I grow stronger by making my wife happy.

Chapter 108: 108:Weird.

The smell of grilled beast meat mixed with freshly baked bread and hot stew, while conversations overlapped into a constant, comfortable murmur filled the cafeteria.

It wasn’t really quiet but it wasn’t chaotic either. Silver and Ravenna walked around the occupied tables as Brian waved them over from one of the larger tables.

"There!" Brian called with a grin. "We saved you two seats."

Claire was already halfway through her second helping.

"You were taking forever, how far can it be from the service station to our table?"

Jonah laughed.

"You’ve had three plates, just admit you eat too fast."

"They were small."

"They absolutely weren’t, I’m the main witness of your gluttony."

Silver couldn’t help smiling as he and Ravenna sat down. The meal itself was surprisingly good; steamed vegetables, fresh bread, and a thick stew made from Mountain Antelope. The checkpoint clearly understood that tired contractors needed proper food.

Silver tasted a spoonful.

"...Not bad."

Claire looked offended.

"’Not bad? This is the best checkpoint kitchen between here and Delta Four."

"You’ve ranked them?"

"Obviously."

Jonah sighed dramatically.

"She actually has."

Conversation drifted naturally, nobody interrogated anyone; instead, they talked the way people traveling the same roads often did.

Brian pointed toward the window.

"How long have you two been out?"

Silver answered honestly.

"A little under a week. We’ve been hunting while traveling."

Brian nodded approvingly.

"Smart. No point wasting the journey."

Ravenna quietly added, "It also lets us learn unfamiliar terrain."

"Exactly." Brian smiled. "Most people just rush toward the sanctuary. They forget experience comes from the road too."

Silver nodded but carefully avoided mentioning the academy. Instead, he simply said, "We’re heading to Delta Four to train and repair our car, probably go further."

That was true. Just, not the entire truth. They couldn’t really repair their car here since the materials were much more expensive than what was sold at the checkpoint.

Brian accepted the answer without further questions. Jonah leaned back in his chair.

"So... how long have you two been a couple?"

Silver nearly choked on his drink. Claire immediately burst into laughter.

"Tell us, please please..."

Ravenna calmly continued eating. Brian rubbed his forehead.

"Ignore them. They gossip more than merchants."

Silver recovered quickly.

"...We haven’t been together for long, this would be our third week."

Claire pointed her spoon between the two of them, her eyes widening.

"Really, I thought it would be over two months or something like that. You’re still in the honeymoon phase... I’m so jealous," she dropped her spoon in her soup," you know what..."

"You’ve got that look," Johan rudely cut her off.

Silver blinked.

"That look?"

"You know." Jonah gestured vaguely. "The way you move around each other. You don’t even think about it."

Claire nodded enthusiastically.

"When you came into the hall... You automatically walked on the outside."

Silver looked confused.

"So?"

"So." She smiled. "People only do that unconsciously."

Silver glanced toward Ravenna. She looked equally surprised. It seems that neither of them had noticed.

Brian chuckled.

"Happens, you spend enough time surviving together... Eventually, your habits change."

The conversation shifted toward equipment. Claire showed off a newly modified rifle sight. Jonah complained about constantly repairing his shield. Another contractor described nearly driving off a cliff after being chased by Razorwing Eagles.

Everyone contributed and laughed. Silver mostly listened since it taught him more, than talking.

His eyes eventually wandered across the hall, an old habit. Always knowing who occupied a room. He found nothing unusual, until... his gaze settled on a lone man sitting near the far corner.

He occupied the smallest table with only a single tray in front of him. His posture immediately caught Silver’s attention. The man remained hunched unusually low over his meal, almost as though he was trying to hide himself.

Silver frowned slightly, something felt off. He wasn’t sure why, perhaps instinct or plain coincidence. Then, the man adjusted his collar.

Silver froze. The back of the man’s neck became visible for only a second. There was a very faint... greenish glow appearing beneath the skin.

Silver narrowed his eyes.

"...What..."

The glow slowly spread outward into an intricate floral pattern. It was clear it wasn’t a Tattoo or paint since it looked... alive.

The pattern pulsed once, twice, then a small section of skin on the man’s neck lifted outward, just slightly like... something beneath the flesh had moved.

Silver’s entire body became still. His chair shifted backward. Ravenna instantly noticed.

