SILVER'S POV
"This place is disgusting," I muttered, my face twisting in revulsion as I surveyed the settlement before us. "It doesn't even look like somewhere people should be living."
"Honestly, I agree," Natasha replied, wrinkling her nose. "I guess they weren't called uncivilized for nothing."
I let out a dry scoff.
"They've completely detached themselves from normal human society."
"I wouldn't call it that,"
Natasha said thoughtfully.
"Isolation seems more accurate. They've been cut off from the rest of humanity for so long that they've built an entirely different way of life. Maybe their ancestors committed some terrible crime and fled here centuries ago. Over time, they formed their own community."
"A community of man-eaters?" I asked, frowning.
"Or a community of survivors," Natasha countered. "Look around. This place is practically a jungle. People do unimaginable things when survival becomes their only goal."
The thought unsettled me.
"Once we obtain Herb D, we should document everything and report this place to the authorities."
Natasha's expression darkened immediately.
"And get them slaughtered while trying to defend their homes?" she asked. "You know exactly how the people in power operate. Mercy isn't one of their strengths."
"That's precisely why these people hunt and devour strangers," I argued.
A heavy silence followed.
Then Zoah finally spoke, his voice calm but firm.
"Look, I'm not interested in meddling in other people's affairs. We're not reporting anyone."
His words left no room for debate.
Natasha nodded in agreement.
"Zoah's right. We came here for Herb D. Let's get it and leave."
"Yeah. Whatever."
I folded my arms and looked away, unable to hide my irritation.
Of course I was annoyed.
My idea had been dismissed before anyone had even considered it. Tossed aside like worthless garbage.
The worst part was that I didn't think I was wrong.
I simply wanted to do the right thing.
Reporting this place to the government seemed like the responsible choice. These people were dangerous, at least from everything we had seen and heard. If their numbers continued to grow unchecked, who knew what they might become?
Maybe I was overthinking it.
Or maybe I was the only one willing to face the possibility that they could one day become a threat to the rest of humanity.
A bitter smile tugged at my lips.
Besides, there was always the possibility of recognition.
A medal.
Public praise.
Perhaps even being celebrated as one of the nation's heroes.
Not that any of that mattered.
At least, that was what I kept telling myself.
My gaze drifted toward the village once more.
The truth was far darker.
If I reported them, the authorities would ask questions.
Questions I couldn't answer.
How did I discover this place?
How did I find a settlement hidden so deep within an unexplored wilderness that it seemed forgotten by the world itself?
I could claim I was a research student investigating uncharted territories.
But even in my head, the excuse sounded pathetic.
No one would believe it.
And even if they did, more questions would follow.
Who funded the expedition?
Where was my research team?
What institution approved the journey?
The lies would unravel before I finished telling them.
I certainly couldn't tell them the truth, that I had come searching for Herb D.
That secret alone could ruin everything.
And neither Natasha nor Zoah would support my story. They were already against reporting the village.
There was no chance they would risk themselves for a fabricated tale.
In the end, I had no choice.
I would keep my mouth shut.
But as we continued deeper into the settlement, a cold feeling settled in my chest.
What if I was making a mistake?
What if somewhere in the future, long after this journey was over, the rest of humanity paid the price for my silence?
The thought lingered in my mind like a curse.
And no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't shake it.
Maybe I never should have agreed to come on this journey a second time.
I should have walked away when I had the chance and never looked back.
Even now, it wasn't too late.
I could leave.
I could turn around, disappear, and never return to this group again.
My mind screamed at me to run, to put as much distance as possible between myself and everything this journey had become.
Yet my feet refused to move.
Because leaving didn't just mean never seeing Zoah again.
It meant abandoning every answer I had spent so long searching for.
The little girl who always appeared beside the water.
The strange visions that haunted my dreams and followed me into reality.
The mysterious necklace around my neck, one that refused to come off no matter how hard I tried.
And most importantly...
Why did it look exactly like the necklace worn by the mysterious girl from my visions?
If I left now, those questions would remain unanswered forever.
As much as I hated admitting it, I needed Zoah's help.
Just as much as he needed mine.
A bitter smile touched my lips.
So perhaps the smartest thing to do was set my feelings aside and focus on the mission.
After all, our relationship was mutually beneficial.
If I helped Zoah complete his mission, he had promised to grant me any wish I desired.
And when that time came, I would finally demand the answers that had eluded me for so long.
So far, we had successfully obtained three herbs.
Now we were searching for the fourth.
If everything went according to plan, we would secure Herb D and move on to the final objective, Herb E.
Once that was done, Zoah would fulfill his mission.
And then...
He would leave.
The realization struck me like a knife to the chest.
He would return to his world.
His planet.
His people.
And he would never have a reason to come back to Earth again.
I would never see him again.
A painful lump formed in my throat.
Worse still, he would have Violet.
Perhaps they would stay together.
Perhaps they would even marry.
The mere thought was enough to make my chest ache.
I pressed a hand against my heart.
The pain felt familiar.
There was no mistaking it.
Heartbreak.
A soft, bitter laugh escaped my lips.
It was only a matter of time before that pain became permanent.
Because deep down, I already knew the truth.
Even if I met another man someday, I would never truly move on.
No one could replace Zoah.
No one.
I had once boldly declared that I would win his heart.
My friends certainly believed I could.
They encouraged me every chance they got.
But now...
For the first time, doubt began to creep in.
If Zoah were human, perhaps there would have been hope.
But he wasn't.
He was a god.
And what god would ever fall in love with a human?
Wasn't that the very definition of forbidden love?
The thought lingered in my mind.
Then another thought followed.
A dangerous one.
What if I wasn't human?
What if that was the reason behind everything?
Would Zoah be capable of loving me then?
I froze.
The question echoed inside my head.
What if I wasn't human?
Who was I trying to fool?
Of course I was human.
Wasn't I?
Yet the more I thought about it, the less certain I became.
Ordinary humans didn't suffer from strange visions.
Ordinary humans weren't given mysterious necklaces that refused to be removed.
Ordinary humans didn't drift across water in a trance as if gravity itself had forgotten them.
A chill ran down my spine.
Maybe I wasn't as ordinary as I wanted to believe.
Maybe there was something else hidden beneath the surface.
Something I had yet to discover.
My fingers tightened around the necklace resting against my chest.
If I wasn't entirely human...
Then what exactly was I?