The Ripening Fruit
Narrator
Time...
Flows quietly.
It never stops.
It never turns back.
Yet...
Those who have lived for thousands of years...
Can hear its footsteps.
They can feel the invisible changes carried by every passing moment.
And sometimes...
They know...
When something precious is slowly approaching its destined time.
Beneath the shade of the ancient tree...
The mountain was peaceful.
The same tree that had witnessed countless years...
The same place where laughter had recently filled the air...
Now stood silently beneath the endless sky.
Little Tia was sleeping peacefully in V's lap.
Her tiny hands were still holding onto his clothes.
As if even in her dreams...
She did not want to let go of her big brother.
V looked down at her.
The powerful emotions hidden inside his heart softened.
Without realizing it...
His hand gently moved.
He slowly stroked her soft hair.
A warm breeze danced through the leaves above them.
The sunlight passed between the branches.
Small golden rays fell over the two siblings.
For this moment...
There were no battles.
No worries.
No expectations.
Only family.
The mountain remained unusually quiet.
Then...
Still half-asleep...
Tia's small lips curved into a smile.
Her tiny voice escaped like a whisper.
"...I..."
"...love you..."
"...Big Brother..."
V's hand stopped.
His eyes widened slightly.
For a moment...
He wondered if he had heard correctly.
Then...
A sweet little giggle escaped from Tia.
And she slowly drifted deeper into her dream.
V looked at his little sister.
A gentle smile slowly appeared on his face.
He carefully adjusted her position.
Then hugged her a little closer.
"Sleep well..."
He whispered.
A few moments later...
Tia slowly opened her eyes.
The first thing she saw...
Was V sitting beside her.
She blinked several times.
Her tiny expression was still filled with sleep.
Then she stretched her small arms toward the sky.
A thin trail of drool remained near the corner of her mouth.
V stared for a moment.
Then...
He couldn't help but laugh softly.
"You're such a sleepyhead."
Tia tilted her head.
Still confused.
"Hmm?"
V shook his head with a smile.
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He took out a clean cloth and gently wiped her face.
Tia simply smiled innocently.
She didn't even realize what had happened.
Nearby...
Kai was still sleeping.
Completely peaceful.
Completely unaware of the world.
He looked as if nothing could wake him.
V and Tia looked at each other.
Then...
Both of them smiled.
They understood the same thing.
A small plan was formed without words.
V raised one finger.
Tia nodded seriously.
One...
Two...
Three!
"Kai!! Wake up!"
Kai's eyes opened instantly.
"W-What happened?!"
He jumped up in panic.
His wooden sword was almost grabbed by instinct.
But when he saw V and Tia standing in front of him...
Both trying not to laugh...
He froze.
"..."
Then he understood.
"You tricked me?"
V tried to stay serious.
But failed.
Tia covered her mouth.
And the next moment...
The three children burst into laughter.
Their voices echoed through the mountain.
The ancient trees around them silently watched.
As if they too...
Wanted to remember this happiness.
Just then...
A familiar voice came from behind them.
"I knew it."
The children turned around.
Lily stood there with a gentle smile.
In her hands...
Was a basket filled with warm food.
"I knew all of you would forget to come home."
V smiled.
"Mother..."
Kai laughed.
"We were training."
Lily looked at the three children.
Then at the wooden swords lying nearby.
"I can see that."
She walked closer and placed the basket beneath the tree.
The smell of freshly prepared food spread through the air.
The children's eyes immediately brightened.
No matter how much they trained...
No matter how strong they wanted to become...
They were still children.
And a warm meal from family...
Was something even the strongest warrior could never replace.
The three children happily ate together beneath the ancient tree.
Their conversations were simple.
Their laughter was natural.
They talked about training.
About small mistakes.
About things that had no importance to the outside world.
But to them...
These moments were everything.
After everyone finished eating...
Lily looked toward Tia.
The little girl was already fighting against sleep.
Her eyes were slowly closing.
Lily smiled.
"Come on."
"It's time for your afternoon nap."
Tia immediately understood.
She stood up slowly.
Then wrapped her tiny arms around her mother's neck.
Before leaving...
She looked back toward V.
"Bye-bye, Big Brother!"
V smiled warmly.
"Bye, Tia."
Then she looked at Kai.
"Bye, Kai!"
Kai waved.
"See you tomorrow!"
Lily carried her daughter back toward Restart Village.
The two children watched them disappear down the mountain path.
The peaceful smile on V's face remained.
Meanwhile...
Far away from the mountain path...
Brald was already busy carrying out his duties as the village chief.
The village continued its daily life.
People worked.
Children played.
The peaceful days of Restart Village continued.
Unaware...
That destiny was slowly moving.
