Spring had arrived and flowers were blooming, yet Rivfley felt no warmth at all.
Stratholme's morning mist had yet to disperse when Rivfley rose early to accompany Malon as he delivered letters and packages around the city.
The city remained as bustling as ever, but Malon no longer had any packages to deliver.
Baron Rivendare had sealed every route south of Darrowshire. Merchants' Guild representatives, merchants, and even Intelligence Officers from the underground Black Market could not enter through the normal procedures.
Yet despite the absence of traveling merchants and transport caravans, Stratholme still had plentiful supplies of grain and inexpensive manufactured goods.
The city's nearly one hundred thousand residents had been lulled into abandoning all vigilance by this temporary prosperity.
Every morning, aside from going to work, Stratholme's residents visited the grain shops and clothing stores to buy cheap food and clothes.
Beneath that glittering facade, a cold shadow gradually spread over all of Stratholme.
Malon, who had previously concealed some things from Rivfley, feared losing the woman he loved. He simply opened his heart and embraced what he truly wanted.
Rivfley was his childhood sweetheart, and they had been close playmates as children. Malon had always been devoted to her, and no unexpected heroine had ever appeared in his life. Once they reached adulthood, their feelings naturally deepened, and everything fell into place.
Women were emotional creatures. After Rivfley and Malon officially became a couple, her fear of death vanished without a trace.
Rivfley nestled beside Malon, surrounded by happiness and love, until she even forgot that Stratholme was falling beneath the shadow cast by the Undead Mages.
"Mr. Malon? You didn't leave the city yesterday either?" Harmon handed his ledger to a servant and greeted Malon warmly.
Malon patted his flat Magical Package and said regretfully, "That's