By the time Luciana and Raizen returned to Silvermere, the afternoon sun had already begun to descend.
Luciana carried the basket of Moonleaf carefully, making sure none of the bundles were damaged along the way.
She had spent most of the journey back talking about the meadow.
“The waterfalls were beautiful.”
Raizen nodded.
“And the lake was so clear.”
“Yes.”
“There were those little glowing butterflies too.”
“I saw them.”
Luciana looked at him.
“You really don’t talk much.”
“You’ve already mentioned that.”
“I know.”
She smiled.
“But I still think it’s strange.”
Raizen said nothing.
Luciana continued walking, seemingly satisfied to fill the silence herself.
“And I’m definitely going back there.”
“I thought you might.”
“Next time, I’ll bring food.”
“Croissants?”
Luciana looked surprised.
“You remembered?”
Raizen glanced at her.
“You mentioned them several times.”
She laughed.
“Grandma Martha’s croissants are memorable.”
“I believe you.”
By the time the guild came into view, Luciana was already thinking about returning to the meadow rather than the quest reward.
Still, she was curious about how much fifteen silver coins actually felt like.
The Adventurer Guild was busy when they entered.
Luciana walked straight toward the information counter with the basket in her hands.
“Clara!”
The guild employee looked up and smiled when she saw them.
“You’re back already?”
Luciana placed the basket carefully on the counter.
“We finished the quest.”
Clara looked at the basket.
“All twenty bundles?”
Luciana nodded proudly.
“Yes.”
Clara opened the basket and inspected the herbs one by one.
After confirming that the Moonleaf was mature and undamaged, she entered the completion into the guild record.
“Everything is in order.”
She took out two small leather pouches.
“Your reward is thirty silver coins, divided equally between the two of you.”
She handed one pouch to Luciana and the other to Raizen.
Luciana accepted hers and immediately opened it.
Fifteen silver coins.
She counted them once.
Then again.
Her expression became thoughtful.
“That’s it?”
Clara smiled.
“That is the agreed reward.”
“I know.”
Luciana looked at the coins.
“They feel smaller now.”
Raizen glanced at her.
“You were warned.”
“I know.”
She sighed, then closed the pouch.
“But it’s fine.”
Clara raised an eyebrow.
“You’re not disappointed?”
Luciana shook her head.
“Not really.”
She looked toward the guild entrance, where the evening light spilled across the floor.
“That meadow was worth more than fifteen silver coins.”
Clara smiled.
“You liked the Moonleaf Meadow?”
“I loved it.”
Luciana’s expression brightened.
“The lake, the waterfalls, the flowers…
everything.
I think I’ll go back there someday even when I don’t have a quest.”
Clara nodded.
“Then remember the route.
Some places are worth returning to.”
Luciana smiled.
“I will.”
She carefully placed the pouch inside her travel bag.
Fifteen silver coins might not be much, but they were her first earnings as a traveler.
That alone made them special.
She had left Cresent Roseville only recently.
She had entered her first great city, received her traveler’s ID, accepted her first quest, traveled beyond the mountains, discovered a beautiful place, and earned her first money by completing a task.
It wasn’t a grand adventure.
No monsters had chased her.
No legendary treasure had been discovered.
Nothing extraordinary had happened.
Yet Luciana felt strangely happy.
This was exactly what she had wanted when she dreamed about leaving home.
A world where every road could lead somewhere new.
She looked at the little pouch in her hand.
“Maybe I’ll save these.”
Raizen glanced at her.
“For what?”
Luciana thought about it.
“I don’t know yet.”
She smiled.
“Maybe for something special.”
Raizen said nothing, but his eyes softened slightly.
Her first earnings.
Her first quest.
Her first little memory outside Cresent Roseville.
He suspected she would remember this day for a long time.
Not because of the fifteen silver coins.
But because of the place where she earned them.
The Moonleaf Meadow.
Outside the guild, Luciana stopped for a moment.
The streets of Silvermere were beginning to glow beneath the evening lanterns.
She looked toward the distant mountains.
Somewhere beyond them was the meadow she had already decided to visit again.
“Raizen.”
“Yes?”
“I think I understand why people become travelers now.”
He looked at her.
“You do?”
Luciana nodded.
“You don’t just travel to reach another city.”
She smiled.
“Sometimes the places you find along the way become the reason you want to keep traveling.”
Raizen looked toward the mountains.
“That sounds right.”
Luciana adjusted the strap of her bag.
“Tomorrow, I’ll find another quest.”
“Already?”
“Yes.”
She grinned.
“I have fifteen silver coins to turn into something much more useful.”
Raizen almost smiled.
“What are you planning to buy?”
Luciana thought seriously.
“Food.”
He looked at her.
She laughed.
“And maybe something pretty.”
Then she started walking toward the inn.
Raizen followed beside her.
The first quest had been simple.
The reward had been small.
But for Luciana, the journey had gained something much more valuable.
A memory.
And she already knew that the Moonleaf Meadow would not be her last favorite place.