The moment the morning sun rose, the darkness shrouding Edshire swiftly receded.
That ominous presence vanished without a trace as well.
Qin Ran stood in his room on the inn's second floor, gazing down at the people gradually appearing on the street.
Everyone basking in the sunlight wore a heartfelt smile.
It wasn't happiness.
It was...
Relief at having survived!
Clearly, even ordinary people knew something about Edshire at night.
"Extremely dangerous at night."
"Yet perfectly safe during the day?"
"Interesting."
Qin Ran picked up the backpack beside him and headed downstairs.
Lagrun stood yawning behind the counter, with a young man in plain but neat, presentable clothes beside him.
"This is my assistant, Little Tom."
"And this is our honored guest..."
"Right, what's your name?"
Only then did the innkeeper realize he still didn't know Qin Ran's name.
"D."
Qin Ran gave him an alias.
"D?"
"Just as odd as I thought."
The innkeeper muttered, then grew somewhat serious. "Edshire hasn't been very peaceful lately, especially at night."
"If you can, I suggest getting back to the Furnace Grilled Fish as soon as possible after dark."
"And I have rules here, too."
"You can't attack my guests. In return, I'll do everything I can to keep you safe as a guest."
"Not that I think you'll need my protection."
"Your gold will cover two weeks here, with one meal a day. Breakfast, lunch, or dinner-your choice. There's no breakfast today, though... If you need anything else, just tell me or Little Tom."
At the mention of breakfast, the innkeeper couldn't help pursing his lips.
Eating at night always left him feeling hungry. He had clearly restrained himself, so why had he eaten all of today's breakfast?
Lagrun rubbed his belly, utterly puzzled.
"I need to exchange some gold for