It was time of evening, the sun was about to set low on the horizon, staining the sky with black and orange with dim crimson shades.
Limbo hurried his steps, and stop at location.
"We will stop here, is it okay with you?" He said calmly.
Mora, who had been quietly following him, frozen for a moment. Her eyes full of nervousness towards the unknown surrounding forest, a night with unknown kid. The shadows around them seemed longer here, thicker...alive, under the white blue moon.
"Here?" She asked hesitantly. "Isn't it dengerous...?"
Her voice trembled, almost swallowed by the silence of the wilderness.
Limbo didn't respond immediately. Instead, he lifted his hand slightly, his gaze sharpening. A faint pulse of energy rippled outward from him, silent, precise, controlled.
In a blink of eye, A translucent barrier expanded, forming a dome around them.
Mora blinked in amazed.
"What...is that?"
"A protective filed...or a Shield," you can say, limbo replied simply.
Her fear didn't vanish instantly, but it softened. The suffocating tension in her chest loosened just a little.
Limbo moved as if everything was routine.
Gathered wood, arranging them neatly before striking a spark. Flames rose to life, crackling gently in the growing dusk.
Then, with another casual motion, he reached into the item box.
A tent appeared.
Mora's eyes were widened.
"You... You just-where did that came from?"
"Don't tell me... You're a sorcerer of world."
"Storage," he said, as if it were the most ordinary thing in the world.
To her, it wasn't.
She stared at the tent, the fire, the barrier... And then at him.
It was the first time she had seen anything like this.
Limbo sat near the fire and pulled out a small pack.
"Eat," he Said, offering her dried fruits and preserved food.
She hesitated at first.
Then, slowly, she accepted.
The food was simple —but clean, well-prepared. There was care in it.
"Th-this is good..." She murmured.
"Of course, This is made by my mother," limbo replied with pride and smile.
She paused.
"...your mother?"
"Ela."
The way he said the name carried quite respect.
Mora nodded and continued eating. Bite by bite, her body relaxed. The warmth of the fire, the safety of the barrier, the presence of someone strong...
It eased her.
After a while, Limbo spoke again.
"You said you were lost."
Mora lowered her gaze.
"I...lived with my grandma."
He stayed silent, letting her continue.
"She usually comes back before night.. always." Her fingers tightened slightly. "But yesterday...she didn't."
A pause.
"I got hungry and worried also...so I went out to look for her."
Her voice grew softer.
"And then... I couldn't find my way back."
Silence settled between them.
The fire crackled.
Limbo didn't press further.
"Rest," he said instead.
That night passed quietly.
Morning came with pale light filtering through the trees.
They resumed their journey early.
Time passed.
The corrupted land stretched endlessly —twisted trees, blackened soil, an oppressive air that clung to the skin.
Until.
"Wait!"
Mora suddenly stopped, looked at Limbo.
Without hesitation, she pointed to the left.
"This way!"
Limbo frowned slightly.
"You're sure?"
"Yes!"
Her voice carried unusual certainty.
He studied her for a moment... Then nodded.
"Fine."
They took the left path.
And then.
Something changed.
The corruption... Began to fade.
The dark, twisted growths thinned out. The air felt lighter. The ground, once crackled and lifeless, slowly turned rich and green.
Limbo's eyes narrowed.
"... Intresting."
This wasn't normal.
The deeper they went, the more the world seemed to heal itself.
Green replaced the gray.
Life replaced the decay.
And then—
Mora suddenly ran.
"Grandma!"
Limbo looked at direction she was running and follow her, as she sprinted ahead, her voice filled with hope, with joy.
"I'm home!"
Limbo didn't stepped her.
Instead he followed at a steady pace.
And then he saw it.
A small house.
Simple, quite.
Surrounded by life.
Trees bearing fruit.
A small Vegetable garden.
Herbs growing in near rows.
A well...filled with clear and clean water.
Untouched.
Completely untouched by corruption.
"... impossible," limbo muttered under his breath. Mora rushed inside.
"Grandma! I'm back!'
Silence.
A moment later—
She stepped out.
Her face had fallen.
"She's... not here."
Her voice was small. Fragile.
Limbo glanced past her into the house.
His gazed sharpened.
Cooking utensils were placed neatly.
A fire pit... recently used.
Someone had been here.
Recently.
He stepped outside again, scanning the surroundings.
Everything here was...too perfect.
Too alive.
As if the corruption itself refused to enter.
"...What kind of place is this?"
Mora approached his again.
"What happened?" He asked.
"... Grandma isn't home."
He was about to say something — to reassure her.
But suddenly, her expression changed.
Hope flickered back into her eyes.
"I'll cook!"
Limbo blinked.
"What?"
"I'll prepare food!" She said, more confidently now. "For us...and the Grandma when she comes back!"
He raised an eyebrow.
"You can cook?'
There was a brief hesitation.
Then —
"Yes!"
Her voice became firm.
"I know the recipes...and the ingredients here. I can do it."
Limbo studied her for a moment.
Then shrugged.
"Do as you wish."
He stepped away, leaving her to it.
Outside, the air felt strangely calm, too calm.
Limbo walked around, observing carefully.
No sign of corruption, nor the hostile presence.
No danger.
It was... Peaceful.
He eventually settled beneath a large tree nearby, the shade was cool, the breeze was gentle, his body, usually alert, slowly began to relax.
"...strange."
His thoughts drifted and before he realised it — he fell asleep under the big tree.
"...Get up... Get up...."
A voice.
Sharp and cold.
"Get up, you reckless fool."
Limbo's eyes snapped open —
But he couldn't move.
Darkness surround him, a figure floated ahead.
A shadow.
It's form was unclear, unstable...but its eyes — they glowed.
Bright and piercing.
"Letting your guard down...in a place like this?"
Limbo tried to respond, but unfortunately he couldn't.
His body was frozen, his mind...trapped.
The shadow moved closer, it's presence overwhelming.
"Do you think peace exists here?"
Silence.
Limbo's thoughts stirred.
It's true....
This place...
It felt too calm, too safe.
As if something was forcing him to relax.
"...A trap?"
The shadow's voice lowered.
"You sense it... Yet you ignore it."
Fragments of words followed.
Faint.
Unclear.
As iff they weren't meant for him to fully understand.
".... remember..."
"...not what it seems..."
"...She.."
And then— snap.
Limbo wake up abruptly, his body jolted forward, breath was uneven, his throat dry, sweat covered his skin.
"...What...was that?"
He looked around, the tree, the house everything was the same.
Beside him —
A vessel of water and bowl of food, neatly covered.
He didn't hesitate.
He grabbed the water and drank.
The moment it touched his lips — A strange sensation spread through his body.
Warmth.
Relief.
His metal fatigue melted away.
A system notification flashed faintly.
[Health restored.]
[Herbal presence detected.]
"...Huh."
Limbo stared at the vessel.
"...This water..."
Before he could think further—
"Big brother... Limbo?"
A familiar voice, soft.
He turned.
Mora stood there and beside her—
An old woman.
Her grandmother.
She looked... Normal.
Wrinkled face. Gentle posture. Calm eyes.
Yet.
Something felt off.
A subtle, unexplained difference.
Limbo's insticts stirred.
"...so this is her grandma," he thought.
But one question lingered.
Who...
"...or what..."
Could live in a place like this?
Untouched from danger.
And still... Feel so unnatural.
Limbo's gaze sharpened slightly.
This wasn't just reunion, This was—
Something else entirely.