A strange chill seeped into Rolin's bones.
Colors burst across his vision—countless shades twisting and colliding like shattered rainbows. For a brief moment, something warm and gentle flowed through his body, soft as a breeze passing through an open field.
Then the chaos of colors slowly settled.
They melted into a calm, quiet violet glow.
And that was when he heard it.
A voice.
No…
Voices.
But they weren't like the warm, distant voice he had once heard when he had been half-dead in the Erthi Mountains. That voice had been gentle… almost comforting.
This was different.
This sounded like two people arguing.
A woman's voice trembled with sorrow.
"Why…? What did I ever do to you? I sacrificed everything for you…"
A man's voice cut through the air—sharp with rage.
"You wretched woman! After everything I gave you… you sold me to that man!"
The woman began to sob.
"I didn't sell you… I swear it… please forgive me, Nofir—"
SLAP.
A body hit the ground.
The sound of a sword leaving its sheath echoed coldly through the void.
Then the man spoke again, his voice now devoid of warmth.
"You deserve to die."
"I'll bury you in that forest… and let that devil devour you."
Silence swallowed the voices.
Then they were gone.
Rolin frowned slightly.
What was that…?
My imagination?
He barely had time to think before another voice echoed through the violet light.
This one was different.
Deep.
Powerful.
Filled with reverence.
"Long live the Great White King."
Then that voice faded as well.
Rolin blinked slowly.
The Great White King…?
What kind of legend is that supposed to be?
Before he could think further, the violet light collapsed.
The warm sensation vanished instantly.
Gravity returned.
Consciousness followed.
And then—
Rolin felt something beneath his back.
Hard ground.
He opened his eyes.
Above him stretched a sky darker than night.
Not black like a normal night sky.
No.
It was deeper.
Like staring into a cosmic abyss.
And within that endless darkness floated only five stars.
Five lonely lights shining faintly… like tiny fragments of hope in a ruined world.
Rolin slowly sat up.
Then he looked ahead.
And froze.
He rubbed his eyes once.
Then again.
Hoping—desperately—that his eyes were lying.
They weren't.
"Damn it… damn it… damn it."
"Of all possibilities… why did I land in the worst one?"
Before him stretched a vast desert.
Endless.
Barren.
The sand itself was black—dark as ash, shifting slowly beneath the faint wind.
Rolin stood atop a strange rocky hill that overlooked the desolate wasteland.
At that moment—
Something pushed outward from his chest.
A small figure crawled out lazily.
Likath.
The small crimson-black flaming cub stretched his limbs like a cat waking from a very comfortable nap. His tail flickered like a lantern in the dark.
Then he looked around.
And immediately began mocking the world.
"Wooooow."
"Sand."
"More sand."
"And even more sand."
He slowly turned his head.
"This place looks absolutely perfect to become our grave."
Rolin stared at the endless dunes with a flat expression.
"Where exactly do you think we're supposed to find an exit from this empty hell?"
Likath slowly turned in a circle, his flaming tail lighting the darkness like a wandering torch.
Then he whistled.
A long, impressed whistle.
"Hey, sack of meat…"
"You might want to look at this."
Rolin turned.
And his expression changed instantly.
Confusion.
Shock.
A strange sense of awe.
Only one phrase appeared in his mind.
Strings of the heavens.
Behind him stood a forest.
But calling it a forest almost felt insulting.
These were not normal trees.
They were colossal.
Gigantic trunks rose into the sky—so tall that their crowns vanished into the darkness above. Their bark was dark and ancient, and their diameters ranged from one meter… to five meters or more.
They looked less like trees—
and more like pillars holding the sky itself.
Rolin blinked slowly.
"How does that even make sense?"
"A desert in front of us… and a giant forest behind us?"
Likath scratched his ear lazily.
"Magic."
"Next question."
Rolin turned back toward the desert, trying to decide where to go.
The decision was made for him immediately.
Something massive dropped from the sky.
BOOM.
A giant creature landed in the desert below.
It had the head of an owl.
But its talons were enormous—long and curved like gleaming swords.
Its wings spread wide like the sails of colossal ships.
With terrifying precision, it snatched something from the sand.
A massive black worm.
The creature's body writhed violently, its circular mouth filled with rows of serrated teeth.
The owl-beast didn't hesitate.
Crunch.
Bite.
Swallow.
Likath clapped his tiny flaming paws.
"Nature is beautiful."
But before the celebration could continue—
The sand exploded.
A monstrous creature burst from beneath the desert.
It looked like a scorpion.
Except it had three tails, ten legs, a horned head, and six glowing eyes.
It lunged upward—
And swallowed the owl creature whole.
Likath blinked.
"Wow."
"One bite."
Then something even larger appeared.
A massive beast charged across the dunes.
It resembled a crocodile—but its body was covered in thick white fur. Its legs were long and muscular, and its enormous jaws snapped shut around the giant scorpion.
The scorpion disappeared down its throat.
Rolin stared.
"This is… not what I expected."
Likath nodded thoughtfully.
"Well."
"At least now we understand the desert's difficulty level."
As if the desert itself had heard them—
The sand began to move again.
Thousands of smaller creatures erupted from beneath the dunes.
They resembled ants.
But their legs were shaped like drill spikes.
They swarmed the white-furred monster, piercing through its flesh with terrifying efficiency.
The giant creature roared—
Then disappeared beneath the shifting black sand as the swarm dragged it underground.
Silence returned.
The desert looked peaceful again.
As if nothing had happened.
Likath slowly turned his head toward Rolin.
His flaming tail swayed thoughtfully.
"Roli…"
"You know…"
"I've always believed forests are wonderful places to explore."