We arrived in a cottage in the middle of a forest at nightfall, with a pond on the left full of green leaves and some rocks scattered around it, a brown round table clearly set for four people, trees lining up the cottage, which is a two-story tall set in the with lightbulbs supporting it, and finally, a chimney that is currently brewing out smoke.

The inside appeared to be rather warm, almost as if it would never leave regardless of what happened. Despite the brightness of the cottage in the woods, the starry night sky appeared as clear as day. Ariel wondered if the folks up in heaven were looking down on the people. living?

Or are they maybe watching me?

Regardless of how dazzling it is, I believe it is simply because it is nighttime and all. Ariel rejected that concept and went forward cautiously so as not to drop the leather bags full of food. Before unlocking the door, Ariel asked the red-haired youngster his name. He pauses and says, "My name is simply Aki." Ariel smiled slightly at his short and simple three-letter name and replied in the same way: "I see Aki, I am Ariel, and it is a pleasure to meet you as well."

Ariel's cheery demeanor startled Aki a bit. He turns back and opens the cottage door, but before he can say anything, Ariel's eyes are overwhelmed by the bright lights that surround the inside. The ground carpet made of black bear fur provided excellent padding for Ariel and Aki's long journey. The fragrance of flowers filling his nose made Ariel feel at rest.

He would never feel so peaceful in his life, to the point where he would be content to sleep forever. Ariel and Aki then placed the leather bags on the wooden couch made of leather and wood.

It felt like being comforted after a long trip. He closed his eyes and relaxed for a moment. '' It almost feels like everything that happened before has just evaporated, as if I have been rewarded for persevering this long; I am glad I persevered and made it here,'' Ariel says, closing his eyes and falling asleep.

……………………………..

A mysterious, dark figure emerges from a tunnel. ''It'' was simply dark; nothing more nor less could have characterized ''it. It then glanced up at the starry night sky, exclaiming, ''The age of imagination and reality has finally ushered in the people yearning for salvation for one to save many and all for thine shall be saved by me and only me.'' "It" eventually starts heading toward its own planet.

……….………………………

Despite feeling drowsy, I attempted to open my eyes and saw a dark figure reach for my head. Despite my limited ability to speak, I heard audible phrases.

Autho….ity

...Tak…..e……..

After that, I fell asleep again, this time without my past memories intact, and what appeared in front of me was nothing more than a sea of pure darkness, eventually enveloping my entire being and descending until I reached the bottom of the abyss itself, all alone, forgotten, and abandoned by everyone.

……………………………………….

I get up in the morning and can hear birds chirping. I get up and glance around from a window close to my bed. Outside is a beautiful garden with flowers of various colors and gentle sunlight shining down on them. It seemed really intriguing. I could not help but smile as I saw how beautiful nature can be. After a while of staring, I make my way out of my room towards the There is a wooden door in front of me. Unsure what to do, I simply open it and am astounded by what I find within.

A cornucopia of delights was put out in front of me, and I could not help but be entranced and hungry.

A bread packed with jam and cheese sprinkled on the side, honey and eggs poured into the sandwiches, and finally, salt and tea with some coffee all over is already enough to satisfy my appetite. Aki gazed at me with his normal expressionless, blue ocean eyes. He put out a wooden chair and motioned for me to sit and pleasure myself, and without saying anything, I did just that.

The meal itself was really warm and tasty; as expected, I could not say anything to Aki despite being so near to him; he simply ate what he ate, and that was how my morning with him ended. I had so many questions, but he simply ignored me and went on with his usual chores, which included cleaning the cottage, looking at the flowers, cooking food, arranging the books, and occasionally going out because there was nothing else to do.

I merely did what I could and followed suit; it was, to say the least, uneventful, but I did not become discouraged. I kept trying my luck, such as waking up early and completing chores to minimize the burden on him and try to work out more to make it easier on myself.

However, this rapidly proved useless, as he appears to wake up at the same time every day and has already completed the majority of the activities.

Having memorized the route from here to the city, I occasionally go for a stroll, and the fresh air and landscape fill me with calm and joy. Hearing the various happiness and laughter of the children and the ordinary people simply tending to their own business, I somehow felt quite lonely Seeing this spectacle, it could be because I have never actually had my own family or someone I truly treasured from the bottom of my heart to walk and laugh about the hilarious and foolish things every day without a worry in the world, and I long for that day to arrive.

I closed my eyes and listened to the constant talk around me.

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A family of three is appealing with the storekeeper for discounts.

Children are giggling with their natural innocence, while girls are smiling while talking to each other.

Men strolling around browsing with buddies and coworkers.

Although these exchanges made me feel lonely, they also helped to settle my mind.

It was already sundown when I awoke, and I was as sleepy as I am. I forced my body to return to the cottage; walking around the streets alone once more reinforced the feeling of loneliness, having no one to chat with and no one to share life's problems or joy with, so I simply dragged myself into more and more trees and grasses without caring about anything, and after a while I saw the warm and ever-so-bright cottage.

I opened the wooden handle and pryed open the door yet again, was welcomed by the warmth of the cottage. Aki was over here preparing the food as per usual: rice and meat with tomato all around and sandwich with eggs, Lemon and Mango juice on the table. After observing for a bit, I sat down and ate away at the delicious food and the warmth it brought me.

