—–

“Hmm, you’ve brought quite a lot of Moongrain and Sunroot today, Timothy.”

An elder moonlight elf smiled warmly as he inspected Timothy’s goods at the marketplace. His little sister had finally quieted down after receiving a small chocolate bar; she was now licking it happily, chocolate smeared around her mouth.

“Yes, sir. Are you interested in buying?” Timothy asked. “I still have a few Sunroot and plenty of Moongrain left.”

“I suppose I’m running low on Moongrain. I’ll take a bag,” the old elf nodded. “And a couple of Sunroot as well.”

“Thank you.” Timothy bowed slightly as he accepted payment in small Fantasium Crystals shaped like coins—the universal currency that powered most of the world’s technology and enriched crops with enough magic to grow large and strong.

Once the elderly moonlight elf walked away slowly, Timothy sighed and glanced at his nearly empty basket. He was almost finished selling. He just wanted to wrap this up and head home; he couldn’t bear the thought of Jonathan mocking him again.

“…?”

His gaze drifted to the mysterious noble-like man with horns walking not far away. The man carried a basket filled with his purchases: Starleaf Barley, Frostvine Melon, Whisperfruit, and even the rare, expensive Embercorn.

“Is he a noble from the city? He’s buying so much… Oh?”

Timothy’s eyes widened as a girl ran toward the noble. She was stunning—pale skin, vivid red eyes, long black hair streaked with red, wearing what looked like a black-and-red school uniform.

She spoke to him—Timothy couldn’t hear the words—and clung to his arm while inspecting his purchases. She picked up an Embercorn, took a casual bite, and chewed without flinching.

“Wow… he’s so lucky. What a beauty… and she can eat Embercorn raw? Doesn’t it burn? She must be incredibly strong…”

Timothy sighed and stared blankly at the blue sky, deciding to ignore everything and wait for the next customer.

But even so, his eyes kept drifting back to them.

They were smiling, talking. The noble carried himself with perfect composure and calm grace, yet radiated quiet authority. The girl seemed carefree and kind.

“Haaa… it must be nice to be born a noble. You get everything from the start—good family, amazing powers, money… You never face real problems. And he even has the girl… Way to go.”

Lately, ever since failing to awaken any talent, Timothy—usually kind-hearted—had grown increasingly bitter and jealous of others.

He glanced back at his sister… and realized she was gone.

“Fuck.”

His eyes shot open. He bolted upright and started running through the marketplace, calling her name.

“Alicia?! Aliciaaaaaa! Alicia! Fuck, I lost her! Where are you?! Alicia! Please come back—I’ll buy you any candy, just don’t go away!”

He frantically asked people if they had seen her. An old lady nodded and pointed east, saying she had seen a blonde girl with a teddy bear heading that way.

“Damn it! Why wasn’t I watching her?!”

Blaming himself, Timothy sprinted toward the east side of the village. He found her in a small plaza, playing happily with other children her age.

“Alicia!”

“Huh? Big bro?”

“What do you think you were doing? I was worried sick—”

RUMBLE!

As Timothy walked toward her, the ground shook violently.

His eyes widened. Screams erupted from the distance, from the forest beyond the village.

“Help! HEEEEELP!”

He turned and saw Jonathan and his friends running toward the village in blind panic, and…

Something enormous pursuing them.

“SHYYEEEEE!”

A gigantic, amorphous mass of dark red vines studded with golden spines and blooming red flowers surged forward. Its countless eyes gleamed as it fired dozens of red lasers.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Explosions tore through the surroundings. People screamed and fled in terror.

Some villagers brave enough to fight tried to confront the creature as Jonathan and the others ran past Timothy, sobbing in fear—but…

This was no ordinary monster.

“What is that thing?!”

“Hang on, the Hunter’s coming!”

“Aaaaagh! My head! T-That’s not a beast! It’s an Entity!!!”

“E-Entity?!”

The Hunter—Jonathan’s father—rushed forward, wielding a massive bow. He fired a magically enhanced arrow that streaked through the sky and struck the creature, erupting in flames.

BOOOOM!

The tall, muscular Hunter smiled confidently as the monster burned—only for it to stare back at them, completely unaffected.

Magic seemed almost useless.

Red lasers lanced from its dozens of eyes, spreading further chaos in mere seconds.

“Do something!”

Terrified villagers begged the Hunter, hiding behind houses. But he had always relied on his magic and Archery Ability; he had no idea what else to do.

Entities—unlike the Magic Beasts born from Yggdrasil—were entirely different. They were nearly impervious to “normal” damage, even magical. Their mere presence corroded minds and souls, and they could warp space itself.

The sorcerers and the Hunter either fled or collapsed, spasming on the ground as the Entity’s mind corruption overwhelmed them. Vines wrapped around their bodies.

“Big bro…? Buuaaaahhh!”

“Alicia!”

Timothy had ducked and covered his head in panic, but his eyes widened when he heard his sister scream. She was on the ground, crying, paralyzed by fear.

The Entity noticed her voice. It began advancing toward her, dozens of sharp vines extending, aimed directly at the girl.

“ALICIA, RUN!!!”

Timothy sprinted toward her, but Alicia was frozen in terror, sobbing and covering her face.

“No…! No!”

In that instant, Timothy’s sense of safety shattered. All this time—exactly as his parents had warned—he had lived a sheltered, blissful life.

This was his first taste of the true horrors beyond the village: a world crawling with these nightmarish monsters.

Timothy had always dreamed of being a hero, of becoming “more” than he was.

But now, facing a threat far beyond his strength in a genuine life-or-death moment…

He realized being a hero was terrifying.

Still, he charged straight toward death to shield his sister with his own body.

But… she was his dear little sister.

Alicia might be annoying sometimes, but he loved her deeply. She had always been there for him, keeping him company when he felt lonely.

She was a bundle of love and kindness, even if she could be a little spoiled.

Above all, she was just a child.

“Maybe you’ll be more talented than me… so you have to live until then…”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep