After we emerged from that incredible pce, I turned to look back. There was nothing left—no trace of where we had been, as if it had never existed. Instead, we found ourselves in a vast, lively forest. The wind rushed from all directions, carrying the scent of earth and life, while leaves danced through the air in swirling patterns.

  "I can see... I can feel... I can touch the ground. I have become something real."

  I had taken form. Upon leaving the cave, I was no longer just a presence—I was something tangible. The realization unsettled me. I longed to see myself, but there was no water nearby to serve as a reflection. Confused thoughts pressed into my mind, their weight as heavy as the unknown that surrounded me.

  "Now, will you let me help you, little girl?"

  I turned toward the child, speaking with an unexpected softness. And then I felt it—a shift in my expression.

  "I'm... smiling?" I murmured to myself. "Is this an involuntary reaction of this body? It seems I won't grow accustomed to it so easily."

  "Ishard."

  "What?"

  "My name. Call me Ishard."

  "You can speak?! You can think?! Are you..."

  "No, he's gone. What you see is but a fragment of what remains—Ichard left me for this child. I have no memories, nor do I need a body. I am merely a thought, lingering to protect her. It cannot be easy, waking up in a world that has moved on for decades. Consider me... her other self, if that makes it easier for you to understand."

  "So... it's your problem now."

  "No, it's still your problem. I will soon fade until my energy replenishes. Maintain the mana stream I draw, find a river, and the rest... well, that depends on you, my friend. Wink."

  A new feeling stirred in me—resentment, perhaps? But I pushed it aside. For now, I would carry it, just as I carried this responsibility, and see where this green expanse would lead me.

  The girl stirred, rubbing her eyes as she woke. For the first time, she saw the world bathed in sunlight. A smile bloomed on her face, her irises sparkling like crystals, framed by strands of white hair swaying in the breeze. I knelt before her, brushing a lock of hair away from her face. For a moment, she regarded me cautiously, as if uncertain whether to be afraid. But then, she smiled again—warmer, softer, more brilliant than the sun itself. Without hesitation, she reached for my hand, pressing it to her cheek, as if she recognized me not by sight, but by something deeper—my aura, my presence.

  A fragile thing, yet she had survived here. How miserable this world must be, to leave one so weak in such an environment.

  "I'm going to follow this path to the river." I pointed into the depths of the forest. "Do you want to come with me?"

  She nodded, her voice catching as she tried to respond. "Ye...th."

  "Get on my back." I crouched, offering her my support. "We don’t have all day. You’re injured, and you can’t walk easily. You’ll only slow me down, and we don’t know wh—"

  Before I could finish, she leapt onto my back, the force of it making me stumble slightly and cough.

  She giggled, pointing ahead as if commanding, "Let’s go!"

  We walked along the path, guided by the strange energy that pulsed through the forest—Oni, they called it. It resonated with something within me, like an extension of my own aura. Each step made the space around us feel tighter, the trees pressing in, watching us with silent, unseen eyes.

  "Hehehehee!"

  The girl wiggled on my back, ughing, tugging at the roots of my form.

  "Hey! Stop pulling me like that! I can't focus on the road," I snapped, my voice sharper than intended.

  She stilled, then her breath hitched. Her eyes welled with tears.

  "Isha... don’t yell," she whimpered. Her small hands clutched at me desperately, her tears falling onto my skin. "Ishard... I'm sorry..."

  Then, silence. She had stopped crying, but something felt wrong.

  I hadn't turned around yet, but I couldn’t sense her breathing.

  Her weight was still there, but...

  I turned—

  And froze. A translucent bubble had engulfed her head, like a sphere of water swallowing her whole. She gasped soundlessly, her limbs twitching as she was lifted from my back, pulled away into the trees.

  "Do something! Don’t just stand there, you damn fool!"

  I ran. I ran without thinking, without knowing where I was going. My body moved on instinct, and before I realized it, I had snatched a stone from the earth, my grip tightening as fury surged through me. I threw it with everything I had, channeling my very essence into the motion.

  The stone pierced through whatever force held her, and from above, something fell—something unseen before. The sky itself seemed to shudder, raindrops forming like dew shaken from the leaves. The girl plummeted, and I reached out, catching her in my arms.

  I held her close, whispering words of reassurance.

  But the bubble remained.

  She wasn’t responding.

  She wasn’t breathing.

  "Get away from her, you damn thing!" I snarled, cwing at the watery sphere. But it clung to her, resisting all my efforts. Even my aura failed to affect it.

  Was this it? Would she die so easily?

  No. Not yet.

  A voice echoed through the trees—calm, resonant, and oddly reassuring.

  "Welcome, traveler, to the Forgotten Forest. Many have wandered here, seeking the spirits of the wood for their own desires. Tell me, what is your purpose?"

  "Help her!" I pleaded.

  "You ask for help? Why?"

  "She must survive—for someone. Please."

  "You are not of this world. How... intriguing. Very well, I shall aid your friend. But there is always a price. Do you accept?"

  "Just do it! She's struggling!"

  From the depths of the forest, a tiny creature emerged. It shimmered with golden light, its delicate wings fluttering as it approached. Its hair, spun from sunlight, trailed behind it as it spoke.

  "Step back," it instructed, its voice both pyful and firm. "Watch the magic of fairies."

  Fairies? Small, luminous beings flitting through the air, their voices carrying a melodic hum. They danced around the girl, weaving golden light, their tiny hands conducting an unseen force. The bubble dissolved, repced by a soft, glowing mist that seeped into her skin, healing her wounds.

  I watched in silent awe.

  "Your first time witnessing magic? Then take a good look—such sights are rare."

  Deep in my mind, a quiet voice whispered.

  "It is my first time... for everything."

  The girl stirred, her breath returning, her body rexing in my arms. Relief flooded me.

  "Done." The fairy hovered before me. "Take care of her. And avoid the tall buoy trees—they hunt with their bubbles."

  "Who... are you?" I asked.

  She flitted closer, meeting my gaze.

  "The question is—who are you, that the forest has allowed you to pass?" She grinned. "I am Nerva, of the Forgotten Forest Fairies. And I am not so cruel as to let a little one perish."

  She turned, looking toward a hill I hadn't noticed before.

  "Come, the river is beyond that ridge. I heard you speaking of it."

  I narrowed my eyes. "You mean eavesdropping?"

  She ughed, light and teasing. "The forest has ears, traveler. It listens... and it remembers. Tread carefully."