A calm, quiet, snowy forest nestled among towering mountains.
Snow drifts gently from the night sky, lit softly by the moon and scattered stars. The landscape glows faintly under their light, serene and untouched.
Deep within the forest, a small cave shelters a glowing bonfire, Its warm flicker casting a cozy, golden light in the peaceful cold.
Curled beside it, a fox girl sleeps soundly– her fluffy tails wrapped around her, face tense and frightened, as if caught in a haunting nightmare.
Suddenly, she wakes with quite gasps, eyes wide and straighten herself.
She looked beside her, where a handsome man with blue hair sat quietly, his eyes fixed on the flickering bonfire.
He turned his gaze to her and spoke, his voice calm and steady.
"So, you woke up, huh?"
She didn't reply—just stared at him cautiously, her amber eyes unreadable. Who knew what thoughts stirred behind them?
He tilted his head slightly. "Can't speak? Hmm… mute? Illiterate?"
"N-no," she stammered softy
The man raised an eyebrow, a small, amused smile tugging at his lips.
"Ah, so you can talk. Good. I was starting to think I'd rescued a wild animal."
Her ears twitched at that, and she instinctively hugged her knees closer, tail curling around her again. The warmth of the fire didn't quite reach the chill in her chest.
He glanced back at the flames. "You were out in cold. I found you not far from here—collapsed in the snow."
She looked down, remembering fragments of running… killing… darkness. The nightmare hadn't just been a dream.
"Why… did you help me?" she asked, her voice barely more than a whisper.
The man poked at the fire with a stick, his expression unreadable. "No reason."
She narrowed her eyes, clearly unconvinced.
He sighed and added, "Alright, maybe I just don't like seeing people freeze to death in the woods."
Her gaze lingered on him, searching for something—truth, motive, maybe kindness.
He didn't flinch.
"I'm heading to Thrym's Reach. It's quite far—if I walk from here, it'll take almost three days to get there. Traveling alone is boring, so maybe by saving you, I've found myself a companion."
She looked uncertain but gave a small nod. "Fine." she said.
He spoke again. "Nyrix. You can call me Nyr."
She responded softly, "Senna."
Nyr continued, "So, Senna… how did you end up like that?"
She didn't answer. Her eyes stayed fixed on the bonfire, distant and hollow.
"If you don't feel like talking, that's okay," he said gently. "You should get some sleep—we'll be starting our journey early in the morning."
She gave me one last look, then turned away in silence to rest. While Nyr's thoughts began to wander…
Senna—a fox girl. Why would she be in such a state?
When he found her, she was covered in blood. At first, he thought she was injured, but no—not a single wound on her body.
Did she go into a blood frenzy? Genocidal rage? It's possible.
She was drenched in blood, yet no beasts came near her. They acted like they were afraid of her. Even now, there isn't a single monster in sight.
Beastkin can use their bloodline abilities, some of which can suppress weaker beasts.
So… is this little girl really that strong?
There was human blood on her. That much is clear—she killed a lot of people.
A slave, maybe? Not Impossible.
The only thing he can say for sure is this:
She slaughtered many humans, lost control of herself, and fled deep into the forest.
That's where he caught the scent of blood and found her. Lucky her.
And finally he was free from Hero duty.
Even if they call him a traitor—so what?
He was done with that whole "saving the world" nonsense.
Now, he can finally chase his dream: to travel the world, live freely, and enjoy life the way he want.
He needed sleep—but it was too dangerous. He couldn't trust the fox girl. She might kill him in his sleep. There was resentment in her eyes—maybe toward humans, he wasn't sure.
Staying awake for three days straight would take toll, even for an A-rank like him. Sure, he was strong, but he still needed eat and sleep like any other human.
A S-rank could go for a month or two without sleep. Some didn't even need to eat at all.
So why didn't he wait until he reached S-rank before taking on the trial? Simple: the trials get even harder at S-rank. Ridiculously harder.
That's why he chose to face them now, while still A-rank.
Anyway, it's time to put all that "hero" nonsense behind him.
Wait… he wonder what curse the gods were talking about.
"You should forget every connection you made until today~"
Forget every connection…
Yeah. He can't really remember anyone from when he was a hero.
Like it's all been wiped clean— No names, no faces, no emotion like everything is stripped from his.
He didn't forgot his name— Or fact that he was hero. He remembers many things but his family, friends, people he knew, everything about them, he didn't remember that.
He doesn't feel even single thing about them, no emotion at all.
It's like standing in front of a locked door
with the key in your hand,
but you're too tired to turn it.
"Forget it."
He don't care for now—he just want to travel the world, taste every kind of food, witness all its wonders, and experience different cultures and people.