CHAPTER 119 THE DREAM FROM GUARDIANS

Dominic I opened the box, looking forward to discovering a treasure or an antique item. But it was a box of nothing; I hissed in disappointment and asked Meredith why the people made a great effort to cast a protective spell around the place if they had nothing to protect. She shrugged her shoulders and had no answer to give me. In total disappointment, I walked out of the chamber with Meredith following me. The sun had long since dipped below the horizon, casting the village in a cloak of twilight. Our exhaustion was palpable, and Dominic and I didn't take much convincing to seek refuge at the inn we had passed earlier. Its worn wooden sign, "The Resting Stag," creaked softly in the breeze as we approached. The inn's façade, though weathered, held a rustic charm that spoke of countless travelers who had found solace within its walls. Inside, the air was thick with the comforting scent of spiced ale and rotting meat. The hearth, a grand stone structure dominating one wall, blaze