The next morning, Lian slowly woke up. For a few moments, he even forgot where he was.
The mattress under him was soft. The smell of fresh bread was in the air. Everything seemed too normal.
Too calm. And that was exactly what bothered him. Nothing in a ruined realm should be this normal.
"I think I am being too paranoid." He sighed and slowly got up.
Until a few days ago, he never thought he would spend a whole day and night in a ruined realm. At least he should be thankful that he had managed to sleep on a bed.
Out of the 25,000 summoned people, God knows how many were still alive and able to sleep. Many of them were probably already dead.
He went to the window. His gaze fell on the golden mountain. That huge mountain was still there.
Right in the center of the horizon. Its golden peak was shining under the light. Luckily, they were not far from the only way out of this hell. As long as they could get that key, all of them could leave this realm.
A moment later, the door opened and Seris entered. Her silver hair was a little messy. Her sword was on her waist as usual.
"The key is there." The girl suddenly said without any introduction.
"I think so too." Lian smiled and nodded.
Seris stood by the window. She had been awake for hours. Actually, she had not slept well at all last night. She had been waiting for Lian to wake up.
"Do we tell the others?"
"Not for now." Lian was quiet for a few seconds, then shook his head.
"Those two sisters cannot help us reach the peak. And about Ryan... I don’t know. At least until we are sure ourselves and really find out if there is something else up there besides the key."
"Whatever you want. It doesn’t matter to me." Seris shrugged.
"I want to try to get more information about this Mountain God and the mountain." Lian added.
"Do you think there is a monster up there?"
"Maybe. I doubt the villagers are lying about this Mountain God. And if even one percent of what they say is true, and the other monsters are afraid of it, then it could be a strong monster. Maybe Fallen, or even higher."
Seris stayed quiet and said nothing. After that, both went to have breakfast.
A few hours later, the village was much more alive. Children were playing on the dirt streets. Women were carrying water. Men were repairing houses, working in shops, or doing other jobs.
If someone did not know where they were, they would never imagine this was in the heart of a ruined realm.
In the house they had been given, the condition of the two sisters and Ryan had improved a lot.
Aria was sitting by the window. Ryan was on a wooden chair across from her.
Every now and then they talked. Sometimes they even laughed.
"If you keep this up, maybe when we get back, we will have to throw a wedding party for you." Lian went near them and said with a smile.
Aria’s face immediately turned red. Ryan smiled. But Alisa did not look very happy. As if she was upset that someone was getting too close to her sister... or she simply did not care.
For the first time since entering this realm, the atmosphere had become a little light.
"Lian, I really didn’t mean to interrupt your conversation last night, but I felt like the village elder was getting upset. So I want to apologize." Aria said after her face returned to normal. She stood up.
"I understand. No need to worry. I am not upset." Lian smiled and made it clear he really did not care.
"Thank God." Aria sighed and sat back down. She had been worried that he might be upset because of her behavior last night.
Time passed slowly. Lian went out with Mira to walk around the village. Last night on the way back from the elder’s house, he had asked this girl to show him the village today if she could.
The village girl had her usual kind smile on her face.
She was carrying several baskets of vegetables. Lian had taken one of them to help.
"Are you sure you don’t need to rest? You were wounded."
"I am fine. Don’t worry. I have experienced worse." Lian answered.
The girl laughed sweetly. Her face might not be as beautiful as those models, but her innocence could melt any ice.
"Have you ever left the village?"
"No." Mira shook her head and answered.
"Never?"
"No."
"Really?"
"Most of the villagers are like this. Our life is here. We have no need to go outside. Besides, out there is dangerous."
"I understand. Out there can be really dangerous. You must really thank the Mountain God for protecting this place."
"We thank the Mountain God from the bottom of our hearts. We are always grateful to him." Mira said with a smile and a thankful tone.
"How do you worship this Mountain God? Does it have a temple? Or special ceremonies?"
"What are those? We just thank him in our hearts." The girl asked with confusion.
Lian was a little surprised. They call that being a god, but they have not built a temple for it. Nor do they have special ceremonies for worship? This was a bit beyond what he expected.
It was not that this made him suspicious or anything. After all, this was a different world. Cultures can be different.
But before he could say anything else, something suddenly caught his attention. They had been walking for a while. They had almost reached the end of the village.
And at the end of the village, far from the other houses, several ruined buildings could be seen.
Decayed houses, broken windows, collapsed roofs. As if no one had lived there for years.
Besides that, the area was blocked off to prevent others from entering.
But something was wrong about that area. The air around it seemed heavier. Colder. Quieter. And for some reason, Lian smelled blood from there!
After increasing his physical power several times, his senses, including his sense of smell, had become much stronger. He was sure he was not wrong.
"What is that place?"
A moment later... for the first time since he had met Mira, the girl’s face lost its color.
Her smile disappeared. Her eyes trembled a little.
"Nothing. Just some old houses. Entering there is forbidden. Only the village elder is allowed to go in." Her answer was too quick.
"By the way, do you want to try some fresh bread later?" Mira immediately changed the subject and also changed their path.
Lian said nothing. But he registered those houses in his mind. He would definitely visit that place later.
Then Mira took him away from there and they returned to the center of the village. The girl then said goodbye, saying she had to go home to do her family’s work.
Lian returned to their accommodation. Seris was sitting on one of the chairs, her hand under her chin. She was completely bored.
"I am going hunting."
"Just like that?" Lian laughed.
"Yes."
"I am bored."
It made sense. In this realm, only power mattered. Every minute wasted could later cost them their lives.
And besides, this girl loved fighting.
"I am coming too." Lian thought for a moment and then said. He also wanted to become stronger. The stronger he was, the more security he would feel and the more confidence he would have to face threats.
Seris nodded. Then she looked at the others to hear their thoughts.
"We can’t come. I still can’t walk properly." Aria said sarcastically.
"I prefer to stay here." Ryan also waved his hand.
A few minutes later, Lian and Seris headed toward the village exit. The streets were quiet. A cold wind blew between the houses.
But the closer they got to the gate... a strange feeling formed in Lian’s chest.
When only a few meters remained to the exit, suddenly two guards stepped forward.
They blocked the way.
"Is there a problem?" Lian stopped and frowned.
He received no answer. At that moment, two more guards appeared from the left. Then three more from the right.
Then several people behind them. Within a few seconds... they were surrounded.
Seris quietly put her hand on the handle of her sword. Her eyes turned cold.
The air suddenly became heavy. Lian looked around. At least thirty people.
Maybe more. All armed. All silent. All staring at them. Then one of them left the area. It was not clear where he went.
A few minutes later, the sound of slow footsteps was heard. The village elder came out from among the crowd.
It was clear that the guard had gone to inform the village elder.
But something was different. His usual smile was gone.
"Mr. Aldric, is there a problem that we cannot go out to train and hunt?"
"Sorry, but outside is dangerous. For your safety, it is better if you stay inside the village."
"Is that a suggestion or a threat?" Lian asked with a calm tone but with an indifferent and cold look.
"It is a recommendation." The village elder answered in his own way.
At that moment, Lian noticed something. Something that made his spine freeze.
A very bad feeling formed in his heart. Maybe... they had been wrong from the beginning.
Maybe... they were not guests of this village. They were its prisoners.
He just hoped his guess was wrong.