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Rey walks like someone who is never in a rush.
His steps are long and steady. He keeps his hands in the pockets of his leather vest.
Momo walks beside him. Actually… she is taking quick steps just to keep up.
"How do you know the way?"
Rey doesn't look at her. "Because I live here."
Momo frowns. "In the forest?"
"In the world."
He points forward with his chin. In the distance, between the trees, a flat dirt road appears. Wagon tracks. A sign of civilization.
Momo stops for a moment. Civilization.
She looks at her palm. It's still clean. No blood. No orders.
"…This place isn't a war zone."
Rey glances at her. "It hasn't been for a long time."
Momo starts walking again. "How long?"
Rey doesn't answer right away. He notices the small cracks appearing every time Momo steps too hard.
"…You don't know?"
"Know what?"
He shrugs. "The Great Race War ended five centuries ago."
Momo stops in her tracks. The wind passes through the leaves above them.
"How many?"
"Five hundred years."
Silence. Rey walks a few more meters before realizing Momo isn't following.
He turns around. Momo is standing still. Her red hair doesn't move. Her eyes aren't wide. There is no dramatic expression.
She only says one word quietly:
"…Impossible."
Rey raises an eyebrow. "Who are you, really?"
Momo doesn't answer. She looks at the sky. Blue. Clean. No smoke. No dragons. No giant magic circles.
Five hundred years.
The peach seal on her back pulses slowly. Warm.
Rey notices the change. "I'm not joking."
Momo looks at him slowly.
"The Kingdoms?"
"Still there."
"The Dragons?"
Rey shrugs. "Still there."
"Dongga?"
Rey stops walking. He looks at her longer this time.
"…That's just a legend."
The forest feels quieter than before. Momo doesn't blink. A legend.
Rey continues in a casual tone. "A children's story. The Pillar of Destruction that ended the war. Some say it was a weapon. Some say it was a god. Most people think it's just a myth."
Momo stands still for a few seconds. Then she starts walking again.
This time, her steps are too heavy. The ground cracks.
Rey sighs. "You need to learn how to walk."
"I'm walking normally."
"No. You're crushing the ground."
Momo snorts. "The ground is weak."
Rey stops. He turns and looks at her from head to toe.
"No. You're just too strong."
Silence. He doesn't say it with wonder. He doesn't say it with fear. Just as a fact.
Momo stares at him for a few seconds, then huffs.
"I am not lost."
"You are clearly lost."
Momo speeds up her pace. Rey stays relaxed.
A few minutes later, they reach a wider dirt road. From a distance, they hear the sound of wagon wheels. And… a smell.
Momo stops suddenly. Her nose twitches.
Rey sees the change. "What now?"
"…What is that?"
Rey sniffs the air. "Grilled meat."
Silence. Momo's stomach growls loudly. Krrrrrk.
Rey looks at her blankly. "You're hungry."
Momo nods without any shame. "I want that."
"With whose money?"
"What is money?"
Rey stops walking. He stares at her for a long time.
"…Fine. We'll start from the basics."
Momo crosses her arms. "I don't need basics."
"Everyone needs basics."
He points toward the thin smoke rising in the distance.
"That's a small village. From there, there's a city. From the city, there's a guild. From the guild, there's work."
Momo looks at him. "Guild?"
"A place where strong people go to earn money."
Momo narrows her eyes. "How many strong people?"
"Quite a few."
A tiny, tough smirk appears on Momo's face.
Rey immediately says in a flat voice: "Don't."
"What?"
"Don't destroy the village."
Momo takes a long breath. "I don't destroy things without a reason."
Rey looks at the cracked ground behind them. "…And that?"
"That was a reflex."
Rey rubs his face. "Yeah. That's exactly what worries me."
The wind moves again. The world feels normal. Too normal.
Five hundred years. Dongga has become a legend. And Momo—she is still standing here.
Rey starts walking first. He glances at the forest behind them.
"The roots of that tree broke from the inside."
Momo doesn't answer.
Rey narrows his eyes. "You came out of there, didn't you?"
Silence for a few seconds.
"…Yes."
"Fine. So, do you want to go back to the place where you were buried for five centuries… or follow me to the village?"
Momo looks at the forest behind her. The giant tree is no longer visible.
Silence. No calls. No orders. Just the road ahead.
"…I'll come."
Rey walks again. Momo follows him.
Without realizing it, for the first time since she woke up—she isn't walking toward a war. She is walking toward the world.
And far away from there—
An ancient artifact vibrates softly.
An old resonance pattern lights up again.
Someone reads the pattern and smiles.
"So it's true…"
"Rubedo has returned."
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