Date: August 20, 637, Time: 13:19. Location: An unfamiliar area where the river had carried me. I could feel the cold, but my body refused to move. My eyes were shrouded in darkness. All I could hear was a muffled, rhythmic sound. It felt as though my entire body was submerged in some kind of fluid. Even with my eyes closed, my sense of depth still worked. What was happening to me? Was I in another one of those dreams? I wasn’t sure, but I knew I was sinking slowly into a dense liquid. The fluid was so thick that I started to believe it was the reason I couldn’t move. But why couldn’t I open my eyes?

That’s when I realized I wasn’t breathing. As the awareness hit me, panic set in, and I started to drown. For a moment, I thought I was going to die, that I would never see the light of day again. My body remained immobile despite my struggles. With great effort, I barely managed to open my eyes, just in time to see a silhouette approaching me.

I vaguely recalled hearing a muffled, echoing voice, a sound that saved me from drowning and brought me back to consciousness:

“You... cannot sink to the depths just yet.”

When my eyes suddenly shot open, I found myself lying on a bed of sand where the river had deposited me. My mouth and face were filled with water, and I was shivering uncontrollably. I began to cough—a terrible sensation, as though I were expelling my very insides. Thankfully, the feeling subsided after a moment.

As I glanced around with my wet hair clinging to my face, I tried to make sense of my surroundings. I remembered falling into the river, getting swept away by the current, and losing consciousness. Moving my legs proved difficult, and each attempt to move my right leg sent unbearable pain shooting through me. I must have endured quite an ordeal, though my arms seemed to have survived mostly unscathed. Using them, I dragged myself from the sandy area toward a patch of grass bathed in sunlight.

Every movement made the pain in my leg worse, but I knew I had to reach the sun. Staying wet and in the shade would only make my shivering worse. I needed warmth.

After a long struggle, I collapsed onto the grass, letting the sun warm my chest as I lay there and tried to think. It felt as though I had forgotten everything I’d ever experienced. It was as if I had been wandering this forest for years with not a shred of memory left in my mind. The thought that I might have suffered a head injury began to take hold, and I tried to gather my thoughts. I focused on the comforting warmth of the sun on my body.

What I was experiencing felt like an internal psychological battle. I sensed that if I lost this war, I would sink back into eternal darkness. I had no idea how long I lay under the sun, but the sound of nearby voices snapped my attention to a specific direction.

The voices of two small human children, initially hard to make out, became clearer as they walked along a small forest path near the river, talking to each other:

“What do you mean you’re not going to wash your clothes?”

“I just won’t.”

“That’s not something you get to refuse. I’m not washing your clothes, you hear me!”

“Fine. Don’t.”

“You will wash them.”

“And I said I won’t.”

As they argued and reached the riverbank, I found myself strangely curious. I tried to lift my body but failed; my injured right leg wouldn’t allow it. Deciding to observe as much as I could with my ears and eyes, I noted that while both were small, one looked even younger than the other. These were human children—a boy and a girl. The smaller boy, for some reason, was being defiant and refusing to wash the clothes as his sister instructed.

Both carried baskets made of straw, nearly as large as they were. The clothes they mentioned were probably inside those baskets. They hadn’t noticed me yet, hidden as I was by the tall grass. Observing their conversation and actions, I listened further:

“I’ll do it, but on one condition.”

“What’s the condition?”

“Make me cake tonight.”

“Hmm… I’ll have to think about it.”

“Stop being mean. Just make the cake.”

“I need to ask Malle if I can use her ingredients.”

“Malle will say yes.”

“Probably. Alright, get to work.”

“Okay.”

Having resolved their conflict, they began taking the clothes out of their baskets. They washed them with a special substance they seemed to have made themselves, scrubbing the fabric together with their hands until it foamed, likely cleaning off all the dirt. It intrigued me; I had never seen anything like it before.

That’s when I noticed a familiar sound. It reminded me of the bird I had saved earlier. It was coming from behind me. When I turned my head, I saw it—a bird with feathers in harmonious shades of green and red, and bead-like, brilliant blue eyes. I hadn’t realized how beautiful its eyes were when we first met. Its whining was gone, and its legs were bandaged, suggesting someone had tended to it. But who?

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

The bird suddenly began making loud noises, almost as if trying to give away my location. I couldn’t understand its intentions. The children, the bird… Was there someone else nearby? Were they like those people chasing me? I couldn’t take the risk. I tried to catch the bird, but it flew off, chirping, toward the path behind the children.

Unable to stop it, I had no choice but to crawl painfully away from the children’s position. As I moved, I could hear their voices behind me:

“What was that? Did you see it, sis?”

