At a glance, Torrent Bay seemed to be home to about two hundred households.

The town’s buildings were packed tightly together, all enclosed by a wall of stacked stone. Many strange, colorful bundles were gathered at the town gate, and a rather sturdy-looking little castle was built on the cliffside overlooking the sea.

Next to Torrent Bay was the Torrent River, which flowed straight into the sea.

Sailboats laden with goods came down from the upper reaches of the river, sailing with the current to dock at the ports near its mouth. These vessels were like floating gold, constantly bringing wealth to the small town.

Farther in the distance stood the towering Roaring Mountain Range.

The mountains were frighteningly high, their peaks capped with white snow—a rare sight in the vicinity of Thousand Masts City.

Colin took a deep breath of the salty, humid sea air. "Let’s head in," he said. "This marks the halfway point of our journey."

"Doesn’t this town feel a little crowded to you?" Kase asked with a frown.

Orelia chimed in, "I don’t remember seeing this many carriages the last time I was here."

"Well, we still have to go check it out. The first stop on the trade route south from Thousand Masts City can’t have turned into some Cultist den, can it?" After a brief pause, Colin looked at the other two. "Right?"

"Now that you put it that way, Mr. Colin, it’s actually pretty scary..."

After some hesitation, the three of them finally headed toward Torrent Town.

The good news was that it hadn’t, in fact, turned into a Cultist den. The bad news was that the town was crammed with people. Those strange bundles at the gate were actually a sprawling camp of tents.

As the trio reached the town square, they could see a Guard in the distance standing on a wooden crate, ringing a bell.

This usually meant the local lord had an announcement to make.

Colin led the other two toward the Guard, and the crowd immediately parted to let them through.

"Listen up! Listen up! The southern trade route remains closed today! No caravans are to pass!"

"What are we supposed to do with our cargo?" "Damn it, we need to make a living!"

As soon as the Guard finished, several men who looked like merchants immediately started complaining. The Guard shouted back, "If you’ve got a problem with it, you can go through yourself! A bunch of whining fools!"

The entire square instantly fell into chaos.

Over the din, Colin shouted to the other two, "Let’s check the tavern!"

After finally extricating themselves from the chaotic crowd, they entered a tavern on the edge of the square.

The moment the door opened, the entire tavern fell silent.

The tavern was quite large for a place like this, but it was just as crowded as the square.

The patrons were mostly scowling Adventurers, their faces scarred and their waists heavy with weapons. They looked thoroughly intimidating.

As Colin walked in, he noticed several Adventurers shifting to give them space. It was only then he realized that his own companions—a scar-covered Half-Orc and a horned Half-Demon—were just as, if not more, intimidating.

Only after the trio moved deeper into the room did a low murmur of conversation resume.

Colin glanced at the price list hanging over the bar, then took out some change and set it on the wooden surface.

"Three beers."

"One Silver Coin is enough."

The bartender impassively swept a Silver Coin and the two extra copper coins off the bar and into his till. After sliding the beers across to them, he asked, "What are you looking to find out?"

"What’s been going on? We’re trying to head south."

"You haven’t heard? A tribe of Hill Giants is on a rampage. They’ve eaten every living thing on several estates—and that includes the people."

Kase asked, "Hill Giants? I’ve only heard of Frost Giants."

"Big fellas, almost five meters tall. Their arms hang past their knees. They can throw a rock the size of your head and hit a mountain goat two hundred meters away. They swing tree trunks as thick as your waist like they’re a wooden stick. They’ll knock the shit right out of you. I’m serious, you do not want to run into one of them in the open."

The bartender spoke in a hushed tone, as if a Hill Giant were eavesdropping in the next room.

"These Giants didn’t just spring up from the ground, did they? Some Tieflings we know passed through here not long ago."

"They’re a recent problem. And they appeared in a large group."

Kase frowned. "Aren’t Giants always in groups?"

"I don’t know what kind of Giants you’re used to, but the Hill Giants around here are greedy. They usually hunt alone, terrified a companion might get an extra bite. But this new batch to the south... they’ve banded together.

That’s right. Dozens of those five-meter-tall brutes have formed an army. No one knows why. All we know is that several caravans have been wiped out! And I mean wiped out in the most literal sense of the word—eaten clean."

The bartender grew more animated as he spoke, making Colin feel like he’d wasted his two copper coins on theatrics.

Colin had read a bit about Hill Giants in a bestiary, and the bartender’s description was largely accurate.

According to the records, most Hill Giants kept to themselves, only ever attacking remote farmsteads and shepherds. Directly blocking a major trade route like this was basically unheard of.

’Frostland Druids and a Cult to the north, and now Giants rampaging in the south. What is happening to this world?’

Colin frowned. "So when will the trade route reopen?"

"The Baron of Torrent Town is negotiating with the Dwarves in the mountains about how much to pay someone to take care of it. You could be waiting a while," the bartender said. "Rumor is the Dwarves have agreed to put up a priceless suit of Magic Armor as a reward."

Colin picked up his mug and went to find a table. 𝘧𝓇ℯ𝑒𝓌𝑒𝑏𝓃𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭.𝒸ℴ𝓂

Just as he turned, a pair of Mercenaries got up, shoving each other as they left. The three of them took the newly vacant seats. They could faintly hear the grumbling from nearby tables but paid it no mind. After all, no sane human would pick a fight with a brute the size of Kase.

Kase grumbled, "So, what, we just wait here? We might as well have stayed behind and gone drinking in Thousand Masts City."

"That would make this whole trip a complete waste," Colin said.

"You’ve got a map, right? Let’s have a look."

Colin placed the simple map he’d drawn on the table. Pointing to different spots, he explained, "Here’s Thousand Masts City. This is Torrent Bay, where we are now. And over here, to the southeast, is Rommon, our destination."

"Is there no other way to get there besides this road?" Kase asked.

"Directly east of Torrent Bay is the Endless Wilderness," Colin explained. "There’s nothing out there but monsters and Barbarians; the trade route doesn’t go that way. Rommon is separated from us by the Roaring Mountain Range. This southern trade route bypasses the mountains by following the coastline all the way to Rommon."

"Then let’s go through the mountains."

"The mountains are treacherous, and who knows what monsters are in there." Colin scratched his head. "And what if things aren’t peaceful around Rommon, either? Maybe heading there isn’t the wisest move..."

"Don’t get cold feet now," Kase said, lowering his voice. "We have to at least go and see. Didn’t you say this was all related to your ring? If it leads to a powerful Magic Item, we’d be fools not to go!"

Colin understood the logic, of course.

But he still felt it was wrong to drag Kase and Orelia into this much danger. After all, there was nothing in it for them to find that statue. ’Of course,’ he thought, ’if I said that out loud, I’d never hear the end of it from Kase.’

Kase then looked at Orelia. "Pointy, what do you think?"

"Huh? Is ’Pointy’ me?"

Orelia, who was cradling her mug with both hands, blinked in surprise. She hid her mouth behind the rim of the mug and said, "I’ll go with whatever you two decide... Also, I think you should just be straight with us, Mr. Colin. We already decided to help you with this. And now is not... uh, how do I put it? We’ve come all this way."

As they were discussing their options, a sudden commotion erupted outside.

A moment later, a Guard kicked the tavern door open and yelled, "Monsters are coming! Anyone who doesn’t want to die, get out here and help with the defense!"