The magnificent giant sun sank toward the distant horizon, its crown covered in faint wood grain patterns now reduced to a narrow arc at the edge. Light rose from that edge and spread across the backdrop of clouds like a sea of fire in the sky, blazing through the final dozens of minutes of daylight. Beneath the afterglow of sunset, the entire city in Gawain's eyes seemed submerged in a golden-red ocean.
He stood at the end of the terrace, gazing toward the Dark Mountains. The cold wind before winter blew in from the side, carrying the faint commands of the guards' evening drills. In this rare, somewhat leisurely moment, he quietly considered the plan to retake the Wasteland and the upcoming journey to Tarlonnd—until a familiar presence suddenly appeared within his senses, interrupting his increasingly wandering thoughts.
Following the sensation, he looked toward its source and saw a distorted shadow swiftly take shape in the air. Amber then jumped out of it, bounced twice, and came before him—the next second, the Shadow Assault Goose's uniquely distinctive and piercing beeping shattered the terrace's evening tranquility:
"Hey, hey! Something happened, something happened! I'm telling you, something huge happened! Just now, I think, maybe, perhaps, possibly, accidentally ran into the Night Lady's divine kingdom..."
Gawain's thoughts and the quiet of the terrace were shattered at the same time. Amber's startling news made his expression freeze on the spot. A full ten seconds passed before he finally reacted, staring dumbfoundedly at the lively, troublesome Half-elf before him. "Huh?! What did you say?! Say that again?!"
"I think, maybe, perhaps, possibly..."
"Cut out those filler words!"
"I was studying the sand, and somehow I ended up in the Night Lady's divine kingdom..." Amber immediately shrank her neck, her face clearly saying, *I just did