After showing the room to Kevin, Warren returned to his mother with careful steps, as though the five gold coins in his palm might make too much noise. He stopped in front of Mara and slowly opened his hand.
"Mom, look what Kevin gave me?"
The dull firelight caught the gleam of gold.
Mara's tired eyes widened instantly. For a moment, she only stared, as if her sickness had muddled her vision and she no longer trusted what she saw. Then urgency rushed into her expression.
"Warren," she whispered sharply, struggling to sit upright, "give that back. Right now. We can't take that much money."
Warren clenched his fingers around the coins. "He told me to use it for your medicine. He gave it to me because he wanted to."
Mara froze. The protest on her lips faltered, and her shoulders slowly sank back against the wall. Her breath came out in a long, weary sigh, the kind that carried years of quiet hardship.
"Since you already accepted it…" she murmured, "…then we will keep it."
Warren's eyes brightened. "Really?"
"But not all of it," she added firmly. "Tomorrow, you buy the medicine first. Only what I truly need. The rest…" Her gaze drifted toward the narrow hallway leading to the rented room. "Leave some aside. We'll buy a bigger bed for them. That old one isn't meant for two people."
Warren nodded earnestly. "Okay."
Mara adjusted her blanket, coughing softly into a cloth. "Now, go and invite our guests to the kitchen. It's rude to rent a room and not offer a meal that they actually gave."
Warren hurried down the hallway and gently pushed the door to the small room open.
Inside, the lantern light was faint. Kevin lay on the floor atop his blanket, one arm folded beneath his head, breathing slow and measured. On the narrow bed, Celize slept on her side, her golden hair spilling across the worn pillow.
Warren hesitated, then whispered, "Um… dinner is ready."
Neither stirred.
He watched them for a few seconds, then quietly closed the door again and returned to his mother. "They're asleep already."
Mara nodded softly. "Then let them rest."
They cooked the large piece of meat Kevin had provided. The smell of rich broth and roasted fat filled the small house—stronger and warmer than anything the home had known in a long time. They ate in silence, savoring every bite. It was not a feast, but it was more than enough.
Warren ate a lot that he started complaining that his stomach was aching. Mara scolded his son for eating too much.
When night deepened, they prepared to sleep. Before turning in, Mara spoke again in a low voice.
"Wake up early tomorrow," she told her son. "Buy eggs, milk, and bread. Something warm for them."
Warren nodded and pulled his thin blanket over himself. "I will."
Morning arrived gently.
Warren awoke before the sun fully crested the rooftops. He dressed quickly, careful not to wake his mother, and slipped out into the cool dawn. The market was already stirring when he arrived—vendors arranging baskets of produce, bakers pulling fresh loaves from stone ovens, merchants calling out sleepy greetings to one another.
With trembling hands, Warren paid for eggs, fresh milk, and warm bread from the bakery near the square. He lingered at the apothecary stall longer than necessary, studying the small bottles and pouches. At last, he purchased medicine for his mother and tucked everything carefully into his basket.
He returned home before Kevin and Celize stirred.
The food was set on the kitchen table, and Warren tiptoed back to the small room. He hesitated outside the door, then knocked softly once.
There was no answer.
Inside the room.
Celize was the first to wake.
At first, she was disoriented by the unfamiliar ceiling and the faint smell of hearth smoke. Instinctively, she tried to pull a blanket over herself, then looked under it. She sighed when she knew everything is normal.
She tried to stand up when she felt something softer than floor beneath her foot.
She stepped down—directly onto Kevin's abdomen.
Kevin jerked awake instantly with a sharp inhalation, muscles tensing as if under attack. Celize recoiled in shock, nearly losing her balance.
"I—I'm sorry!" she blurted out, face flushing as she scrambled back.
Kevin exhaled slowly and pushed himself upright. "It's fine. I've taken worse hits."
Celize's embarrassment lingered as she steadied herself. "What… what happened after I blacked out last night?"
Kevin glanced toward the door and spoke evenly. "I tried to find a place to stay. Every motel and inn was full—too many adventurers arrived all at once. Then a boy offered us his home."
Celize looked around the small, worn room again. "The house… it looked unmaintained."
"It's just a mother and her son living here," Kevin said. "The mother's sick."
Celize's gaze softened. "Then it's fine for us to stay here for a while." She hesitated, then added, "We have nowhere else to go, and staying might help them, even a little."
Kevin nodded. "I plan to pay one gold coin per day."
She stared at him. "That's far too much."
"It's not just rent," Kevin replied. "I also want the boy's help."
Celize tilted her head. "For what?"
"Information," Kevin said. "The streets have ears. I want him to hear what people talk about… at the market, near taverns, anywhere public… and tell me what he learns."
Kevin continued, "I also plan to register as an adventurer. After some accomplished mission, maybe I can get some information from fellow adventurers."
Celize studied him quietly. "You plan to gather information by raising your status."
"Yes," Kevin answered without hesitation. "Strangers don't get answers. But adventurers with reputation do."
She frowned slightly. "Fame brings not only influence… but also danger."
"I know," he said calmly. "I'll take care. I promise. If you want you can join me in."
Celize hesitated, then sighed. "I can't go with you to the guild as an adventurer. I can't use essence manipulation the way they require. I don't even have the physical strength."
Kevin's eyes flicked toward her. "You won't take the exam."
Celize paused. "Then who will?"
Kevin's gaze shifted to the shadow beneath the bed.
"Sallie," he said.
Celize's eyes widened in realization. "You mean… she'll take the exam in my place?"
Kevin nodded. "You two are the same height. Same build. All you need to do is swap hoods and put her mask."
She exhaled in disbelief. "That might actually work…"
"Not might," Kevin corrected. "It will."
Celize's lips parted as the implications settled in. For all her life, her world had been limited to rooms, books, halls, hidden places—never the open road, never the chaos of true travel. The thought stirred something unfamiliar in her chest.
"Then…" she murmured, almost afraid to say it aloud, "I'll finally be able to explore the world."
Kevin looked at her steadily. "Yes."
There was a knock at the door.
The sound was soft, hesitant—but it cut sharp through the morning silence.
Warren's voice followed from the other side. "Breakfast is ready."