I could smell smoke.
And an iron-like smell.
No… not iron.
Blood.
My eyes snapped open as I choked, smoke filling my lungs and burning my throat. The inside of the tent was hazy, suffocating — the air thick and heavy like I was breathing through ash.
"Haah… ah… haah… haaah…"
My chest rose violently as I struggled to breathe. Each inhale scraped my throat raw.
At first, everything sounded distant.
Muffled.
Like I was underwater.
Then—
Screams.
Steel clashing.
Men shouting.
The battlefield returned to my ears all at once.
"Run for your lives! Valdyr has ambushed us—!"
Wooosh—!
An arrow tore through the smoke.
Stab—!
Squelch—
The scream ended abruptly.
Silence followed.
A heavy silence.
My fingers trembled as I dragged myself forward, pushing aside the torn tent flap. My legs barely responded. My body felt heavier with each movement, like something was pulling me down.
Then I stepped outside.
The battlefield stretched before me.
Each step felt like walking through mud.
But there was no mud.
Only bodies.
Broken swords lay scattered across the ground. Their edges dulled. Their steel stained dark. Shattered armor reflected faint sunlight, dented and cracked like forgotten relics.
Smoke drifted slowly across the battlefield.
The air carried blood, ash… and defeat.
Then I remembered.
The arrow shower.
'That's right…'
I had been hit.
My legs gave out.
Thud!
I collapsed onto the ground.
The war had ended hours ago.
And yet…
I was still alive.
…Unfortunately.
A bitter laugh escaped my throat — but it turned into a rough cough.
"Khh!..Kuh!"
Warm liquid spilled from my lips.
I didn't need to look down.
I already knew.
Blood.
Of course.
I pressed my trembling hand against my side. My fingers sank into something wet — torn armor, torn flesh, warm blood slipping between my fingers.
My hands were covered in blood.
Not enemies.
My own.
I could feel the warmth slowly leaving my body.
Forty-five years.
That's how it ended.
Not as a hero.
Not even as a notable warrior.
Just…
Another corpse on a forgotten battlefield.
I forced my legs to move again.
Step.
Step.
A fallen banner lay ahead.
'Dravenfell.'
I thought after looking at it.
The cloth was torn in half, the emblem barely visible beneath dried blood. It fluttered weakly in the wind, like the last breath of a dying kingdom.
Valdyr had won.
Again.
I wasn't surprised.
The strong always stood at the front.
Sword Saints.
Archmages.
Heroes.
And people like me…
We filled the gaps.
We became the ground beneath their feet.
"....."
I looked up and kept walking.
Slowly.
Pointlessly.
I didn't even know where I was going anymore. My vision blurred. My body felt numb. Yet I continued forward.
Because stopping meant dying.
And strangely…
I wasn't ready for that yet.
I didn't know how long I walked…
The battlefield faded behind me…
Soon, towering trees appeared ahead.
Dense.
Dark.
Silent.
Even in daylight.
'The Forbidden Forest.....'
I remembered hearing stories as a child. Sitting near the fireplace. Elders whispering in hushed voices.
No one entered.
No one returned.
Some said ancient monsters lived inside.
Some said forgotten gods slept beneath its roots.
Others…
Said fate itself avoided this place.
I never believed those stories.
But now…
I didn't have many choices left.
I stepped forward.
Creak…!
Branches bent softly as I crossed into the forest. The air grew colder. Quieter. Even the wind seemed to vanish.
An unnatural stillness.
My vision blurred further.
My legs trembled while moving forward.
Then—
A faint light.
I stumbled toward it.
Step…!
Step…!
A small pond appeared before me.
Its surface was still. I could see a faint reflection of my face.
Cuts. Torn flesh. Blood dripping from my head.
Tired eyes.
The pond looked unreal compared to the battlefield behind me.
I knelt beside it.
My hands shook as I cupped water and raised it slowly to my lips.
Gulp!Gulp!
Cold water ran down my throat.
For a moment…
It felt peaceful.
Then—
Drip.
Drip.
I looked down slowly.
Water…
Was leaking from my stomach.
Through the wound.
"I just can't get a rest…" I whispered helplessly.
A weak smile formed.
So this was it.
No hope left.
I looked around .
Then I noticed it.
A shrine.
Beside the pond.
And a gravestone.
"Guess… I won't die here alone… haah…"
I dragged myself closer and leaned against the cold stone. My breathing had grown shallow.
The name on the gravestone was scraped off.
Erased.
Forgotten.
Just like me.
I stared at it silently.
"Forty-five years… this was my life."
"What had I done?"
I wasn't weak.
But I was never strong.
I trained.
I fought.
I survived.
I wasn't a chosen one.
But…
That wasn't my regret.
My fingers trembled.
Tears slowly formed in my eyes, blurring my already fading vision.
"I… couldn't protect them…"
My voice cracked.
"I couldn't keep my promise…"
Faces surfaced in my mind.
Fading memories.
Warm smiles.
A hand grabbing mine.
A voice saying—
"Come back alive."
My chest tightened.
"I said… I would return…"
A tear slid down my cheek.
Warm.
Then cold.
"I survived…"
My voice grew weaker.
"But… they didn't…"
The silence pressed down on me.
That was my regret.
Not talent.
Not fate.
Not destiny.
I survived…
But I lost everything.
"Why…?"
My voice trembled.
"Why were some chosen… and others not…?"
"Why did fate favor them…?"
"Why did destiny ignore me…?"
My voice broke into a hoarse whisper.
Then—
"Heh…"
A faint laugh echoed nearby.
My heart trembled.
I tried to move.
But my body refused.
The laugh…
It felt close.
Too close.
Almost…
Inside my mind.
"I… didn't want to die…"
My breathing weakened.
"I survived… but never truly lived…"
My vision darkened.
"I never made a choice of my own…"
My fingers loosened.
"And now… nobody is left to remember me…"
Darkness crept in.
My breathing slowed.
Faded.
A faint warmth touched my consciousness.
"Is this how it feels before… dying?"
My voice barely existed.
The darkness deepened.
And then—
Everything vanished.
I died.
As my life faded…
For the first time…
Fate…
Turned its gaze toward me.