It was late afternoon when the green-haired young woman stepped out of the inn.
David was about to run up to her, but Kelly stopped him.
He halted and looked back, confused.
Kelly simply shook her head.
"Wait. Since she just came out, there's no need to run."
"But it's already getting dark. If we don't hurry, it'll be night and we won't find out why they're traveling," David said anxiously.
Kelly sighed.
"Fine… but no running."
David moved ahead with quick steps.
The others followed behind the young woman, who walked calmly with small, steady strides.
"Um… excuse me?"
David caught up to her and called out.
She stopped and looked at the children.
"How can I help you?"
"Do you need a guide? I know every place in the village," David said proudly.
She looked at his smile, then at the other kids.
"Alright. Can you tell me where the supply shop is?"
David lit up immediately.
"Uncle Terry's shop is right up ahead."
He pointed just a few meters away.
"He sells all kinds of stuff."
"Come on, I'll take you there."
"What's your name, kid?" the young woman asked.
"David. And yours, big sis?"
"Anna…"
"And what about you guys?" she asked, looking at the others.
"I'm Kelly."
"Jhonas."
"I'm Sophie."
"Aron."
Marcus glanced at Aron and Sophie, who wouldn't let go of each other.
"Marcus."
Anna observed the scene and quickly understood the dynamic.
"Why were you all waiting in front of the inn all afternoon?"
"We were curious about where you're from and why you're traveling in the winter," Sophie replied with an innocent smile.
Everyone looked at her, surprised.
Even Anna seemed slightly taken aback.
"Well… I'm traveling with my family to the city of Blue Margin," Anna answered after a brief pause.
David stepped forward.
"Are you going to a dungeon, or traveling to other kingdoms afterward?"
Anna smiled.
"Neither."
"A bunch of treasures have appeared around the world recently… and one of them showed up in the Shadow Forest."
Aron was startled.
The presence he had felt… was to the north.
In the direction of the Shadow Forest.
'That can't be a coincidence…'
'Or can it?'
'No… those things shouldn't be related.'
"My family is going after that treasure," Anna added with a slight smile.
Of course, she wasn't telling the truth.
What they were after wasn't exactly a treasure.
When the world created a physical body, it used extremely rare materials and an absurd amount of mana.
The result…
Was a perfect body.
Of the world's original race.
A human.
But not a normal human.
A being at the absolute peak of physical and cognitive capability.
A superior human.
The last world consciousness that took physical form left behind a powerful faction.
After its death, it split into six human kingdoms.
All the kings were its descendants.
If this new consciousness were to be found…
It could change the balance of the world.
"Wow, that's amazing! So a treasure appeared in the Shadow Forest?"
"What kind of treasure?" David asked excitedly.
"It's a plant with a very rare passive ability."
"You seem to like adventures… you've already awakened, right?"
"Yes!" David answered proudly.
"Next month, I'm going to the city to study at the academy."
"I'm going to become a really strong adventurer."
"That's good…," Anna said.
"But being an adventurer is dangerous."
"You need to study a lot."
"And never give up."
A short while later, they reached the shop.
"Here we are. Uncle Terry runs this place."
David reached for the door, but Kelly stopped him.
"Wait. It's getting late."
She smiled in a slightly threatening way.
"You know what happens when you get home late, right?"
Then she turned to Anna.
"Sorry for the trouble. David's just too curious and enthusiastic."
"But we need to go."
"Otherwise, we'll get scolded."
Anna smiled.
"It wasn't any trouble at all."
"I enjoyed talking to you."
"See you."
She went inside the shop.
"Why did you stop me?" David asked, frustrated.
"The sun's already setting… and I saw your mom going into the bakery earlier," Kelly said.
David's face turned pale.
"W-well… then I'm heading home… see you tomorrow!"
He ran off.
Aron started laughing.
"Hahaha… did you see his face?"
"White as snow."
Jhonas laughed, but then turned serious.
"Kelly… when he gets home and sees his mom isn't there…"
"He's going to know you lied."
Kelly held back her laughter.
"At least he won't get beaten today."
She put her hands on her hips.
"Now let's go… or we're the ones getting in trouble."
Soon after, everyone said their goodbyes and headed home.
Only Aron and Sophie went in the same direction.
Sophie talked the whole way.
But Aron barely paid attention.
His mind was elsewhere.
Between what he had heard…
And the sensation he had felt weeks ago.
'This shouldn't be connected…'
'But what if it is?'
Aron stood still for a few seconds.
His heart started beating faster.
The presence… was still there.
Faint.
But real.
'Let me try something…'
He closed his eyes for a moment.
Tried to interact with it by his own will.
But then—
Something responded.
It wasn't a sound.
It wasn't a voice.
It was… the same sensation as before.
As if something, very far away…
Had answered him.
Aron opened his eyes quickly.
'...'
His body shivered.
'It… noticed me.'
The sensation slowly faded.
It was still there.
Faint.
But real.
A certainty.
Whatever it was, it wasn't going anywhere.
'If that thing… really responds to my presence, and I respond to it…'
'Then… does it know where I am too?'
The next morning, Anna and her family left before sunrise.
With that, things returned to normal, and nothing new happened in the following weeks.
It had already been a month since Arthur's group left the village, and only two weeks remained until the end of winter.
...
That month, the city of Blue Margin saw three times more activity than the previous winter.
Many adventurers traveled in hopes of trying their luck in the Shadow Forest.
But most of them didn't even know exactly what they were looking for — only that it was valuable.
People from other kingdoms and races also arrived in the city.
The Kingdom of Noveth accepted these envoys into its border city after receiving small benefits.
Even though it bordered the Shadow Forest, it wasn't the only kingdom with access to it.
Inside a large house overlooking the Blue River, Arthur's group gathered.
The house had two floors and was built from blue stone.
Inside, the floor was made of polished black wood from the Shadow Forest.
The walls were a pearly white.
In the living room, Arthur and Sabrina sat on a spacious sofa.
In front of them, a table with tea and cakes.
Matilda sat on the opposite sofa.
"I think we should leave."
"People from other kingdoms and races are arriving more frequently," she said.
"With so many heading to the forest, the dungeons have been less crowded."
"We've cleared five in the past three weeks."
She took a sip of tea.
"If we keep this up, we'll draw attention."
"Yeah… this situation will take a year or two to settle down," Sabrina said, looking out the window.
"We can only stay until the end of the week."
"During that time, we need to stay discreet."
"We can still do one more dungeon before heading back," Arthur said.
"Don't forget: there are skills and items that can reveal level and race," Matilda said.
"It depends on the level of the item and concealment abilities."
"Sabrina and I are protected…"
"But you might not be."
"My item can hide me up to the second ascension," Arthur said with a smile.
Sabrina looked at him and shook her head.
"Dear, that's not enough. The envoys from the kingdoms are, on average, between the second and third ascension."
"They came prepared. We can't risk being discovered."
She stood up and walked to the window.
"We haven't even reached the second ascension yet."
"They're not like those bandits who hadn't even passed the first ascension — the ones we fought on the way here."
"We've already done what we came for."
"In these next two days, we'll restock supplies for a year and head back to the village."
"Aron will be happy when he finds out we got some magical plant seeds from the dungeons," Sabrina concluded with a warm voice.