After the second night shift, the town usually became even more silent than it usually was. Even though the lamps were lit to light the streets, David saw no shadows walking or lurking around here, most certainly because all the citizens were already sleeping peacefully. He couldn’t even see a cat hanging around here, those little animals enjoyed strolling in the dark, hunting pests or chasing after a kindred soul’s share of food.

After waving his hand and wishing a good night to his colleagues, he left the eastern watchtower and walked between the two-stories, his body heavy after the long nocturnal watch and his heart longing for his comfy bed and a bowl of delicious hot soup with bread. He made sure to not leave the pedestrian’s path along the way; the streets may be empty, but the main road was where the horses pulled the carts while sullying the paved floor with their excrements. Coming back home with a landmine stuck to his shoes would be a bad idea.

Even though the town was divided into four districts, there was no evident difference between each of them aside from the houses’ façade which was painted in a distinctive colour: pale red for the eastern district, somewhat green for the southern district, a faint blue for the northern district and a sort of brown for the western district. The tints must have been eroded by the passage of time, but David paid it no mind as he walked toward the southern district.

The night watcher was quietly humming a song he once heard in a bar, an epopee about a hero from the past who battled against mythical beasts to save his fiancée from the curse of petrification. The tale counted how he wielded fire both with the fire-lance and his spirit to overcome the challenges that awaited on his journey, a truly epic story featuring a great character. But again, it was something from long past, a time in History where he was only a youngster who didn’t care much about the world, a time where he was simply too young to even remember if he once lived through a monster’s assault.

He clearly remembered his parents, his foster-parents and his grand-parents sharing memories of the day they saw a monster, but even then it lacked this feeling of dread from their voice or in their eyes, another tangible proof that monsters were no longer a weighing threat on people’s mind. 

After walking for a few minutes, following a path he was used to, David finally caught sight of greenish houses over there; he would soon be home, at last. A few more steps and he could finally rest until dawn, but a pebble suddenly fell in front of him, a vaguely orange thingy could be seen on the ground under the light of the lamp. Stupefied, David rose his head to look at the rooftop of the closest building, an uncomfortable feeling gnawing inside him as he saw… Nothing.

As a night watcher, he kind of understood what his duty meant: to prevent the nocturnal creatures to invade the town at night. That was why they stood half a night to watch over the surroundings, carefully observing all movements while silently hoping nothing would happen, because if it did then they had to pick up their fire-lance and fight back the monster. However, even though they could control fire, humans still couldn’t see in the dark, and it was sometimes inevitable that one rampant would elude the watchers. 

So what if… He gulped down his saliva, tightening his grip on his satchel while still cautiously watching over the rooftop, trying his best to decrypt a shadow lurking or a shape gazing back at him. Obviously, he hadn’t his fire-lance with him, meaning he had no way to fight against a monster. Maybe he should at least bring along a knife or something to defend himself, however, regretting his lazy indecisiveness now was useless. 

Right now, he was defenseless. Maybe he should run or… A tiny black form appeared in front of him, taking the appearance of-

*Meoww~*

The black cat meowed at David, then left as quickly as it appeared. It must have somehow understood he had no food to share with it.

“… Stupid cat.”

Feeling stupid for panicking over a dumb cat, David hurried home in a disgruntled pace. He arrived at his place, a two-storey house which let you feel a little cramped from the outside and yet was sufficient to lodge a family of four persons, maybe even five if they managed well the rooms. He looked for his keys, stored somewhere in one pocket of the satchel, then inserted them in the lock to open the door. There was no light in the hallway, meaning everyone was already sleeping. Fully aware of the current hour, David silently deposited his stuff somewhere –he’ll rearrange them tomorrow after a good night's sleep- before heading to his room.

Someone was already sleeping on the bed, so he carefully lied down on to avoid wakening up his neighbour. He almost thought he failed when the person faintly sighed, but as he saw no definitive movement he dismissed the idea and fell asleep.

…

Once the sun was high in the sky, life started to roll again in the town. Everyone went to buy their morning bread and the ingredients they would need for midday and tonight dinners, some also took this opportunity to go and check the recent news on the public board installed in the central plaza. The board would usually be updated as frequently as possible, but people ended with the habit to only check it once then forget about the outside world for the rest of the day.

A young boy ran through the plaza, holding a pile of newspapers he was distributing atop his bicycle to any passer in exchange for a coin. This service was still new, and many people still preferred to listen to travellers in a tavern to keep up with the changes outside, however, more and more of those travellers ceased their activities for many reasons.

