The sound of footsteps echoed across the arid, desert-like land. It was a place with nothing but shattered rock and the decaying remains of tropical plants that had died a natural death.
A man in a dark cloak walked through this land, which was filled with despair and devoid of greenery. The skulls of countless non-human creatures were scattered everywhere, as if a curse had been cast upon the land. In the distance, a vast lake and river appeared, but it was nothing but a mirage created by the subconscious mind of someone who was on the verge of despair.
"It's time to sleep... I'll tell you the rest of the story tomorrow night." In the embrace of an old woman, who smiled gently and lovingly, was a young boy with thick, shiny black hair and eyes as red as blood, yet his face was filled with a pure, innocent smile.
"Auntie... I want to be just like Lord Kelios!"
the young boy said with a cute, innocent voice, wrapped in his grandmother's warm embrace. Her eyes widened slightly in surprise, but she didn't show it to her little grandson. Her wrinkled hand softly stroked the young boy's head.
"Goodnight, little one... go to sleep. Lord Kelios loves good children."
In an old house in a remote, rural area next to a vast desert, was the very spot that made up 0.5% of the great land of Lanta in Rectas.
In a small city teeming with people, a city filled with countless machines, it was as if a great many engineers and people who loved to invent had gathered. The electrical wires were tangled in a messy fashion, containing intricate and complex circuits, yet they understood them all.
Konji, at the age of 14, had a look that didn't match the image of an Ichivor student. His face was smudged with dirt, and his old, tattered clothes reflected the simplicity of his life. He was carrying a large bag with great effort, his legs trembling and his face flushed from the heat.
A man in a trench coat, but dressed like a traveler because of the numerous bags and luggage strapped to his back, had blonde hair that made the people around him look up in curiosity.
"Hey... let me help you, little guy."
He lifted the large bag and placed it on his head with ease. He gave a small, kind smile.
Konji smiled faintly. "Thank you..."
[Sometime later...]
"Oh... really?... Thank you, young man."
The man said with a joyful smile, his demeanor strong and firm. This brawny young man talked a lot with Konji, as a traveler who had just met a local.
"I really like your coat... it's... it looks so good... where are you from?!"
Konji grabbed the man's coat with a look of admiration, looking all over him.
"...From the North... after traveling through North Lanta, that's where I came from."
The young man opened an old, torn map. Konji stared intently, without looking away. But his eyes were filled with an overwhelming emotion that was beyond words, deep in his heart. While walking, the man glanced at Konji's expression, which had changed. It was as if he had a premonition about Konji. This traveler, who had been all over the place, had a premonition about this young boy. But immediately after that, the man continued walking with his kind, warm demeanor.
"Are you alone...?"
Konji was startled and stopped walking. His eyes held a chilling coldness. The man gently grabbed Konji's shoulder.
"Sorry... but I can tell a person's character just by looking at them."
Everything went still. They stopped walking. The young boy looked straight ahead, not meeting his gaze. The man stood still, waiting for the boy's answer.
"Yes... I'm alone..."
Konji turned back to him, his eyes bloodshot and sharp. His feelings told him that this man was definitely not normal. The man's eyes widened for a moment in surprise. He knelt down, his left hand on the young boy's shoulder. He playfully patted Konji's shoulder, but then he leaned in and whispered something in his ear. His voice had changed completely, into a chilling coldness.
"It doesn't matter... it's enough just to have seen it..."
Konji was shocked, standing still as a statue. His hair fluttered in the dusty wind. His eyes were shaking with pressure. The man placed a piece of paper into Konji's coat pocket. Konji didn't resist; he just stood there in shock. The man then placed Konji's belongings on the ground.
"Edward Lusbrek... just say that name there, and tell that lunatic with glasses... and your life will get better..."
The young man turned back and walked away without saying goodbye, leaving the young boy in a state of utter shock, unable to even move his feet. He walked away and disappeared into the crowd, leaving behind only a piece of paper that seemed to be the variable for a young boy named Konji's life.
[ 5 years ago .]
The young man stood calmly on the balcony. A gentle breeze brushed against him, but his face remained cold. Konji's dark hair swayed in the wind. Below, two young men sat peacefully under a tree.
Resway, the ice-cold young man, his eyes overflowing with a multitude of emotions. He sat on a park bench, his fist resting on his rugged cheek, and his elbow on his knee.
"…What should we do next...?"
Asman, the young man famous among the girls all over campus as the charming one, but his body was filled with muscles, a physique like a special forces unit. He leaned against a tree, his arms crossed casually.
"...Go to the bakery and eat our hearts out..."
Resway covered his ears with both hands and let out a soft sigh. He shot a look at Asman, his expression filled with disappointment.
"...I wasn't talking about eating... I meant about the group..."
Many girls walked by. When they saw Asman, they greeted him with adoration and admiration. He smiled back with a gentle, warm expression. Resway sighed slightly at the sight. He waved hello to that group of girls as well.
"What did you do... to get them so interested in you?"
"I was a one-day member of a band... I just played the guitar, that's all..." Asman turned to look at Resway with a sly and confident smile.
On the other side, Konji watched them from above, his eyes never leaving them. His
signature black short coat was both charming and deeply imposing. He stood still, only his eyes betraying his inner thoughts. It was as if this man had a story that he couldn't tell anyone.
"Just seeing it is enough..."
The words of that man were filled with many mysteries, yet they made the young man, who had once lived in a developed city with a decaying society, exist on the other side of that place. It was like the end of the sky of Lanta and Ishiwor.
Stay tuned for the next episode.