A second ringing sound echoed through the young man's ears, but unfortunately, he had already lost consciousness.
As he lay in the darkness, several cracking noises echoed around him. They were eerie sounds, harsh and deeply unsettling.
His broken and torn bones crackled as they shifted on their own, moving back into place. Then they pressed together and fixed themselves where they belonged.
Veins and flesh wrapped around the bloodied bones. In only a few breaths, the young man's body was restored to almost its original condition.
The only problem was that the wound across his chest had returned to its fresh state as well. Even the wetness on it remained.
His condition had improved greatly, but he was still unconscious.
A blue light appeared over him once again, but he had no time to read it.
The words vanished, and with a great sound, the surroundings began to change.
----------------
"Ihhmmm..."
The sun stood directly overhead.
Its warm light poured down so fiercely that any animal left out in the open might have collapsed from the heat. Around him came the soft rustling of lush green leaves. The shadows of those branches stretched over him, as if they had leaned in just to shield him from the burning sunlight.
With his pale white skin, thin body that did not look particularly strong, and short, faded blond hair, the young man appeared very defenseless.
A few shafts of light slipped through the branches and disturbed his sweet sleep.
The young man slowly opened his eyes. The brightness stabbed into them, and he quickly raised an arm to shield his face.
As his vision gradually adjusted to the surroundings, his memory of his condition also returned.
He looked at the arm raised in front of his face.
It worked perfectly.
He straightened up at once and checked his leg as well. There was no problem there either.
It had healed.
"What the hell..."
The state his body remembered and the state he was witnessing now did not match at all.
He slowly rose to his feet. He stretched and loosened his body. It was in perfect condition. In fact, he did not think he had ever felt this refreshed in his life.
He looked around.
The place was like a peaceful landscape torn straight out of a fairy tale. Giant green trees surrounded him, and the ground was covered in colorful flowers.
He turned his head and smiled.
There was even a gentle stream flowing nearby. The only thing missing from the scene was a few rabbits hopping around.
He thought it fit strangely well with the fact that he was standing there completely naked.
The nightmare-like scene he had just gone through already felt very far away. As if it had never happened at all.
Where was he, and why was he here?
As usual, he had no idea.
Could everything have just been a terrible dream?
He found it hard to believe he could have such a nightmare while sleeping in a place like this, but no other explanation came to mind.
As comfortable as being naked felt, he decided he was going to need clothes soon.
The place he was in looked very far from civilization, but if he happened to run into someone on the road, it would not end well.
He took a deep breath, drawing in the smell of the clean air, and started walking. In his mind, he was already planning what to do next.
He took one step.
Then a second.
"AAHHH!!"
With the third step, he sadly placed his foot on the wrong patch of ground.
A terrible pain shot through the sole of his foot, and he threw himself down at once. Groaning, he rolled on the ground.
He had probably cut his foot.
Grumbling under his breath, he pushed himself up and looked at the bottom of it. A long cut ran across his sole.
"Perfect!!! For fuck's sake."
He grumbled to himself, wondering if he really could not take even two steps without getting hurt. Why did this always happen to him?
He looked at the ground where he had stepped.
Something black and strange was lying there. It gave off a faint gleam under the sunlight.
He moved closer and looked more carefully.
The tip of the thing was somewhat triangular, and from there it extended downward in a rectangular shape. It shone with a cold, coal-dark color. Even though it looked very old, it still seemed sharp.
At first glance, the young man thought it resembled a short sword.
But it had no hilt.
A short sword without a hilt.
He measured it roughly with his eyes. It was a little shorter than half the length of his arm.
Then, suddenly, something lit up in his mind.
Objective... reward...
Was this the reward he had earned from that nightmare-like struggle earlier?
More importantly...
Had what happened before actually been real?
He touched the blade. Even though he only brushed it lightly with his fingertip, his finger was cut a little.
Despite its old, hiltless appearance, this sword was apparently something incredible.
It just had one small issue. It was a disaster waiting to happen.
He carefully picked it up with his fingers. He could not use it like this right now, but if he took it to a blacksmith and had a hilt made for it, something amazing might come out of it.
At best, it could make him rich.
At worst, he could still sell it and fill his stomach.
He held the sword carefully between his thumb and index finger, then continued walking.
He limped lightly as he moved. He could not put his full weight on his injured foot. On top of that, he was still stepping barefoot on the ground with that wounded sole.
Even in this state, the order of priorities in his head was clear.
First clothes.
Then treatment for his foot.
And while he walked, he also thought he needed to come up with a better way to carry this sword.