Leon and Rin exchanged a meaningful look, as if realizing their destinies were intertwined.
"I'm going out to hunt," Rin announced. "Leon, will you come with me? As for the rest of you, stay inside the cave. We won't go far—don't worry."
Leon nodded in agreement. When they stepped out of the cave, the demonic gate had already appeared, and from it emerged a great "Thunder Catastrophe Wolf," followed by its pack. Yet something strange occurred: while the massive wolf remained motionless, the other wolves began dispersing in all directions.
Leon and Rin gazed at the sky. Then Rin asked,
"How did you come by that sword?"
Leon replied,
"I found it by chance among the scattered corpses when I was crawling on the ground. I picked it up to lean on it, but I was struck by an electric shock that nearly knocked me out. I had no time to think—the moment Lina was about to die, I acted without hesitation and split the wolf in half. But I didn't explain it to Lina, for this sword is shrouded in mystery."
Leon then asked,
"And how did you find your sword?"
Rin recounted, "When I was searching for my bag with Mina, we heard a wolf's howl. I followed the sound, only to find myself in a strange place where I encountered an old man with a white beard. He asked me some bizarre questions before vanishing into thin air."
Rin then drew his sword and his book. Leon examined the book but soon felt the same sensation that had overtaken him when he first gripped the sword. Then, picking up Rin's sword in surprise, Leon inquired,
"Why is your sword engraved with the number 2?"
Rin answered,
"I killed only one wolf. The number 1 appeared suddenly when I was on the brink of death, then the number 2 emerged as I absorbed the corpse. I doubted the first number
I killed only one wolf. The number 1
appeared suddenly when I was on the brink of death, then the number 2 emerged as I absorbed the corpse. I doubted the first number's appearance because when I awoke beside Mina, the body had already vanished. I believe the sword absorbed the corpse during my unconscious state."
At that moment, Leon produced his sword. Rin's mouth fell open in astonishment as he exclaimed,
"Why does your sword bear the number 500?!"
Leon responded hesitantly,
"I don't know… I assumed your sword bore the same number. Memories of the sword flooded me, and I found it strange. Initially, I thought the number was false, but the power I felt—the experience radiating from it—cannot be denied. It remains an enigma."
Rin looked at the sword in bewilderment and murmured,
"What is happening? How
can this be?"
Then, recalling his earlier sensations, he added,
"But while searching for you, I felt the power of this sword. There's no way the number is fake."
Rin returned the sword to Leon and said quietly,
"It's better we don't reveal the truth right now."
Leon nodded in agreement.
Three Days Later
As the sun was setting, both Rin and Leon would go out at this time to hunt wolves. Each of them held a deep hatred for these demonic creatures, seeking to quench their anger.
"Oh Rin, how many wolves have you killed?" Rin nodded.
"I've reached a total of 20, how many have you killed, Leon?"
"I've killed 30, so the total is 600." Rin responded acceptingly: "It looks like you've surpassed me by 10, that's normal since your sword is now marked with 600, while mine has reached 70. The difference between us is clear."
That competitive atmosphere between them disappeared, each of them focused on their goal of exterminating these demonic creatures.
At this time, Rin was thinking: "It seems Leon is much stronger than me, it seems these powers were not distributed equally." Rin was confused, but it didn't bother him at all; what was the point of competing every time? We should focus on exterminating these creatures, and even if he's stronger than me, it doesn't bother me at all because I will either reach his level or surpass him in the near future. Rin expressed that he wasn't bothered.
At that moment, Leon shouted: "Oh Rin, I've caught a rabbit! Let's head back to the cave!" Rin nodded in agreement as they made their way toward the cave.
Rin said: "Leon, I'm worried about that giant wolf not moving. It's very strange, it's already been a month since it appeared, it comes out at sunset and goes back in at dawn, spending the entire night lying in the sky. Isn't that odd?"
"You're right, it's strange to some extent, but isn't it nice that it's not moving?"
"If it moves, we're done for." Leon expressed his concern.
