Sara pushed open the heavy guild door and stepped inside. The cool air inside the hall felt different from the warm sun outside. The smell of fresh ink, cut wood, and paper filled the space.
Voices came from the back room where a large meeting table stood now. She walked quickly toward the table, her shoes making soft sounds on the floor.
There was Vessa, standing with her arms crossed tightly over her chest. She faced Priest John across the table. Rhuvia sat at the head of the table, one leg crossed over the others. She was cracking her fingers as she listened.
"The chapel alone is not going to be enough," Vessa said, her voice firm and clear. "The outer settlement has way more people than your tiny chapel can hold. We don't know how long this situation will last. It could be days, or it could be weeks. You can't just pack that many people into one small space like that. Problems will start fast. Fights, sickness, everything you name it."
John rubbed his forehead with one hand in frustration. His robes shifted as he leaned forward in his chair. "And I'm telling you again and again, the gods provide shelter in times of need. This chapel has stood strong for many years. We can make room. And as for sleeping arrangements, we can just organize shifts for sleeping. We can…."
Vessa cut him off with a shake of her head. "Making room is not the same as solving the problem. We need a real plan, Priest. Not prayers and hope. These people have nothing. Many of them have elderly people. If we squeeze them all in one place without enough space or air, it will turn bad very quickly."
Rhuvia stayed quiet. Her eyes moved between Vessa and John. She listened carefully but did not speak yet. The tension in the room was clear.
Sara walked in right at that moment. She stopped a few steps from the table. And all three turned to look at her almost immediately, as if they were waiting for someone like her.
"They're coming," Sara said clearly.
The words hung in the air. She paused for a second to let them sink in, then added, "We have successfully managed to convince them, the people from the outer settlement."
"Oh, really. Good, that's one headache less then." Vessa said while releasing a breath.
Then she asked, "But how?"
"Well, it was through the Fiora tribe leader's help."
John stared at Sara with surprise. His hand dropped from his forehead. "But how did you manage that? As far as the rumor goes, the Fiora tribe doesn't move for anyone easily. They keep to themselves most of the time, I heard."
Sara shook her head. "Well, of course, it wasn't me. It was Lys."
John leaned back in his chair. He let out a slow breath and said quietly, almost to himself, "Yeah, of course it was Lys. That boy just never stops surprising me."
Rhuvia did not comment, but Sara noticed a small shift in her expression. Her eyebrows lifted just a little. She looked thoughtful, like she was storing that information away for later.
Sara pulled out an empty chair and sat down. She placed her hands on the table. "So? What's the current situation inside the village right now?"
John spoke first. He turned toward Sara. "We need food. A lot of it. We have some supplies stored, but not enough for everyone if this lasts more than a few days."
Before he said anything more, almost cutting him off, Vessa spoke up, "And we also need a shelter big enough to hold all those people coming from outside. The chapel might work for one night, maybe two, but not longer. Plus, we don't even know when the dungeon break might hit."
Sara listened carefully. She almost suggested letting the outsiders stay in some of the villagers' houses. Many families had extra rooms as far as she knew. But she stopped herself before the words came out. This whole situation was urgent and critical, but it was not officially supported by any local lords yet.
So, if they just start forcing villagers to open their homes for outsiders who aren't even citizens, it could create bigger problems later.
Whatever they do, they have to keep the outer settlers separate from the main village people. The only safe way to get through this emergency was to put everyone in one big place where they could control food, water, and order easily.
But the problem that came with this was obvious. There was basically no single building in the village big enough for that many people to stay for a couple of days.
Seeing Sara deep in her thoughts, Vessa rubbed her eyes with one hand. "We've been going around in circles about this. Food, we can stretch somehow. We can ask for donations and ration carefully. Vivian has gone out to take care of that. But shelter? That's the real issue."
Seeing nobody was suggesting any real solutions, Rhuvia finally spoke. Her voice was calm but serious. "We mapped out every large building. The guild hall itself is too important for operations related to the dungeon break. The market warehouses that had opened are too close to the village walls, so they are not safe for consideration. The chapel is the biggest option we have, but as Vessa said, it's not enough."
John nodded slowly. "The gods test us in times like this. But even I can see the limits. We might need to set up tents outside the chapel, but if monsters come inside the village wall somehow…"
Sara leaned forward. She felt the weight of the decision on the shoulders of every single person in this room.
In her mind, she pictured the outer settlers arriving soon. Tired, scared, carrying what little they owned. They needed safety, not more problems. Then she thought about Lys again. He had done his part in bringing them here. So, now they had to do the rest of the work somehow.
But wanting to do a good job and actually doing it has a big gap in between, which she is feeling in her bones right now. And as far as she could see, all of the people in this room were feeling that, also.
The room stayed quiet for a few moments. Everyone looked at the table or at each other. The frustration was clear on their faces. They had been ripping their hair over this one problem. Food could be managed with effort, but finding real shelter felt impossible right now.
Just when Rhuvia felt the need to postpone the brainstorming for later, as it looked like a waste of time, suddenly, the guild door opened hard. It slammed against the wall with a loud bang.
A scout stepped inside.
She was one of the women Rhuvia had sent out earlier to map the eastern edge of the forest. And what was most noticeable about her right now was her clothes, which were torn in several places, especially around the arms and legs. A rough bandage wrapped around her left forearm. Dried blood showed through the cloth.
She walked with steady steps, but her face looked pale and tight. Sweat mixed with dirt on her skin. She breathed heavily but tried to hide it as she stepped forward toward the big table.
The room went completely quiet.
Vessa turned sharply. John sat up straight. Rhuvia stopped cracking her fingers. And Sara just stared at the woman with curiosity, because for some reason, she was feeling that this woman might not have brought any good news.
And as Sara feared, the scout did not waste any time. She looked straight at Rhuvia, her eyes serious. She opened her mouth and said,
"Monsters have attacked the eastern patrol line, Ma'am. A lot of them. They just came out of the forest faster than we expected and wiped the whole scout squad of ours."