Tyler’s Growing Curiosity
Tyler had been in the Village of Vale for a week now. It didn’t take him long to realize that leaving the village was almost impossible.
The village teachings were strict—the outside world was dangerous. Only hunters were permitted to leave.
According to the village elders, the land beyond was teeming with monsters, creatures that no ordinary human could defeat.
Long ago, their ancestors tried to escape, hoping to find another village, another civilization. But no one had ever made it past the massive riverbed to the east or the gloomy dark horizon to the north.
The Gloomy Dark Horizon was especially terrifying.
It was a land with no sun, no moon, no stars—just endless darkness.
Anyone who entered it ca back broken.
Their eyes hollow. Their minds shattered.
They murmured strange things—that everything was an illusion. That nothing was real.
But, strangely enough, after a short ti, they would forget everything that had happened and return to normal, as if their journey into the darkness had never occurred.
Catherine explained everything to Tyler one night as they sat outside, gazing at the sky.
The two of them sat in comfortable silence, looking up at the glowing moon.
Tyler stared at it for a long ti, a strange unease growing in his chest.
Sothing felt off.
He furrowed his brows.
"What’s wrong?" Catherine noticed his expression and asked.
Tyler didn’t look away from the sky.
"Shouldn’t there be three moons?"
Catherine blinked in confusion.
And then, she laughed.
"What do you an? Are you drunk? Are you seeing three moons?"
Tyler rubbed his temples.
"I... don’t know."
A deep sense of dissonance settled in his mind.
Sothing inside him insisted that there should be three moons. But why?
He couldn’t rember.
The harder he tried to grasp the thought, the more it slipped away like grains of sand through his fingers.
Tyler let out a deep sigh.
He didn’t know why he had that thought—just that it felt right.
"Is there any way to leave the village?" he asked suddenly.
Catherine froze.
Her body stiffened, her cheerful expression disappearing as she slowly turned to him.
"W-Why? You... you want to leave?"
Her voice held a hint of nervousness.
Tyler quickly reassured her.
"I just want to see what’s outside."
Catherine sighed in relief.
Her smile returned, and her voice beca cheerful again.
"Oh! That’s easy! Next week is Gathering Week."
Tyler tilted his head.
"Gathering Week?"
Catherine nodded excitedly.
"According to the village elders, Gathering Week is when the monsters outside are almost nonexistent. It’s the safest ti for everyone to leave and collect herbs and wood."
Tyler’s eyes lit up.
"Then I’m looking forward to it."
Catherine giggled.
"I’ll be joining the herb gatherers, though, so we won’t be together. You should try joining the woodcutters’ group."
Tyler nodded.
The conversation faded into silence.
The two of them sat side by side, looking at the moon again.
It was calming.
---
Elsewhere in the village, Leon erged from a maiden’s hut, adjusting his fine robes.
A content smirk curled on his lips.
Behind him, a young woman lay asleep, her body still trembling with the aftermath of pleasure.
Her lips were slightly parted, her breath uneven, a faint trace of drool at the corner of her mouth.
Leon turned back slightly, his gaze dark and predatory.
"Don’t forget..." he murmured.
The woman’s half-lidded eyes barely opened, but she was still listening.
"You better drug Catherine during herb gathering."
The smirk on his face deepened.
The maiden let out a small humming noise, her hazy, love-struck gaze full of admiration.
She nodded obediently, before falling back into a peaceful sleep.
Leon chuckled.
Then, with his usual graceful, elegant steps, he left her ho, disappearing into the night.
┉┈ ◈ ◉ ◈ ┈┉
Sowhere deep within the Abyss Floor, a group of rcenaries gathered in a makeshift camp. Their leader, a man clad in golden armor, sat on a massive throne-like rock, surrounded by his most trusted warriors.
Before him, a kneeling man bowed his head in submission.
"Apologies, Leader. We failed to track her. She must have awakened her Angel Bloodline—the curses no longer work on her."
The golden-armored man’s expression darkened.
"Tch... Worthless." He waved his hand dismissively. "Then find the other Angel. The one who was trapped in the sa Abyss Floor."
The kneeling man nodded swiftly and retreated.
Behind the golden-armored leader lay the colossal skull of a T-Rex, its size dwarfing everything around it.
The beast had fallen weeks ago, its massive fra defeated after a brutal battle.
Yet, its presence still lood over the camp, a testant to their strength.
The fox-eared woman standing nearby let out a soft chuckle.
"By the way, Leader... have you heard about our client?"
The golden-armored man’s brows furrowed in irritation. "What now?"
The towering, eight-foot-tall warrior beside her spoke up.
"He failed to purify the corpse of the Colossal T-Rex we delivered. It contaminated half of his world. Now, his entire planet is waging war against him."
The golden-armored man’s expression shifted, then he laughed.
"Hah! What an idiot. Did he really think he could control a beast tainted by the Abyss?"
The fox-eared woman smirked.
"Leader, he’s begging for more ti to clean up the ss. But..."
She glanced toward the giant warrior, who nodded.
"He promised that if he fails, he’ll open a passage to his world for us."
The golden-armored man’s eyes widened.
Then, his lips curled into a cruel grin.
"Good. Let’s hope he fails." He leaned back, his golden armor gleaming under the Abyssal glow. "A whole world to plunder? Now that’s an offer worth waiting for."
As the warriors chuckled, another rcenary stepped forward, holding a scroll.
"Leader, an Immortal from one of the outside worlds has issued a bounty."
The golden-armored man barely glanced at him.
"Not interested. We don’t waste ti hunting small prey."
The rcenary hesitated.
"But, Leader... the target is only at Gold Core Realm."
The golden-armored man paused.
Gold Core? That’s far too weak.
Gold core realm is sa as Master Level.
A bounty from an Immortal usually ant sothing was special about the target.
"Show ."
The rcenary unrolled the scroll, revealing a detailed sketch.
The leader’s eyes flicked over it—then narrowed.
A young man with dark hair. A confident smirk.
Beneath the image, the na "Tyler White" was written.
The golden-armored man let out a low hum.
"Interesting... Keep an eye out. If any of our n see him, they are to capture him imdiately."
His smile deepened.
"If an Immortal wants him dead, then he must be hiding sothing valuable or a deep grudge."
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