“No, but Milo is flying toward Malle. I think he saw something.”

“Did he?”

“I don’t know. Maybe we should go back to Malle too.”

“What about the clothes?”

“Forget them for now.”

The children retreated along the path, and I continued moving away from the river as best as I could. Or so I thought. I couldn’t use the Archive commands for some reason, likely due to the injuries on my body. A command would have been incredibly useful right then, as I didn’t have the strength to face anyone who might come my way.

Hearing human voices growing closer, I froze in place. I had no idea how far I’d managed to get from the river or where I was. All I could do was hope they wouldn’t find me. The discomfort of my situation was so intense that I had started biting my lips hard enough to draw blood. Lying face down, hidden among the tall grass, I stayed still.

I occasionally heard the voices of the people searching nearby. It was clear they were talking about me. They hadn’t found me yet, but I could sense they were close. What would I do when they found me? Without strength, without commands, what was I? I didn’t know. I covered my eyes with my hands, wishing for a brief escape into that dark dimension. I couldn’t recall a moment when I had felt so helpless. All my efforts so far had been for nothing. This was the end.

These people wouldn’t let me live after what I had done to the others. I didn’t want to accept death, but I had no other choice.

As the voices grew nearer, I caught part of a conversation between two men:

“What do you think scared the kids off?”

“I don’t know, but if Milo flew to Malle in such a rush, it must be important.”

“Could it be one of those mystical beasts from the stories?”

“Oh, stop it. Those don’t exist.”

“But what if they do?”

“You’ve been daydreaming too much.”

“Then it’s a black bear, and I’ll kill it the moment I see it.”

“With that fruit knife of yours?”

“It’s better than nothing.”

That’s when I heard the voice of a young woman behind me, and all my senses felt as though they had been cut off by a blade:

“You’re not in good shape.”

The fact that she had managed to approach and find me without my realizing it was enough to make me instinctively attempt to flee. Of course, since I couldn’t stand, I instead began crawling desperately through the tall grass, ignoring the pain. She continued calling after me:

“Wait! I won’t hurt you. Bronson! It’s heading your way!”

She had called out to the others, directing them toward me. I knew this was the end, but I refused to give up on this fragile life of mine without one last fight. Despite the excruciating pain from my injuries, I forced myself to stand and prepare to confront the people closing in on me.

At that moment, trying to stand felt like attempting to lift a boulder with my legs. The body I once used with ease now felt like nothing but a burden. It taught me just how fragile this form was. For the first time, I felt dangerously close to accepting the reality that I was human.

When I finally stood, I rose above the tall grass and could see the people around me. Two men holding axes stood in a small clearing among the trees, clearly waiting for me. It was obvious they were ready. I would give them what they were looking for.

Even though placing weight on my injured right leg was nearly impossible, I forced myself to take firm steps, ignoring the pain by sheer willpower. I knew they could see the agony on my face despite my efforts to suppress it. My vision blurred as I struggled to keep my focus, and my body was so overheated that water dripped from my hair. Despite the warmth, I was freezing at the same time.

I knew I wasn’t in good shape, but I wouldn’t give up easily. One of them tried to speak to me, though I couldn’t make out the words. It didn’t matter—I would fight.

With each step, the pain grew worse. By the time I reached the trees, my vision had begun to blacken. The men seemed alert, but why weren’t they attacking? Maybe they thought I was too weak. Would they think the same once their lives ended?

I would show them how dangerous I could be. I pressed on. My head was throbbing, and my vision continued to blur. Was I close now? I threw a punch, but it didn’t seem to hit anything. I threw another—still nothing. Where had they gone? Had they vanished?

I couldn’t see them anymore. I couldn’t hear them. I couldn’t even feel their presence. Perhaps I had defeated them. I no longer needed to carry this body. I no longer needed to feel the pain. I could rest now. Yes, I could rest.

I felt my head strike something, and as my vision cleared slightly, I was met with a breathtaking view of the sky and sun peeking through the trees. It was so beautiful. I could give everything just to see that sight every time I opened my eyes.

Before I lost consciousness completely, I remembered hearing voices. Even though I realized I had failed, I didn’t care. The voices echoed in my mind like a lullaby:

“Hey! Are you okay? Bronson, Aldous. Why are you just standing there? Help!”

“Malle, you know they tried to attack us. Why should we help?”

“Bronson’s right. The way they came at us so fiercely, I didn’t even want to get close.”

“Stop being ridiculous. Even Milo has more compassion than you two. You can see how bad their condition is.”

“But what if they’re one of them, Malle?”