Chapter 2: return
The teleportation shattered midway.
Instead of arriving together, the light split apart — the princess vanished in one direction, while Kros was violently dragged into another.
The system voice echoed one last time
Flash.
Kros crashed into damp soil.
Tall black trees stretched endlessly in every direction. The air was heavy, almost suffocating. Even the wind sounded wrong.
"...Where the hell is this place?"
Tii. Tii. Tii.!!!
A warning screen appeared before him.
WARNING
Destination: Kumandell
Region: Home of the Fallen Grail Knights and Evil Deities
Survival: Not possible
Hordes of monsters approaching
Recommended Action: RUN
"...Huh?"
"Monsters?"
He looked around nervously.
"...Ah… I got scammed real bad, huh… Hey, little girl—"
He paused.
"...Where is she?"
Before he could react—
SWISH
An axe flashed.
THUD.
His arm fell to the ground.
"...huh?"
For a second, he didn't understand what had happened.
Then pain exploded.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!"
Blood poured onto the forest floor.
Three humanoid monsters stepped forward, their bodies twisted, their teeth jagged and uneven.
They spoke in grotesque sounds.
"krkrkrrkrrrk—"
A window appeared. Translating foreign tongue..
Translating…
"This meat looks tasty."
"Tear him limb from limb."
"Offer him to the chief."
Translation complete.
Kros trembled.
"...I'm going to die."
One of the monsters lifted its axe.
Kros knelt there, bleeding, vision fading.
I'm going to die… he thought.
Then—
A flash.
The monster's head flew off.
Silence.
Before the others could even turn—
Slash.
Slash.
All three collapsed.
Blood stained the leaves.
Standing before Kros… was a girl.
Pink hair flowed gently with the wind. Her appearance was elegant — refined like a noble lady. She slowly sheathed her sword as the monsters fell behind her.
She tilted her head slightly.
"No humans are allowed in this forest."
Her voice was cold.
Kros stared blankly, still shaking from pain.
"You walk into Kumandell… and the first thing you do is nearly get killed by the lowest level monsters."
She looked down at him.
"How pathetic."
She grabbed his severed arm, examined the wound, and began chanting.
Magic formed around her hand.
The bleeding stopped instantly.
Then she burned the wound closed with magic.
Kros screamed again.
"There is no magic to reattach an arm," she said calmly.
She pulled him up, placing his remaining arm over her shoulder.
"What are you doing in the Land of No Return?"
Kros was too weak to answer.
She carried him deeper into the forest.
Soon, a small tent appeared hidden between trees.
Days passed.
Kros slowly recovered.
But his arm never returned.
The girl rarely spoke. She trained outside, her sword movements precise and powerful. Sometimes she vanished for hours, returning covered in monster blood.
Eventually, they talked.
"So… what were you doing in Kumandell?" she asked.
Kros hesitated.
Then, with a tired expression, he explained everything — the princess, the gold, the teleportation, the system voice.
She paused when he mentioned the Kushan Empire.
"...Kushan, huh."
Her tone changed slightly.
But she said nothing more.
Unknown to him…
She was the king's firstborn daughter.
Enora… was her younger sister.
She had left the kingdom years ago, seeking strength to help her father in the war against demons.
But she didn't reveal that.
Instead she simply said:
"...I'm sorry."
Then she stood.
"You should leave this place once you recover."
Kros looked at his missing arm.
"...Yeah."
The wind blew quietly outside the tent.
Unnoticed by both of them—
A faint spark of lightning flickered across Kros' fingers.
Something ancient… had begun to awaken.
"The princess has returned!"
The castle gates burst open as guards rushed inside.
"The princess has returned!"
The king shot up from his throne.
Moments later—
"Father!"
"Enora!"
The king rushed forward, embracing his daughter tightly.
"You came back… thank the heavens…"
Another figure approached quickly.
"Enora!"
Her second older sister, Rin, wrapped her arms around her.
"You idiot… you scared us."
"I'm sorry…"
They escorted her inside the throne hall.
"What happened?" the king asked urgently.
"Did you find the knight?"
Enora nodded.
"Yes! I found him! A brave knight accepted my request!"
Relief filled the room.
"Where is he?" Rin asked.
Enora froze.
"...huh?"
Her eyes widened.
"He… he was with me…"
Silence fell.
"You were separated?" the king asked.
"I… I don't know! The teleportation… everything went white… I thought he was behind me!"
Tension filled the hall.
Then the grand mage stepped forward.
"Your majesty."
He leaned closer to Enora.
"Princess… may I?"
He lifted a strand of hair from her shoulder.
"...This isn't yours."
"Kros…"
The mage nodded.
"This belongs to the summoned individual."
He raised his staff.
"I will attempt a trace spell."
Magic circles formed.
"Tracing origin…"
"Locating summoned entity…"
The circle flickered violently.
The mage's eyes widened.
"...Impossible."
"What is it?" the king demanded.
"The individual… is alive."
Relief spread — then vanished.
"But… he is in Kumandell."
The hall froze.
"Not just Kumandell…"
He looked up.
"The highest danger zone… the inner region…"
"...The Land of No Return."
Shock spread through everyone.
"No one survives there…"
"Even S-rank knights don't enter…"
Enora trembled.
"...He went there… because of me…"
The mage lowered his staff.
"If he is truly the destined knight…"
He looked toward the horizon.
"...then he must survive Kumandell."
The king clenched his fist.
"...Or our world is already doomed."