"Hey Ace, how did you end up inside the fortress?"
Ace gave a small smile and explained to them that he had seen a tutorial arrow.
"There was a guiding arrow that led me somewhere, so I just followed it. Then suddenly, I ended up here. Oh right, it turns out there's a small door in the wall. So I went in, and apparently, this gate can be accessed manually or automatically."
Ren and Caiber understood what had happened, and they instantly grew worried about Ace. Without saying much, they continued their journey.
Ace and the others walked along a path that led them through a dense and towering forest. This forest was once one of the great treasures of the Core Continent, rich in resources and benefits. But due to a past tragedy, things had changed.
The people here were defending their rights—the land they had nurtured and cared for. They refused to give it up to the villains who had invaded the Core Continent. That was the story told by a group of travelers who were also heading to the nearest city, which lay within the inner wall of Sister Fortress 2.
"Hmm, hearing your story, I feel like... I'm needed for this too."
"But, where did this all start?"
"You only talked about the wealth of the Core Continent and your rights, but not about what really happened."
"Is there something being hidden?"
The entire group fell silent, their trauma too deep to speak. Ace understood and didn't press them—this silence was enough for him to realize how serious things were. It strengthened his resolve to defeat the villains plaguing the Core Continent.
How did Ace know this was the Core Continent?
That was thanks to a message from Noah, which read:
=Hey Ace, I forgot to tell you—this is actually the past. When Casca summoned you earlier, that was the start of the game. Now you're in its past timeline. When you played the game, the Core Continent was already peaceful, but due to a past tragedy, you must now save it. That's why when you played, everything seemed calm, and also... that's why you could meet Caiber (aka your most beautiful waifu, right?) :)=
"Oh god, so that's why... hmm, but if this really is the past, then that means..."
As Ace was lost in thought, Ren suddenly woke him up by dumping a bucket of water on him—one of the buckets the travelers carried.
It shocked Ace and made him choke, causing everyone to laugh at the silly moment.
"Hey Ace, you've been daydreaming for a while. Were you thinking about something weird? Ah, never mind, like you'd think about anything serious!" said Ren teasingly.
"Hehehe."
Ace responded with his usual deadpan expression.
"Whatever you say."
Moments later, they heard footsteps in the distance, drawing closer. They got ready for anything. Ace jumped into a tree to scout ahead.
From afar, he saw a knight being chased by a monster. He signaled the group and alerted them.
"Hey everyone! Someone's being chased by a monster!"
"I'll lure them here and take down the monster. You guys save the knight."
They understood and prepared to assist. Meanwhile, Ace would distract the monster.
"Hey, knight! Over here, quick!"
The knight looked up and understood immediately, urging his horse to run faster. The monster started to fall behind, and Ace prepared his stance to strike.
"Alright, let's go!"
Ace jumped and summoned a weapon from his hand—it looked like a metallic fang.
=Wind Boomerang=
He threw it at the monster. As it closed in, the boomerang grew larger.
BLLAAASSS.
The monster was instantly sliced in half and exploded. Thankfully, the blast wasn't too strong and no one was harmed. Ace returned to the group to discuss what had just happened.
He saw the knight was in pain and the horse slightly injured. The group gave them first aid, while Ren analyzed the knight's condition.
He was infected by dark magic, which was slowly consuming him. Seeing this, Ace acted quickly and performed an emergency healing spell.
=Aurora Heal=
The dark magic vanished from the knight's body in an instant. Ace also healed the horse.
As night fell, they set up camp in the unnamed forest.
The knight eventually woke up from his rest, surprised to find his pain completely gone and his body restored.
Ace approached him and offered food.
"Hey, are you alright?"
To his surprise, the knight came closer, visibly worried and exhausted.
"Please… help me."
"They… they…"
Ace calmed him and sat him near a tree with the prepared food. The knight slowly relaxed.
"Thank you… I'm sorry for my outburst. I made a mistake… Please forgive me."
Ace responded kindly, not bothered by it at all. Then he looked more closely at the knight and realized something shocking.
"Wait a second… aren't you…"
"GEN! THE LEGENDARY KNIGHT!"
The mood turned awkward, and the knight looked confused.
"Uh… what?"
The knight replied with a puzzled expression.