I couldn't stop thinking about what she said.
"Don't go there."
It stayed in my head the whole day. Not just the words, but the way she said them—quiet, serious, like it actually mattered.
I tried to ignore it.
I went back to the garden and started working. Cleaning tools, fixing the soil, moving things around. It should have helped, but it didn't. My mind kept going back to the same place.
The basement.
Every time I looked toward the building, I felt it again.
Like something was waiting.
"Wrong side."
I turned quickly. Mother Superior was standing near the path, watching me.
"You're planting them on the wrong side," she said.
I looked down at my hands. She was right.
"…Yeah," I said quietly.
She walked closer, not in a hurry, just observing. "What happened, son?" she asked. "You're not paying attention today."
"I'm fine," I replied. "Just didn't sleep well."
She studied my face for a moment. "The storm?"
I nodded. "It was loud."
She gave a small nod. "Storms don't just bring noise."
I frowned slightly. "What do they bring?"
She didn't answer. Her eyes stayed on me for a second longer, like she was deciding something.
Then she turned away.
"Be careful," she said.
And walked off.
That didn't help.
Later, I saw someone near the entrance.
At first, I didn't recognize him.
He was leaning against the wall, looking the same as always—careless, relaxed, like nothing could bother him.
Then he looked up.
For a second, we just stared at each other.
"…Morron?"
I almost smiled. "You didn't change Varen"
He let out a short laugh and pushed himself off the wall. "And you disappeared."
"Yeah," I said. "For a while."
He stepped closer, looking at me properly now. "Didn't think you'd come back."
"Neither did I."
There was a small pause. Not awkward. Just… time passing between us.
"You look tired," he said.
"Didn't sleep much."
He smirked slightly. "First night and already struggling?"
I hesitated, then said, "I heard something… from the basement."
He paused for a second, then shook his head. "Still the same. Thinking too much."
"It didn't feel normal."
"You've been away too long," he said. "You forgot how this place is."
Maybe he was right.
Or maybe he just didn't notice things like I did.
By evening, the sky started changing again. Not completely dark, but not normal either. The wind moved through the trees, slower this time.
I went back inside.
The hallway was quiet again. Not peaceful—just quiet.
As I passed the basement corridor, I slowed down without thinking.
The door was closed.
No light. No sound.
Just silence.
"Morron."
I turned. It was Aelith.
She walked closer but stopped a few steps away. "You shouldn't be here," she said.
"I'm just passing."
"No," she said softly. "You stop here every time."
I didn't answer.
She looked at the door, then back at me. "Some things are better left alone."
"What things?" I asked.
She didn't reply immediately.
Then she said, "If you keep asking… you might not like the answers."
Before I could say anything else, a loud thunder sound echoed through the building. The lights flickered for a second.
She stepped back.
Then turned and walked away without another word.
I stayed there, staring at the door.
This time, I didn't feel curious.
I felt warned.
End of Chapter 4