The rays of the sun burst forth, striking the surface of the lake, waking its fish and other creatures, announcing the dawn of a new day in Malvora.
A small creature resembling a deer appeared, its pink color standing out against the greenery around it. It bent its neck and picked up a purple mushroom in its mouth, chewing it quietly. But the moment its ears caught the sound of light movement in the nearby grass, its head shot up, and it bolted away.
At that very moment, Haruki was passing under a tree when some of its branches snagged his brown hair.
"Ah!"
He groaned in irritation as he tried to free his hair from the branches clinging to him tightly, but his attempts only made things worse. A sudden spark of an idea struck him, and he yanked himself free with force and speed, thinking the branches would release him. And they did-but at the cost of a few strands of his hair.
Because of his sudden pull, he lost balance and slipped, crashing face-first into the mud. He pushed himself up with difficulty, his face covered from forehead to chin with the foul-smelling muck.
"Ewww…"
Disgust welled up inside him at his filthy state, but there was no way to bathe. Forcing himself back to his feet, he wiped his face with his shirt sleeves, his features twisted in a deep scowl as he muttered to himself.
"I just want to go home…"
Haruki resumed his walk, his back disappearing into the horizon, leaving behind those strands of hair trembling on the branch, as if marking that he had once been there. His steps dragged heavily, while his mind spun in a storm of thoughts-torn between hope that he might leave this world, and despair at not knowing how, or what other marvels awaited him.
The boy suddenly collided with a massive green bulk, as solid as stone. He stumbled backward, rubbing his face in pain, grumbling.
"Ow!"
He raised his head to see what he had run into, but his breath was stolen from his chest and his jaw nearly dropped when he realized he had crashed into a huge, terrifying green ogre. Its eyes were cold and dark, and its lower fangs jutted out from its mouth, giving it a fearsome, powerful look.
Haruki's legs froze in place, and for a moment he felt as though he might wet his pants from sheer terror-especially after his previous encounters with the creatures of this world. But the ogre, after sniffing the stench clinging to Haruki, recognized him as one of its own kind. It ignored him completely and went on its way.
Relief washed over Haruki like a bucket of cold water, dousing the fear that had gripped him.
The brown-haired boy looked around and discovered that his feet had carried him into something resembling an ancient weapons market, hidden inside a massive rocky tunnel that blocked the sunlight and draped the place in gentle shade.
The market bustled with creatures Haruki had believed existed only in video games, comics, and fantasy films-but here they were before his very eyes, chatting and haggling over goods.
Monsters notorious for their brutality, such as ogres, centaurs, and goblin, moved among satyrs and even towering trolls wandering the aisles. The sight sent a sharp shiver crawling up Haruki's spine.
But what caught his attention most was the voice of a girl yelling at a goblin who was selling oddly colored daggers. Her tone and voice… sounded human.
Hearing that voice sparked warmth and comfort in Haruki's chest. At last, he had found a glimmer of hope-another human in this world.
"Three copper coins?!
Are you trying to rob me, you bald? All I asked was for you to repair my dagger!"
The girl had fair skin, with bright green eyes, her orange hair partly braided into small, interwoven braids. A sprinkle of freckles dotted her face. She wore a wolf-fur shawl draped over her chest, beneath it a blue shirt, and a dark brown leather corset with matching bracers at her waist. Comfortable gray trousers and furry boots reached halfway up her legs. A steel helmet adorned her head, its top crowned with bull-like horns. Strapped securely to her back was a massive axe.
Haruki's smile nearly reached his ears when he noticed the creatures around her weren't attacking her. A surge of confidence and courage pushed him to approach, happy to find another human, believing the other beings here might be like Seraphine, whom he had met the previous morning.
But as he moved forward, he once again bumped into one of the silver centaurs.
The centaur loomed proudly over the boy, towering past one hundred ninety centimeters. Its expression twisted into disgust and rage as soon as it realized Haruki's race. It sharply stepped back before shouting at the top of its lungs.
"Human!"
The word drew the attention of all the monsters around. Faces filled with anger and hatred-males and females alike, even the children.
A ghoul recoiled, pulling her child behind her back as if Haruki were the monster, not them.
The silver centaur reared on its hind legs to emphasize its dominance, then slammed its front hooves onto the ground with brutal force, aiming to strike him.
Terrified, Haruki staggered back a step, but his legs refused to move when he saw the monsters closing in, their hostile eyes fixed on him. They gathered around him, armed with massive weapons or clenching their fists, ready to attack.
And just as Haruki thought this might be the end, someone-or something-masked burst from the crowd, seized his arm in a firm grip, and shouted at him in a commanding tone.
"Run quickly!"
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Thank you for reading! If this moment touched you even a little , please consider adding it to your library.💐