Rin said: "We need to kill more wolves to increase our strength so we can at least resist it. We don't know the full extent of its power, but if it wakes up, we're finished. Let's spend another month here, then head to the western desert. It seems it first appeared in that area, so let's investigate there. We might find some clues about these weapons or their background."
Leon nodded in agreement as they reached the cave entrance.
"Oh Mona, I've caught a rabbit! You can cook it!" Leon shouted.
Mona stepped toward them with concern: "Are you alright?"
Rin said: "Don't worry, we're fine." Mona was worried about them because for the past weeks, they had been going out constantly to hunt wolves.
Mona took the rabbit from Leon with a reassuring expression, "Alright, I'll cook it right away. You can sit down."
Lina was helping Mona cook, and she sat down with Rin and Leon, saying excitedly: "Oh Rin, how many did you kill today?"
Rin answered nonchalantly: "I killed 20 today, which makes the total 70."
Excitement appeared on Lina's face as she asked Leon, "You killed 30, making your total 600."
Lina was surprised, "You've killed 100 during this period. It seems you're stronger than Rin."
As soon as she said that, she immediately closed her mouth and said: "I didn't mean that, Rin."
Leon looked at Rin, waiting. Rin replied: "It doesn't bother me at all, Lina, so don't worry."
Both Lina and Leon nodded in relief.
Mona overheard their conversation and said: "Hmm, it seems they've matured to this point."
She then grabbed Lina by her sleeve: "What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be helping me with the cooking?"
Lina expressed her apology.
Both Rin and Leon laughed, and warmth filled the atmosphere.
Mona said: "The food is ready, wash your hands."
Lina grabbed a wooden bowl from a barrel filled with water, which Rin had made earlier so that Mona and Lina wouldn't have to go outside the cave for water.
Rin stood next to the barrel to wash his hands while Lina poured water over both of his hands.
Next was Leon, and each of them sat at their place while waiting for the dishes.
Mona placed a dish for each of them, while in the center of the table was a large leaf with a roasted rabbit, and each of them took a portion for their plate, with satisfaction written on their faces.
After finishing their meal, Rin suddenly spoke: "We'll spend another month here, then head to the western desert."
Mona and Lina were surprised by Rin's decision. Mona said: "Isn't it far? It'll take three months to get there."
Leon said: "But we have to go there. We need to search for the secrets of these swords and look for clues about these demonic beasts."
Mona said: "But how can you be sure there are clues in the western desert?"
Rin suddenly exclaimed: "This demonic gate appeared in the past in the western desert, but that ancient history disappeared from the world, and I wouldn't have known this if not for the sword's memories."
Lina was astonished by the amount of information and facts Rin had shared.
Leon said: "We'll stop every night to camp, so you won't get tired. And don't worry about the wolves; we'll protect you even if it costs us our lives."
Mona didn't say a word, but her expression showed concern.
Lina said: "It's fine as long as we camp every night, so we don't get tired."
Rin said: "This trip will take about five months if we camp every night."
He added: "It's fine for now. We won't leave until the month passes. It's too early to think about it."
At that time, the western desert experienced some changes, with significant human casualties. It wasn't like the middle region's green plains, but there were still losses. The disaster spread across the seven regions, and the wolves began to launch their attacks.
Meanwhile, the entire desert was shaking, as the sand flew and the ground trembled. The local residents were filled with fear and panic. This was expected, as the world had witnessed a disaster that could annihilate humanity entirely.
In a distant area, far from the people, where only sand and a clear sky existed, the day had already arrived, and the sand rose like mountains. A tunnel opened leading to a large underground passage. Its appearance caused the entire western desert to tremble, making the people panic. But the surprise was that a person emerged from the tunnel. He wore old, tattered clothes as if from the Stone Age, his black hair short and silky, fluttering in the breeze, his face handsome with a long nose bridge that gave an air of beauty. He carried an ordinary spear marked with 5000, leaning on it as he walked, and mumbled with his dry mouth due to the intense heat:
"Water... water... I need to drink water."
But no one responded to him. He was alone in this vast desert. He continued walking desperately, searching for even a drop of water, and had already moved far from the tunnel.
He collapsed to the ground.