First and foremost, the monsters. All diurnal monsters were extinguished, or so the victorious claimed, however, there were still a few who walked this land, survivors who hid from the heroes’ blade and did their best to live long enough to… Well, to not succumb to despair, maybe. 

Second, and as unfortunate as it sounded, bandits were still a present threat in the wild; looting, pillaging and ransacking caravans who failed to repel them with bodyguards. However, the kingdom’s higher-ups, now with enough time to devote themselves to their nation instead of financing armies for world peace, could contribute to maintaining the public order with patrols and tightened security on the roads. This led to a decrease in the number of bandit groups, and better management of the trades between cities.

The third and last reason people travelled less was due to the upbringing of the civilisation as a whole. Learning of the incredible pros from updating and upgrading their technology level, humanity actively adopted a united march towards the first steps of industrialization. Individuals artisans were regrouped under the same guild, which evolved into a piece of giant machinery where everyone worked in a chain, finally branching on multiples firms who specialized themselves for a specific market while broadening their horizons to a wider region.

This was seen as the first milestone towards civilization, the first globally acknowledged achievement made by humanity which marked the beginning of a new age in History, directly following the subjugation of the monsters by heroes.

As for David, he was part of the mass who believed it was time to switch gears. As it was still an actuality, watching day and night against a possible monster invasion was a job he didn’t mind being paid for, however, the idea of going on an adventure to slay beasts and to claim their treasure was long gone in everyone’s heart, because most of the world was already explored and scavenged by past heroes.

The idea of exploring unknown territories for riches and fame did not tempt anyone anymore, adventuring generated less and less profit until it finally died down. The prospect of going on an epic journey became nothing less than a vain dream and adventurers’ guild were closed one after the other until nobody took the job anymore. As for slaying the remaining monsters, it was left to the most stubborn ones, or the kingdom’s forces when the populace located one.

Then what did David dream of becoming nowadays?

A worker at a factory.

“I don’t know… What if they don’t recruit anymore?”

“Come on Margot, I already told you multiple times. It’s a developing sector where they are in constant need of manpower. My friends told me they kept asking for more people to work there.”

While snacking in the back-office of his wife’s shop, David had to once again convince her that everything would be fine if they decided to move out to the nearest city. Life was easier over there, they would have every convenience next to them, and also the increasing demands in new employees at the factories that kept popping each month.

“Besides, the job pays way more than watching at night here. We could buy you a dress if you wanted to.”

“I don’t know, David… Life here is already enough, don’t you think? We have a job, our acquaintances live here too… I’m not sure leaving is a good idea…”

“Listen to me: our life here is good, yes. But times are changing, and now life is about living our dream. And our dream is to give our children the best place for them, and the best schools and the most paid jobs are in the city. This is what you always wanted, right?”

Margot worked as an assistant at her father’s shop, her salary was meagre and almost enough to cover most of the fees. David was paid a little bit more, however, after combining their income they managed to save a small economy over the years in case of emergency. And now, this emergency was Margot soon being pregnant. The doctors said it was too early to confirm the baby’s wellbeing in her womb, yet that was enough to convince the couple their life was about to change.

Thinking about her children, Margot sighed in contemplation, obviously anxious about their future in both situations. Living in this town was the safest, however, she was aware of the difference between what this town had to offer and what they could have if they moved to the city. But moving to an unknown place brought its fair share of instability and risks, and she feared they would lose this gamble and end up in a miserable position.

However, David had a completely different mindset. The city was the place they needed to be. 

“I don’t know, David… I’m afraid. I don’t think I can fit with the city lifestyle…”

“Margot. It’ll be alright, don’t worry. I have already talked with my friends in the city, they’ve shown me around. It’s incredible, you should have seen it!”

The wife was still unsure, while the husband only wanted to care about his family. 

The sun was about to set, and David had to attend his night duty. He picked up his satchel, kissed his wife then whished her a good night before leaving for the watchtower. While on his way, he always walked in front of the town’s temple, a sacred place to pray for the divinity who watched over humanity: Ouu, the Day Goddess.

Long ago, when slaying monsters was still the norm, people usually gathered here to offer a prayer to the goddess in exchange for protection and blessings. This helped the humans a lot in repelling the fierce beasts and also in controlling the fire, some historians and religious even believed they would never have succeeded without her benevolence. As for David… Well, praying was a thing from the past. Now everything was about money, luxury and the steam-coughing factories next to the cities.

Rachpilai

Thanks to Daikael for editing.