The mountain became quiet once again.
Only V...
Kai...
And Liza remained.
The Legendary Dragon watched the two boys raise their wooden swords once more.
A faint...
Gentle smile appeared on her ancient face.
She watched them carefully.
Not just as a teacher.
But as someone who had witnessed their growth from the very beginning.
Inside her heart...
A quiet thought appeared.
"...It seems..."
"...the time is finally drawing near."
The wind passed through the ancient tree.
The leaves trembled softly.
Liza's eyes moved toward V.
"When a fruit has fully ripened..."
"It must be harvested at the right moment."
Her voice was almost a whisper.
"The fruit I have patiently nurtured..."
"...will soon be ready."
For a brief moment...
An unreadable emotion crossed the eyes of the Legendary Dragon.
And deep inside her heart...
She knew.
The peaceful days they shared...
Would not last forever.
The wooden swords continued to clash beneath the ancient sky.
Tak!
Tak!
Clack!
The sound echoed across the mountain.
V moved forward.
His steps were lighter than before.
His movements carried confidence.
Every swing showed the result of countless days of training.
Kai watched carefully.
He waited.
Then...
He moved.
Kai dodged V's strike and immediately counterattacked.
V blocked.
Clack!
The force pushed both wooden swords apart.
For a moment...
They stood still.
Then both smiled.
And charged again.
Their movements had changed.
They were no longer the same children who had first arrived at the mountain.
Their footwork had become sharper.
Their timing more precise.
Their understanding of each other's movements had grown deeper.
Every clash.
Every mistake.
Every defeat.
Had slowly shaped them.
V was improving through natural talent and endless effort.
Kai was improving through determination and an unbreakable will.
Different paths...
But the same destination.
To become stronger.
Tak!
Kai swung his wooden sword.
V stepped aside.
The attack missed.
Kai immediately changed his direction.
A clever move.
But V had already noticed.
He turned.
And blocked.
Clack!
Kai's eyes widened.
"You're getting faster."
V smiled.
"So are you."
For a moment...
The two friends stood silently.
Then...
They both laughed.
Because they understood.
Their training was not about defeating each other.
It was about helping each other grow.
The sun slowly moved across the sky.
The shadows of the trees became longer.
But the two boys continued.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Until finally...
After several more exchanges...
Kai's breathing became heavier.
His arms felt tired.
But he still refused to stop.
He rushed forward one final time.
"Not yet!"
He shouted.
V watched him approach.
Then...
With a calm movement...
He stepped aside.
Kai lost his balance.
His wooden sword slipped from his hand.
And fell to the ground.
Thud.
Kai looked at his empty hands.
Then looked at V.
A few seconds of silence passed.
V lowered his wooden sword.
"I win."
Kai stared.
Then...
He scratched the back of his head and laughed.
"Again?"
V smiled.
"Of course."
Kai picked up his wooden sword.
"One day..."
"I'll finally beat you."
V looked at his friend.
"I'll be waiting."
Before they could continue...
A familiar voice echoed from the foot of the mountain.
"Kai!"
Both boys turned.
Kai's mother was waiting below.
The sky had already begun changing colors.
The day was coming to an end.
Kai looked toward the village.
Then back toward the mountain.
He knew it was time to leave.
He quickly picked up his wooden sword.
Then walked toward Liza.
He bowed respectfully.
"Thank you for today's lesson, Lady Liza."
Liza looked at him.
A small smile appeared.
"You have improved."
Kai's eyes brightened.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Because you never stop trying."
Kai smiled proudly.
Then he turned toward V.
"See you tomorrow!"
V nodded.
"I'll be waiting."
Kai waved one last time.
Then...
He ran down the mountain path toward his mother.
The sound of his footsteps slowly disappeared.
The mountain became quiet once again.
The wind moved gently through the trees.
The ancient tree stood silently.
Watching.
Remembering.
Only V...
And the Legendary Dragon remained beneath the endless sky.
V looked toward the horizon.
The peaceful expression on his face remained.
But Liza...
She looked different.
Her eyes carried countless memories.
Thousands of years.
Countless moments.
And a feeling that only someone who had lived for ages could understand.
The world was changing.
Even if nobody noticed.
Even if the peaceful days felt endless...
Time was still moving forward.
The fruit she had carefully nurtured...
Was slowly reaching maturity.
V's journey...
Was approaching a new stage.
But neither the young boy...
Nor the ancient dragon...
Knew exactly what awaited them.
The evening breeze gently passed through the mountain.
The golden sunlight covered the land.
For one final moment...
Everything remained peaceful.
Everything remained unchanged.
But beneath that calm surface...
Destiny had already begun moving.
And soon...
Everything was about to change.