I continued moving through the forest.
I wasn't running, and I wasn't crawling either.
My steps were steady—slow, deliberate—as if the ground itself was forcing its rhythm upon me.
The pain was still there.
The wounds hadn't healed, and the dried blood on my clothes hadn't vanished.
But one thing had changed.
I no longer thought about it.
I no longer counted the blows I had taken, nor did I remember the faces of those I had left behind.
I moved between the trees, their dark trunks blocking the light. The ground beneath my feet was unstable, layered with rotting leaves and damp mud.
The air carried a mixture of decay, blood, and lingering mana.
Monsters.
I hadn't seen them yet—but I felt them.
---
After a While
It burst out from the bushes without warning.
An E-rank monster—its body twisted, limbs uneven, one eye larger than the other.
It roared… but the sound wasn't frightening.
I moved.
No mana.
No preparation.
A sidestep. A simple turn.
The sword moved as an extension of my arm.
The cut was clean.
The body hit the ground, twitched once, then went still.
I stood over it, looking down.
Nothing.
No inner tremor.
No hesitation.
Not even a deep breath.
I kept walking.
---
The Second Encounter
Not far ahead, the attack came from behind.
Two this time.
Both E-rank—but faster, more aggressive.
One leapt forward.
The other tried to flank me.
I turned before I even thought.
My sword blocked the first strike, my body dropped instinctively, and the blade pierced straight through the second one's abdomen.
A short scream.
The first stepped back—then charged again.
I didn't chase it.
I waited.
And when it closed the distance… it ended.
I stood still for a moment, watching the two corpses.
I knew I had killed them.
But it didn't feel like I had done anything.
As if the decision had been made long ago…
and this was merely delayed execution.
---
The Third Encounter
This one was different.
A low D-rank.
Heavier body. Slower movements.
But a single direct hit would have shattered my bones if I miscalculated.
I felt the pressure the moment it approached.
Low mana.
Clear fatigue.
I didn't run.
We circled each other in silence, testing distance.
It attacked first.
I took the blow on my sword, the recoil shooting up into my shoulder.
I stepped back half a pace—not out of fear, but calculation.
It turned to strike again.
And then… my body moved on its own.
I dropped low.
The attack passed over my head.
The sword carved upward from below.
It wasn't a powerful strike.
But it was in the right place.
The monster fell to its knees—then collapsed.
It was over.
---
I stood there for a few seconds.
Breathing.
Watching my chest rise and fall.
I felt no thrill.
No guilt.
Only… continuation.
---
I pressed deeper until the forest itself began to change.
The trees grew closer together.
The light weakened.
The air grew heavier.
Valsmeer was no longer a passage.
It was depth.
I finally stopped in a small open space between massive trunks. The ground was mostly dry, surrounded by natural stone formations forming a half-circle.
A suitable place.
I removed my coat and sat with my back against the rock, the sword resting beside me.
I didn't think about the academy.
I didn't think about the mission.
I didn't think about the sword.
I closed my eyes.
And for the first time since entering the forest…
I slept.
No nightmares.
No hallucinations.
No voices.
Just a short, heavy sleep—
empty of dreams.
After a fewhours
I woke as the first rays of sunlight filtered through the trees.
I remained where I was for a moment, drank some water, then slowly stood up, preparing myself for another day in this damned forest.
"The sword should be nearby by now."
"…Alright then. Let's keep going."
I gripped my sword and started walking.
---
Even after everything I had been through—after the wounds, the exhaustion, and the sleepless nights—this place continued to remind me of one thing:
I was still inside a land that did not tolerate the weak.
I moved carefully between the dense trees. The silence around me did not mean safety.
The smell of damp earth, traces of old blood, and the heavy stillness pressed against my chest.
I was no longer searching for battle.
Yet battle always found me.
---
The first D+ ranked monster appeared without warning.
A massive creature, its body covered in thick, leathery skin. Its eyes were small, but its movements were far faster than its size suggested.
I didn't use any complex techniques.
A sidestep.
A strike.
A retreat.
The fight didn't last long, but it drained what little strength I had left.
It wasn't clean. It wasn't easy.
When the monster finally fell, I was breathing heavily, my grip tight around the sword, my shoulder bleeding lightly.
I kept moving.
It wasn't the only one.
Over the next few hours, I faced two more of the same rank. Each battle was shorter than the last—but the cost kept accumulating.
Pain was no longer an exception.
It had become a constant state.
And yet, I didn't stop.
I could feel that I was getting closer.
Not because I had seen a sign.
Not because I had found a clue.
But because the forest itself was changing.
The sounds faded.
The air grew colder.
And then… I smelled water.
---
I followed the sound until I reached a small rocky slope. Beneath it flowed a narrow river, its waters clear but fast.
On the opposite side stood the entrance to a cave.
It wasn't large.
It wasn't hidden.
As if it had never tried to be.
I approached cautiously. Inside, the echo of my footsteps was faint. The walls were damp, and light filtered through natural openings above, casting pale lines across the stone floor.
Then I saw it.
A body.
It lay near an underground stream running through the cave. Old clothes. Corroded armor. Bones visible in places.
Not a monster.
Not a bandit.
A human.
Or what remained of one.
Beside his right hand… was the sword.
It wasn't embedded in the ground.
It wasn't placed with care.
It was simply there.
A plain sword.
Dark gray blade. Dull, without shine. No carvings. No aura. No obvious sense of power.
And yet…
I couldn't look away.
---
I stepped closer.
Each step felt heavier than the last—not because the sword was pressuring me, but because something inside me understood that this moment would change everything.
I stood before it.
No voice.
No call.
No message.
Only silence.
I reached out, hesitated for a second—
Then grasped the hilt.
Nothing happened.
No tremor.
No rejection.
No welcome.
I pulled it free effortlessly.
It was lighter than I expected.
Not just physically—
but as if the burden I had anticipated simply didn't exist. The sword settled into my hand as though it had always belonged there.
I looked at the body again.
No pity.
No reverence.
Only understanding.
This sword does not reward.
It does not punish.
It simply… remains.
---
I raised the blade slightly, then drew my dagger and cut the tip of my finger. A single drop of blood fell onto the edge of the blade.
It didn't glow.
It didn't react violently.
The blood didn't vanish instantly—it spread slowly, as if being absorbed into the metal itself.
And in that moment, something changed.
Not in the sword.
In me.
A faint sensation—like a thin thread tightening inside my chest, then settling.
No pain.
No exhilaration.
A bond.
Nothing more.
I breathed slowly.
No words.
No oath.
No promises.
I returned the sword to my side and stood up.
I didn't feel stronger.
My mana didn't recover.
My condition didn't improve.
But the sword in my hand…
No longer felt unfamiliar.
---
I left the cave with the sound of flowing water behind me, night approaching once more.
The path ahead hadn't become easier.
But it had become clearer.
_____
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