Reina and Nam's footsteps echoed through the ruins as they continued walking. Everything was destroyed—

it was like a city from World War II. Reina and Nam remained calm and kept moving forward. The surroundings were still quiet, as if the past was affecting the future—

"Bzzzt... Shhh... Krrk..."

The voice was trembling yet determined. The person was breathing heavily in panic.

"Listen! If you are watching, reading, or listening to this right now, none of it matters! The only thing you need to know is that this story is a lie!"

A door creaked open—it sounded like the door to the room before the one the person was in. They seemed to glance around nervously, their breathing growing more erratic.

"This story is fake! Don't believe it! Everything was made up by him! No one knows the real story!"

Their panic increased.

"Please!"

There was a brief pause, as if they were looking directly at the reader. Their brows furrowed slightly.

"Don't trust h—"

The door to their room burst open. A gunshot rang out. They were probably dead.

Oh well. They died, didn't they? And the words of the dead don't mean anything, right? You won't trust them, will you?

Nam let out a slow breath and looked around. Was this really the same city from before?

After thinking for a moment, Nam muttered, "There's no way a normal person could be this strong… is it their soul's power, or their swordsmanship?"

Reina simply nodded.

The city was completely destroyed. Some buildings were still burning. Every time they blinked, the ruins seemed to collapse further.

Why are you reading this story???

With so many better stories out there, why this one? Are you really wasting your time on this? But why?

"Even if you're born lucky in this world, you're still not lucky."

That phrase sounds iconic, doesn't it? Oh, sorry—you must have forgotten(!) The one who said that was ***— oh, wait, you already know them.

Do you trust them? Just because they're the main character, do you trust them? Maybe you shouldn't. Because they are ********'s *********. If you understood that, I'm glad.

If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

Anyway, let's continue the story.

Nam climbed to the highest point they could reach. The place they stood on trembled slightly, but they paid it no mind and continued scanning the area. There was nothing but ruins.

Reina, growing impatient, started walking away without waiting for Nam to come down.

Noticing this, Nam quickly called out, "Hey, wait for me!" and hurried after her. Still, there wasn't a single person in sight.

Larod had been trying to meditate for hours, but he failed every time. And each failure made his body ache more and more.

"Why me?"

The fear of vanishing had nearly driven him mad. He lay on the ground, exhausted.

Suddenly, a white rift opened in the void.

"W-What the hell?!"

Larod was shocked—white voids weren't normal. From the rift, Ay stepped out. Their appearance… ah, sorry, I'm not authorized to reveal that.

Larod pointed at Ay.

"What are you doing here?!"

His brows furrowed. Ay scratched their head and spoke.

"What am I doing? I was assigned a mission to get you out of here, that's what."

Larod was confused.

"And how is that supposed to work?"

Ay gestured toward the rift.

"This is an Expiria spell. It was developed for soul transportation. Only souls can pass through."

Larod's confusion deepened.

"Wait a second—does that mean you're a soul?"

Ay grabbed Larod by the back of his collar and threw him into the rift before stepping in themselves.

"Don't overthink it."

Inside the rift was an indescribable space, almost like the fourth dimension.

Larod and Ay arrived in the ruined city. Everything was in ruins, crumbling. Larod groaned as he threw up behind them.

Ay looked around calmly.

"You'll get used to it."

Larod wiped his mouth.

"You do realize that Nam and I are from different timelines, right?"

Ay started walking forward.

"Of course, I know."

They climbed to the highest point and scanned the area. Larod simply looked around before asking,

"Who could have done this?"

Ay jumped down.

"You have sharp eyes."

The two continued walking. Meanwhile, Nam and Reina were still searching for others. So far, they had only explored about 25% of the city.

As they walked, a voice called out from behind them.

"Hey, Nam! Are you okay?!"

The voice belonged to Luth. His clothes were slightly torn, but he seemed fine. He quickly approached Nam.

"Hey, Na—"

His eyes landed on Reina.

"Oh, uh… you?"

Reina turned around.

"Reina."

Luth nodded.

"Ah, I see."

Nam interrupted.

"Instead of talking, keep moving."

He had already started walking. Luth and Reina followed.

Curious, Luth muttered, "I wonder what happened here?"

Nam and Reina didn't answer. Luth simply nodded as if he understood and kept walking with them.

And then, they all heard it—

"Do you really think you're contributing to the story?"

The voice was terrifying. The three of them froze, glancing around in fear.

Reina drew her sword. Nam and Luth prepared to run.

But there was no one there.

Larod and Ay were wandering the ruins. Larod kept bombarding Ay with questions.

"What's your name?"

"How was my power sealed by Eonhuld?"

"What was that rift?"

Ay didn't answer any of them.

And then, someone appeared before them—

Ay ignored Larod and kept walking.

Larod frowned and quickened his pace, stepping in front of Ay.

"Hey! Answer me!"

Without a word, Ay simply walked past him.

Realizing he wasn't going to get an answer, Larod sighed and followed.

End of Chapter!

"Hey, I'm diary writer Vera Mirvay, and today, I need to talk about something very important."

Her voice carried the tone of a woman who had seen too much. She paused for a moment, then continued.

"Whoever the god of this world is, they seem to enjoy mocking us."

She clenched her hands into fists, swallowed hard, and placed a hand on the desk.

"I want to tell you everything I know, but I can't—"