Laravel media library shows 403 error when trying to access media url

I am using the Media Library on a Laravel app locally and at the moment I am uploading the files in storage/app/public path. However when I am trying to access the file from the browser I am getting a 403 access forbidden error.

This error showed up after running the command php artisan storage:link, before that I was seeing a white screen when trying to open the image url on a new tab

// Livewire component
public function mount()
{
    $this->selectedImageUrl = $this->post->getFirstMediaUrl();
}

// blade component
<div class="space-y-4">
    <img src="{{ $selectedImageUrl }}" alt="" />
</div>