I sat cross-legged in front of her, keeping a safe distance while waiting for her to speak. "First, I want to ask: what is your name?"
She licked her lips, which were smeared with noodle broth, before looking at me with rapidly blinking eyes. "I... I, my name is Lumina. And... you?"
I nodded. "Just call me Adrian." I cleared my throat and continued, "How did you end up here? Isn't this place full of monsters?"
"I-I just ended up here by accident while I was running away."
"Huh, wait a second, where do you come from?" Finally, I asked the question I wanted to ask most!
She didn't answer immediately, instead analyzing my face as if double-checking whether I was a good or bad person.
While waiting for her to finish, I leaned my chin on my hand to show a relaxed gesture, then signaled her to continue with a nod.
Eventually, she spoke in a very soft voice. "I am... from Heaven."
'She's from Heaven?' My mind began to race. In my novel, there is a dimension higher than Earth and its reality called Heaven, a place where holy beings like angels gather.
Now, the reason for her striking appearance became clear. She is likely a half-angel. But why did she come down here?
Does this have something to do with what she called "Those who destroyed what belonged to her"?
"Why did you descend from Heaven?" I went straight to the core question.
Suddenly, her eyes welled up, and tears quickly streamed down her cheeks. "I-I'm scared..." she sobbed, burying her face in her knees.
Good grief, she's crying? Well, I can't really blame her; she seems to be suffering from severe trauma, and I just asked the one thing that triggered her most recent pain.
Getting her name and place of origin was lucky enough for now.
I suspect this is related to the Main Plot, where an intruder steals artifacts from Heaven, enraging the Celestial Beings. That intruder also used the form of a half-angel, causing the entire race to be framed and hunted.
This is a real lead for me because it means the Main Plot is still running safely, and I can estimate which chapter we are currently in!
With that, I can also predict when the destruction of my Safe Zone will occur.
While I was catching this second wind—which even made me smile—Lumina, on the other hand, was still sobbing so hard her body trembled. Seeing that caused the tightness in my chest to return, and the joy of finding a clue vanished instantly.
For some reason, seeing her like this made me feel guilty. When I think about it, the reason she is experiencing such severe trauma is that I wrote the massacre of her race.
In other words, everything she suffered is my fault.
I moved closer to her and spoke softly. "Alright, Lumi, cry as much as you need to for now. I don't know what happened to you, but I will stay here to keep you company."
...
For almost ten minutes, Lumina continued to cry, though it eventually began to subside.
By her side, I didn't know what to do. Pat her head like a child? But she looks to be my age, and I'm a stranger to her. Therefore, I simply stayed by her side.
Finally, I stood up and brewed some instant noodles to fill my stomach before training.
Right, I just remembered.
Because of all the unexpected moments I just experienced, I forgot my reason for coming outside the walls: to train. But now, after finishing this meal, I'm going to do it: meditate, practice swordsmanship, and so on.
After finishing my noodles and having a drink, I stood up straight and stretched my body. Then, with slow steps, I began to walk away, but Lumina called out to me:
"H-hey, w-where are you going?"
I looked back to see Lumina had stood up, looking like she wanted to follow me.
"I just want to meditate on that rock in the middle of the water. You stay there, or in the tent."
She looked at the tent curiously, then toward the dark forest filled with bushes, and finally back at me. "I-I'm coming with you."
She walked closer, carrying my cloak on her shoulders.
"Sigh... fine, but don't go into the water. Stay right here," I said, turning back toward the water while activating Mana Sensing.
As I entered the water, I began to wonder: what should I do with Lumina when I go home later?
Bring her to the house? Ugh, but how would I explain this to Alice and Aunt Maya?!
"Auntie, I found this girl in the forest."
"Alice, I felt sorry for her because she was alone."
Uh, just imagining it makes me cringe with embarrassment. Ah, whatever. I'll think about that later. Besides, I'll be out here for a few days anyway.
Once I reached the large protruding rock in the water, I sat cross-legged while keeping my Mana Sensing active.
However, my sensing felt disrupted. I could feel Mana coming from all sides, making it impossible to detect specific objects accurately.
'Just as I thought, the Mana outside the walls is so abundant it actually interferes with my Mana Sensing.
'Now, I just need to resonate with the surrounding Mana so my body can absorb it naturally.
'However, I must control the ambient Mana entering my body at all times. If I don't, I'll suffer Mana overload and could damage my Mana Core.
'But even so, I have to keep pushing the limits of the Core until it swells and tears its lining in a controlled manner, so the body can repair the tear with a stronger layer.'
You could say it's similar to how we train our muscles, where muscle fibers torn during exercise repair themselves with stronger cells.
However, the difference here is the stakes are incredibly high. The Mana Core isn't just a place where mana gathers, it is the heart of the human itself.
When the Great Cataclysm first arrived in this world, humans who had just Awakened were faced not only with high-level monsters but also a drastically changed global climate.
Therefore, humans had to constantly strengthen their bodies with Mana to adapt. Eventually, Mana evolved into the source of human life itself, no longer just fuel for magic.
The Mana Core is proof of human evolution because it fused with the heart.
I was ready to close my eyes, but from the corner of my eye, I saw Lumina on the shore drawing something on the ground with a twig.