‘’ Apparently knights have been stationed around here for war; its best we stay away from the city as far as we can to avoid getting caught up in this mess,’’ said Aki. After cleaning the table with little bit of I was not sure what to say, but I agreed with him; simply the prospect of joining in combat is terrible enough. After hearing all of this, I simply went to bed to forget about everything and just be blissful.

Despite the growing sense of loneliness, I opted to put everything in a box in the hopes that one day someone will open it and release me from this painful feeling deep within my heart.

………………………………………

This world is divided into seven roads, all of which connect to the night and light roads; from there, one can access the road that leads to the Earth Kingdom, the state of Wegi, and the road of Klausora, all of which lead to a single road into the depths of Languisa, the city of warriors and elves.

Other roads, such as the white and black roads, which lead to the city of Hope and Despair of the Dead and the Living, the kingdom of steel and metal, and the road that leads to Grantioro, are connected to long-time money earners who will use anything in their power to earn money, whether by scamming or using others for their own gain.

It leads to two roads: one to Infiniheim, the city of infinite prosperity, and the other to the city of wonders.

Cauffon's route goes to a graveyard, where a skull reaper serves as the gravekeeper, and from there to the white realm. The ultimate road, the heavenly road, which goes to the kingdom of space and the city of unreachable aspirations, is linked to all other roads in the globe and holds the final key to linking the world and its inhabitants.

The current city and road I am on is the route of nature and life itself, connecting directly to the kingdoms of Earth, Fire, and Water.

Apparently, there has been a missing kingdom for a decade, and its existence was simply erased from the world after an unknown accident occurred, eliminating any road relating to it; apparently, a road is created whenever a kingdom deems its new leader as king/princess of their respective kingdom, and thus that is how the world was formed. Hearing all of this from Aki piqued my curiosity about the state of the world—who was the first princess? Who created this universe, and why did it fall into ruin millennia ago?

………………………………………….

We were returning after nightfall. Despite the tremendous darkness that surrounded us, the black and blue sky shone brightly with the light of the moon and stars. We came to a halt, and what appeared in front of us were knights clad in military uniforms prowling the road leading to the Earth kingdom, and our cottage terrified and panicked. I tried to relax, but I was unable to do so.

Aki looked around for any means to flee without being apprehended; allegedly, if we are apprehended by the knights, we are forced to participate in their war, and fleeing would be considered cowardly and would mark us as traitors for the rest of our lives.

We stayed still in the tall grass to avoid their attention because we had nowhere to flee.The only good thing is that it is nighttime and our figure was quite difficult to discern, and I grabbed onto that sliver of hope and hoped that things would remain this way until they are gone and we are back to that same life that we had prior to all of this having it almost lost, almost bringing back that sense of loneliness that I had put in a box. Not too long ago to shield myself and to remain strong and in just a few days all this would come crashing down on me Aki tapped my back and, with a low voice, said to me.

''Run towards that tree over there and stay seated till morning; we can not afford to be hunted down by those pesky knights. Please do as I say, Ariel.

Though he appeared calm on the outside, I was very sure he was as worried and scared as I was on the inside, so perhaps sacrificing himself would give him a feeling of success, and with a mournful look, I murmured to him,

"Is there no alternative way for us to sneak away together?" I do not want that; I want us to be together, no matter how uneventful things were. I do not want to lose this location or you, so please do not leave me alone, Aki. He hugged me with warmth that matched mine. I felt a little relief, but it immediately faded as he said those few words to me.

''Ariel, if it is you, I am confident you can do it.

I was not sure what to believe anymore, so with tears streaming down my cheeks, I simply did what he ordered without question, and when he signaled, I dashed inside that small tree.

Its size belied what I believed inside; it was considerably larger and more roomy than I had imagined. I wanted to go back, but making more noise would attract the knights, so I continued on.

The water was chilly, and I thought I could freeze at any time. I hoped that something would happen and that I would find something beneficial, but after about an hour of walking, I was exhausted and continued to breathe heavily. I felt like I was going to break if I did not keep moving forward.

After a while, my legs were tired, I could not move another muscle, and I felt as if someone had grabbed me from behind and pulled me down. I sank and drowned, trying to escape whatever was drawing me down, and it became increasingly difficult to breathe, as if my lungs were being cooled.

I soon lost my capacity to talk and could not move a muscle at all. I felt like a statue, unable to move and communicate. It was horrible and torturous; I could not call for aid; it was dark; I was terrified; I could not move, speak, or do a single thing. My right palm felt heated, and I managed to feel a single sensation of warmth before stopping abruptly as I noticed something inscribed on it with the words "Savior." I closed my eyes and saw a bizarre dream; it was warm and too beautiful to be described in words.

It was bright and sunny; unlike the darkness that I had just seen, I was standing.

In front of me were two blonde-haired girls who somehow felt familiar; I could not put my finger exactly on why, but as I got closer, the dreamscape started turning blurry, signaling the end. I wanted to remain here away from that darkness and coldness; I wanted that warmth, and before I knew it, I was lying down and facing the bright blue sky; I was not being pulled down into a cold stream of water, nor was something being engraved in my arm. I was simply out cold in front of a small cave. I was visibly bewildered, but for the time being, I was pleased to have lived the day after that nightmare, so once again, with nowhere to go, I made a goal to find some protection before I am trapped in this world. Again, I decided to go to the Kingdom of Earth and collect some knowledge, and from there, my life began anew and altered forever.

(End of Chapter)