The next morning, before sunrise, Nick entered John’s room carrying a large sack.
“I still think this is a terrible idea.”
John looked up from his chair.
“Did you bring them?”
Nick dropped the sack onto the floor.
“Yes.”
John opened it and immediately found two sets of old, worn-out clothes.
They were dirty.
Torn.
And smelled terrible.
Nick frowned.
“I had to bribe three servants to get these.”
John nodded approvingly.
“Good.”
Several minutes later, both men stood in front of a mirror.
Neither looked remotely like a prince or a knight anymore.
Their expensive clothing had been replaced by ragged garments.
Dirt covered their faces.
Even their swords had been hidden beneath old cloaks.
Nick stared at himself.
“I look homeless.”
“That’s the point.”
“I hate this plan.”
John ignored him and headed toward the door.
A short while later, the two slipped out of the palace through a servant’s entrance.
The early morning streets were mostly empty.
Workers were just beginning their day.
Merchants were opening their shops.
Neither attracted much attention.
John led the way deeper into the capital.
Further and further from the noble districts.
Further and further from the clean streets.
Eventually, the city began to change.
The buildings became older.
The roads became dirtier.
The smell became worse.
Nick quietly observed everything.
“I haven’t been here in years.”
John remained silent.
As he watched the miserable condition of the people around him, old memories resurfaced.
In his previous life, this problem had only continued to grow.
At first, people simply became addicted.
Then they started losing their jobs.
When they ran out of money, they sold their belongings.
When they ran out of belongings—
They started stealing.
Robberies became common throughout the capital.
Families were destroyed.
The kingdom lost a massive amount of its workforce.
Back then, nobody had acted quickly enough.
But this time…
John slowly clenched his fist.
“I can change it.”
About ten minutes passed.
The streets became quieter as the morning continued.
Then John noticed a man stumbling out of a nearby alley.
The man’s eyes were unfocused.
His body swayed from side to side.
He looked almost like a walking corpse.
Nick frowned.
“What’s wrong with him?”
“Drugs.”
The man staggered past them without even noticing their presence.
A few minutes later, another appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
The deeper John looked, the worse the situation seemed.
More and more people wandered through the streets with the same empty expressions.
Nick’s expression darkened.
“This is worse than I thought.”
John nodded.
“Much worse.”
After observing the area for some time, John finally spoke.
“We won’t find the person behind this today.”
Nick looked at him.
“Then what?”
“We stay here.”
Nick sighed.
“I had a feeling you were going to say that.”
The two found a place beside an old abandoned house overlooking the street.
From there, they could quietly watch everyone entering and leaving the area.
Hours passed.
Neither spoke much.
They simply observed.
Eventually, Nick broke the silence.
“What’s going on with you recently?”
John glanced toward him.
“What do you mean?”
Nick crossed his arms.
“You know exactly what I mean.”
John looked away.
“I’ve always been like this.”
Nick immediately shook his head.
“No.”
His answer came without hesitation.
John remained silent.
Nick continued.
“The John I knew was kind.”
“You were innocent.”
Nick’s voice grew more serious.
“But recently…”
He paused.
“You’ve started acting like a completely different person.”
John’s expression remained calm.
Nick stared directly at him.
“You told me to kill someone.”
The memory of Warren immediately surfaced.
“You think differently.”
Nick continued.
“You plan differently.”
His eyes narrowed.
“And sometimes you talk like a grown man with decades of experience.”
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then John suddenly asked,
“Was that a compliment?”
Nick blinked.
A second later, he laughed.
“Maybe.”
For the first time that day, a faint smile appeared on John’s face.
But before either of them could continue—
John’s attention shifted toward the street.
One of the addicts had suddenly stood up.
The man looked around nervously before beginning to walk toward the eastern side of the district.
John immediately sat upright.
Something felt strange.
His eyes quickly moved across the people gathered nearby.
Then he noticed it.
One person was missing.
A man who had been waiting there all morning.
Gone.
John’s eyes narrowed.
The timing was too perfect.
Without hesitation, he looked toward Nick.
“Follow that man.”
Nick instantly became serious.
“The one heading east?”
John nodded.
“If we’re lucky, he might lead us to the supplier.”
Nick stood up immediately.
“And if he does?”
A cold look appeared in John’s eyes.
“Then we’ll find the person responsible for all of this.”
Without another word, Nick disappeared into the crowd.
Meanwhile, John remained beside the old house, watching the street carefully.
The hunt had finally begun.