Pitch darkness.
Several children stood in a circle, laughing joyfully at something they were watching.
A scene surfaced in his mind.
"Wow… what is that?"
Cold faces.
They looked at him like trash.
Then they walked away.
"I was just asking…"
Thomas was left alone, abandoned, not even knowing what he had done wrong.
"Why…?"
His childhood—being cast aside without ever knowing the reason.
"Why…?"
His first job.
His coworkers ignored Thomas.
Left him behind.
"Why?"
He worked alone in the office.
Spent time alone doing the things he was interested in.
A lonely yet curious past.
Thomas was alone once again.
"Why…?"
The pitch-black thoughts in his mind were suddenly interrupted by the voices of others.
"Hey, look at what he's wearing?"
"Yeah… that's skin, right?"
"It looks really warm."
Thomas was unconscious.
"What…?"
"Yes…"
"A human voice…?"
"Am I among people…?" he asked himself unconsciously.
Thomas slowly began to open his eyes.
A faint firelight reached him.
It wasn't bright enough to illuminate everything, but it was still light—real light.
He slowly opened his eyes wider. Fully.
The first thing he saw was the ceiling of a cave.
"Hey, he's waking up!"
"Glyas, call the chief!"
One of the unfamiliar people ran off.
When Thomas tried to sit up, a massive face filled his vision.
Muscular arms and legs.
A face that looked fully grown.
But the size—far beyond that of an ordinary human.
Nearly three meters tall.
A huge man.
"Hey, are you okay? Do you remember anything, kid?"
Thomas felt both relieved and shocked.
"Ah… a human?"
"Of course. You're safe now."
This was Thomas's first encounter with other humans.
Before the surprise and joy could settle, several people approached from the fire.
Among them, an elderly man with a long white beard stepped forward.
"My child, do you know where you came from?"
he asked calmly, with curiosity.
Thomas wanted to know where he was as well.
"I'm not really sure… but where am I?"
The old man whispered with the others for a moment.
"You're in the Snow Eagle Tribe, my child."
"Hah… Snow Eagle?"
Thomas stared in disbelief.
The old man smiled, understanding.
"Ha-ha, surprised, aren't you?"
"It's only natural. Ours is a small tribe—only a few others even know of us."
Thomas grew even more confused.
Thinking he couldn't stay like this, he tried to stand.
The skin he was wearing immediately caught everyone's attention.
The old man asked right away,
"My child, who made that skin you're wearing?"
Only then did Thomas take a closer look at their clothing and stature.
They were clearly larger than ordinary humans, and rather than clothes, they simply wrapped and tied animal skins around their bodies.
The chief wore slightly cleaner, better-treated skins, tied together here and there.
They looked extremely crude.
Thomas immediately realized they had little knowledge of clothing-making.
"I got this from another person. Unfortunately, I don't know where he was from,"
he lied smoothly.
—If I say I made it myself, they'll start asking too many questions…
The old man and the others sighed.
"Anyway, get some rest for now, child…"
"Jaald, show him around."
The others walked away.
The two who had been watching over Thomas stayed beside him.
"So… what should we call you, kid?" one of them asked.
"Thomas."
"Oh, that's a nice name."
"I'm Garuk, and this one—" he pointed to the man beside him,
"—is Thorn. The old man earlier was Haar."
"Okay."
"He's our tribe's chief, kid."
Thomas raised an eyebrow.
—Why do they keep calling me 'kid'?
They're big, but their faces don't look that different from mine…
As he drifted back into thought—
"Want me to show you around?"
Thomas decided to inspect his surroundings.
"Sure."
Behind a large pile of firewood, Haar spoke quietly.
"That child's clothing is unusual. The one who made it must be a high devotee."
A man beside him nodded.
"Exactly. Who else could make something like that?"
A third voice added,
"What if another tribe sent this child to use us? I've seen many cases like that…"
Haar thought for a moment.
"For now, observe him.
He'll either become a blessing… or a curse."
Thomas looked around. Everything was crude—tools made from skin and wood.