"What is it?"

Silver never answered. His eyes remained fixed on the corner. The strange movement happened again but this time the man stiffened, almost as though he had felt someone watching.

He hurriedly shoved the remaining food into his mouth before standing. His tray clattered softly onto the return counter. Without speaking to anyone, he walked quickly toward the exit.

Silver instinctively stood.

"I’ll..."

Before he could take a step, the man disappeared through the doorway. He followed but by the time he reached the entrance, he was gone and only the busy checkpoint street remained outside.

Silver slowly scanned both directions, nothing.

"...Too fast."

Ravenna joined him.

"You know him?"

Silver shook his head.

"No."

"What happened?"

He hesitated.

"...I thought..." Then stopped himself. "...Maybe nothing."

He couldn’t explain what he’d seen, not without sounding ridiculous.

When they returned to the table, Brian noticed Silver’s expression.

"You alright?"

Silver sat back down.

"I saw someone leave. That man who had been sitting alone."

Brian nodded immediately.

"Oh, him."

Silver looked up.

"You know him?"

"Not personally though." Brian’s cheerful expression faded slightly. "He came back yesterday from Detroin."

The table grew noticeably quieter. Caire slowly lowered her spoon. Silver asked calmly,

"What happened?"

Brian folded his arms.

"His team accepted one of the exploration bounties. There were four of them. They entered Detroin three days ago."

Silver listened carefully. Brian continued.

"Only he came back."

Silence settled briefly.

"What killed them?"

Brian shook his head.

"Nobody knows. He claims they were attacked while returning and didn’t even make it out of town."

Claire quietly added, "That part is definitely true since the rescue team only found bodies."

Silver’s eyes narrowed.

"Bodies?"

She nodded.

"They were... strange."

Jonah spoke more quietly than before.

"Almost all their equipment was gone but not stolen. It was..." he struggled for the word,"...Broken."

Brian sighed.

"The Association questioned him for hours but they couldn’t find anything suspicious, so they let him go."

Silver remembered the glowing pattern beneath the man’s skin.

"...Did he find anything valuable?"

Brian nodded.

"Actually... He benefited the most from the expedition."

Silver looked at him.

"He recovered two intact storage modules, some old-world medicine, and several rare beast materials."

Claire shrugged.

"People say he’s lucky."

Silver quietly looked toward the empty corner table. Lucky. The word didn’t feel right, not after what he’d seen.

Another contractor from a neighboring table leaned over.

"You talking about Eric?"

Brian nodded. The man snorted.

"I’d rather be poor."

Everyone looked toward him. He shrugged.

"Guy hasn’t slept since he got back. He keeps renting different rooms and is always looking over his shoulder."

Claire frowned.

"I thought that was just trauma."

"Maybe." The contractor took another bite before adding, "Or maybe he brought something back."

Several people laughed awkwardly.

Someone muttered, "Stop telling ghost stories."

The conversation quickly drifted elsewhere. Only Silver remained thoughtful. Ravenna quietly nudged him beneath the table.

"You saw something."

It clearly wasn’t a question.

Silver answered just as quietly, "...Maybe."

"You don’t sound convinced."

"I’m not." He stared at his untouched drink. "It happened too quickly."

She studied his expression.

"You’ll keep watching."

Silver nodded once.

"Yes."

The atmosphere gradually recovered. People returned to discussing routes, equipment, and tomorrow’s departures. Several contractors mentioned that more than twenty hunting teams planned to leave at sunrise. Others argued over which section of Detroin would be safest to search first.

One veteran hunter laughed.

"Tomorrow’s going to be crowded."

Another nodded.

"Haven’t seen this many contractors on one bounty in years."

Silver quietly memorized everything. Crowds meant opportunity but also confusion. It was the perfect place for someone to disappear.

Without warning...

BANG!

A gunshot echoed outside. Every conversation inside the dining hall stopped instantly. Dozens of contractors were already on their feet before the echo faded.

Silver and Ravenna stood almost simultaneously. Brian grabbed his hammer. Claire had her rifle in hand.

Nobody panicked, everyone simply reacted to the sound. Another shout came from outside, then... silence.

Silver exchanged a single glance with Ravenna. Whatever had happened, it had just interrupted the calm of Checkpoint Nine.