Chapter 1535 - 218 - An Upcoming Storm (4)
Foriel’s POV
I headed toward the place I always visited whenever I needed information about the things that actually mattered, whether it was the current condition of the Empire and its relationship with Satania, the events taking place in lands far beyond the Demon Continent, or, most importantly, the latest movements of Satania herself.
The place was nothing more than an adventurer’s guild.
Despite that, it had become the most reliable source of rumors and information around these parts.
It wasn’t even one of the larger guilds.
At any given time, there were only around a hundred adventurers gathered inside, all waiting to pick up requests or hoping that something worthwhile would appear on the board. Compared to the massive guild branches in other regions where thousands upon thousands of adventurers came and went every single day, this place was honestly considered pretty small.
Still, that wasn’t unusual for this region.
This wasn’t simply another city where monsters occasionally wandered close enough to become a problem.
This was the kind of place where meeting your maker wasn’t just an expression people threw around to sound dramatic. It was a very real possibility that could happen if you became careless for even a single moment.
Even with all of that, the rewards offered for quests were still fairly standard, which honestly felt almost insulting considering the monsters around this region were on an entirely different level compared to those living elsewhere. On top of that, this area had earned another terrifying reputation because the Seven Deadly Sins themselves occasionally passed through these lands.
Taking on work around here was almost the same as volunteering to walk into a disaster with a smile on your face. Most people only accepted requests when they absolutely had to because risking your life for a handful of extra coins wasn’t exactly anyone’s dream career.
When I stepped inside the guild, I immediately noticed that most of the adventurers already had mugs of beer in their hands.
That wasn’t exactly surprising around here.
People gathered around drinks almost every evening anyway, turning the guild into a loud mess filled with laughter, shouting, arguments, and the occasional arm-wrestling contest that nobody remembered starting. Looking around today, though, I couldn’t really blame anyone for drinking a little earlier than usual.
Considering the news spreading across the city, having something strong to dull the nerves was probably the closest thing people had to peace of mind.
Getting their thoughts away from the rumors, even if it only lasted for a little while, was probably worth every single coin they spent.
"It looks like Satania’s coming here," one of my informants said the moment I walked over.
Judging from the confidence in her voice, she didn’t sound like she was repeating some random rumor she overheard in a tavern.
She sounded completely convinced.
"The latest reports say she heard about the possible resurrection of a major threat connected to Lilith," she continued. "From what everyone’s saying, she plans to destroy it before it has the chance to become a real problem."
I’d already been hearing that same rumor for several days now, but it seemed like it was finally turning into reality much sooner than anyone had expected.
Almost everyone knew the history between Satania and Lilith.
Lilith had been the one who orchestrated the death of the Great Black before eventually delivering the final blow herself. Looking at everything happening now, it almost felt like history was preparing to repeat itself in one way or another.
Come to think of it, something suddenly crossed my mind.
A strong possibility existed that this entire situation had something to do with Leon getting involved in everything.
At this point, it honestly felt safe to assume he was somehow connected to all of this.
Whether he intended it or not was another question entirely.
"Foriel," my informant said again, lowering her voice just enough so the people around us wouldn’t overhear. "I really think we should leave while we still have the chance. We have absolutely no idea what Satania’s going to do once she reaches this city. For all we know, we could end up getting toasted without ever realizing what happened or why it happened in the first place."
She wasn’t exaggerating.
Anyone who knew even a little about Satania understood exactly how terrifying that possibility really was.
Should I leave?
That question kept circling around inside my head without giving me an answer.
The truth was that I still had plenty of time to leave the city safely if I decided to do it right now. Walking away before Satania arrived would almost certainly be the smartest decision I could make.
From a logical standpoint, leaving made perfect sense.
From the perspective of survival, it was probably the only reasonable choice available to me.
Leon, however, didn’t seem to be thinking that way at all.
For some reason, he showed absolutely no intention of leaving this place behind.
Judging from everything I’d seen recently, it almost looked like he intended to stand his ground and face Satania himself.
I didn’t believe Leon was weak enough to lose immediately against someone like Satania.
His strength wasn’t something that could be dismissed so easily.
Still, if Satania decided to bring the other Sins along with her...
Then even Leon would find himself facing an unbelievably difficult battle that very few people could hope to survive.
That thought lingered inside my mind much longer than I wanted it to.
For reasons I couldn’t quite explain, imagining Leon failing to make it out alive was exactly what kept making me hesitate whenever I thought about leaving this city behind.
The feeling didn’t make much sense.
I’d only met him recently.
Our time together had been surprisingly short.
We weren’t lifelong companions.
We weren’t childhood friends.
Our relationship wasn’t deep enough to justify feelings like these.
Even so, I couldn’t ignore them.
Part of me kept insisting that I should prioritize my own survival above everything else.
If I managed to stay alive long enough, maybe I would one day witness Lilith’s true death with my own eyes. That goal alone should have been more than enough to convince me to leave before everything fell apart.
Yet another part of me refused to accept that answer.
Instead of telling me to run, it quietly urged me to stay where I was.
Instead of thinking only about myself, it kept drawing my attention back toward Leon again and again.
For whatever reason, I wanted to remain here.
I wanted to see what kind of person he truly was.
More than anything else, I wanted to keep watching the mysterious man who had somehow wandered into my life and completely disrupted the plans I thought I had already settled on.