The Fallen Spectator-Chapter 27: Night Gathering

The sun had set.

I stood at the window looking at the black sky filled with stars, and the moon was hidden beneath the clouds.

This small city, despite having electricity and modern lighting, was still using oil lamps to light up the streets, which gave this city an ancient beauty.

Suddenly, a door knock came, followed by Mom’s voice, "You two come down. We are going out to have dinner. Remember to wear more clothes, it’s cold outside." 𝒻𝑟𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝑛𝘰𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝘤𝘰𝘮

"Ok", I replied, before turning to Alina. She was still sleeping curled up like a kitten. I went to her and shook her a bit.

"Um..." She opened her eyes lazily, still half asleep.

"Hey, woke up. It’s dinner time." I said to her that, despite my efforts, she still took almost 15 minutes.

When we got down, we were greeted by Mom and Dad, who were waiting for us.

After meeting up with them, we all went out together. The outside environment was completely opposite to the day. The world had turned from griller to freezer. This change was quite drastic, yet nothing for me, but for Alina and Mom, it was still a huge change.

Dad didn’t seem to mind this change in weather; likely, he had been through these types of different environments many times as a historian. So, it no longer bothered him much.

We started to wander through the street. Though this place wasn’t like those big modern cities, it had its own beauty. The oil lamps illuminating the street were really unique and beautiful in their own way.

There were many local people who were still out, some going home, some packing up their stalls, and some just chatting with each other, making this place even more lively.

The cold winds were brushing past our skin. These cold winds were like an icy dagger stabbing at our skin. I turned to the shivering figure of Alina, though she wore a cute sweater, but it wasn’t enough. She was shaking as she walked forward, trying to hide that she couldn’t take this cold weather.

I took off my jacket and gave it to her, "Take it."

She looked at the jacket, then at my face, not taking the jacket at all. I didn’t wait for her to take it and shoved it in her face.

"I don’t need it." She said, but I ignored and continued to walk. She didn’t say anything anymore, just wore it, and followed behind silently.

We finally came in front of an old-looking restaurant. It wasn’t any big or fancy restaurant. Instead, it had an ancient touch. The signboard was made up of wood and looked quite old, and the name was written in the local language, which almost made it look like some ancient nameplate.

When I stepped inside the inn. I was greeted by the beautiful scenery. Though this place is small, its walls were filled with ancient-style paintings. Among these paintings, I saw a painting of the Golden Gate and hundreds of people worshipping it. I didn’t let my gaze linger on for much time, quickly shifting to others’ paintings.

The restaurant was filled with people; it was super crowded. Luckily, Dad had already reserved a table for us. We all sat together, and let Dad order for us.

It took some time for food to arrive at our table, and for me it was, as usual, bland, so I just ate it silently, not saying anything.

I gave a glance at Alina, who was also eating silently, but she wasn’t being enthusiastic towards the food and clearly didn’t like this food.

After we were done with dinner, we went back to our hotel.

Inside the room, I was standing beside the window, looking at the blue moon in the sky. While Alina was scrolling through her phone, wrapped in a quilt.

This whole city was being illuminated by moonlight, leaving the city wrapped in shadows.

"How long are you planning to stand there?" Alina’s voice came into my ears.

I turned to her, and our eyes met for a second. The next instant, she fell asleep. I walked towards her, placing my hands on her head. I gave her a happy dream before vanishing into the shadows.

Far away from the city, in the middle of the desert, stood four people. A campfire lit in front of them, casting their shadows in the sand.

"So, what is the progress? Did you guys find anything?" I walked out from the shadows, walking towards them, and sat beside the burning flames.

"No, we didn’t find anything about the Black Dragon King," Iris replied to my question.

I looked at everyone’s faces, without saying anything, before turning to burning flames again. The fire danced in the cold wind like a living entity.

"If there is no news, then I am taking my leave. You guys should be better prepared for the upcoming battle. Once we enter the ancient ruins, this world’s future will be in our hands. A single mistake from anyone will cost the world. So, you’d better prepare yourself in advance." I said, my eyes locked on the burning flames in front of me. The dancing flames were making this cold world warm, not enough to help me out, but enough to show the way out.

Saying my words, my figure vanished into the shadows. When I appeared next, it wasn’t my room but someone else’s. The room was lit with a candle. There was no one inside, but the clothes of a woman lay on the bed.

The sound of the shower coming from the door in front of me, someone was taking a bath inside. I didn’t move silently, hiding in the darkness. My body was merging with shadows in the room, waiting for the person inside to come out.

In the meantime, I looked through everything in the room, but didn’t find anything useful.

Suddenly, the sound of a door opening and a person walked out.