After defeating the Higher Being, Vyvian, Faye, and Rem continued their journey toward Valenor. According to Rem, the large river separating the forest from the road leading to the city was not far now.
The morning sky was slightly cloudy, pale gray clouds stretching quietly across the horizon. The air felt cool and calm as the three finished a quick breakfast before continuing down the forest path.
Leaves rustled softly beneath their footsteps.
After walking for a while, Vyvian glanced toward Rem.
"Rem, how far is the river?" he asked.
Rem thought for a moment before answering.
"Maybe by evening we'll reach it."
Faye groaned loudly.
"That means many more hours of straight walking… ugh."
The three continued forward along the winding forest trail.
After some time, they noticed something unusual ahead.
A middle-aged man stood near the path, swinging an axe as he chopped a pile of thick logs. Each strike echoed through the quiet forest.
Faye tilted her head.
"Look at that man… he's chopping wood here. Is there a village nearby?"
Rem shrugged.
"I don't know. Let's ask him."
The three approached the man.
Rem stepped forward first.
"Hey, is there a village nearby?"
The man paused mid-swing. He rested the axe on the log and turned to face them.
"Not really," he said casually. "I just happen to work here."
Vyvian raised an eyebrow.
"What kind of work?"
The man wiped the sweat from his forehead before answering.
"You see, there's no bridge across the large river between Valenor and this forest. So I use my boat to help people cross it."
He gestured toward the surrounding trees.
"When I think there won't be any customers, I chop wood like this and sell it to the small villages beyond the river."
Vyvian nodded slightly.
"I see… hardworking."
The man studied the three of them for a moment before asking,
"So, are you kids here to cross the river?"
Rem answered immediately.
"Yes, we are."
The man smiled faintly and picked up his axe.
"Then come with me. My boat is chained near the river."
The group began walking through the forest together.
For a while, none of them spoke. The forest remained calm, filled only with distant birds and the quiet crunch of leaves beneath their feet.
Eventually the man glanced at them with curiosity.
"You kids traveling alone through this forest?" he asked.
Rem nodded.
"We're heading to Valenor."
The man gave a small approving hum.
"Valenor, huh… big city."
He looked at them more carefully.
"So what are your names?"
"Rem," he said first.
"Faye," she added casually.
The man turned to the quiet boy walking beside them.
"And you?"
"Vyvian."
The man smiled.
"Well, nice to meet you. My name's Ron."
Faye looked around the forest as they walked.
"You live out here?"
"More or less," Ron replied. "I keep a small shack near the riverbank. Makes my work easier."
"Your job sounds boring," Faye said bluntly.
Ron laughed.
"You'd be surprised. When you ferry people across the river every day, you hear plenty of interesting stories."
Rem glanced at him.
"Stories?"
Ron nodded slowly.
"Oh yes. Especially stories about Valenor."
Faye immediately looked interested.
"Like what?"
Ron walked quietly for a moment, thinking.
"Well… Valenor is one of the richest cities in the region," he began. "Merchants, nobles, powerful families… all kinds of people live there."
The path curved as they continued deeper through the forest.
"But every now and then," Ron continued, "something strange happens."
Rem listened carefully.
"What do you mean?"
Ron scratched his beard thoughtfully.
"A few years ago, there was a very wealthy couple living in Valenor. They were respected and influential in the city."
Faye crossed her arms.
"Okay…"
"One day," Ron continued, "a royal messenger arrived at their mansion carrying a sealed letter."
Rem frowned slightly.
"A royal letter?"
Ron nodded.
"According to rumors, the royal council had selected that couple to become part of a new noble bloodline of Valenor."
Faye's eyes widened.
"So they were going to become royals?"
"Something like that," Ron replied. "It was a huge honor. Their entire future was about to change."
He paused briefly.
"But then…"
Ron's voice lowered slightly.
"Not long after receiving that letter, the couple was found dead inside their mansion."
Faye stopped walking for a moment.
"What?!"
Rem's expression hardened.
"Dead?"
Ron nodded.
"Both of them."
The forest suddenly felt quieter.
"How?" Faye asked.
Ron shrugged.
"That's the mystery."
"Some people say assassins killed them."
"Others say rival families were jealous."
He sighed.
"But no one ever proved anything."
Rem asked calmly,
"No suspects?"
Ron shook his head.
"None."
They continued walking.
"Valenor may be wealthy," Ron added, "but power always attracts darkness."
For a while, no one spoke.
Eventually the sound of flowing water reached their ears.
Faint at first.
Then clearer.
The trees slowly began to thin.
