The First Human
The crimson eyes closed.
As if they had never existed.
I remained frozen, unable to breathe.
“…Was someone watching me?”
No.
Not someone.
Something.
A creature powerful enough to make every beast in this forest seem insignificant.
A chill crept down my spine.
For reasons I couldn’t explain, I felt that if those eyes had wanted me dead…
I would already be dead.
⸻
I continued walking.
The Black Devil rested quietly in my hand.
Something had changed after the spider-like creature fled.
The forest no longer felt completely hostile.
The birds resumed singing.
Small glowing insects drifted lazily through the air.
The enormous beasts I occasionally spotted in the distance still existed…
But they ignored me.
Or perhaps…
They ignored the sword.
Either way, I had no intention of questioning my luck.
⸻
Several hours later…
The trees finally began to change.
For the first time since arriving in this world, I noticed sunlight reaching the ground.
The trunks became thinner.
The roots less overwhelming.
I almost laughed.
“…I’m leaving…”
After what felt like an eternity…
I was finally leaving the endless forest.
The thought filled me with hope.
I quickened my pace.
⸻
Then…
I heard something.
Not a beast.
Not a roar.
Metal.
Clang.
Clang.
The unmistakable sound of steel striking steel.
Someone was fighting.
I cautiously moved toward the noise, hiding behind the massive roots.
The sounds grew louder.
Soon…
I reached the edge of a clearing.
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Three people stood there.
No…
Two stood.
One lay on the ground.
The standing figures wore silver armor unlike anything I had ever seen.
Their swords glowed with pale blue light, as though moonlight itself had been forged into metal.
Opposite them lay a young man, perhaps only a few years older than me.
His clothes were torn.
Blood covered his body.
Yet…
He still held his sword.
One of the armored men sighed.
“You’ve crossed into the Forbidden Forest.”
“Your sentence is death.”
The young man laughed weakly.
“I only wanted…”
“…the Heavenly Orchid.”
“So my sister…”
“…could live.”
His voice gradually faded.
The second armored man raised his glowing sword.
“No exceptions.”
“This is the Emperor’s Law.”
He prepared to strike.
I clenched my fists.
My body wanted to move.
To save him.
Then…
The memory of the old woman’s illusion.
The spider.
The monsters.
The overwhelming difference in power.
I remained hidden.
“…I’m sorry.”
My voice was barely audible.
The sword fell.
A single flash.
The young man’s head rolled silently across the grass.
Everything became still.
One of the armored men picked up a small blue flower from beside the corpse.
“So this is the Heavenly Orchid.”
The other nodded.
“What a waste.”
Without another glance…
The two men disappeared into the forest.
Leaving only the corpse behind.
⸻
I didn’t move for a long time.
Eventually…
I stepped into the clearing.
The young man’s eyes were still open.
He looked no older than twenty.
His expression…
Was peaceful.
As though dying hadn’t frightened him.
I looked toward the tiny blue flower that had been left behind.
No…
Not left behind.
Another one.
Hidden beneath the grass.
I carefully picked it up.
It radiated a faint warmth.
“So…”
“This flower could save someone.”
The young man’s final words echoed inside my mind.
“So my sister… could live.”
He had known he might die.
Yet he came anyway.
I lowered my head.
“I don’t know your name.”
“But…”
“I’m sorry.”
For the first time since arriving in this world…
I buried someone.
Using a broken branch, I dug into the soft earth beneath one of the ancient trees.
The work took hours.
When I finally finished, I placed the blue flower upon the grave.
“I hope…”
“…your sister somehow survived.”
The wind quietly carried away my words.
⸻
As I stood to leave…
Something caught my attention.
The dead man’s sword.
Unlike the glowing weapons carried by the armored men…
His sword was ordinary.
Still…
It was beautifully crafted.
Should I take it?
I hesitated.
Then shook my head.
“No.”
“It belongs to him.”
Instead…
I picked up a small leather pouch lying beside the grave.
Inside were several strange bronze coins.
A rough map.
And…
A wooden token engraved with unfamiliar symbols.
I couldn’t read them.
But somehow…
I felt they would become important.
⸻
The sun slowly descended.
The forest had become noticeably thinner.
Through the trees…
I finally saw it.
Smoke.
Rising into the sky.
Not from a wildfire.
From chimneys.
My heart pounded.
Civilization.
People.
Food.
Answers.
I almost started running.
Then…
The Black Devil suddenly became heavier.
Not physically.
Emotionally.
An overwhelming feeling of caution washed over me.
It was warning me.
I stopped.
If beasts feared this sword…
What would humans do?
Would they fear me?
Would they try to take it?
Or…
Would they kill me?
For the first time…
I wrapped the Black Devil in cloth torn from my own shirt before placing it against my back.
Whatever this weapon truly was…
It was a secret.
One I couldn’t afford to reveal.
Not yet.
As the smoke grew clearer in the distance…
I unknowingly took my first step…
Toward a world far more dangerous than the forest behind me.
Because monsters…
Were easier to understand than humans.
End of Chapter 7