A heavy knock rattled the door.
"Brooke! Open up!"
Brooke didn't answer.
Another knock followed, louder this time, as if the wood might splinter under the force. "You owe three months' rent! Do you think I'm running a charity?"
Still, Brooke remained silent.
Across the narrow alley, he stood on the rooftop of a neighboring building, looking down at the small window of his apartment. From here, the place seemed even smaller—a dim, boxed-in corner of a city that had never felt like home.
"Two days!" the landlord shouted from inside. "You hear me? Two days, or you're out!"
Brooke exhaled slowly, the tension leaving his shoulders with the breath.
"Two days won't matter," he muttered to himself.
He turned away from the edge and glanced toward the horizon. Even from here, he could see it—the Black Gate. It loomed at the edge of Uthen like a wound that had never healed, its towering shape darker than the night sky behind it.
Beyond it lay the Black Valley.
No one who entered spoke of what they found there. Those who returned—if any truly had—were never the same.
Brooke rested a hand on the worn hilt of the black sword strapped across his back. The leather grip was familiar, grounding. It had belonged to his grandmother once, back when things had still made sense… or at least more sense than they did now.
"Guess I'm finally using it," he said under his breath.
He moved toward the fire escape and descended to the street below. The metal steps groaned under his weight, echoing softly in the early morning quiet.
Uthen was already awake.
Shops were opening, vendors setting up their stalls, voices rising into the air in a chaotic blend of bargaining and routine. People passed by him without a second glance. Faces tired, eyes distant, each wrapped in their own struggles.
Brooke walked through them like a ghost.
Not one person stopped him.
Not one person noticed.
"Home is where your most important people are," he murmured, recalling something he had once heard.
He let out a quiet, humorless breath.
"Then I guess I've never had one."
His gaze drifted across the crowd, searching without purpose. For a moment, he wondered how many others had stood where he now stood—fed up, empty, ready to leave everything behind.
How many had walked toward the Black Gate?
How many had made it past?
Four months ago, the last monster attack had taken a thousand lives in a single day. The city had mourned, briefly. Then it had moved on, burying the truth along with the bodies.
No answers.
No explanations.
Just silence from those in power.
"They know something," Brooke muttered. "They have to."
The thought lingered, heavy and unresolved.
Ahead of him, the streets widened, the buildings thinning as the edge of the city drew closer. And there it stood again, clearer now, more imposing with every step.
The Black Gate.
It rose high above everything around it, its dark surface swallowing the early light. The air itself felt heavier near it, as if the world was holding its breath.
But it wasn't unguarded.
A line of armored figures stood before the gate, silent and unmoving.
The Highknight Guards.
Only those of age were allowed to pass.
And once you stepped beyond that gate—
You were on your own.
No protection.
No rescue.
No return.
Brooke slowed his steps as he approached them.
One of the guards shifted slightly, his gaze locking onto Brooke with quiet intensity.
"You're here to leave," the guard said, his voice firm, leaving no room for doubt.
It wasn't a question.
Brooke nodded.
The guard studied him for a moment longer, eyes briefly flicking to the sword on his back, then to the worn pack over his shoulder.
"You understand what's beyond this gate?"
"I understand enough."
A pause.
Then the guard stepped aside.
No ceremony. No warning.
Just silent permission.
Brooke's chest tightened as he moved forward, each step heavier than the last. For a brief moment, he hesitated.
Behind him lay Uthen—crowded, corrupt, suffocating.
Ahead of him lay the unknown.
He tightened his grip on the strap of his backpack.
"There's nothing here for me," he said under his breath.
And this time, it didn't feel like a lie.
With that, Brooke crossed the threshold of the Black Gate.
And left the city behind.