The crowd's cheers went wild, as usual. The deafening roar outside as the three heroes walked valiantly back to the royal palace, adorned in fancy garbs and riches.
The air was heavy with celebration as the local music blared from mana speakers located high in the air. Stands lined the grounds every few meters, overflowing with souvenirs, food, and drinks—always stocked and always open
Nobles and high ranking soldiers danced around, flirting and joking, grabbing drinks and feasting like no tomorrow.
The heroes made their way to the far end of the party, toward the Royal Palace to rest for the night.
"It's a pretty rare sight, seeing you spend the night in your actual house instead of a stranger's home, Yuna." Kairo teased.
"Don't get used to it, pretty boy. I'm just too tired to try seducing anyone right now." She said, clearly exhausted. Her shoulders sagged as if a boulder weighed heavy on them.
Renji made no comment, instead rubbing his nose to attempt to rid the smell of booze that scarred his nostrils.
As they walked, the sound of music and chatter faded. Renji waved his hand in front of the tall, pure silver Royal gates. A strong gust of wind blew into them, forcing them to burst open, causing a loud rumble throughout the Palace, further enhanced by the echoes.
"Sheesh dude, you really had to do that?" Kairo shrieked, covering his ears at the sudden noise.
"Yes." Renji replied dryly.
"You still have that much energy after that whole mission, huh?" Kairo asked, lowering his hands.
Renji nodded silently and continued walking.
"What a piece of work he is." Yuna commented, before picking up her pace to catch up to Renji.
Kairo rolled his eyes, before catching up to the duo.
The inside of the Palace was a stark contrast to the bustling party outside. All the nobles and soldiers were stationed to protect the group outside, and the king was out leading a minor scuttle in the outskirts of the country.
As a result, the palace felt desolate and depressing, the chandeliers decorated with gold and diamonds reflecting the somber state further. The inside smelled like lavender with a tint of an ominous metallic smell that none of the trio had gotten used to since their arrival two years ago.
Kairo dodged under a low hanging chandelier, jogging ahead of the other two.
"C'mon slow pokes! You bozos are gonna knock me out by being so boring!" he complained, rushing through a set of double doors.
Yuna let out an exhausted sigh as she watched the overenthusiastic Kairo rush toward their personal quarters. Renji too, looked a bit annoyed at the sudden pick up in pace by his acquaintance. Even so, a small smirk grew on his lips, the first sign of emotion in this whole interaction.
Renji picked up his pace, causing another gust of wind toward the double doors in front. They banged open and he rushed through without another thought, leaving behind the exhausted Yuna.
"Leaving a powerless woman out here all on her own. What degenerate men." Her voice dripped with sarcasm, barely masking the weariness dragging at her bones. She let out a weary sigh before breaking into a jog after them—through the double doors and into the Royal Heroes' Quarters, where crimson torchlight bathed the room in a muted glow by the magic fueled torches on either side of the room.
It was fairly large, about half a football field. There were three beds placed evenly throughout the room. The marble floors were so shiny that the reflection seemed that of a mirror.
A chandelier hung low from the ceiling, made from diamond and emeralds, causing a sort of ethereal glow to support the crimson lights.
There were audible grunts heard from the center of the room, where Renji and Kairo seemed to be fighting over a can of soda.
"You already have so many in your pocket dimension!" Kairo complained. "Just use those!"
"I want this one!" Renji argued, almost like a kid haggling over a toy.
Yuna stared at them with annoyance and anger bubbling. "You guys are too old for this." She muttered, raising a finger to the can. With a wave of her hand, the can split in two, causing the drink inside to spill over the ground.
Both Kairo and Renji stared at Yuna, who was now making her way to the mini fridge with no regret. She flicked the fridge open with a satisfied smirk and pulled out a bowl of ice cream.
"You're an asshole." Renji declared, before turning around and crashing onto one of the beds, the one on the far most right.
Yuna shrugged. "A Sexy asshole."