There was no problem with that, really. But I remembered how her magic could have sliced me in two if it hadn't missed. Even though I helped her—which might make her indebted to me—the fear lingered because I barely knew her.
What if she attacked me while I was meditating?
I sighed, rested my chin on my hand, and called out, "Hey, is it okay if I leave you here?" I was testing her.
Her eyes instantly widened in fear, and her mouth opened but no words came out.
'Yeah, alright. I guess the fear on her face shows she's dependent on me right now. I'll try to trust her.'
"Oh, never mind then." I stopped looking at her and returned to my meditation position with a calm face, though I was slightly annoyed.
'Damn, this is really troublesome. Why do I have to be responsible for this stranger now?'
Actually, I could just leave her. Taking care of her doesn't benefit me much; in fact, it's dangerous because I could be targeted too.
But I can't do it because this damn empathy always defeats me. I'm confused about when I became this kind of person.
Phew, forget it. I don't want to waste my time.
...
– Lumina's POV –
A few hours ago, before I arrived on Earth, I was exploring the rifts in the universe, looking for a way to escape from those chasing me to kill me.
The reason 'They' are hunting me—and my entire race—is solely because of a slander directed at us.
According to the news I heard before it all happened, a human infiltrated Heaven wearing a form and aura like ours and stole the artifacts of the Celestial Beings, the highest caste of creatures in Heaven.
That truly triggered their rage.
To make matters worse, that human also succeeded in destroying the 'Fate Control Pen' that bound human life 'from birth to death,' meaning humans can now exercise free will without control.
The Celestial Beings then approached our entire race and forced us to confess one by one.
Because no one confessed, they became harsher, eventually making an example by killing one of us as a final threat.
But the result was the same: nil.
Then, after they negotiated, they finally chose the path of massacring us because they didn't want to risk a similar event happening again.
At that moment, Heaven, usually illuminated by holy golden light, turned into a gathering place for the blood of my race.
I saw it all with my own eyes.
Those holding the title 'Celestial Being' are actually more cruel than the humans whose fates of life and death they bound.
I managed to escape only because my mother sacrificed herself to slow them down so I could flee through the portal she created.
Passing through that portal, I saw Earth and descended at high speed, damaging my wings when I finally arrived.
What am I supposed to do now in this place filled with trees?
Truthfully, I was desperate to give up on life because I have nothing left, but because my mother sacrificed herself so I could keep living, I am forced to go on.
Just as I was cleaning myself, I saw a human staring at me with a strange gaze, which made me attack him on reflex.
In Heaven, humans are always described as living creatures who are greedy, cruel, and never satisfied.
But the human I met is completely different from the stories, he didn't want to hurt me even when I almost killed him.
Instead, he saved me, gave me a warm cloak, delicious food, and kept me company when I cried.
Also, he didn't force me to tell him everything because I wasn't able to, yet even so, he seemed to understand everything I experienced from just a few of my words.
I truly owe him a debt of gratitude.
He introduced himself as Adrian, and I will always remember that name for the rest of my life.
I wonder: Is the story about humans being bad, as told in Heaven, actually untrue? If so, why did 'They' bind human fate to control them?
Thinking about it, maybe the reason that human infiltrated was that he couldn't accept his fate being bound, so he finally struck back alone.
After all, who wants their 'Life until death' written out for them? I certainly don't.
But, as a result of that human's actions, my race was framed.
Everything has already happened, I can't go back to the past. I must live my life now, continuing according to my mother's will.
Now, the black-haired human who introduced himself as Adrian is sitting cross-legged on a rock with his eyes closed.
I'm curious, what is he doing?
B-but do I have the right to ask him?
No, maybe later.
Earlier, he suddenly asked me if he could leave me here.
I couldn't say anything because I have absolutely no right to forbid him. Besides, what can I give him? The fact that he hasn't left is already lucky for me.
So I will stay quiet and obedient. I'm afraid of making him angry and having him leave me.
No, no, I don't want that.
– Adrian Hale's POV –
Tens of minutes had passed while I meditated by resonating with the surrounding Mana.
At first, there was a piercing cold sensation in parts of my body, especially in my heart, causing it to throb violently until I could hear it beating.
But now, after constantly trying to control it, I started getting used to the piercing sensation.
Because of that, I could continue for hours until I felt I reached my limit, my body feeling incredibly weak as my heart was constantly pressured by the Mana I absorbed.
Finally, I took a break and drank as much water as possible.
After two hours of rest, I stood up again to practice swordsmanship, since I couldn't use magic for the time being.
While I practiced with my sword and read the guidebook I brought, Lumina was busy playing with the dirt like a child seeing clay for the first time.
Occasionally, she watched me use the sword and asked what I was actually doing and why I was here.
I gave her simple answers: "I just want to train to get stronger" and "I got lost in this forest."
It seems that because she's starting to trust me, she has begun to open up and tell the story of how she arrived on Earth.
The repeated cycle of training, resting, and training finally had to stop because it was getting dark, and I needed to set up a barrier around my tent so monsters wouldn't track us.
I wiped my sweat and threw the sword to the side of the tent. "Phew... Well, Lumi, it's getting dark. You should go inside the tent."
Lumina, who was sitting and staring at the water, finally turned to look at me. Her golden eyes glowed brighter now in the dim lighting.
She nodded obediently and walked into the tent.
'Sigh... I hope nothing happens tonight.'