The golden light of late afternoon bathed Silverhaven in a soft glow as Red, Selena, and Lio stepped through the wide, arched doors of the Adventurers' Guild. The main hall buzzed with noise, adventurers celebrating a completed mission, others arguing over posted quests, and the ever-familiar clatter of tankards and laughter echoing from the nearby tavern wing.
But all noise seemed to hush when the receptionist, Sophia, gasped as she saw the trio enter.
Receptionist Sophia: You three!!!
she started, her eyes scanning the blood-streaked armor and the massive bundle Red carried over his shoulder. It thumped onto the counter with a wet, metallic thud: a satchel full of hobgoblin and goblin king loot, armor scraps, weapon fragments, a royal sigil carved into bone.
Red: Goblin King insignia.
Red said flatly.
Sophia blinked twice, then once more for good measure.
Receptionist Sophia: They're rookies.
Selena lifted her chin.
Selena: Not anymore.
Sophia's hands moved swiftly, signing off on forms, documenting the rare goblin items, and finally unlocking the vault where rewards for urgent quests were held. From behind the desk, she emerged with three bags of coin, far heavier than anything they'd been paid before.
Receptionist Sophia: Guild protocol dictates… extra reward for high-risk objectives and goblin lord eliminations,
she said in a stunned voice.
Receptionist Sophia: This… this is at least sixty silver coins, and another ten in gold.
Lio's eyes sparkled like stars. He accepted his share with trembling hands, hugging the coin pouch to his chest like a sacred relic. Then, without a word, he dashed from the guild hall, tears brimming in his eyes.
Selena: Lio?!
Selena called out after him, blinking.
Selena: W-Why's he running?
Red simply folded his arms, eyes narrowing slightly as he watched the boy disappear into the busy streets.
Selena clutched her pouch but didn't move. A strange sensation had taken root in her chest, unfamiliar, uneasy.
Selena: I… I'll be back,
she murmured and followed Lio's trail, slipping into the crowd like a shadow.
Red remained behind, silent as a statue. He already knew.
Silverhaven's marketplace was as chaotic as ever, merchants hawking their goods, nobles bartering, adventurers browsing. Selena spotted Lio immediately. His freckled face nearly invisible behind a massive pile of bread, smoked meats, vegetables, and sacks of dried rice, stacked dangerously high in his arms. He stumbled here and there, nearly tripping over a chicken, apologizing to a dog, and somehow managing not to drop a single thing.
Selena stayed hidden behind crates and carts, watching with suspicion as Lio turned away from the main roads and ducked into one of the city's poorer districts.
The buildings here were cracked and weather-worn, doors crooked, shutters missing. And yet there was something warm about the place, the way people nodded to each other, the shared laughter, the smell of home-cooked food despite poverty.
Lio finally stopped at a tiny, crooked shack tucked between two abandoned warehouses. He kicked lightly at the door with his boot.
Lio: Girls, I'm back!
The door creaked open.
Two little girls, one perhaps seven and the other five, burst out with squeals of joy. Their hair was tangled, their clothes threadbare, but their eyes lit up with pure happiness.
"Big Brother!!" the eldest cried.
"You're alive!!" said the younger, leaping into Lio's arms, nearly toppling his grocery mountain.
Lio: I told you I'd come back, right?
Lio laughed, though his voice trembled with emotion.
Lio: And look what I brought! We're gonna eat like kings for a week!
The girls clung to him as if afraid he might vanish again. Their laughter, innocent and free, rang through the alley like music.
Selena's hand clenched over her mouth.
She stepped back.
And the tears came.
Hot, silent, relentless.
She crouched behind a barrel, hands shaking, sobbing as the image before her carved itself deep into her heart. Lio, clumsy, poor, hungry Lio, wasn't just a struggling adventurer. He was a protector. A brother. A boy shouldering the weight of two lives on his back.
All the teasing, all the eye-rolling she'd done…
She felt it now, raw and deep: guilt.
Red: You okay?
came a calm voice behind her.
Selena whirled and saw Red standing there, arms folded, expression unreadable.
Selena: H-How long have you...
Red: Long enough
Selena: I-I didn't know… *she choked.
Red: I did, He never asked for help. Only a chance.
Selena looked back at the little shack, watching as Lio set the girls inside and began lighting a small stove with clumsy fingers.
Selena: He's still smiling. After everything…
Red knelt beside her.
Red: He fights for something.
Selena wiped her cheeks.
Selena: He's braver than me…
Red: Yes, he is. So do you..
Red: You followed him. That takes heart.
As if sensing them, Lio looked up from the door. His eyes widened when he saw the two of them.
Lio: Red! Selena!
he shouted and waved them over, a wide grin plastered across his face.
Selena rose slowly, unsure, hesitant.
Red stepped forward first, and Selena followed, wiping her tears quickly.
Lio: You followed me?" he asked, surprised.
Lio: You guys okay?
Selena sniffled and nodded.
Selena: We were… just making sure you didn't fall on your face carrying all that food.
Lio: Oh. I did, twice. But the bread's fine!" He laughs
Red chuckled, patting the boy on the head.
Red: You did good, kid.
Lio: Thank you. You guys… changed my life.
He turned back toward his house.
Lio: C'mon in! We don't have much, but the girls would love to meet you.
Selena hesitated. Red nodded. And then they followed him.
And in the soft light of that rundown home, among cracked walls and old furniture, something precious bloomed: a quiet respect, a hidden strength, and the beginning of something deeper for all of them.