The sun had already dropped a little from its highest point.
It was no longer beating down as harshly as before, but the heat trapped in the air was still enough to make the young man curse under his breath.
He kept walking, brushing the damp strands from his forehead.
Even though he had been walking for no short amount of time, he still had not found the settlement he had hoped for, nor had he come across a single living being he could speak to.
No matter how far he went, all that appeared before him was more grass and more trees.
His injured foot was not making things any easier either. It did not hurt too badly, but not being able to put his foot down properly was slowly starting to get on his nerves.
He came to a slow stop and looked around the forest. He had been walking for a long time.
A faint suspicion began to rise inside him.
He was not walking in circles, was he?
He was definitely lost already, but at the very least, he trusted himself enough to believe he was not stupid enough to keep turning around in the same area.
He lifted the sweat-soaked hair stuck to his forehead and continued on his way.
Then, while walking, he spotted a cave within his line of sight.
Its surroundings were covered with trees, bushes, and flowers. It blended into nature so well that it almost looked camouflaged, as if it had grown into the forest instead of being part of stone.
The moment he saw it, he felt relieved.
At least it was something other than the endless trees and flowers he had been looking at all this time.
Right now, one of the things he wanted most was to rest in the shade for a while.
He headed toward the cave.
It was not some massive cavern. It looked more like a tunnel.
Its entrance was narrow, so he had to bend slightly as he stepped inside. After a few more steps, the cave widened enough for him to stand upright.
About ten meters in from the entrance, he sat down with his back against the cave wall.
The moment he sat, he felt a slight chill. His naked body was covered in sweat, and a faint breeze was moving through the cave.
That breeze felt incredibly good.
He spread his arms slightly and enjoyed the air washing over him.
Then he went a little overboard.
Instead of staying seated, he lowered himself all the way onto the ground and stretched his arms out.
The coolness felt that good.
Honestly, sleeping a little would not have been such a bad idea.
As the whisper of the wind slowly brushed against his ears, his eyes gradually began to close.
His body loosened little by little, and the last thing he saw was the dark depth of the cave.
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"Heyy... HEYYY!!!!"
An unpleasant voice echoed in the young man's ears.
It came from far away, layered with distance and echo. It was so faint that it hovered between present and absent, as if it might vanish the moment he focused on it.
The young man slowly opened his eyes. He lifted his head and looked outside.
"Damn it."
He had fallen asleep.
The air outside was slowly growing dark. The sun did not seem to have much time left before setting.
The young man straightened up and raised his arms in a long stretch.
"I have no food, I'm thirsty, I'm naked, and now it's evening."
"Great!"
His self-pitying complaint echoed lightly through the cave.
"I know you're thereee... Come here!"
It was as if another voice had echoed back in response to his own.
This one was faint and indistinct, coming from somewhere deep and far away.
The young man got to his feet.
He was not even sure whether the sound had really been there or not. He raised his hands to his ears and cupped them, then stood still and listened in silence for a while.
"..."
"IS SOMEONE THERE...!! (..I... know...)"
He stopped again and cupped his ears once more.
"..."
As he listened carefully, he stared deeper into the cave.
To be honest, it was pitch-black, and nothing could be seen at all.
He could not even tell whether it truly continued farther in. But if there was a breeze passing through, then it probably connected to another opening somewhere outside.
"You're in thereee... I know..."
This time, the young man finally caught the voice properly.
He still could not understand most of what it was saying.
But there was definitely a voice.
He turned around and looked toward the cave entrance. If he wanted to do anything, he did not have much time left.
At the very least, it would be great if he could find a little food and a mouthful of water.
After thinking it over for a while, he decided to go outside.
He was curious about the voice in the cave too, but he had no desire to pass out from thirst during the night.
He had lost a lot of water while walking today.
And besides, who knew what kind of strange creature might come out from the depths of the cave?
No need to invite trouble.
He carefully took the sword into his hand and stepped out of the cave.
His first goal was a clean source of water.
As for the voice inside the cave... he would think about that tonight.