As they approached the gates of Tenebrus, the familiar silhouette of the sprawling city came into full view.
The imposing, hugely tall stone walls still stood as tall and unwavering as the first day the two of them laid eyes on them.
For a place that had served as their home base for the last few weeks, or had it been a month?... Whatever the case, it now almost felt surreal to return, knowing that their time there was coming to an end.
Mira and Alex made their way through the bustling entrance with their shiny, bold VIP passes, garnering a few looks from those in the normal line.
But they could only stare in envy as the guards gave them respectful nods as they passed through the gates with ease.
The two of them were now well known figures to the city guard, as their antics at the mission hall during their first visit to the city had spread far and wide.
"It's strange..."
Mira mused softly, glancing around the bustling activity.
"We've only been away for a week, but it feels like we've been gone for much longer."
Alex looked around for a bit, then nodded in agreement.
"I know what you mean, but let's not get too sentimental just yet. We've got business to take care of."
'That's right! Might as well check on Rothwind's progress while we're here. Not like we have anything else going on at the moment.'
The two of them moved quickly through the city. Their destination was clear in their minds.
After only a few minutes, they sifted their way through the countless people roaming the streets — thanks to their extraordinary speed, and reached their destination soon enough.
But as they neared the smithy, something immediately felt off.
There was no light coming from the flames from the forge, there was no sign that the smithy was open, in fact, Rothwind usually never bothered to change it to closed, so the fact it had been switched was even more odd.
The front door was even locked, which was odd, since Rothwind didn't bother going through that either, considering it a 'tedious' process and a waste of time he could otherwise spend on forging equipment.
After all, who would dare try to rob an A rank awakened...
"Is it just me that notices something... strange about this place?"
Mira asked quietly.
Alex frowned, his eyes narrowing as he scanned the surroundings.
There was no response though.
The interior was just as empty, and clean, as the streets outside.
The tools and weapons that had been haphazardly arranged on walls were gone, leaving only empty hooks and bare surfaces.
The forge itself was cold, the coals long extinguished.
As far as Alex and Mira were concerned, Rothwind would never do such a thing, as it was apparently about one of the worst mistakes a smith could make to quench the flames of their forge.
"Where is he?"
Mira murmured, half edged with concern, half suspicious.
She didn't voice it to Alex, but this scene didn't look good in Rothwind's favour.
They had given him some world altering materials, including a King class dragon type beast's corpse, some soul orbs and some other miscellaneous stuff that he had asked for.
And now that they had come back to check up on his progress, he was gone, and his smithy was cleaned out.
It looked like a clear cut case of a common scam to her.
But Alex, at least, didn't share the same sentiment.
"Rothwind wouldn't do this. For one, he is too lazy and messy of a person to clean this place, and even the surrounding area, until it is spotless. And he wouldn't disrespect his own profession by putting out the flames that kept his forge going. No, this doesn't feel like Rothwind's doing."
Mira's gaze fell on a small, crumpled piece of parchment lying on the workbench nearby.
It was the only thing in the room that stood out to her, as it looked very out of place.
Gone back to secure supplies. Will be back soon. - Rothwind. Discover exclusive tales on empire
"..."
"..."
"That's it?" Alex asked, peering over her shoulder.
Mira nodded slowly.
"Yeah, but... this doesn't make any sense. Wouldn't he leave everything behind if he was just looking for supplies? Besides, didn't he tell us that he already had everything he needed to craft our armour before we left? And why does this place look like it was cleaned by professionals?"
A sense of unease settled over them as they exchanged glances.