"How primitive," he muttered.
Garuk seemed to overhear.
"Did you say something, kid?" he asked with a laugh.
"No."
—Did he just say 'primitive'?
Garuk wondered if he misheard.
This cave was even larger than the previous one Thomas had seen.
At the entrance, a rough structure of wood and bone stood, draped with a massive hide.
Everyone stared at Thomas's unfamiliar appearance with curiosity.
A tall child with a runny nose asked,
"Mom, can I play with him?"
His mother replied,
"For now, it's fine."
—Mom?
That kid is taller than me… is he really a child?
They reached the large bonfire.
Beside it were many animal bones—some massive—piled together.
Among them was a single reindeer.
"Did you hunt these?" Thomas asked.
"Yes."
"That reindeer…?"
"Yes. It was trying to hunt you.
You were lying unconscious on the glacier."
—Then how am I okay…?
He looked at his hands—they were white as snow.
—What the hell…?
"We couldn't even tell you apart from the snow. Hahaha."
Thomas touched his face and looked at the frozen surface nearby.
"Um… are you okay?" Garuk asked.
—Did I really get reborn…?
"Hahaha."
"Kid?"
"Yes… I'm fine."
—Good… seems like they don't know.
Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted as wounded people entered from outside, pushing past the hides.
Among them, a sharp-eyed woman with a powerful presence immediately caught Thomas's attention.
"Puhhh!"
"Our tribe's proud hunters," Garuk said.
—No wonder… even I'm impressed by their prey.
A mammoth… my god…
Thomas didn't actually see the mammoth.
The hunters moved deeper into the cave.
The sharp-eyed woman glanced at Thomas from the corner of her eye and passed by.
—Interesting…
"Hey… hey…"
"Hey!!"
"Huh?"
"You okay?"
"Yes, yes."
"This is the most incredible moment of my life."
—This kid's not quite right…
Night fell.
Two guards stood watch at the entrance as the tribe settled down.
Food was distributed—huge chunks of roasted meat for everyone.
—This cave is enormous… far bigger than the one I was in before.
And it branches off everywhere…
As Thomas thought, his eyes caught a doorway deeper inside the cave.
It was decorated with the skulls of giant beasts and covered with hides more ornate than even Chief Haar's.
Beside him, Garuk tore into his meat.
"Hey, what's that doorway?"
Garuk glanced over while chewing.
"The Ritual Gate."
"Ritual Gate?"
"Yes. Don't you know?"
"No."
Garuk thought to himself—
—This kid really doesn't know anything…
"So what kind of ritual is it?"
"How old are you?"
Thomas estimated.
"Thirty."
"Then you're exactly the right age for the ritual."
"I'll tell the chief before he rests tonight."
"And the ritual is…?"
"You'll see tomorrow."
—Damn it, just tell me already…
Night deepened.
Everyone lay around the fire, wrapped in skins.
Hunters and special members rested deeper in the cave around another fire.
"May I come in?"
"Come."
Inside, Chief Haar sat with the hunters, discussing the tribe's future.
"Garuk. How is the child?"
"Did you learn anything about his clothing?"
"No. But I found out he's of ritual age."
"Ritual?"
—So he's thirty…
"You want to include him?"
"Yes."
A sharp-eyed woman spoke angrily.
"You're going to let a complete outsider into the ritual?!"
Chief Haar raised one hand.
"Lower your voice."
"There is no rule forbidding outsiders from participating."
"Eshra, I know you dislike outsiders, but—
you saw his clothing.
Only a high devotee could have made something like that."
Eshra listened in silence.
"If he has ability, he'll be a great benefit to us.
If not, we have ways to deal with it."
Eshra looked down.
"…Understood."
Chief Haar spoke loudly.
"Prepare him for tomorrow's ritual!"
"Yes!"
That night, Thomas lay staring into the fire.
The flames flickered as if trying to remind him of something forgotten.
—Spidey!
In the dark forest, Spidey stood near a cliff, staring fiercely at the collapsed frozen river below…