We climbing the hill and trying to hold on to the thick branches that obscured my vision, I heard her voice say strangely:

  "Look, we've arrived. This is the river, the pride of the Forest of Oblivion."

  I pushed aside the st branch and shielded my eyes with my hand to see clearly... a paradise beyond description. The river was small in width, yet its stretch seemed endless, surrounded by lush greenery on all sides, though oddly devoid of trees at its banks. Flowers of every imaginable hue—blue, red, yellow, even purple—bloomed in breathtaking brilliance. And among them, I saw them—"the fairies." Many of them.

  "This river is the source of our life... the life of the forest itself. We have protected it for hundreds of years from all creatures, the worst of which are humans."

  "Why?" I looked at her cautiously.

  "If I tell you, you won’t have time to escape them," she said with a teasing ugh. "But you'll see. Let's get closer to the bank."

  As I turned my head, I noticed their stares. The fairies were not moving naturally. They flew in strange formations, and the longer I observed them, the sharper their gazes became. I muttered:

  "They have no features."

  "Oh..."

  She looked at me in surprise, then ughed. "Hahaha, it’s okay. Simply put, young fairies are born without features. This was one of our sacrifices to save our forest—or what’s left of it."

  "What about you? You have beautiful features."

  "Dear, this is one of the miracles of magic. If I showed you who I really am, I would take your soul with it."

  "Then, try me."

  She gave me a sad smile, lowering her eyes. "We’re here. Look at the beauty of our river." She pced her hands on her waist proudly, lifting her chin defiantly with a smile.

  I bent down at the bank, and Aisha followed my movements. Every time she looked at me, she mimicked me. As I brought my face closer to the water, a strange, almost repulsive sensation gripped me. Something was off. Yet curiosity pushed me further. Just as my face was about to meet its reflection, the water shuddered, breaking the image. And then I saw something far more disturbing than myself—

  "Bones?!"

  I couldn't believe it. My head turned nervously toward Aisha, only to see her floating mid-air. "Huh? Aisha—?!"

  The moment didn’t st. I was pushed. We fell into the river, and all I saw was water rushing into my eyes. And the fairy... what was her name? She was fighting something. My vision blurred, consciousness fading. But before I lost it entirely, I reached for Aisha with my roots.

  Extending my arm toward her, I found I couldn’t reach. I wasn’t a mere pnt anymore—I was something far more. My hand shifted into wooden roots. I couldn’t control it as the roots shot out, spreading into four tendrils. They grabbed onto something, pulling me forward. The riverbed was not what I expected. There was no bottom—only a path of bones.

  "This is... unsettling. Even for an old tree. Is this a ritual?"

  I wasn’t surprised that I could breathe underwater, nor that my mind remained sharp. My body had likely adapted. But for Ishard... that wasn’t an option.

  "Excuse me, creator of this bone art, but I will destroy it. Once again, wooden arm—"

  My roots shed out, shattering the skeletal path blocking the bottom. An opening appeared, leading into a submerged passageway, its entrance littered with bones.

  "I can't believe I’m making myself breathe through my roots. It’s terrifying what this body is capable of."

  After swimming for minutes, a faint glow emerged ahead. It wasn’t as bright as the sun, but it was warmer, more inviting than the hostile light above the surface. I hadn’t sted an hour up there before everything tried to kill me.

  I looked down at the girl in my arms.

  "And even kill her."

  "Don't joke with me... another cave?" I groaned, my voice echoing. My outburst shook the ceiling, dislodging sharp stactites.

  "Damn it—root hand, do something!"

  No response.

  "Huh?"

  "Fine! If you won’t help, I’ll dodge them myself."

  I twisted and turned, avoiding the deadly spikes with an awkward, frantic dance.

  "Ah... I’m exhausted. What is this? Do I have a temperamental hand now? This just keeps getting better."

  A melodic ugh broke through the cave’s tension. I turned sharply to see Ishard, sitting elegantly on a rock, one leg over the other, hands resting neatly on her knee. She smirked as she raised a thumb toward me.

  "Please excuse me—I couldn't help myself after seeing you dance like a fool. But to be honest, you have some skill. Perhaps you should train, my friend."

  "Yes, hirious. If dancing meant survival, I’d be a professional by now. If it brought you back, Esha would have been the nicest person to deal with."

  "Not at all. I just came to see what predicament you’ve pced us in."

  I moved toward her hastily. "We don't have time for this. There’s a forgotten forest above us, a river of bones, fairies that want me dead, and a rebellious hand. What do we do?"

  She listened intently, eyes closed in thought. Then, with a small smirk, she lifted her head and said, word by word—

  "We have to commit suicide, my friend."

  "......"

  "Surrendering to the fairies is worse than death. On top of that, we are in the Forgotten Forest. This pce is called the Point of No Return. I expect that because of you, we reincarnated here."

  I threw my arms out in frustration. "How is this my fault?!"

  "When we left the cave, you saw a light enter your eyes, correct?"

  "Yes."

  "That was the After Vision. It transported us based on your thoughts. If you had imagined fire, we would have appeared near a volcano. A castle—some kingdom. Now tell me—what were you thinking when we teleported here?!"

  She pointed at me accusingly. I froze. Inside, I repyed my thoughts, rolling my eyes at myself.

  "Did I really think of those bone collectors?"

  Looking back at her, I forced a sheepish smile. "Hahaha, it's fine! We can fix this together... right?"

  She gave me a delicate, almost mocking smile. "You're on your own."

  "Wait! I have a crazy idea. Do you still have that..."

  I leaned in, whispering. Ishard's eyes widened as she listened. Then, she let out a deep, belly ugh.

  "I never thought you’d be reckless enough to attempt this. You might lose an arm, tree."

  "Then for this occasion, you can call me Hazel."

  "Isn't that—?"

  "You can’t keep calling me 'tree' forever, can you? It's temporary."

  She smirked. "Remember, Hazel, we only have a few tries."

  I clenched my fist. "That’s more than enough."

  ********************