The road was strangely silent.
No wind.
No insects.
No rustling leaves.
It was as if the entire world had decided… to rest.
After hours of walking, Jay frowned.
"This is way too strange. The air feels… stuck."
Then they saw the city.
As they passed through the half-open gate, the group immediately realized that this city was different from all the others.
There was no movement.
No commerce.
No conversations, laughter, or arguments.
There were only… people standing still.
Literally still.
A man leaned against a wall holding a hammer in his hand… but never completed the motion.
It was as if he had forgotten what work was.
A woman sat on the ground staring at a basket of clothes without folding a single piece.
Her fingers touched the fabric, but didn't pull, didn't separate, didn't do anything.
Two young men were lying in the middle of the street — right in the middle — without caring if someone might need to pass.
One was yawning.
The other didn't even bother.
A child holding a bucket of water simply stood there staring at it, as if lifting an arm was an impossible task.
And worst of all:
No one reacted to their arrival.
No curious glances.
No greetings.
It was as if no one had the energy… not even to notice visitors.
Jay whispered,
"This is wrong…"
Elenya rubbed her face, uneasy.
"It looks like they've lost the will to live."
Sienna rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.
"Great. We left the city of 'eat until you explode,' went to the city of 'sell your soul,' and now we've arrived at the city of 'I won't do anything even if my life depends on it.'"
Marcus nodded slowly, watching the surroundings.
"Sloth. There's no other explanation."
Ethan agreed.
"The other cities already showed a pattern.
Lust.
Gluttony.
Greed."
He gestured toward the empty streets and the people sprawled across them.
"Now it's clear. This is the Sin of Sloth."
Emanueru touched the shoulder of a man leaning against a tree.
"Sir… what happened here?"
The man opened his mouth slowly, as if speaking required immense effort.
"It's… not worth it… nothing is…"
Then he rested his head back against the trunk, giving up even on keeping his eyes open.
Elenya clenched her fist when she saw a young woman collapsed on the ground with a sketchbook open beside her, a pencil fallen nearby.
She didn't even have the strength to finish a single line.
"This is worse than it looks…" she murmured.
Sienna twirled her grimoire between her fingers.
"Then let's find the culprit fast, before I lie down on the ground too out of boredom."
Ethan took a deep breath, staring at the city that seemed to yawn at the wind.
"All right. The Sin of Sloth is here somewhere…"
The group advanced among people who could barely lift their heads.
The fourth sin awaited them — silent, apathetic, and dangerously comfortable for anyone who stayed too long.
They found a woman sitting on the steps of her own house, her arms hanging limply.
Ethan approached.
"Ma'am… what happened here?"
It took her seven seconds to lift her face.
When she spoke, each word seemed to weigh a ton.
"Tir…ed…"
"Tired of what?" Ethan asked.
"Everything…"
And she rested her head on her knee again, without the energy to continue.
Marcus looked around, uneasy.
"They're not hungry. They're not injured. They're just… empty. It's like someone stole their life force."
Emanueru observed children collapsed on the school floor, teachers asleep over desks, vendors lying inside their own stalls.
An entire city shut down.
And the silence… was heavy.
Elenya took a deep breath.
"We need to find the center of this. Something is draining everyone's strength."
Sienna shrugged.
"My bet is on some clown sleeping on a throne surrounded by pillows."
Jay snorted.
"Wouldn't surprise me."
That was when Ethan felt it.
A weak flow of mana… being pulled toward a specific point.
"Over there." He pointed toward a large blue hall at the center of the city. "The city's energy is flowing in that direction."
Marcus adjusted his sword.
"Let's see if we find the source of all this laziness."
As they approached the main hall, the air changed.
Heavier.
Slower.
More… comfortable.
Too comfortable.
Jay was the first to feel it.
"Ugh… why do my legs feel so heavy?"
Sienna mocked him.
"Probably because you overdid it in the Gluttony city."
But then she yawned herself.
A long, deep yawn.
"Okay… that's not normal."
Ethan gripped his staff tighter.
Even he felt his mind slowing down.
Emanueru rubbed his eyes.
"I'm… sleepy?"
Marcus stopped walking for a moment.
"Maybe… we could rest a bit…"
Elenya turned instantly.
"Marcus."
"Hm?"
"NO."
It was the first time her voice came out truly sharp.
"This is magical influence. It started subtle, but it's accelerating. If we stop now, we might not get back up."
Jay took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay steady.
"It's getting worse… fast…"
Elenya watched each of them — heavy eyelids, dragging steps, eyes losing focus.