The morning sun was slowly rising over the city's rooftops, scattering its golden rays between the ancient stone alleys.
The air was filled with the scent of fresh bread and spices, and the voices of vendors began to rise from the Great Market Square, where the calls of the vendors mingled with the cries of children and the laughter of women.
Laria emerged from the house, pulling her scarf tighter, followed by Rita and Sasha.
"You know, Laria? If there were no shadow kings and mysterious monsters, life would be much nicer here. I would have preferred to live in this city all my life."
Laria smiled faintly as she looked up at the sky. "Maybe, but we're the ones who chose the path of adventure. It seems that quiet isn't for us after all this."
Sasha laughed as she pointed to a juice stand.
"Quiet? Maybe after a glass of juice from this man first."
They sat on the wooden benches near the vendor, sipping cold juice under the shade of the tattered umbrella. The atmosphere was quiet for a moment, and the city lived its day with a simplicity that was unlike what they had experienced just a few days earlier.
Children ran around an old fountain in the center of the square, a man played a familiar tune on a stringed instrument, and an old woman sold colorful flowers, smiling at passersby.
Rita contemplated the flowers.
"You know what? It's strange that people come back to life so quickly after everything that's happened."
Laria replied in a thoughtful voice as she sipped her juice. "Because they have no other choice. Life always finds a way back, even from the ashes."
A brief moment of silence passed, as if each of them were lost in their own thoughts.
But Sasha broke the silence with a smile. "Enough with these gloomy thoughts. How about we go to the crafts market? I heard the carpenter makes amazing models out of magic wood!"
Laria didn't mind and agreed with a small smile.
They walked through the narrow, cobblestone streets, passing the perfume seller and the spice stalls, the air thick with the scents of cinnamon, amber, and dried lemon.
The city was pulsing with life again, trying to forget the past.
In one corner, a small crowd stood watching a young dancer twirling a stick that shimmered in a dim light. Laria paused for a moment, watching his movements intently. Sasha placed her hand on Laria's shoulder at that moment. "Don't look like that; he'll think you're in love with him."
Rita laughed, waving her hands. "Leave her alone. This boy could be the one promised this beauty."
The girls laughed together, their laughter mingling with the bustle of the city.
Before Sasha could respond, a soft knocking sound came from behind one of the old wooden kiosks.
Out of the shadows emerged the face of an elderly woman, wearing a faded gray cloak, leaning on a crooked cane.
"Her eyes gleamed with an eerie light, like lightning before the rain, and her voice came out as a weary whisper.
"You are the girls who liberated the city from the shadows of the corrupt king... aren't you?"
The three girls exchanged suspicious glances, then Rita replied cautiously. "Yes, who are you?"
The old woman approached slowly, her cane making a dry sound on the ground.
"I've been looking for you. There's something unfinished in the eastern mountains, a cave called the Cave of the Pulse, where something that never sleeps has awakened."
Sasha frowned.
"You're looking for adventurers, then?"
The old woman smiled, her teeth bare.
"Rather, I'm looking for those chosen by fate itself."
The old woman extended a slender hand and pulled out a small amulet shaped like a feather the color of dawn, and handed it to Laria.
"Carry it, and the wind will guide you toward the cave. Someone is waiting there, but they don't like curious visitors. And if you hear whispers inside... don't answer them."
Rita folded her arms. "And are we to believe a woman who appears out of nowhere and leads us into the mountains?"
But the old woman didn't reply. She simply turned slowly and said before walking away with her slow steps. "Believe it or not, the cave will open its doors and will wait for no one."
She disappeared into the crowd, as if she had never existed in the first place.
A silence fell between them for a few seconds, Sasha smiled hesitantly.
"I guess this is the announcement of a new adventure?"
Laria was staring at the small feather she was holding. "Maybe, or the beginning of another big problem."
Rita laughed lightly as she patted her on the shoulder. "Either way, we'll have fun together."
Laria looked toward the horizon, where the sun was beginning to set, and whispered to herself, "Well then... with the first light of dawn, we follow the wind."