Arden sat on the terrace of his inn, which overlooked the blue lake that was his favourite. He's rarely been doing this lately. The weather was too cold to watch and enjoy the view.

 

*woof woof

 

The white puppy came near Arden's foot and started rubbing. It had been 4 days since Matt had left the puppy with him and left for the mission. Once the puppy was cleaned, it turned out to be very cute.

 

"Okay Snow, I'm cold too. Let's go to the lobby and get you something to eat."

 

The little puppy started wagging its tail as if it understood what Arden was saying.

 

Arden descended from the terrace to the inn lobby and saw Olivia and Sasha sitting at a table. It was around noon, usually, the members of the [White Lion] team would be in Petra at this time. But today Olivia and Sasha had chosen to stay at the inn. Edward had gone to petra to sort things out.

 

When Arden saw that there were no drinks on the table, he walked up to them and asked.

 

“Would you like something to drink?”

 

“How about a beer?” said Olivia, looking at Sasha.

 

“Isn't it a little early for a beer?” said sasha

 

"It's Arden's fault! The last time I drank something as good as his beer in Avalez. And a glass was 1 gold.”

 

Olivia turned to Arden and continued.

 

“Arden, why are you selling a drink like this for 5 coppers? You must be crazy.”

 

“As I said before, Ms. Olivia, I can't sell the beer to anyone if I raise it any higher. Also, this beer is just a starter, I plan to sell the whiskey much more expensive.”

 

Olivia's eyes widened when she heard Arden's words.

 

“Whiskey? What is this?" said Olivia curiously.

 

“Huh, Whiskey. A heavy type of alcohol. But it is still in the preparation stage, so you have to wait a little longer.”

 

"You wouldn't forget to save your magic master a bottle, would you?" ' Olivia asked.

 

“Of course I always reserve one for Ms olivia”

 

“If you want a beer, how about a beer with lunch?” said Arden.

 

“Sounds good,” Sasha said.

 

“Is there a new dish? “

 

“Actually, yes. Burger and fries.”

 

“Oh a new recipe! We look forward to it then.” said Olivia.

 

After Arden took the orders, he walked toward the kitchen. As he approached the kitchen, he saw Dora cleaning .

 

“Hey Dora, can you make 2 of the new recipe?”

 

After saying "I'm on it" Dora started to prepare the food.

After Arden delivered the orders to Dora, he went to the drinks section. He lifted the door of the bar counter and went to the section where the drinks were, and poured two of his own beers.

 

Just as he was getting the glasses and going to the table of Olivia and Sasha, the door of the inn opened and 2 people entered. Seeing there were new faces, Arden left the beers on Olivia's table and walked over to them.

 

“Welcome to Arden's place, how can I help you? Guards, gentlemen."

 

Arden recognized immediately the armor of the guards patrolling around Petra.

 

"Thanks. There is a dish called pizza, we came here to try it.”

 

“Of course, and  What would you like as a drink? I have a beer and wine right now.”

 

“Just water, we took a break for lunch, we can't have alcohol right now.”

 

“Sure, but be sure to stop by to taste the beer I brewed myself.”

 

Arden leaned over the table a little and spoke in a low voice.

 

“You know the [white lion] team, right? The mage of the team said that she drank the same quality of my beer only in the avalez. And pay 1 gold as well! I only sell for 5 coppers”

 

Arden secretly pointed to Olivia and Sasha as he spoke. Hearing this, the guards were intrigued. After all, the [White lion] team had completed a few missions around petra, and they were a little bit famous.

 

"Really?"

 

“I guarantee”

 

He said, "Then we will definitely stop by when we’re off duty"

 

Arden happily started walking towards the kitchen. He shamelessly used the name of the [white lion] team for advertising purposes. After telling Dora the orders again, he noticed Snow following him. he had forgotten to give him something to eat. After he went into the kitchen and prepared something, he placed the food in front of the dog.

 

"Come on boy, you can start"

 

As soon as Snow heard the command, he slumped into the food in front of him.

 

Just then, Dora would ringed the bell signaling that the food was ready. Arden served the food to the tables. Olivia and Sasha were the first customers to eat the burger. Arden studied their facial expressions. Judging by the happiness on their faces, this dinner looked like it was going to be a big hit.

 

On the other hand, the city guards began to eat the pizza. When Arden saw that everything was going well, he went out of the inn.

 

He started to look around. Today was the day Matt and the others were supposed to finish the mission and return. But there was no living creature in sight. There was an uneasiness in Arden as well. It was as if something was happening.

 

—-----

 

Arden was starting to get really worried. It's been 6 days since Matt and his team were on duty. But they still had not returned. Although Olivia and the others said it was perfectly normal, Arden felt uneasy.

 

In front of the inn, he began to watch the direction Matt and his team were went. It was past afternoon and it was getting dark an afew hours. If he didn't see his friends on this day, he planned to go look for them.

 

Just then, he lifted his head and looked into the distance. And he saw a group of people walking towards the inn. Arden was relieved to recognize Matt among them, though he couldn't make out their faces due to the distance. a smile appeared on his face.

 

He waited for them to approach the inn. But as the team approached the inn, he began to see the details. The people who came were six instead of 4. Also, all of their armor and clothing were torn and covered in dried blood. The smile on his face slowly disappeared.

 

As the team got closer, he saw the expressions on their faces. There was something wrong with all of their faces. These expressions were not the facial expressions of a team that had finished their first mission.

 

Then he turned his attention to the new two faces. A boy and a girl were young people aged 15-16. But there was an expression on their faces as if they had lost everything.

 

“What happened to you? Is there a problem?" ' Arden said when he was within talking distance. 

 

“I'll tell you later, I just need to sleep for now,” Matt said. There was no trace of joy in his voice. It was as if he had the weight of a soldier returning from war.

 

Matt entered the inn from the front and began to head to his room.

 

“Zeke, what happened to Matt? Who are these young friends?”

 

“First, let's get Emily and Robert a room. After that, I'll explain everything,” he said, pointing to the strangers next to him with his hand.

 

“Sure, get inside,” Arden said.

 

Although he wanted to give separate rooms to the two people, whom he later learned were brothers, he insisted on staying in the same room. When this was done, he returned to the lobby of the inn.

 

After pouring a beer to the returning people, he sat down at the table.

 

“Zeke, what happened to you? Why is everyone like this?"