mina, very much not lost in thought.

She was talking or rather complaining with frustration spilling forth like an unrelenting tide as she leaned forward in her seat. Her arms were crossed tightly over her chest; her cheeks puffed slightly as she spoke.

“…and I still don’t understand,” she said, annoyance mixed with hurt coloring her tone. “Why wasn’t I allowed to go? I’ve trained hard! I’m stronger now! I wouldn’t have just stood there doing nothing.”

Sage didn’t respond right away; instead he blinked slowly as he returned to the present moment before turning his head slightly to meet her gaze. Mina stared at him expectantly, her brows furrowed and lips pressed together defiantly.

“You’re not listening,” she added quietly after a moment.

“I am,” Sage replied gently.

His voice was calm and steady, the kind that could quell a storm if given enough time. He lifted one hand and placed it gently on her head, his fingers brushing through her hair in a slow, absent motion, a gesture both familiar and comforting.

“You’re upset,” he said. “That’s understandable.”

“That’s not….” she began, then hesitated, her shoulders slumping slightly as the sharpness in her voice faded. “It’s not just that. I just… I don’t like being left behind.”

Sage offered a faint smile, though it didn’t reach his eyes. “Being left behind,” he echoed, as if testing the weight of the words.

He withdrew his hand to rest it on his knee and leaned back slightly in his chair. On the surface, he appeared composed, almost relaxed, but inside him churned an unsettling feeling that had been growing for hours now.

No… longer than that. It had started the moment Valeria and the others set off for the Crimson Abyssal Lion’s territory.

He couldn’t articulate it or pinpoint anything specific; yet the feeling lingered like a heavy weight in his chest, a quiet tension gnawing at his thoughts no matter how hard he tried to shake it off.

“You’ll have your chance,” he said finally, his voice low and reassuring. “There will be other missions. Other battles. You don’t have to rush.”

Mina frowned. “I’m not rushing,” she countered. “I just… want to be useful. Everyone else is doing something, Valeria, Gregor, Vanthrice, even the others! And here I am, just sitting.”

“You’re not ’just sitting here,’” Sage replied firmly. “You’re training, learning, growing, that matters more than jumping into danger before you’re ready.”

“I am ready,” she insisted.

He studied her quietly for a moment. There was conviction in her voice, real determination born from watching others venture into danger and wanting to stand beside them.

Still…

Sage sighed softly. “It’s not about whether you think you’re ready,” he explained gently. “It’s about whether the situation allows for it.”

She didn’t like that answer.

He could see it in her tightened jaw and restless fingers tapping against the table.

“Big sis would’ve let me go,” she muttered.

Sage’s gaze drifted toward the window beside them where people moved through the streets outside like currents in water, oblivious to the battles raging beyond the city walls.

“Valeria…” he repeated quietly.

He rubbed the back of his neck as an almost imperceptible tension creased his expression.

“She would’ve protected you,” he admitted reluctantly. “But that’s exactly why you weren’t allowed to go.”

Mina blinked in surprise. “…What?”

“She wouldn’t have fought freely,” Sage continued. “Not if you were there. Her focus would’ve been split. In a fight like that… hesitation gets people killed.”

The weight of his words hung in the air between them.

Mina looked down at her hands, her frustration giving way to uncertainty.

“I just…” she began, then trailed off. “I don’t want to be the reason someone holds back.”

Sage’s expression softened. “You won’t be,” he said quietly.

For a moment, silence enveloped them, punctuated only by the low hum of the lounge, muffled conversations, the faint clink of glasses, and the distant roar of activity from below.

Then Mina glanced up again. “You’re worried,” she stated suddenly.

Sage blinked in surprise.

“About Valeria and the others,” she pressed on. “You’ve been like this since morning, staring off into space as if something’s bothering you.”

He opened his mouth to respond but hesitated. She was right; he was worried, not in an obvious way or through worst-case scenarios, but with a persistent unease that suggested something had shifted.

He couldn’t quite explain it or pinpoint a logical reason for his feelings.

And that troubled him more than anything.

“…It’s probably nothing,” he finally said after a pause.

Mina didn’t buy it. She could tell from his tone and the way his eyes avoided hers.

“You don’t say ’probably nothing’ unless it’s something,” she replied pointedly.

Sage let out a quiet breath, followed by a small, humorless chuckle. “You’re getting too good at reading people,” he admitted.

“Someone had to learn,” she shot back lightly.

He leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on his knees and interlocking his fingers as he stared at the floor.

“I just… have a feeling,” he confessed at last.

“What kind of feeling?”

“The kind you get before a storm,” he replied slowly. “When the air changes and everything feels… off.”

Mina listened intently without interrupting.

For the first time since their conversation began, her earlier frustration faded completely, replaced by concern.

“You think something happened?” she asked softly.

“I don’t know,” Sage answered honestly. “And that’s what bothers me.”

He lifted his head again, his gaze distant.

“Valeria’s not someone who gets caught off guard easily,” he continued. “Neither are Gregor and Vanthrice; they’re experienced and capable. Together, they can handle most threats.”

“But?” Mina prompted gently.

“But this feeling won’t go away.”

Silence settled between them once more.

Outside, life in the city carried on obliviously while tension built in their quiet corner of the lounge.

Mina shifted in her seat, gripping the edge of the table tightly. “…They’ll be okay,” she murmured, almost trying to convince herself as much as him.

Sage looked at her, and he could see the fear in her eyes.

He smiled again, this time with a gentler warmth.

Reaching out, he ruffled her hair lightly, a grounding gesture that felt familiar.

“They will,” he assured her.

But even as the words left his lips, a tightness of unease settled in his chest. Deep down, he sensed that something was off. He just couldn’t put his finger on it.

Suddenly, Sage’s expression shifted dramatically. A cold sweat broke out on his back as a chilling sensation ran down his spine.

A heavy, suffocating pressure enveloped him. It wasn’t just him; every Adventurer in the Guild felt the shift in the air.

His face morphed into one of horror as he turned to Mina, who was pale and trembling. Without thinking, he threw himself over her.

“GET DOWN!”

BOOOOOOM!

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