Ren couldn't believe his own eyes. Just moments ago, he had to watch where he stepped, pushing aside every branch that poked into his face every three meters. The forest was so dense that you could barely see a few meters ahead, let alone the sky.
Yet, somehow, Ren could see everything.
"What happened here?" he asked quietly, staring in awe.
"You happened, Ren… at least, I think so," Klay replied.
The two of them were standing in front of a crater—or rather, it resembled a small chasm in the ground. It looked as though a comet had fallen from the sky. Upon hitting the ground, it had slid so far across the earth, leaving a trail that to the two of them looked like the said chasm.
Everything in its path had been destroyed and burned. The trail stretched so far back that the two of them couldn't even see where it began. From left to right, the small chasm was at least six meters wide, and about four meters deep.
Around it, it looked like a minor environmental disaster. Broken, splintered, and charred trees lay everywhere. The two stood at the edge of the small abyss, staring down.
Exactly where the end seemed to be, it looked even hotter, probably because it had finally come to a stop, concentrating all the heat it carried into one spot.
"This is where I found you," Klay explained matter-of-factly.
"Right there, in the darkest spot—that's where you were lying, Ren."
Ren just stared down, confused. Straining, he tried to recall his last memories, but he had no idea how that could have happened.
"If you hadn't told me beforehand that you grew up in that underground city, I'd have thought you were one of those Invaders."
"Invader?"
"Oh, right—you probably wouldn't know them. Come on, let's quickly go back to the fire, I'm getting cold. Then I'll tell you more."
The two sat down again by the fire, and Klay began to speak.
He talked about how, one day, strange ships had fallen from the sky, seemingly out of nowhere. They came in all sorts of shapes and colors. Some were larger and thicker, others smaller and narrower.
But what was far more important were the beings inside these floating ships. They were eventually called Invaders. They claimed to be from another planet and traveled through the galaxy to learn from and study other species.
Some stayed, some left. The ones who stayed lived among the rest of the world. Some integrated well into society, while others, it was said, came with bad intentions, experimenting on people.
"From what you've told me, Ren—how this Oxaril looks and what he did to you—I'd guess he's exactly one of these Invaders."
"An Invader, huh…"
Ren's gaze fell to the ground, tense. He surely remembered again the last time he had been trapped on Oxaril's ship. His eyes reflected sadness, almost grief.
Quickly noticing the situation, Klay stood from the fire. He brushed the dirt from his pants and looked at the boy.
"I know you just got up, but sleep a bit more if you want. You can use the bed."
"You mean the pile of straw in your hut?"
"Yes, exactly! The pile of straw that's served me as a good bed for a while! So don't complain!" Klay protested, but soon returned his gentle smile.
"That was a lot all at once today, Ren. Take the chance to rest a little more."
With that, he got up and walked back into the dense forest without his makeshift torch. In the blink of an eye, he disappeared into the darkness as if he had never been there.
"How can he even see in there without that stick?" Ren thought, lying back on the hard ground.
Relaxed, he looked up at the clear night sky, adorned with beautiful stars glowing in countless colors. The moon, so large it seemed one could reach for it, cast a cool, gentle light.
For the first time, Ren slowly realized his situation.
"What do I do now? I'm alone, far from home… my parents, Rei my brother, Emma, everyone…"
A tear ran slowly down his cheek. He raised his arm and actually tried to reach for the stars in the sky.
"What is all this?"
Many might think he was crazy, but for him, it was truly the first time he had seen a proper starry sky—the first time he had ever really seen a sky.
He drifted in thought, remembering the promise he had made to his mother that day—the promise that he would live, no matter what.
Slowly, he reached one last time toward the largest star he could see and then brought his closed hand to his chest, as if holding something.
"See, Mom… I'm still alive."
Slowly, he yawned, his eyes closing. He was still very worn out. Not long after, he fell asleep on the hard ground under the beautiful starry sky.
The next day dawned, and Ren was awakened by a constant, dull sound. Beside him, he saw Klay splitting pieces of wood with a strangely shaped axe.
The axe was made of a sharpened stone, somehow embedded in a piece of wood. It looks just like the knife from the other day.
Ren slowly got up and walked over to him.
"So, how was sleeping on the hard ground?" Klay asked, grinning.
"It was the best sleep I've had in ages!" Ren replied, a satisfied and refreshed expression on his face.
At first, Klay thought he was joking about him and his straw bed, but when he looked into the boy's eyes, he realized Ren was serious.
Of course, he didn't know, but Ren had always slept on the hard bed on Oxaril's ship, as hard as concrete.
"But tell me, Klay, why is it suddenly so bright?"
Klay put the axe aside and explained the difference between day and night, as if to a small child.
Then they had breakfast, eating the rabbit he had caught last night. Klay told him about many other creatures in the forest, but Ren only heard the word "meat," his eyes sparkling.
He listened eagerly to all the things he didn't know. Klay also seemed to enjoy it, pleased by the boy's presence.
This continued until Ren finally asked:
"Why are you here in the forest? And all alone?"
Klay's gentle gaze fell to the palm of his left hand. Only now did Ren notice a strange black symbol there.
Still smiling faintly, Klay's tired eyes revealed all his emotions.
"What happened?" Ren asked, concerned.
Klay looked up at him and showed his palm more clearly.
"I'm under a curse. The curse of a witch…" he explained, his voice heavy.
The pattern looked like a beautiful tattoo—not very meaningful, but a symmetrical design.
"A witch?"
"That's right. Remember the magic I told you about?"
Ren nodded.
"There are two types of magic users. There are those who must recite a spell to activate it, and there are those who can cast magic without saying anything. Only a few can do that. These are witches or their half-blood children. Only women can be witches, so they pair with men of other races. Their children are half-bloods, and even then, not all can use spellless magic. It's extremely rare."
"Sounds strong?" Ren asks.
Klay smiled.
"Yes. They are very powerful beings. So remember to run If you ever face a witch —unless you're as strong as I am."
He said proudly, though Ren noticed he was deflecting from the curse.
"You want to be strong?"
"Well, little one! Even though I can't use magic like most in my village, I'm still by far the strongest!"
"And yet, you're here alone with this curse?" Ren asked, confused.
"You don't give up easily, huh?" Klay sighed. "Fine, I'll tell you my story…"
Ren nodded in agreement, shifting slightly to show he was ready.
"Alright, listen carefully…" Klay starts.