Evangeline found herself in an incomprehensible situation, falling through the skies without a clear reference point. The earth expanded around her as gravity pulled her relentlessly. A wave of thoughts invaded her mind.
—"How is it possible that I'm still falling? How high am I? The earth keeps getting closer and closer," the girl said to herself in this perilous situation.
Her mind wandered into the possibility of facing an imminent fate. But soon, she realized that her current situation demanded her full attention.
—"Face my destiny? What a joke!" she exclaimed, setting aside the idea of confronting a distant event and focusing on the present moment.
However, the young girl had no idea how to deal with her free fall. Every passing second brought the ground closer at an alarming rate. In a desperate attempt, she even waved her arms, hoping to fly, but the illusion was futile.
—"I don't want to die yet," she whispered, tears escaping from her eyes. The cold enveloped her, and her fingers started to turn blue. Meanwhile, her consciousness faded rapidly.
Suddenly, a change in the situation shook her.
—"Eh? What? Am I at a lower altitude? Did I faint?"
The distance to the ground was reduced to almost half, and the girl wondered if she had lost consciousness.
—"B-But... No! Let's see, let's see... There's no way I can survive the fall!"
As she approached the ground, she desperately looked for water, trees, or anything that could cushion her fall. However, the environment was a desolate, gray wasteland. The reality that this might be her imminent death began to sink in.
—"I understand... Goodbye, cruel world," she said resignedly, accepting her fate. But just before she could give up completely, something unexpected happened.
—"Hey you, wake up!"
A voice called to her from a distance, interrupting her resignation process. The girl thought that even after accepting her fate, she seemed to hear a voice insisting on her to keep fighting. But over time, that voice faded.
—"Empty-headed, wake up, or you'll really die!"
The voice grew more intense, and Evangeline began to recognize it. It was a familiar voice that had been with her in her past.
—"These darn rabbits!"
The voice continued speaking, and amid the words, the girl began to perceive background noises that sounded like explosions or even some adorable "thump" sounds. Uneasiness took over her as she tried to make sense of what was happening.
—"What the heck?"
A strange, distorted sound reached her ears, a human voice she couldn't understand. As she tried to process all of this, her body began to feel lighter, as if she were surrounded by sand moving gently. The pressure on her eyes gradually disappeared, and she could finally open them.
When she did, she was met with an astonishing sight: warriors fighting strange creatures. She couldn't help but describe these creatures as shiny, furry balls with adorable, sparkling eyes.
—"How cute..." she mumbled to herself, but apparently, someone didn't share her sentiment.
—"Don't even think about it, girl!"
The person who had saved her made their presence known again. They held a massive sword and fought the strange creatures alongside a mage. Upon closer inspection, she noticed that the group of warriors consisted of various people, including an elf. However, some were wearing hoods.
The mage cast ranged spells, while the warrior protected her with his longsword. However, the number of furry creatures didn't seem to decrease; it only increased.
—"Now that she's awake, let's run!"
The leader of the group gave the order, and the rest nodded. He appeared to be the most prominent member.
—"Alright, girl, hold on tight."
The warrior carried her without waiting for a response and began to run. His speed was astonishing, and the girl wondered how someone so strong could carry her without effort. They had been running for about 15 minutes, and while the warrior showed no signs of fatigue, Evangeline was starting to feel numb.
—"Gosh, could anyone think this would be comfortable, huh? It's worse than a cart! Ugh... my poor body," she muttered to herself.
Finally, the group leader decided it was time to stop.
—"Alright, we can stop, halt!" he announced.
—"Already? But we're in a plain," the mage questioned, though the rest of the group remained silent.
—"Yes, I was warned about these 'Glimmerbunnies.' They are creatures that dwell in the abyss and resemble rabbits, except they are furrier, glow, and can put you to sleep with their 'Special Sleep.' Plus, their saliva is extremely acidic, as you may have noticed."
The warrior's words made Evangeline grasp the situation. The question that arose in her mind was inevitable.
—"Did the Glimmerbunny lick my face?" she asked to herself, and the warrior, with his keen perception, heard her clearly.
—"Yes, the Glimmerbunny licked your face. You're lucky it wasn't worse, and that Dreuck was here to heal you, or else..."
The warrior left his sentence unfinished, but the concern in his eyes spoke for itself. Observing the rest of the group, Evangeline noticed that some of their armors were corroded and hanging by threads. The gravity of the situation sank even deeper into her mind.
—"Well, girl, take pictures or whatever. 'Glimmerbunnies' are one of the most common creatures in the abyss, but we have little information about them," commented a cleric with a white robe and a cross in his hands.
—"Oh, and this is Dreuck, the cleric provided by His Highness, the king."
The mention of the "Pig King" providing a cleric took Evangeline by surprise.
—"Y-Yeah... I couldn't a moment ago, but when I see him again, I'll take him..." Her words began to stutter as she spoke, and a deep regret flooded her. She started to reflect critically on herself. "Oh God, really, Evangeline? I can't believe I got myself tangled up like that."
However, the cleric didn't comment; he just gave a smile and returned to his place. As she observed the group, she noticed that there were now only eight of them. The "leader," Dreuck, the mage, an elf, and the rest were hooded. There was one wielding dual daggers, another practicing dark magic, and the last one was a mystery, although their movements appeared even swifter than the "leader."
—"Evy, how are you feeling?" the mage asked amiably, looking to be around twenty years old, with crimson red hair streaks and eyes that shone like blood. The mage assumed the position of the leader's right hand and seemed to be very kind.
—"I-I'm fine..." the girl responded with a hint of shyness, her voice trembling slightly. She felt there wasn't much to say in this situation, so she silently considered, "I'd better keep quiet, right?"
