The sun was starting to set over Cindralis by the time Kaiden, Naō, and Belgrave reached the city gate. A pair of high-level players passed them on the road, laughing loudly in party chat as their mounts kicked up dust.

  Kaiden didn’t acknowledge them.

  Belgrave had walked mostly in silence the whole way back, the faint twitch in his hand barely noticeable now. The spinning vial of black-green spores he’d shown them earlier had vanished back into his inventory.

  Naō said nothing either, but Kaiden caught him glancing at the NPC more than once. Something still wasn’t sitting right.

  The moment they crossed into the plaza, a new notification blinked.

  [QUEST UPDATED: Where the Spores Fall]

  Objective Complete: Belgrave Escorted to Cindralis

  Rewards: 45 Verdant Coins, Rare Potion, Recipe for Cleansing Draught

  Kaiden’s HUD chimed quietly. “Finally,” he muttered.

  Belgrave stopped just before the Solarium steps. “I’ll be in the archives,” he said, voice still rasped. “The spores are changing. You were right to come.”

  Then he walked off without another word.

  Kaiden tilted his head. “Didn’t even return to the quest marker.”

  “Yeah,” Naō said. “That was pretty weird.”

  They headed for the Solarium entrance when a soft ping interrupted them.

  This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

  [New Quest Available: A Bloom in the Dark]

  Location: Cindralis Underground – Report to the Conservatory Guard at the Rootgate

  Kaiden raised a brow. “Guess that wasn’t the end of it.”

  Naō opened his quest log and nodded. “Huh, seems like we triggered a deeper branch.”

  A second ping hit Kaiden’s UI.

  [Nearby Players: Recent Contacts Detected]

  Ironstride: 54 meters

  “Oh hey,” Kaiden said. “Ironstride’s in town.”

  Naō grinned. “Think she still finds you annoying?”

  “Eh, probably.”

  They followed the marker toward the vendor row near the Cindralis west market. Ironstride was there, standing beside a heavy-duty armor shop, inspecting stacks of reinforcement scrolls and elemental tonics.

  Kaiden approached with a short nod. “Didn’t take you for the hoarding type.”

  She glanced up, unimpressed. “Didn’t take you for the type who survives with aggro glued to his face.”

  Naō laughed. “Okay, so we’re all still friends.”

  Ironstride didn’t smile, but her posture eased slightly. “You two always pop up randomly like this?”

  “Only when things get weird,” Kaiden said. “We just escorted an alchemist back here, and now this quest popped.”

  Ironstride raised a brow. “You get ‘A Bloom in the Dark’?”

  Kaiden opened his log and nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Same.”

  Naō blinked. “Wait, you’re on it too?”

  Ironstride tapped her HUD. “I had a side branch from Hollowmere reroute here. Quest pointed me to Cindralis after I cleared a mutated Grove Stalker. Been stocking up since.”

  Kaiden gave a dry shrug. “Looks like we’re back on the same page, then.”

  “Just don’t screw it up this time,” she said.

  Kaiden smirked. “You mean don’t out-damage you again.”

  Naō stepped between them with mock exasperation. “Alright, tank and DPS, let’s not flex too hard until we’re actually in the dungeon.”

  Ironstride turned toward the Rootgate marker. “I’ll head over soon. I want to check off supplies. See you both there.”

  “Yeah, give me a sec,” Kaiden said.

  Naō blinked. “Logging off?”

  “Yeah. Just for a moment. I’ll be back.”

  Ironstride snorted, “He’s taking a dump, bet.”

  Kaiden smirked. “Oh, just say you’ll miss me.”

  He thought he heard her mutter, whatever, as he opened the menu and selected the Logout option, a brief heat pulsed through his chest and neck. He winced slightly, touching his collar but the sensation faded quickly.