Exactly twenty-four hours after Ethan stepped through the Hell Soldier's portal, he finally emerged on the other side.
Exhaustion was etched across his face, months of accumulated mental fatigue crashing down on his consciousness all at once.
His eyelids felt heavy, but a firm shake of his head was enough to chase the drowsiness away.
He was fine.
His memories remained intact, his mind clear, despite the fatigue.
"My lord… are you all right?"
Moments later, Aerick and Doran approached, their faces tight with concern.
"Yes." Ethan nodded, offering a wry smile. "I just need to rest a bit. Did you run into any trouble while I was away?"
"Not at all, my lord," Doran replied, shaking his head. "Just a minor conflict between adventurers—nothing that couldn't be resolved with a few nights behind bars.
However... I believe it's time we considered building a proper prison in Goldenveil. Keeping common prisoners housed in the guard's military jail isn't exactly standard practice."
