MEMELAND

Morning came quietly.

The desert was cold.

Far colder than Kai expected.

He rubbed his hands together while watching the camp wake up.

One outlaw stretched.

Another yawned.

Someone had already started cooking.

Munnu emerged from his tent carrying a dented metal mug.

"Morning."

Kai nodded.

"...Morning."

Munnu took a sip.

Then pointed east.

"We'll be there before noon."

Kai's heart skipped a beat.

---

The convoy departed shortly after sunrise.

Hours passed.

The landscape slowly began to change.

The dunes became smaller.

The sand became harder.

Pieces of carved stone occasionally jutted from the ground.

Kai frowned.

"...Those aren't natural."

Persia nodded.

"No."

Another hour passed.

More ruins appeared.

Broken pillars.

Collapsed walls.

Statues buried up to their shoulders.

Fragments of roads.

The sand had swallowed almost everything.

Yet traces remained.

Like bones refusing to disappear.

Kai stared in silence.

"..."

"This was all... Oheyo?"

Munnu nodded.

"The outskirts."

Kai couldn't imagine how large the city must have been.

---

Eventually—

The hovercrafts stopped.

Nobody spoke.

Kai climbed off.

Then followed everyone's gaze.

His breath caught.

On the horizon—

Something rose above the sea of sand.

Not a mountain.

Not a cliff.

Buildings.

Dozens.

Hundreds.

Some still standing.

Most leaning.

Others broken in half.

Ancient towers pierced the sky like cracked spears.

Massive bridges connected structures that had long since collapsed.

A giant circular tower leaned at an impossible angle.

Its upper half missing.

Farther away—

A colossal wall stretched across the horizon.

Half buried.

Covered by centuries of sand.

Kai stood frozen.

"..."

"...That's..."

Munnu quietly finished the sentence.

"Oheyo."

Nobody spoke for a long time.

Even the usually noisy outlaws had fallen silent.

The city...

Still felt alive.

Not because people lived there.

Because it refused to disappear.

Like history itself had rejected being forgotten.

---

They continued toward the ruins.

The closer they came—

The stranger everything looked.

Roads made from smooth black stone.

Glass that somehow hadn't shattered.

Street lamps standing perfectly upright despite centuries of neglect.

Large metal frames covered in faded magical circuits.

Kai couldn't stop looking around.

"...It's..."

Persia spoke.

"Different from anywhere else."

Kai nodded slowly.

"It feels..."

He searched for the right word.

"...Wrong."

Munnu smiled.

"Exactly."

---

The entrance to the city had once been magnificent.

Now—

Only half remained.

A gigantic stone arch leaned over the broken road.

One side had completely collapsed.

The other still stood proudly.

Written across it—

Were symbols Kai couldn't read.

He frowned.

"...What language is this?"

Persia shrugged.

"Old Oheyan."

Kai walked closer.

The symbols blurred.

His head suddenly throbbed.

"...Ah..."

He instinctively grabbed the side of his head.

The letters...

Shifted.

Changed.

Then...

They became understandable.

WELCOME TO THE IMPERIAL CITY OF OHEYO

Kai froze.

"..."

"...I..."

Persia noticed.

"What?"

Kai stared at the arch.

"I..."

"I can read it."

The surrounding outlaws looked confused.

"What?"

"Nobody can read Old Oheyan."

Kai slowly backed away.

"...I..."

"...I don't know how."

His headache slowly faded.

But the words remained readable.

As though they had always made sense.

---

The group entered the city.

Silence.

No birds.

No insects.

Only wind.

The streets were enormous.

Wide enough for ten wagons to travel side by side.

Buildings towered overhead.

Even ruined—

They dwarfed everything Kai had ever seen.

Stone.

Steel.

Glass.

Magic.

Everything blended together.

Noah would've lost his mind.

Eric would've started sketching immediately.

Alice...

Alice probably would've gone silent.

Kai smiled faintly.

Then remembered.

"...I should tell them."

When he got back.

If he got back.

---

One outlaw kicked open an old storefront.

Immediately began searching.

Another entered a warehouse.

Others split into teams.

Clearly—

They had done this many times.

Munnu looked toward Kai.

"We'll be here until sunset."

Kai blinked.

"...That's it?"

"We know where the valuable scraps are."

Kai looked around.

"...Can I explore?"

Persia immediately answered.

"No."

Munnu answered.

"Yes."

Persia turned.

"...Boss."

"He'll just wander."

"Exactly."

"What if he dies?"

Munnu shrugged.

"Then we'll know not to bring tourists again."

Kai wasn't sure whether that was a joke.

Probably fifty percent.

Munnu pointed toward the city.

"Stay within sight."

"If the sun starts setting..."

"Come back."

Kai nodded immediately.

"I will."