However, the hunger she had been ignoring started to take its toll. A "Gurgle" sound rumbled for a moment, and the
young girl felt her cheeks flush.
—"Are you hungry?" the mage asked with a radiant tone that didn't go unnoticed. In the meantime, the rest of the group continued their conversations. Without further ado, the mage made an announcement.
—"Rody, we're about to eat!" The situation was embarrassing for Evangeline, but at least she now knew the leader's name: Rody.
After their feast, which consisted only of hard bread, cheese, and some water conjured through magic, the leader spoke.
—"Listen! I think it's time for a proper introduction, don't you think?"
"I'll go first. My name is Rody. I'm a former knight, and I worked in the coliseum to earn money to feed my family for these long years. But here I am, working for this corrupt kingdom... again..." The warrior spoke with a tone of regret in his voice.
—"It's my turn~ My name is Candela. I'm a mage from the Ivory Tower, I have three stars, and I've known Rody for a few years now. He may seem like a meathead, but he's not as stupid as he appears at first glance~ Don't be too hard on him~ I specialize in fire and ice magic, although I also know water magic."
—"So, her name is Candela... It suits her," Evangeline thought.
—"And moving on, this young lady is named 'Evangeline.' Isn't her name lovely? She's a 'Photographer,' so we need to protect her because the mission depends on her, understand?"
Evangeline's expression froze into a nervous smile, her inner thoughts starting to spiral out of control, cursing Candela internally for that absurd introduction. Dreuck, the cleric, offered a warm smile after seeing the embarrassed Evangeline and then spoke.
—"My name is Dreuck, as mentioned earlier. I'm a cleric from the Sanctuary of Divine Prosperity, with a white robe and high-level healing magic skills."
However, Dreuck abruptly stopped as he sensed the change in the people around him. A tense atmosphere filled the room, and the dark magic user, the dual-dagger-wielding swordsman, and the agile warrior glared at him with deep resentment. This hostility was especially palpable in the dark magic user, whose eyes glowed with anger.
—"This... What's happening?" he asked with some discomfort, unable to bear the sudden tension that had taken hold of the group.
Following that, the dual-dagger swordsman stepped forward and, with a mixture of anger and sorrow in his voice, continued:
—"Your sanctuary... Your sanctuary moves only for its selfish desires. A long time ago, a cleric in a red robe came to our village. At that time, we were dealing with a severe epidemic that had ravaged our lives. But instead of offering selfless help, the cleric demanded an exorbitant sum of wealth in exchange for assistance."
The swordsman frowned, his eyes shining with the intensity of his memories.
—"Many died because of his greed... From helpless children to vulnerable elders. Our village was plundered and impoverished while the Sanctuary of Divine Prosperity lined their pockets, and when we had nothing left, they simply left."
Dreuck, who was already aware of this story, had eyes colder than ice as he heard the swordsman's words. He stated with a cold tone:
—"In this world, money is everything. If you don't have enough, you simply die. Do you understand? The reason I came here is because the king paid our sanctuary. Otherwise, you wouldn't have the slightest chance of receiving my treatment, you despicable commoner."
—"Listen, peasants," said the cleric, his voice filled with a cruel disdain, reflecting an unyielding reality. The cleric made it clear that his involvement in this expedition was not due to selfless altruism but to financial interests and the influence of money.
The trio was in a state of agitation, ready to launch an attack, but before they could make a move, something unusual happened.
—"Stop! Freeze, stop!" Candela exclaimed, her expression frustrated. She had frozen the feet of everyone present, but she didn't stop there; she also froze their hands and sheaths to prevent them from acting recklessly.
The dual-dagger swordsman tried to protest with a "B-But," but Candela interrupted him firmly, warning in her voice. —"No 'buts' or 'bears,' just wait, or you'll freeze. Want to try it?"
The swordsman fell into an uncomfortable silence. It was evident to everyone that none of them were a match for Candela or Rody, so they had no choice but to obey.
With a touch of boredom in his voice, Rody suggested: —"Alright, let's continue the introductions tomorrow. I'll stay on guard for now. The rest of you, go to sleep."
Evangeline timidly questioned: —"But it's barely daytime..."
Candela also expressed her disagreement: —"Yes, Rody, it's still daytime."
However, Rody patiently clarified: —"No, it's already nighttime.
In this world, day and night aren't clearly distinguishable. Have you looked at the sky?"
The three girls realized that they hadn't stopped to gaze at the sky since they woke up.
—"Now that you mention it... I've never seen a sky like this." Evangeline, amazed, observed the purple sky with three moons: a red one, a blue one, and a white one, with the white moon in the center and the other two on its sides.
—"The central celestial body, the white one, emits white or dark energy depending on whether it's day or night. Currently, it's emitting a very faint white energy, but it's starting to release rays of dark energy." Rody explained.
Candela, with a touch of skepticism in her voice, asked: —"Really, Rody?"
Rody, patiently, replied: —"Yes, if you don't believe me, you can use your 'magic sight.'"
Candela followed the instructions, and after a few moments of concentration, she nodded. —"You're right, Rody. There are dark beams emanating from the celestial body. Well, I'll set up the camp tents." She said with a smile, pronouncing unintelligible words while taking out six small metal cubes with a large button in the center.
With an impressed gesture, Candela encouraged Evangeline. —"Hey, Eve, watch closely, you'll be amazed!"
By pressing the buttons, she launched the cubes, which began to shake violently and, within seconds, transformed into fully set-up camp tents.
—"Isn't it amazing?" Candela asked with pride. "This is our latest invention; we call it 'Magic Tent.' It's just like a regular tent, but you don't have to set it up yourself, and it's easy to store."