The moment lunch ended, Joshua and Rowdy were back on their feet.
There was no ceremony, no hesitation, just the clatter of boots and tools as they returned to the site, still shackled, still under watch, but no longer treated like walking curses.
They lifted, hauled, swept, hammered. They patched broken brick, repaired wagon tracks, cleaned what was left of the city's bruises. And as the sun dipped low again, turning the cobblestone gold, the guards finally called them in.
Back to the cell.
Back beneath the earth.
But this time, the guards didn't shove them. They didn't glare or bark.
One of them even handed Rowdy an extra bread roll.
"Good work today," the guard mumbled before locking the gate behind them.
Rowdy blinked, holding the roll like a sacred artifact. "Did we just get complimented?"
Joshua grinned, already curling onto the bench. "Don't let it go to your head."
The Days That Followed
Their routine became something almost... normal.
Each morning began with the creak of the cell door and the soft clinking of their enchanted cuffs. They were led to different corners of the Human District, sometimes near the outer walls to help mend gates, sometimes deep inside the market to sweep and clean after festivals or trade rushes.
Sometimes they worked with quiet civilians who still wouldn't look them in the eye.
Other times, they joked and shared food with builders who had grown to like them.
And sometimes, their days were brightened by visits from familiar faces.
Lancelot and Merlin would appear unannounced, often just to check on them. Merlin always brought too much food. Lancelot pretended to scold her but secretly carried extra blankets.
Merlin wiped dirt from Joshua's face like an overprotective sister.
Lancelot taught Rowdy how to wrap his fingers when they got split from hammer work.
"You don't have to do this," Joshua would tell them.
Merlin would always reply the same way. "You're ours. That's all there is to it."
Emelia, Eric, and Sam came bearing sweets and silly gossip. Eric once threw a tantrum when he saw Joshua with a fresh bruise and threatened to "drag the king into the street and teach him fashion and justice."
Sam always brought water. Emelia helped rub Joshua's shoulders when he was sore.
They'd stay through their lunch breaks, laughing and sipping tea on overturned barrels.
And then there was Jill.
She came at least twice a week with stories about school and new bruises from playground fights.
She called them "Joshy" and "Row," and kept a tally of how many rocks Rowdy could carry on his back before toppling over.
One afternoon, she gave them hand crafted capes.
"You're heroes," she declared.
They wore them the rest of the day.
The Final Day
The last day of their sentence came with little fanfare.
Joshua and Rowdy finished helping reinforce a section of crumbling wall and cleared rubble from a collapsed fountain. The guards, now more companions than wardens, patted their backs and handed them cloths to wipe the sweat away.
"You're done," said the older guard who'd once spat at their feet.
Joshua raised a brow. "Done for today?"
"No. Done for good."
Rowdy blinked. "Wait. That's it?"
The man nodded. "Orders from the council. You're free."
There was silence for a second.
Joshua and Rowdy exchanged a glance, then turned toward the road that led back to the gate.
As they stepped through the final arch, blinking into the late morning sun...
They froze.
A crowd had gathered.
Hundreds lined the street.
Civilians. Children. Builders. Merchants. Some guards. Even a few witches from the upper district.
And all of them were clapping.
Cheering.
Smiling.
Some held signs, roughly painted in bold strokes.
"Thank you, Joshua!"
"Rowdy the Brick Breaker!"
"Not monsters, Men."
Joshua's mouth parted slightly, stunned.
Rowdy just stood there, eyes wide, until a tomato sailed through the air...
...and landed perfectly in his hand.
He stared at it, grinned, then took a bite.
Joshua laughed.
Laughed hard.
The sound of it made the crowd cheer louder.
Rowdy nudged his shoulder, his voice low.
"I think we're local legends now."
Joshua looked out over the crowd and felt something strange.
Warmth.
Belonging.
He couldn't stop smiling.
Not today.
Not now.
Together, they walked forward, shoulder to shoulder.
Free at last.
And no longer alone.