A cold, quiet night stretched across the hills.
After the encounter with Sterling, Vyvian, Faye, and Rem had moved far from the battlefield before stopping. None of them spoke much. The exhaustion, the confusion, and the strange loss of memory weighed heavily on their minds.
Faye sat down first, pulling her knees closer, staring at the ground.
"…This feels wrong."
Rem leaned against a rock, breathing slowly, trying to steady himself.
"We lost… but we don't even remember how."
Vyvian said nothing. He simply looked at his hands for a moment, then turned his gaze away.
The wind passed softly through the grass, cold, quiet, unsettling.
Eventually, they lay down.
Sleep didn't come easily.
Morning came slowly.
The sky was covered in dull gray clouds, and a faint chill lingered in the air. The wind brushed lightly against the grass as the three of them stirred awake.
Faye sat up first, immediately holding her stomach.
"…I'm starving."
Her voice carried both annoyance and weakness.
Rem opened his eyes next, letting out a quiet breath as he pushed himself up. His muscles felt heavy.
"…Yeah. Same."
Vyvian sat up last. His movements were slower, quieter. He didn't say anything, just looked ahead.
Faye glanced at him.
"You're too quiet lately."
"…Nothing to say," Vyvian replied.
It wasn't cold. It wasn't angry. Just distant.
Rem noticed it too, but didn't push. Instead, he straightened slightly.
"We need to decide what to do."
Faye rubbed her neck. "Find food. That's what we do."
Rem nodded. "And the fastest way to do that is reaching Valenor."
Faye sighed loudly. "You've been saying that since yesterday."
"And I'll keep saying it," Rem replied calmly. "Because we don't have alternatives."
She clicked her tongue but didn't argue.
Vyvian finally spoke, quietly.
"…We move."
That settled it.
They began walking again.
The land stretched endlessly ahead of them, the hills still far in the distance. The wind carried a dry, empty feeling.
Time passed slowly. Each step felt heavier than the last.
Faye dragged her feet at times. Rem stayed steady but slower than usual. Vyvian walked ahead, silent, focused.
No one joked. No one complained much. The hunger made everything dull.
After roughly two hours, Faye suddenly stopped.
"…Wait."
Rem looked up immediately.
"…Yeah."
Ahead of them, structures slowly came into view through the haze. Movement. People.
"A village…" Faye muttered.
Relief settled over them.
As they entered, the atmosphere changed completely.
This place was busy. Loud. Alive.
Merchants filled the area more than houses did. Stalls lined the pathways, filled with food, tools, fabrics, and all kinds of goods. People moved constantly, bargaining and talking.
The smell of cooked food hit instantly.
Faye didn't hesitate. "I'm not waiting."
Rem gave a small nod. "…Go."
They quickly bought food, bread, cooked meat, fruits. Nothing fancy, but enough.
The moment they sat down, they started eating without pause.
Faye almost burned her mouth but didn't care. "…Worth it."
Rem ate slower, controlled, but even he didn't stop. Vyvian ate quietly, his expression unreadable.
For a brief moment, things felt normal.
After finishing, Faye leaned back with a deep breath.
"…I feel alive again."
Rem wiped his hands. "Good. Because we're moving soon."
She groaned. "Of course we are."
Vyvian looked around the village slowly.
"…I wonder if Ron is from here."
Rem shrugged. "Maybe."
He stood and approached a nearby local.
"Excuse me, how long would it take to reach Valenor from here?"
The man looked them over.
"If you walk fast, a day."
Rem nodded. "Got it."
Vyvian stepped forward.
"Do you know someone named Ron? He ferries people across the river."
The man paused, thinking.
"…Ron… sounds familiar. Not sure. Maybe he's from around here."
Vyvian nodded slightly. "…Alright."
They returned and sat quietly again.
Faye stretched her arms. "…After this, no more random fights, okay?"
Rem gave a dry look. "If only it worked like that."
Vyvian didn't react.
Then suddenly, a scream tore through the village.
"HE IS HERE! HE IS HERE!"
Everyone turned.
A man stumbled forward and collapsed to his knees. Blood poured from his mouth, staining the ground beneath him.
People rushed in.
"What happened?!"
"Talk!"
Someone gave him water.
The man trembled violently.
"He's… destroying everything…"
His voice barely held together.
"…Every village…"
Fear spread instantly.
"Who?!" someone shouted.
The man's eyes widened in terror.
"I… don't know…"
His body jerked, then collapsed completely.
His eyes slipped from their sockets.
A wave of horror spread through the crowd.
Then chaos erupted.
People screamed. Some backed away in shock. Others froze.
Then panic took over.
"Pack everything!"
"Leave now!"
Many began fleeing immediately. Stalls were abandoned. Goods left behind.
But not everyone left.
"…He's insane."
"…Just a sick man."
Some stayed, clinging to doubt.
Faye stared at the body. "…That wasn't normal."
Rem's eyes narrowed. "No, it wasn't."
Vyvian spoke quietly. "…We should leave."
This time, no one argued.
They walked away from the village.
A few minutes passed.
Then the sky changed.
A deep blue light pierced upward into the clouds. The temperature rose sharply, and the air felt unstable.
Faye stopped. "…That's not normal."
Rem turned slowly. "…That direction…"
"…The village," Vyvian finished.
A realization hit all three.
"…He wasn't crazy," Faye whispered.
Then they saw it.
A figure stood in the distance, wrapped in ragged cloth, its face hidden beneath a hood. Beneath that hood, a blue glow pulsed faintly, like something burning from within.
Some villagers approached it despite everything.
"Hey! Who are you?"
"What's going on?"
Vyvian stepped forward slightly. "Who are you?"
The figure didn't move.
Then it spoke.
"Run."
The voice overlapped itself, distorted and unnatural, like multiple tones speaking at once in a way that didn't belong to anything human.
Rem's body tensed instantly.
"MOVE."
He transformed without hesitation, grabbing both Vyvian and Faye.
Shockwaves burst from beneath his feet as he launched forward at full speed, again and again, pushing his body to its limit just to create distance.
He didn't stop. Didn't look back.
Only moved.
Finally, he stopped.
His breathing was heavy. His Qi nearly gone.
He released them.
Faye stumbled slightly. "What the hell was that?!"
Vyvian stared at him. "…Why did you run?"
Rem tried to answer.
"…Because that thing—"
The world behind them turned white.
A blinding glow swallowed everything.
No sound. Just light.
Then,
A massive explosion erased everything behind them.
The village was gone.
Completely vaporized.
The shockwave reached them moments later, shaking the ground beneath their feet.
Then silence.
Faye's voice trembled. "…What… was that…?"
Vyvian didn't respond. His eyes remained fixed on the empty horizon.
Rem exhaled slowly, his body still shaking slightly.
"…That wasn't something we could fight."
His Qi was completely drained.
For now, they couldn't even try.
And whatever that thing was…
It hadn't even tried to chase them.
Which made it worse.