The wheels of the caravan kept spinning, crushing the small stones beneath them in a steady, monotonous crunch. Aside from the rhythmic scraping of the one-eyed hobgoblin sharpening his cleaver in the front, it was the only sound for miles.
Inside the covered wagon, Varen stared up at the white cloth roof with eyes filled with pure, unadulterated boredom. A stray bug buzzed lazily around his nose. He let out a long, dramatic yawn.
Up in the driver's seat, Claymond sat beside Fallon, keeping a sharp eye on the dusty horizon while guiding the wild boars. The lead boar, ridden by another hobgoblin, snorted as it set the pace.
Kairo sat near the back flap, his hands folded behind his head, catching whatever rest he could get. Theo and Onyx kept watch over the rear of the moving caravan, taking in the quiet surroundings.
It was a peaceful afternoon.
Then Varen snapped , flail-kicking his legs against the wooden floorboards.
"OH, WHAT THE HELL IS THIS?!"
Kairo flinched, his eyes snapping open. "Hey! What happened? Are we under attack?"
Claymond let out a heavy sigh from the front. "And here we go again..."
"Master, go on and get some rest," Fallon said softly to Claymond, not taking her eyes off the road. "I'll keep watch for any trouble."
"Thanks, Fallon," Claymond replied, stretching his back as he climbed down into the main wagon area with Kairo and Varen.
Varen was practically thrashing on the bench now. "This is way too boring! I can't take it!"
Kairo chuckled, leaning back. "Hey, weren't you going to sleep the entire way to the market?"
"Well, apparently I can't!" Varen groaned, throwing his arms up. "This is way too calm for me! I need to move!"
"Well, we can't exactly have a wrestling match inside a moving caravan, can we?" Kairo joked.
"Don't mind him, Kairo," Claymond said with a tired smile, leaning his shoulder against a wooden beam. "He gets like this every single time we have to travel anywhere outside the ruins. Lyra even came up with a name for it... let me think..."
Varen's face instantly flushed red. "DON'T YOU DARE!"
"Ah, right! The Varen Verve!" Claymond declared smoothly.
"AAAHHH! Just let me keep a little bit of respect in front of the new guy!" Varen shouted, burying his face in his hands while Kairo burst out laughing.
Theo couldn't help but crack a smile from the back. He turned his head away from the road and called out, "Looks like we're all clear from behind! Nothing back here but barren land."
"Thanks, Theo," Kairo said, waving a hand. "Why don't you sit down and rest up for a bit?"
"Well, if you say so," Theo said, stepping back inside and leaning against the wooden framework.
Kairo then looked over at the dark, silent figure standing at the very edge of the wagon. "You too, Onyx! Rest up!"
Varen let out a rough laugh, leaning back against a crate. "You know, undead units are usually pretty weak. But the one good thing about them is that they don't really need rest."
"Oh, really?" Kairo hummed.
Claymond looked over at the shadow beast, his expression turning thoughtful. "Though I have to say, Kairo... yours is truly special. That ghoul has surpassed every Tier 1 unit I have ever seen in my life. And I don't think it's going to stop growing anytime soon."
Kairo looked at Onyx. The creature stood rigid at his post, unmoving, eyes fixed on the empty wasteland behind them, waiting silently until he was needed.
(Don't you think I know that already?) Kairo thought to himself. (I try not to question the Nexus too much... but I know he's special. I just can't figure out how or why.)
Theo looked around the interior of the caravan, his eyes landing on several heavy wooden crates stacked near the sides. "What's inside all these crates, anyway?"
"Yeah, I was wondering what we'll be selling too," Varen added.
Kairo gestured toward the cargo. "The ratmen and the hobgoblins gathered up whatever they could salvage from Leon's territory before we left."
"Can I open one?" Theo asked, reaching toward a small latch on the nearest box.
"Yeah, why not? But be careful—"
Before Kairo could finish his warning, Theo popped the iron latch open and lifted the lid.
"—these are mostly torture items," Kairo finished.
It was too late. Theo's face instantly contorted in horror as he stared at the contents. "WHAT ARE THESE?!"
Inside the crate lay a grotesque assortment of jagged metal tools—rusted iron clamps, thumbscrews, barbed whips, and spiked chains, all carrying the faint, metallic stench of dried blood.
"Who would ever buy this stuff?!" Theo yelled, recoiling.
"Well, blacksmiths can melt them down for raw iron," Claymond explained calmly.
"And some of the buyers who own slaves are always looking for new..." Varen paused, raising his hands to make sarcastic quotation marks with his fingers, "...'toys'."
Theo squinted into the box, gingerly picking up a pair of heavy iron tweezers with a strange, circular clamp at the tip. "Now... what on earth is this one for?"
Varen smirked. "Oh boy. You REALLY don't wanna know."
Theo let out a high-pitched shriek, dropping the tool like a hot coal back into the crate and slamming the lid shut.
Kairo and Varen burst into roaring laughter as Theo frantically wiped his hands against his pants. "Kairo, my hands feel disgusting!"
"Just hold on, man," Kairo wheezed, wiping a tear from his eye. "We can wash up later."
Kairo cleared his throat, settling down. "So, what kind of place is this black market, anyway?"
"I wonder if there are any inns there," Theo chimed in, trying to distract himself from the torture tools. "My old village had one, but I never got the chance to go inside."
Claymond suddenly let out a soft laugh, shaking his head.
Kairo frowned. "What's funny?"
"Well..." Claymond straightened up, crossing his arms. "...this isn't a simple trip to an open town square."
"You really are completely unaware of how this world works, aren't you, Kairo?" Varen chuckled, leaning forward with a sharp grin.
Claymond lowered his voice, his tone turning serious as he made the announcement: "The black market... is located inside a Labyrinth."
Kairo froze. The laughter died in his throat. "What...? A... a Labyrinth?"
They were going into a Labyrinth just to trade? Before Kairo could ask another question—
Onyx materialized his dark shadow lance in a flash, spinning around to face the front.
"BE ALERT!" Fallon's voice echoed from the driver's seat. "WE HAVE COMPANY!"
The caravan lurched to a sudden halt, the boars snorting in agitation. High above on the rocky cliffs overhanging the path, a group of armed, ragged men looked down at them with weapons drawn—bandits blocking the narrow trail.
Varen instantly sprang to his feet, a wild, eager grin spreading across his face as he cracked his knuckles. "OH YEAH! Just what I needed!"
Theo drew his blade with a sharp breath, and the one-eyed hobgoblin leapt up, gripping his cleaver tight.
Their journey was only just beginning.
To be continued...