A Bright Morning
The sun's rays streamed through the leaves and landed right on Furan's face, waking him up.
"Why am I here? Where is this place? The last thing I remember was being at home, planning to write a novel...Ouch, it hurts... This isn't a dream, is it? How did this happen to me?"
He tried pinching his arm to check if he was dreaming, but before he could even manage that, the pain in his body made it clear this was all too real.
*Crack
"Ouch... Why does everything hurt so much... I need to find somewhere safe."
Unable to move, he decided to shout as loud as he could.
"Help... Hello... Is there anyone here... Help...!!!" He yelled for a long time, but nobody came. Weary from shouting, he lay down again and soon fell asleep.
In a Dream
"Welcome to the world of LANDIA, my creation"
a voice echoed from nowhere, startling Furan as he searched for its source.
"Who are you? Where is this? Why is it so dark... Wait, my body doesn't hurt anymore..." Furan asked, bewildered.
"Relax, this is a dream. Try to stay calm and focus so you can see me."
It didn't take long for Furan to concentrate and slowly open his eyes.
"Wow"
he gasped as a beautiful goddess with majestic white wings appeared before him. Her presence was breathtaking.
"Am I dead?"
Furan asked jokingly.
"Of course not, you silly one. I am the goddess who created the world where you are now, the world of LANDIA."
"What? Why am I here? If I'm not dead, then how did I get here?"
Furan asked, more confused than ever.
"I summoned you because I need you to do something for me. But before I explain, I need to tell you briefly about the world of LANDIA. This world consists of five levels, each with its own rules and civilization. To move to the next level, you must complete the main quest for each stage. Failure means the destruction of the world, forcing me to start from scratch and find a new candidate. Failure for you means death."
"Create the world again?... Death if I fail?... How many times have you remade LANDIA?" Furan asked, astonished.
"Not many... The world you are in now is the 1.516.224th iteration."
The goddess's answer left Furan silent for a while, trying to comprehend the gravity of death and the repeated failure to complete the mission in a world that had been remade over a million times.
World 1.516.224
"Then... How can I get back to where I came from?" Furan asked.
"Return? There is no way back unless you become strong enough to alter the reality of this world and break free from the flow of fate! Even I may not be able to do that"
the goddess said with a faint smile.
"Become strong? I'm just an ordinary person... How can I become strong... Are you going to give me some powerful skill or item?" Furan challenged.
"No... There are no shortcuts. But don't worry, because you come from another world, you have potential that cannot be measured by the standards of LANDIA. Your very existence is a taboo that shouldn't be here, but while you may be less restricted by the rules, the path will not be easy. For now, I will bestow a blessing upon you—do your best"
she said as she touched Furan's head.
The moment she finished speaking, a brilliant light emitted from her hand, turning everything around them a blinding white, even brighter than snow. Furan instinctively closed his eyes, shielding himself from the light.
"What blessing? What are you doing? I can't see" he said, his voice trailing off.
"It's time for us to part. We will meet again when the time comes" the goddess's voice faded away.
"Wait, Goddess, please explain... What mission were you talking about?"
Before Furan could finish, he slowly opened his eyes again.
(!) AN UNEXPECTED MEETING IN THE FOREST
"Hey... Wake up... What are you doing here?"
a young girl's unfamiliar voice called out.
"What's happening? Someone's shaking me, whose voice is that?"
Furan wondered as he regained consciousness. The goddess's voice was replaced by that of a child. Opening his eyes, he saw a small girl with wolf-like ears, bright blue eyes, white hair, and a soft, childlike voice. She was just over a meter tall.
"Wh-Who are you?"
Furan exclaimed in surprise, his voice louder than he intended. The girl jumped back, frightened.
Seeing the girl's distressed, tearful face and trembling form, Furan softened his voice to comfort her.
"Hey, come here. I won't hurt you... Why are you scared? What's your name?"
Cautiously, the girl stepped forward, still keeping her distance.
"M-My name is... Anori... Anori didn't take anything, so please don't hit Anori"
she said, her body shaking and voice wavering.
Realizing she must have experienced something terrible, Furan decided to ask simple questions to distract her: her name, what kind of tree they were under, the time of day, and why her ears were different from his. He asked these questions to make Anori feel more at ease. Although she didn't answer at first, she gradually stopped trembling.
"Anori, come closer" Furan said softly.
Without a word, Anori stepped closer to where Furan lay. He smiled warmly.
"Anori, my name is Furan. It's nice to meet you" he said.
Anori smiled and giggled a bit, moving even closer until she was sitting beside him.
"Anori, too"
she whispered. Furan wanted to understand why this small girl was in the forest alone and whether their meeting was fate.
"Anori, what are you doing here alone? Aren't you afraid of the forest?" he asked.
"Anori has lived here for a long time... Anori is afraid of the city... Too many bad people... Anori likes the forest better... No bad people here"
she answered in a small voice.
"Bad people? Why are there so many bad people?"
Furan asked, confused.
"Yes... Anori was hungry... no money... took food... people got mad... they hit Anori... threw stones" she said sadly.
"Anori, that's called stealing... We mustn't steal. Back where I come from, if someone steals, they get locked in a room with metal bars, unable to escape, and aren't released for a long time. They even have to work every day without getting paid. Do you want to be caught and locked up?" Furan explained briefly.
"Anori doesn't want to be locked up... Anori wants to be free" she said quickly.
"Anori... Who do you live with in this forest?" Furan asked, intrigued.
"Anori is alone... Mother... Father... are gone."
Tears welled up in her eyes and rolled down her cheeks, though she didn't sob aloud. Furan's heart ached for her, understanding the loneliness and pain she must have endured. He tried to comfort her.
Furan mustered all his strength to move his right arm. The pain intensified as he forced his body to respond. Determined, he pushed past the excruciating ache and managed to lift his hand to pat Anori's head gently.
(Even though he felt unbearable pain in his right arm)
"Anori, don't be sad... From now on, come with me. I'll take care of you and protect you... If bad people come, I'll fight them off... If anyone tries to hurt you, I'll make them regret it."
Anori's tears turned into full-blown sobs. She clung to Furan, crying uncontrollably and gripping his shirt tightly. Furan understood her relief and continued to stroke her head softly as she let out all her bottled-up emotions.
The girl cried for a long time, releasing her sadness, fear, and loneliness. For the first time, she felt the warmth of someone who wouldn't leave her or hurt her. Slowly, the sound of her sobs grew quieter until they faded away, and she fell asleep.
"Maybe she's tired and exhausted after crying and releasing all that bitterness. Let her rest, it seems I'm starting to feel sleepy too. A short nap sounds like a good idea" Furan thought to himself.