"Even if we spend 48 hours in the world of 48H, we won’t be able to return to this world."

Rudra listened in silence, absorbing every word like a spectator to an unfolding tale. He remained quiet for a few moments before finally looking up at the clinking sound around him. Then, in his usual calm voice, he asked,

"How does that work?"

Jaipa’s face momentarily twisted with frustration, but he took a deep breath, letting the emotion pass. When he spoke again, his voice was steady.

"The Mark of Claim... It’s not like other claim marks. This one is among the seven mysteries of “ The Forest of Absolute “ No one truly understands it. Only a handful in the history of my world have ever been branded with this mark, and from what little I know... once it appears on someone—whether they are human, angel, white, or demon—they can never leave that forest."

With that, Jaipa fell silent for a while, his eyes fixed on Rudra. But something in them had changed.

It wasn’t admiration, nor was it any newfound fondness. Maybe it was the weight of the recent incident—or perhaps something else entirely.

At first glance, Rudra’s face was charming, almost carefree, as if the world held no troubles for him. Even a second look wouldn’t reveal a crack in that mask. But inside, his thoughts ran wild, tangled with worries about the inevitable end of his life. No matter how calm he looked, he couldn’t silence the questions clawing at his mind.

Still, he pushed it all aside. Straightening slightly, he asked in a tone a little sharper than before—

"How many survived?"

With that, Rudra looked at Jaipa and spoke again.

"You said that in the history of your world, only a few people have ever been branded with the Mark of Claim, right? So how many of them actually survived?"

Jaipa’s face twisted in frustration, but he held it in, swallowing his irritation.

"What was I expecting from this kid? Haa…" he thought bitterly. "I’m the idiot for thinking I’d get a genuine reaction out of him."

He let out a deep sigh.

"First of all—hey, Rudra, look at me when I’m talking to you!"

He took a brief pause before continuing, his voice laced with frustration.

Jaipa gritted his teeth and spoke again.

"Let me correct you on a few things."

His voice was rough now, irritation seeping into every word.

"First thing—the Mark of Claim? That’s not even its real name. That’s just what people call it, a name given by those who watched their companions bear its curse."

He took a long pause, his gaze lingering on Rudra’s deceptively charming face.

”How can a kid like him look so lifeless… with a face like that? Haa…

The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.

He inhaled deeply before adding—

"And the second thing… no one…"

Jaipa’s fingers curled into fists.

"Not a single one has ever survived."

A heavy silence filled the room.

Jaipa remained quiet, not out of hesitation but to let his words sink deep into Rudra’s mind. He wanted the weight of reality to hit him properly. That was his reason.

Rudra, on the other hand, had his own reason for staying silent. He needed time—time to process everything. The Mark of Claim, the dangers of the unknown world, and above all, the fact that his life was still dangling at the edge of death’s door.

Despite his seemingly carefree expression, he never took Jaipa’s warnings lightly. Not when he warned about the cave, not when he spoke about his world, and certainly not now. The reason he looked so calm wasn’t because he was indifferent—it was because he simply couldn’t show the weight of his thoughts on his face.

But now, as he sat there, he knew the reality he was facing was far worse than anything he had imagined. He had barely managed to survive last time. He couldn’t even run away from it, let alone fight back. And that led him to the one question burning in his mind—

"What can I learn in one day to survive in an unknown world?"

"What can I even do in this situation?"

If he entered the world of 48H with his weak body, there would be no luck this time. He wouldn’t just be in danger—he would die. He had survived last time purely by chance, but luck wouldn’t save him twice.

The weight of the thought pressed down on him,

Then, in a flat, tone, Rudra finally spoke

"Can't we just, you know… avoid entering the world of 48H?"

Jaipa immediately shot back, not even letting a second pass.

"Did I not tell you already?! Once the ability activates, it won’t stop until you die!"

Rudra stared at him, processing the words.

"So basically… everything comes back to me dying."

It wasn’t fear. It was just… inconvenience.

Jaipa circled around Rudra, eyeing him like a concerned mother hen pretending not to care.