"You wish." Kairo said with a tint of exhaustion. He let out a sigh and jumped onto the bed in the middle.
Yuna rolled her eyes and bit a spoon full of ice cream, strolling over to her bed on the left.
The room was accompanied by a comfortable silence, yet with a hint of unease. Everyone did their usual bedtime routine. Renji, checking the status of his company, Kairo, coming up with a new training plan to get stronger and writing down notes on his book, Yuna enjoying a bowl of ice cream and applying a facial cream…
Yet something seemed off. The way the torch glowed seemed too dim. The way the moonlight streamed through the windows seemed too bright. The world outside, too still.
Renji's eyes sharpened to the world outside. He sat up, looking for something to call out. "Does… something feel… weird?" he asked, cautious yet curious.
Kairo raised an eyebrow. "Yuna is still obsessed with her looks and you're still greedy as hell, so I think you're just delulu." He said, half teasing.
Yuna didn't bother to comment, too busy enjoying her dessert and applying various cosmetics.
Renji decided to scan the room once more, before sinking back to the bed. With a wave of his hand, the screen that was in front of him disappeared. "If you say so." He said, before turning to his side and closing his eyes.
Kairo closed his notebook with a quiet thud and dropped it on the floor. Instead of colliding with the floor, the notebook passed through, as if falling into a puddle of water. Small ripples passed through the room before the floor settled once again, reflecting the crimson light of the torches. He let out a loud yawn, then closed his eyes.
A few minutes later, Yuna too was done with her night-time routine. She placed the bowl of ice cream on the nightstand, clapping her hands twice to dim the lights. The torches flickered, hanging on for a second longer before snuffing out with a soft woosh.
Yuna settled into her bed with a huff, pulling the covers up to her chin, and slowly drifted off to sleep.
The trio had yet another dreamless night. The hours passed like seconds, slipping away unnoticed in the depth of their unconscious minds.
After hours of restful sleep, Renji was the first to wake. His eyes fluttered open, bleary and unfocused, the world around him still wrapped in a hazy fog. He winced as sunlight streamed through the cracks in the room, its harsh warmth crawling across his face, making his skin burn in the light.
His body felt off—heavy, sluggish, like his muscles were still tangled in a dream. A sour smell hit his nose, thick and cloying, like wet wood and mold, making him scrunch his face in disgust. It was so foreign, so wrong. He instinctively tried to cover his nose with his shirt, but the smell only seemed to stick to the fabric, the way oil clings to skin.
Confused, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed—too fast. The floor seemed a lot farther away than he remembered. His foot met the ground with a sharp thud, sending him staggering forward. His balance teetered, his body too heavy, too awkward. He flailed for a moment before managing to catch himself, cursing under his breath.
As his vision cleared, he rubbed his eyes and blinked hard.
Something's not right.
When he opened them again, the reality that met him was nothing like what he'd left behind. The royal-sized bed was gone, replaced by a crude straw mattress barely held together by tattered blankets. The walls around him were rough-hewn wood, dark and sagging with age. Sunlight poured through holes in the walls, casting long, uneven beams across the room. He could even see the faded outline of the cracks in the wooden beams above.
The palace, the luxury, the grandeur... none of it was here.
His hands fell limply at his sides, fingers curling against the unfamiliar fabric of... his shirt? His breath hitched in his chest as the panic started to creep in.
This wasn't right.
Renji spun around, his heart skipping a beat as he caught sight of two figures in the room. Neither of them looked like Kairo or Yuna. His eyes darted between them, looking for the familiar faces of his friends, but there was nothing. Just the faces of two unfamiliar people.
He rushed to his feet, staggering once more, his pulse hammering in his ears. The room was too quiet now. Too still. Even the wind had stopped.
"What… what happened to me?" Renji whispered, his voice hoarse in the strange silence. His mind reeled, but the answer never came. Only the distant sound of the wind howling outside, and the eerie creaks of the walls shifting under the weight of time.
Something was terribly wrong.
And something told him, he wasn't the only victim.