But at that moment, he woke up, finding himself inside a tent in the middle of the desert. He wondered what had happened, stepped out of the tent, and saw a middle-aged man with a 16-year-old girl by his side. The middle-aged man looked at him and said:
"It seems you've woken up."
The mysterious young man looked at him and asked:
"What happened? What happened to me?"
The girl spoke:
"We found you on our way to the quake site. You were unconscious, mumbling about water... water... My father and I carried you. It seemed like you were about to die. We ignored the quake site to rescue you. Do you know what happened there?"
The mysterious young man held his head as fog filled his eyes:
"I'm confused... I don't know what happened."
The middle-aged man said:
"It's alright, you can rest inside until you clear your thoughts."
The mysterious young man nodded in agreement.
An hour later, the girl entered the tent and saw the mysterious young man looking up at the ceiling. He immediately turned his gaze toward her and said:
"What do you want?"
The girl said:
"My name is Selene. What's your name?"
"You can call me Oran."
"Then, Oran, you have a nice name," Selene said.
Oran nodded:
"Where is the spear I was carrying?"
Selene replied:
"It's there next to your bed. Did you carry it to protect yourself from those creatures?"
Oran's eyes widened in surprise:
"What do you mean? Has the catastrophe repeated in this era?"
"What do you mean by 'repeated'? No one has ever witnessed this catastrophe in history. Did you hit your head?"
Shock appeared on Oran's face as he placed his hand on his chin, wondering:
"What's going on? Has that period of history been erased?"
Many thoughts flooded Oran's mind, but he quickly pushed them aside.
"Selene, in which region did this catastrophe appear?"
Selene answered:
"It seems it's the central region, the green plains."
At that moment, the middle-aged man entered, smiling. He had a short beard covering parts of his face, saying:
"Haha, it seems you two are getting along."
Selene replied dismissively:
"What are you talking about, Dad? We were talking about this catastrophe!"
The smile disappeared from the middle-aged man's face, and his expression quickly turned sad as he said:
"My name is Theron, and this is my daughter Selene. The
se creatures attacked us, and my wife and two children died... It's just Selene and me now, waiting for our fate to decide whether we live or die. Fate will decide that."
---
Oran looked at their sad expressions and said:
"There's no need to worry, I will protect you. I won't let any of you die. I will kill all these demonic monsters that exist in the western desert, then we will head to the central region, the green plains. Can you come with me?"
Both Theron and Selene were surprised, their expressions complicated:
"Do you really have the strength to protect us?"
Oran said confidently:
"I have the strength for that. Let's move from here. Is there a village nearby?"
Selene answered, saying:
"We need to head north. There's a village called Armak, but the place is dangerous. I saw many wolves roaming around that village. It will take us three days to get there."
Selene expressed her concern, but Oran said confidently:
"Pack your belongings. We will make our way there. Don't worry, I already told you that I am strong. You can trust me."
Theron looked at Selene, his expression filled with strangeness. Theron nodded and said:
"Alright, we will trust you. Our lives are in your hands now."
After a day…
As the group traveled towards the village of Armak, everyone was wrapped in a scarf to protect themselves from the flying sand carried by the wind. In this crimson sky, the moon was the color of blood, giving the feeling that something was coming.
And it indeed happened.
At this moment, a group of demonic wolves surrounded Oran, Selene, and Theron. Theron expressed his concern, cold sweat dripping from his forehead:
"What will you do now? It's a pack of 20 wolves. Even if you're strong, what can you do, Oran?"
Oran looked at each of them, his face devoid of any fear:
"Don't worry, everything will be fine. Just stay behind and don't move."
But at that moment, Theron shouted:
"Watch out! It's right behind you!"
Selene put her hand on her face, kneeling on the ground, waiting for Oran's head to be cut off, as the wolf had already aimed its claw at his neck…
But when she opened her eyes, she saw the complete opposite. Oran was still looking in their direction. The wolf's head had already flown, as Oran had thrust his spear, sharp at the edges, into the wolf's neck before its claws could reach his throat. Both Selene and Theron stared with their eyes wide open.