"How are you feeling?"

Rudra, with his usual flat tone but just a hint of teasing:

"Are you worried about me?"

Jaipa flinched. "Wha—what?! Worried?! About YOU? Don’t be ridiculous!" His voice cracked midway.

Rudra blinked. "Oh? In the cave, I could’ve sworn you were crying. Thought I was gonna die or something."

Jaipa’s entire body stiffened. "Y-you were IMAGINING things! Haaaa! Completely delusional! Might be a side effect of 48H! Who knows?!"

Rudra simply stared at him. The silence was loud.

Jaipa coughed dramatically and changed the subject. "A-anyway! You’ve had enough rest! Get up and try to move a little, see how your body reacts."

Rudra turned his head, watching Jaipa hover to his opposite side. Without another word, he stood up from the bed with no hesitation.

Jaipa blinked. "…Oh. That was fast."

Rudra shrugged. "You told me to move. I moved."

Jaipa sighed. "Why do I even bother…"

"He doesn't have much time left. He needs to hurry. We're giving a total of 24 hours of interval between these two worlds for now, but we've already spent 12 hours in this world. So in simple terms, he only has 12 hours left to prepare. If he enters my world without preparation, he’ll die. No doubt about it."

Jaipa's face was grim as he called out to Rudra.

"Rudra..."

Rudra turned to face him, his expression as flat as always. Jaipa held his stare, silent, before finally breaking the quiet.

"Do you want to learn something interesting?"

Rudra’s mind briefly flickered back to the earlier conversation about entering the world of 48H. He needed anything that could help him survive, so Jaipa teaching him something likely meant it was important.

After a moment of thought, Rudra gave a slow, barely perceptible nod.

Jaipa landed gracefully on the ground and said, "Look closely."

Rudra watched, his attention piqued. Jaipa stood for a second—then, in an almost anticlimactic way, began to lift off the ground. No wing flaps, no dramatic motions. He just rose.

Rudra blinked. His voice was slightly louder, breaking from his usual flat tone.

"What was that?"

Jaipa didn’t respond right away, so Rudra continued, his curiosity leaking through his voice, though it still held that deadpan quality.

"How are you flying like that? You're not even moving your wings. How... how can you even do that?"

Jaipa flew around with remarkable speed, zipping from side to side, up and down, twisting through every possible angle in mid-air. He moved with precision, making sure to demonstrate each movement slowly, giving Rudra ample time to try and comprehend the technique. As time passed, Jaipa continued to float effortlessly, his wings remaining completely still.

Rudra stood in silence, his gaze steady, like a watcher observing stars in the night sky. After a few moments, he closed his eyes, trying to focus on how exactly Jaipa was accomplishing this.

His wings are manipulating the air pressure around them... creating an upward force, like an invisible cushion of air, Rudra thought. He's ionizing the air or generating localized wind currents...

Rudra's mind slowly pieced it together. The wind currents were being generated not by the flapping of wings but by Jaipa’s energy. I need to use the key’s energy to do something similar, Rudra deduced.

He took a quiet moment to absorb the details. When he opened his eyes again, he focused intently, his expression as blank as ever. Without much visible effort, he began to lift off the ground, his body rising slowly into the air. No flapping, just steady ascent.

Rudra hovered, trying to move side to side, up and down, and at different angles. He fumbled a little at first but gradually started to gain control. After a while, he found the rhythm, floating effortlessly.

This technique... Rudra thought as he glided in mid-air, moving with more confidence now. This will be useful in tight places, like caves, or anywhere with limited space. And it’ll help with making quick turns in midair, like walking on air... Yeah, I’ve got two ways to move around now.

After an hour of practicing, Rudra hovered just a few inches above the bed. He slowly turned his body horizontal, hovering for a moment before gently collapsing onto the bed with a deep, heavy breath.

Jaipa hovered nearby, watching Rudra's progress. With a smirk, he asked, "So, what do you think? Will it be a useful technique?"

Rudra, still catching his breath, nodded slowly....