At the inn, behind the reception desk, Bianca, the receptionist, was wiping a wet glass. Despite this, she still had a faint smile on her face, which would have been adorable if anyone had seen it.
She exhaled into the glass, leaving it covered in condensation. "Haaah..." She wiped it clean again, leaving no trace of dirt visible, her smile on her face.
The door opened, and Bianca's attention was drawn to it. Then, Infori entered.
"You're back, Mr. Atziluth."
(Well, seeing him again is enough to freshen up my morning. Hahaha.) Infori thought to himself.
"Oh, um... Yes," Infori said, then looked around and found what he was looking for: a chair to sit on. "I said I was just checking on something, didn't I?"
"Yes, you're right. But... why do you look so confused?"
"Oh, uh… No, I just had a little dream that, um…" Infori said, but he started over before finishing he sentence. Bianca sensed a change in Infori's demeanor.
"A dream?" Bianca waited, tilting her head slightly.
"Um… It was quite a strange dream," Infori continued, then asked Bianca about the dream. "Have you ever had a similar experience? Like dreaming about the future that…" Infori tried to find the words, then said them. "…It was surprising."
Bianca began to think for a moment after hearing those words come out of Infori's mouth, making her seem to recall her past. "A dream about seeing the future, huh..." until finally she remembered. "Oh yeah! I remember!"
"Remember what?" Infori asked.
"I remember, when I was little, when I had a vision of the future in my dream while sleeping," Bianca replied.
This surprised Infori a little. "Wow?! Have you?"
"Yes. It happened when I was seven years old, when I was at my grandfather's house. At that time, while I was sleeping, I dreamed that I was looking for something in a forest in a dangerous zone, and in that dream I was alone."
"..." Infori fell silent, listening to every word Bianca said.
"At that moment, a morak appeared from behind the bushes and trees."
"...?!"
"I don't know why I was in the dangerous zone in that dream, but in that dream I remember... I was so scared, I thought it was my last day."
"So, what happened?"
"I was attacked," Bianca said matter-of-factly. Infori was quite surprised. He had been silent before, but then he tried to keep the conversation straight.
"...Did the dream end there?"
"...Yes. I woke up startled, but then I realized that my house was quite close to the danger zone."
"What...? Why?"
"Grandpa had no choice but to live in a house near the danger zone due to financial constraints, and also because he used to be an adventurer. Also, due to a shift that occurred four years ago, the danger zone, which should have been far from settlements, became very close."
Infori pondered all her words. He hadn't said a word because he was digesting what Miss Bianca had just said. But at that moment, Bianca continued.
"In short, the dream really happened when I accidentally wandered into the forest alone while playing hide-and-seek with Grandpa..."
"... Morak came and tried to attack you." Infori tried to piece together her words.
"Yes, but that's when I also remembered the dream I saw."
"So, you were able to save yourself?" Infori asked.
"Not really. At that point, I almost died if I hadn't screamed loudly for help from Grandpa."
Inforcing this, Infori slowly looked down. "I see…" But then she looked up again to look ahead because Bianca suddenly spoke again.
"Perhaps the dream Mr. Infori had was a warning to you, to avoid the worst possible outcome."
"Yes, but to be honest, that strange dream made me quite uncomfortable."
Bianca smiled slightly at Infori. "I won't ask you to believe me. You can choose for yourself what you believe is right and what you believe is wrong."
"..."
⟨⟩ ⟨⟩ ⟨⟩
The sky was now a clear blue, birds flying freely, in flocks, even alone. Beneath this blue sky, Infori was in the middle of the Storm of Road.
He remembered Bianca's words, "You can choose for yourself, what you think is right and what you think is wrong," and he kept repeating those words in his head.
(I just have to choose, right...?)
From his eyes, he could only see people walking. He looked up, trying to make sure, but still nothing.
(The only clue was the sun.)
Infori noticed that the sun was still not in the center.
(Yes, it's still not there. For now, I'll just wait until the sun is in the center—well, that's what I saw in my dream.)
A panicked voice suddenly reached his ears, startling everyone, including Infori. "Everyone look up!" At that moment, everyone walking on Storm Road stopped and looked up.
A tremendous energy was being emitted from the sky towards them, and people were running in fear and panic.
"What is that?!" "Woah!" "Run!"
(This is just like a dream?!) Then, he accidentally saw that the sun was not in the center, but in the opposite direction. "...?!"
Infori was left wondering. (Wait! Why is it different?!)
Infori was so shocked that he didn't move at all, just staring at the energy in confusion. Meanwhile, the energy was getting closer and closer.
"...?!"