Abel returned to the city in due time. By this time, the sun had set, giving way for the stars to shine in the sky.
"Gramps! I'm back, where are you?!" Abel called out as he pushed open the front door. An eerie silence crept through the house as there was no reply from Audu. "Old man? Are you in?" Abel made his way through the wooden house. Thanks to his heightened senses, he already knew that the house was empty, but he still combed through its entirety to be sure.
After several minutes of searching, Abel finally concluded that the whole house was empty, completely devoid of any form of life, but himself.
"Hmm, maybe he just went out to get something." Abel concluded while rubbing his smooth shaven chin. When Audu was still sick, he never left the house, only coming out to sunbathe in the backyard. Now that he was much better, Abel wouldn't be surprised if the older man had decided to put his legs to good use.
"Err, I guess I'll just make some dinner and wait for him." Abel put himself to use, tying an apron around his waist and starting up a fire.
Carrots, lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, potatoes, and much more were sliced under Abel's masterful fingers, falling into the pot of boiling water. Spoons of seasoning were scoped and poured into the pot of aromatizing soup. It smelt so good that even Abel almost couldn't help drooling.
"Mmm, the old man's gonna love this." He murmured as he stirred. Half an hour later, he put out the fire, scoping some of the broth into a bowl for himself. He took his meal to his room, sitting on the edge of the bed, with a small stool to place the bowl on. "Oh, that's hot." He blew on a spoon of steaming hot broth that he brought to his mouth before downing it.
Time slowly ticked by, Abel having finished his meal, and was now laying on his bed. His sharp features had a frown carved into them. Audu still hadn't returned yet, and it was quite late. By the standard time, it was roughly two hours until midnight. He was quite worried. If it was before, he might have thought that the old man had gotten mugged, but whenever he thought of Audu's identity, he knew that it wasn't possible for him to be mugged.
"Let me just wait a little longer." He murmured to himself, convincing himself that this was just a joke being played on him by the old man.
And so, two days ticked by in a flash. During these two days, Abel had been practically hanging on the fence, worried for the old man. He had gone through the entire town, searching for the man. He even went to the armor shop to ask if Audu had been there, but all he got was more disappointment. They hadn't seen the old man ever since two days ago when they came by to put up a private commission. He had returned home after another day searching with no results. And that was how he remained for another twelve hours, doing nothing.
Until...
'Master...' The Gnoll's deep voice probed Abel's mind gently.
'Hmm? What is it?' Abel cracked open his eyes. It was already morning, and he had slept away the tired fog that clouded his head the previous day.
'May we head into the Tower? Your search has brought up no results, so I suggest you focus on getting stronger while you still can.' It spoke.
'While I still can?' Abel questioned, raising a mental brow.
'...Times are changing, Master. Things are getting much more turbulent in the upper Floors of the Tower. Not only are humans clearing out the creatures residing within at an alarming pace, they are also becoming alarmingly stronger... I believe something big is about to happen.'
'Something big? What do you mean?' Abel was slightly confused as to what the Gnoll referred to as 'big'.
'I am not sure of the details myself. I was too low on the ladder to get any information. My level of power was insufficient to allow me access more information.' Abel could almost see the Gnoll's ears droop.
'I see...' Abel kept quiet for a while, thinking things over before speaking again.
'Fine, we can head to the Tower.' He decided, and then left the house, heading for the Tower. 'Maybe the old man will be back when I return.'
.....
Abel left the town once again, but this time, he was heading in the direction of the Tower that was situated not too far outside the city walls. As usual, the sides of the path closer to the Tower was lined with temporary stalls set up by merchants who were either looking to sell some useful goods to the Tower Runners heading inside, or they were Tower Runners who were selling their spoils from their Tower run for a cheap, but stable price.
"Young Direwolf Fur here! 2 silver coins a piece. Quality is perfect!"
"Obsidian Boar Hide, 7 silver coins a piece!"
"Deep Root Snake Skin! 15 silver coins a piece!"
Armor clad people carrying all sorts of varying weapons called out, waving at the products they had spread out on their stalls. They were hoping for someone who needed to make light armor, or paddings from the materials they had to pop out and patronize them.
Abel walked pat them, his eyes fixed on the swirling portal that stood by the Tower's gates. Guards were posted beside the gate, but not the ones he knew. Those he knew were off for today.
He walked through, feeling the sensation of his environment changing under his feat before his vision returned. Inhaling the slightly dusty air, Abel looked around him. Another group of guards also stayed on duty on this side of the gate, these ones a bit younger than those outside. Abel gave them a small nod, and they responded in kind, flashing him smiles.
'Hmm, nice people.' He nodded to himself before stepping past them. An impossibly high cliff stood before him, shooting so high up into the sky that he couldn't even see the top. A single tunnel was drilled straight through the cliff, which led to the other side, the main Floor.
Taking a deep breath, Abel stepped into the tunnel.
'Let's clear this Floor.'