In the early dawn of Leila, a misty fog always lingers, regardless of the season.
That day, the fog was unusually thick, somewhere between dawn and morning.
The time of deep winter, belonging to the ambiguous boundary between dawn and morning, felt closer to night than morning. The outlines of everything were dark and shadowy, as if they had emerged from the ground, carrying an inexplicable sense of foreboding.
Feeling the fishy, damp chill of winter seep unpleasantly into her clothes through the mist, the person walked with heavy steps, not hiding her deep fatigue.
“Hoo… I’m tired. So tired.”
Since the latter half of this year, Leila has been struck by various abnormal phenomena.
The man-eating crabs, which used to inhabit the deep waters off Leila, have begun encroaching on human territory, appearing near the shore. Meanwhile, the man-eating piranhas, usually found in freshwater, have started showing up in the nearby sea, threatening fishermen.
The ever-changing sea climate has become even more unpredictable, making even seasoned fishermen hesitant to set sail.
Recently, a notorious pirate crew disguised themselves as a regular restaurant and infiltrated Leila.
“What kind of ill omen is this year…? Things that happen once in a blue moon are all happening at once.”
Yet, Leila continued to function as usual.
Despite the unusual events, daily life rolled on as normal.
Behind the scenes, there were people sacrificing day and night to restore the abnormal to normal.
And now, walking through the chilly dawn air of Leila, she was one of those people sacrificing for the city.
“Finally off duty… How many days has it been since I last went home…?”
Regina, the soldier captain who had been working day and night to arrest the Lowdrake Pirate Crew that had recently shaken Leila, muttered in a tired voice.
Having climbed the ranks from a rookie soldier to a mid-level officer, the youthful vitality and burning passion she once had were now gone. In their place were a cynical smile resembling the winter sea breeze and dark circles like dried-up fish eyes.
Even though she was finally off duty, her steps were sluggish, devoid of the joy one might expect, as she walked along the edge of Leila.
After days of catching only brief naps and running around tirelessly, it was natural for even the most energetic person to lose their vigor. But her exhausted expression wasn’t just due to that.
“Ugh…! To think they quit piracy to become chefs and settled in Leila… Does that even make sense…?”
Despite her efforts over the past few days, the soldiers of Leila still hadn’t uncovered why the Lowdrake Pirate Crew had infiltrated the city.
No matter how much they interrogated, the pirates all said the same thing:
‘We just wanted to open a restaurant. We had no other intentions.’
It was a flimsy lie that wouldn’t fool a child.
It was practically a blatant mockery of the soldiers.
“Grr… A pirate crew as notorious as the Lowdrake, dreaming of becoming ordinary chefs? That’s ridiculous.”
Clearly, the restaurant was a front to distract the soldiers, and behind it lay a massive conspiracy.
But despite the certainty of a grand scheme, the soldiers of Leila hadn’t even grasped the purpose, let alone thwarted it.
For Regina, who never considered herself exceptionally capable but certainly not incompetent, this was a humiliation like no other.
“Tch…! They’re clearly using the restaurant as bait to distract us. The cooking duel with the Red Shell Inn is proof… But even after drawing the attention of Leila’s citizens, we still can’t figure out what they’re after…”
In fact, her “off duty” wasn’t because the work was done—it was the opposite.
It was more like a forced break to recover stamina for the ongoing mission.
“But is it okay to rest like this…? Right now, as I’m trying to rest, the Lowdrake Pirate Crew might be advancing some terrifying plot we can’t even imagine… No, maybe we’ve already fallen into their trap the moment we intervened in the cooking duel. What if the duel itself was a trap to distract us? Maybe it’s already too late for us to act…”
Even though her body was forced to rest, her mind was still on the field.
The accumulated fatigue from days without proper rest and the stagnant progress of the investigation, like walking through thick fog, only fueled her ominous imagination.
“This won’t do. I can’t rest now! While we’re wandering in confusion, the Lowdrake Pirate Crew’s plot is surely advancing. I need to return to the unit…”
Just as Regina was about to give up her break and turn back to the unit, she stopped in her tracks.
“This is…”
The place her unconscious steps had led her to was none other than the front of the Red Shell, Leila’s most famous inn and restaurant.
She stared blankly at the Red Shell’s sign, then frowned as if a fishbone were stuck in her throat, about to turn away.
But perhaps it was the warm heat seeping out of the building even in the dim dawn.
Or perhaps it was the delicious aroma of steaming food, so different from the damp, chilly mist clinging to her clothes.
“…Right. I need to recover some stamina before heading back to the field.”
In the end, she couldn’t turn away. After hesitating for a while, she muttered an excuse to no one in particular and opened the door to the Red Shell Inn.
*Creak*
As the door opened, the warm air inside the inn greeted her, a stark contrast to the cold outside.
Perhaps it was the sudden shift from cold to warmth, but her cheeks tingled inexplicably as she scanned the inn with a stoic expression.
“Welcome…”
As she entered, the innkeeper, who had been preparing for the morning despite the early hour, greeted her with a bright voice but soon recognized her and turned cold.
This was a rather chilly reception for an innkeeper known for decades of sincere service and good reputation in the area.
Perhaps because of the innkeeper’s cold demeanor, Regina felt the warmth of the inn’s air freeze over.
Ignoring the innkeeper’s attitude, Regina sat down.
*Thud thud*
The innkeeper, clearly displeased, approached her with a frown but ready to take her order.
Regina, pretending not to notice, glanced around.
Despite being Leila’s most popular restaurant, the Red Shell wasn’t crowded at this early hour. The only patrons were a group of adventurers from out of town.
She watched the adventurers eating, and eventually, the innkeeper, unable to bear the silence, asked in a curt voice,
“Your order?”
“Clam chowder.”
“Hmph. Wait a bit. It’s still early, so we’re still preparing.”
The conversation was as dry as their attitudes, and the innkeeper, having taken the order, turned away without another word.
But at that moment, Regina called out,
“Ah, wait.”
“…What?”
“And one of those dishes the adventurers are having.”
She pointed to the group of adventurers, specifically the golden, crispy fried dish they were eating.