As Sylph activated the same type of transport magic Axell had used earlier, a blinding light swallowed all of us whole.
The next moment—
We reappeared back at the village.
"Whoa…"
I stared around in surprise.
"Wait… does that mean you and Axell came from the same game?"
Sylph glanced back at me while fixing her hood.
"You are correct," she answered calmly. "We both originated from the same world."
"But then how did you end up in SkyRealm territory?" I asked curiously.
She paused for a moment.
"Well… that's a long story."
"In short, our people slowly migrated out of our original game world after the Collapse."
"Oh…"
"But why?"
Sylph looked away slightly.
"…It's complicated."
Before I could ask more, we finally reached our vehicle.
Or rather—
What remained of it.
The armored transport was covered in dents and scorch marks. One side was nearly ripped apart completely.
Sylph stared at it in disbelief.
"…The hell happened to your vehicle?"
"It looks like you rammed into a raid boss."
"Yeah," I answered awkwardly.
"We actually did."
Sylph blinked.
"…Wait."
"You seriously encountered Havoc?"
Her eyes widened.
"But how?!"
Before she could continue questioning us, Volt interrupted.
"Hold on, Sylph."
He glanced toward the horizon.
"The sun's about to set. We should head back first."
Sylph looked up at the orange sky.
"…Ah. Right."
"My house isn't far from here."
She began leading the way while the rest of us followed.
As we walked, I secretly glanced at her again.
She didn't look like a fighter at all.
Honestly, she looked more like a quiet village girl than a powerful player.
But then again—
She casually knocked Axell unconscious earlier.
Either she was terrifyingly strong…
Or Axell was unbelievably weak.
"Don't let appearances fool you," Volt suddenly whispered beside me.
"Hm?"
"Sylph used to be one of the top-ranked players in her game."
"She's strong enough to rival SK."
I nearly stopped walking.
"…Wait. Seriously?"
Volt nodded casually.
"Very."
As the sun finally disappeared beyond the mountains, we reached Sylph's home.
It was a simple wooden house near the edge of the village.
Warm lights glowed from the windows.
For the first time in a while…
It almost felt peaceful.
Sylph prepared food while the rest of us settled down inside.
Then—
I suddenly noticed something.
"Hey!"
I pointed across the room.
"What's HE doing here?!"
Axell was sitting tied to a chair near the corner of the room.
"What do you mean?" Axell protested. "I live here too, you know!"
"You should feel ashamed of yourself!" Sylph snapped angrily. "You almost got Ryze killed!"
"Come on, Sylph," Axell argued. "With that much money, we could finally live comfortably."
"We could improve the entire village!"
Volt let out a tired sigh.
"Axell… you really never change."
Axell smirked slightly.
"Same to you, Volt."
Then his eyes moved toward Blaze.
"…And who's this guy?"
"Me?" Blaze replied casually. "I'm Blaze."
Axell narrowed his eyes slightly.
"…Wait."
"You feel familiar somehow…"
Volt immediately looked interested.
"You know him?"
Even I became curious.
But Axell quickly shook his head.
"Nah. Guess not."
Before the conversation could continue, Sylph placed food on the table.
"Alright. Eat before it gets cold."
Everyone immediately gathered around.
Honestly…
After everything that happened recently, a normal meal felt strangely comforting.
But then my mind remembered something important.
"…Hey, Axell."
"How large exactly is my bounty?"
Axell nearly choked on his drink.
"You REALLY wanna know?"
"…Yes."
He looked at me for a moment before answering.
"Two hundred fifty million credits."
Silence.
"…What?"
"Two hundred fifty MILLION?!"
I nearly stood up from my chair.
"That has to be a joke!"
"Please tell me you're joking!"
Axell raised both hands defensively.
"I'm serious."
"That's why everyone's going crazy trying to capture you."
My stomach dropped slightly.
"But HOW do you even know that…?"
Then realization hit me.
I immediately stood halfway from my seat.
"Wait."
"You work for the Empire?!"
"Oh please," Axell groaned. "I'm not with the Empire."
"I'm a bounty hunter."
"We work independently."
"We travel across different games and factions taking contracts."
"There's an organized guild network that posts targets, rewards, and who authorized the hit."
I stared at him blankly.
"I can't believe this…"
Volt crossed his arms thoughtfully.
"…Still doesn't feel right."
"For an escaped Resistance soldier to have a 250 million bounty…"
He looked at Axell.
"What's the normal price for targets?"
"Well," Axell answered, "usually around ten to fifty million depending on the target."
"But Ryze here already has a reputation."
"The Starlink Sniper."
"Her name spread after the Void Incident."
"Even so…" Volt muttered.
"Two hundred fifty million is absurd."
I slowly leaned back into my chair.
Great.
Now every greedy maniac in the New Earth was probably hunting me.
"…Do you think more bounty hunters will come after me?" I asked quietly.
Axell shrugged.
"If you're lucky?"
"Only a few."
"…That doesn't sound reassuring."
"Relax," he replied casually. "Most bounty hunters avoid impossible targets."
"That doesn't help either!"
The room laughed slightly, easing the tension a little.
Then Sylph suddenly looked toward Blaze.
"So…"
"You're Blaze, right?"
Blaze looked up from his food.
"…Yeah?"
"You're the rumored veteran who survived the Void."
Blaze froze slightly.
"…That rumor spread already?"
Sylph nodded.
"I've never heard of any famous player named Blaze before."
"So who exactly are you?"
Blaze gave a small smile.
"Me?"
"I'm just a nobody who survived the Void."
"So it's true…" Sylph whispered.
"Then can you tell us about your past?"
Blaze's expression softened slightly.
"…I can't."
"My memories are still fuzzy."
"I barely remember anything before the Void."
"Oh…"
"That's unfortunate."
Then Sylph suddenly turned toward me.
"And what about you, Ryze?"
I nearly spat out my drink.
"W-What?! Me?!"
"Yes," Sylph answered innocently.
"Who else here is named Ryze?"
"Honestly," Volt added from the side, "I'm curious too."
I stared at him in disbelief.
"…Not you too."
Then I noticed Blaze quietly looking at me as well.
Like he wanted to know.
I let out a long sigh.
"…Fine."
"You win."
The room immediately became quieter.
I slowly looked down at my food.
"…It's been a long time since I talked about my past with anyone."
I paused.
Trying to remember where everything truly began.
"…Where do I even start…?"