Chapter 80: Yellow Rose
The room was dimly lit, flickering lamplight casting long shadows on the wooden walls as Dune, Atlas, Ned, and Cadogan sat around the low table. A heavy silence lingered until Cadogan finally broke it.
"So?" he asked, his tone sharp, expectant. "Did you two gather enough information? What did you learn?"
Ned let out a sigh, rubbing the back of his neck. "The food here is amazing, no doubt about that. But it's just meat, meat, and more meat. These people have no idea how to cook anything else. Honestly, I kind of miss fish."
Atlas scoffed. "Are you stupid? There's literally a fish shop at the edge of the village. It's right by a massive lake."
Ned's eyes widened. "Wait they have a lake? You went that far? What the hell?"
Atlas leaned back with a grin. "Rode the flying horse. Thing soared like a dream. The view was insane."
"You what?!" Ned groaned, slumping forward. "And you didn't even call me?"
"Well..." Atlas shrugged, clearly unapologetic.
Cadogan cleared his throat, raising an eyebrow toward Dune. "What about you? Did you kill anyone else?"
Dune didn't even flinch. He shot Cadogan an annoyed glance. "I told you, he deserved it. I've never killed anyone innocent. And I never will. So stop circling back to that."
He exhaled slowly, folding his arms as he continued, "I went to visit the swordsmith. Watched two beast-humans fight. Then I saw a woman... she was using some sort of cultivation technique. She spun her red Neba in circles, and claimed it made her stronger without physical training. I didn't really get it, and she wasn't exactly eager to explain."