Sunlight broke through the branches.
And then,
The forest opened.
Before them stretched a massive river, wide and powerful. Its surface reflected the cloudy sky while currents flowed steadily across the water.
Faye's eyes widened slightly.
"Whoa…"
Ron pointed toward the riverbank.
"There we are."
A sturdy wooden boat was chained near a thick tree root beside the water.
Faye suddenly turned toward Rem with narrowed eyes.
"Rem."
Rem looked at her.
"Yes?"
"You said it would take us until evening to reach the river."
Rem blinked.
"…I did."
"But we got here way earlier."
Rem looked around the area awkwardly.
Then he rubbed the back of his head.
"…I might have miscalculated."
Faye stared at him.
"You might have?"
Ron burst into laughter.
"Happens to the best of us!"
But suddenly, Vyvian stopped walking.
His body stiffened.
A sharp pain struck deep inside his chest.
His vision blurred.
Without warning, he collapsed to the ground.
"Vyvian!" Faye shouted.
Rem rushed forward immediately.
"Hey! What happened?!"
Ron stepped closer, confused.
"Is the kid alright?"
For a brief moment…
A faint silver Qi flickered around Vyvian's body.
It was thin.
Almost like mist.
The strange aura shimmered for only a second.
Then it vanished.
Vyvian blinked slowly.
His breathing steadied.
The pain disappeared as quickly as it came.
"…I'm fine," he muttered.
Faye frowned.
"You just collapsed!"
Rem studied him carefully.
"What happened, Vyvian?"
Vyvian hesitated before slowly pushing himself back onto his feet.
"I don't know," he admitted quietly.
"Maybe I'm just tired."
Rem didn't look convinced.
Faye watched him suspiciously.
But Vyvian had already turned toward the river.
The silver aura had disappeared.
Vyvian stood quietly near the riverbank, staring at the flowing water.
What was that…?
That pain…
And that sound…
Why did it feel so familiar?
His fingers slowly tightened.
I've heard it before.
Many times.
In my dreams.
Those strange dreams I've had ever since I was little…
They never came just once.
They returned again and again throughout the years.
Sometimes months apart.
Sometimes years apart.
Yet every time they came back, they were always the same.
An open space…
No sky he could clearly remember.
Just an empty world stretching endlessly in every direction.
And in the middle of that quiet space, a tree.
A beautiful tree covered in flowers.
Petals drifting slowly through the air like fragments of light.
A gentle wind moving through its branches.
The flowers never stopped falling, yet the petals never reached the ground.
They simply floated endlessly around the tree.
And I'm always there.
Watching it.
But something about that dream always felt wrong.
I can see everything…
The flowers, the wind, the tree.
But I can never see myself.
I'm there… but I don't know what I am.
It was like existing without a body.
Like observing the world through invisible eyes.
Present, yet unrecognizable even to himself.
Who was I in that place…?
The question had haunted him for years.
But the dream never answered it.
Near the end of the dream…
The sound would appear.
That sound...faint, almost like the delicate flutter of wings.
Every time it happened, the air around the flower tree would tremble slightly.
And then, the dream would end.
Vyvian slowly lowered his gaze toward the ground.
Just now…
When my chest started hurting…
When I fell…
I heard it again.
That exact same sound.
Not in a dream.
But here.
In the real world.
For a brief moment, it had echoed through his mind exactly the same way it did beneath the flower tree.
Was it real…?
Or was it just a memory mixing with the pain?
He clenched his fist slightly.
Maybe I'm just imagining things.
It's probably nothing.
The sound of footsteps approached him.
"Hey kid."
Vyvian looked up.
Ron stood beside the boat, one hand resting on the wooden edge.
"You alright?" Ron asked.
"You looked like you spaced out for a moment."
Vyvian blinked once before nodding.
"…Yeah."
Ron tilted his head slightly.
"You ready to get on the boat?"
Vyvian looked at the river for a moment longer.
Then he nodded again.
"Yeah. I'm ready."
Ron stepped into the boat first and steadied it.
"Alright then, hop in."
Rem climbed in next, carefully stepping onto the wooden floor.
Faye followed right after, balancing herself as the boat rocked slightly.
Vyvian stepped forward last.
The moment his foot touched the boat, the wood creaked softly beneath his weight.
Ron untied the chain from the tree root and pushed the boat away from the riverbank.
The current gently caught the vessel as Ron grabbed the oars.
Slowly, the boat began to move across the wide river.
Behind them, the forest faded further and further away.
Ahead of them, the road to Valenor awaited.