Boom—Boom—Boom.
The violent impact of massive chunks of ice—each nearly a meter wide—slammed into the ground, shaking the forest with deafening explosions. The sound did not resemble ordinary hail. It was closer to falling boulders crashing from the sky, turning the earth itself into a battlefield.
'If even one of those lands on me, I'm dead.'
Ash ran.
He ran while dodging hailstones larger than rocks, his body moving on instinct alone. Each step felt unsteady, his legs screaming in protest, but stopping was not an option. The rain of ice showed no mercy. There was no rhythm, no pattern—only chaos falling from above.
Suddenly, a sharp warning rang through his mind.
Ash looked up.
Three massive chunks of ice were falling straight toward his head.
Without hesitation, he raised the wooden branch in his hand and swung it upward with all his strength.
BOOM!!!
The reliable branch shattered the descending ice. The broken pieces exploded apart, sending freezing water splashing across Ash's face. The shock numbed his skin, droplets forcing their way into his eyes and mouth.
He did not stop.
The moment the threat was deflected, Ash continued running forward, his breathing ragged, his vision blurred by water and fear.
He did not know whether running straight ahead was the right choice.
But right now, it was the only choice.
There was nowhere to hide.
"Haah… Haah… Haah…"
Ash jumped sideways to avoid another chunk that slammed into the ground where he had been standing just moments ago. He barely managed to regain his balance before forcing himself forward again.
Only a short while ago, he had regained some strength after drinking rainwater. But now, with this relentless hailstorm, that small recovery was being drained rapidly. His body had no reserves left to draw from.
Ash scanned his surroundings while running, desperately searching for anything—anything—that could help him escape this situation.
But the forest offered nothing.
Trees.
Endless trees.
No caves. No cliffs. No shelter.
Only towering trunks and dense foliage that did nothing to protect him.
Crack—Crack.
A sharp sound came from above.
Ash looked up.
Branches.
The hail had weakened the massive trees, snapping thick branches loose. They fell from heights of thirty to fifty meters, turning into deadly spears as they plunged toward the ground.
'As if the hail wasn't enough already?'
Dodging ice was already pushing him to his limit. Now he had to avoid enormous branches longer and heavier than his own body.
BOOM!
One branch speared into the ground right beside him.
Ash leapt aside just in time, feeling the air shift where the branch passed.
But before he could catch his breath, three more chunks of ice fell from above.
Acting purely on reflex, Ash dropped to the ground and swung his branch in a wide horizontal arc. The wood smashed through the ice, shattering it into fragments that exploded into freezing water. The splash hit his face again, some of it even pouring into his mouth.
'A few minutes ago, I was desperate for water… now I feel sick from drinking too much of it.'
He stood up and ran again.
BOOM!
Another branch crashed down near him.
Ash did not stop.
He pushed forward, ignoring the chaos around him. Ice battered his body. Water splashed into his eyes, stinging them, but he forced himself to keep them open.
Closing his eyes—even for a second—could kill him.
The world around him became a storm of falling ice, snapping branches, and splintering leaves. Everything fell from above, turning the forest into a death trap.
Above him, the rain continued to fall.
And it only grew heavier.
'Is the storm getting worse?'
He lifted his head slightly and looked up at the gray sky. Thick clouds rolled slowly above, pressing down on the forest. The hail was falling more frequently now, faster than before. Worse still, the pieces of ice were growing larger. Some of them were already big enough to make his chest tighten just by watching them fall.
BOOM!!!!
A massive chunk of ice crashed down nearby. It shattered on impact, spraying water in all directions. Some of it splashed onto Ash's clothes and face.
He flinched.
Looking down at himself, Ash let out a quiet sigh.
'Earlier I was covered in mud and sand. Now I'm soaked instead. I really never stay clean for long in this place.'
The storm showed no sign of stopping. If anything, it was becoming more violent by the second.
'Where should I go?'
Ash looked around.
Trees filled his vision in every direction—tall, dense, and battered by the relentless hailstorm. There was no obvious shelter, no clear path leading to safety.
After a brief pause, he made his choice.
Go to the West.
It might not be the best option, but it was the only one he had.
To get as far away from this storm as possible.
He ran.
And kept running.
While moving, Ash constantly adjusted his path—dodging falling ice and broken branches alike. Smaller pieces still struck his body from time to time.
A massive chunk of ice crashed down directly in front of him. Ash reacted instantly, throwing himself to the side just in time.
'Since when did they get this big?'
Before he could recover—
BOOM—BOOM!
Two more blocks slammed into the spot where he had just been standing. Ash jumped again, then lost his balance and rolled across the wet ground.
A sudden warning flared in his mind.
Without hesitation, Ash quickly move aside.
BOOM!!!
A gigantic block of ice—larger than his entire body—crashed down exactly where he had been lying moments ago.
Ash sucked in a sharp breath.
If he had been even a second slower, he would have been crushed.
There was no time to relax.
Pain spread through his body, and his vision blurred slightly with each impact.
Still, he did not stop.
BOOM—BOOM—BOOM!
Large blocks continued to fall without mercy. Dodging them became harder with every step.
"Huff… Huff… Huff…"
'I'm exhausted… Everything hurts.'
His body was close to its limit. His legs felt heavy, his movements slower. But the thought of stopping never fully took hold.
He could not afford to fall here.
....
PLOP.
....
Suddenly, everything around him seemed to slow down.
Time itself had not stopped—rather, Ash's awareness surged forward, becoming unnaturally sharp. Every sound, every motion stretched out in his perception.
He felt something strange, subtle—like a faint ripple spreading outward. A soundless pulse.
Then he took one more step.
And everything returned to normal.
The hail was gone.
No ice fell from the sky.
The gray clouds remained, drifting quietly overhead. Weak sunlight slipped through, landing softly on Ash's stunned face.
He stopped.
Moments ago, he had been running desperately. Now he stood upright, one hand still gripping the branch, his expression filled with confusion—an emotion rarely seen on his face.
Ash slowly turned around.
Behind him, there was nothing.
No storm.
No hail.
The ground was dry and calm, as if the violent rain had never existed at all.
'What… just happened?'
He clearly remembered passing through something—something thin, almost like an invisible membrane. At the same time, he had heard a faint sound, similar to a bubble popping.
If not for his soaked clothes and aching body, Ash might have believed it was all an illusion.
He stepped back toward the place where the storm should have been.
Nothing changed.
'Where did the rain go?'
No answer came.
After standing there for a while, Ash took a deep breath and tightened his grip on the branch.
Whatever had just happened, one thing was certain—
He could not stay here.
Turning his back on the silent forest, Ash continued walking west.