“That was amazing,” Red said, breaking the silence as they finally resumed their journey toward the white grove.

  Rita didn’t acknowledge the praise, her expression unreadable.

  “So, your name is Rita, right?” Blue asked, walking alongside her. “You seem really strong. I wonder why they’d ever give you a low evaluation.”

  Rita remained silent, as if the question had never been spoken.

  Then, Tyson finally spoke, his voice laced with guilt. “I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean for you guys to get dragged into my situation.”

  A brief stillness settled over them. They exchanged glances but said nothing.

  Then, Yon broke the silence with a scoff.

  “Dude, your hair’s gonna turn gray if you worry so much.”

  Tyson blinked. “What?”

  “We’re supposed to be a team now, you know? Drawing a line at this point is just dragging it too far,” Red added, then shot Yon a sideways glance. “And I don’t think he wants to hear that from you. You bailed the moment things got hectic.”

  “It’s called tactical distancing,” Yon corrected with a smirk.

  “Yeah! And you’re tactically gutless!” Blue called from behind. Then, turning back to Tyson, she added, “And really, Rita’s the only one you need to apologize to—”

  “He has no need to,” Rita interrupted suddenly, catching them all off guard. “Kindly, do not bother yourself.”

  Her voice was soft yet unwavering. It was becoming evident—she only responded when concern was directed at her.

  A curious pattern. One they all noticed but chose not to press.

  Tyson hesitated before nodding. “…Then, are you at least okay?”

  Rita met his gaze, her stare lingering longer than necessary. The group nearly thought she wouldn’t answer at all. But then, at last, she gave a slow nod.

  Satisfied, Tyson turned forward again, and they continued walking.

  Nearly half an hour later, the landscape ahead began to shift.

  At first, it was subtle—strange inconsistencies in the forest’s foliage. But the closer they got, the more unnatural the scenery became.

  A white expanse stretched before them, stark against the deep greens they’d grown accustomed to. Snow drifted gently from the sky, layering the trees and plants in an untouched blanket of white. Yet, the cold never came.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  Tyson inhaled, testing the air. The temperature remained oddly steady. Warm, even.

  “This is so trippy…” Yon muttered, staring around as if trying to find a single patch untouched by the snowfall.

  Then Tyson looked up. “The sun,” he said suddenly. “Is it supposed to be there?”

  The others followed his gaze.

  The sun hung in the eastern sky, unmoving. Its light was pale, casting long shadows, yet it emitted no warmth.

  “Oh, you’re right,” Blue murmured. “It’s about the thirteenth hour, yet the sun is setting. And it doesn’t seem to be moving that fast either…”

  “Do you guys think we’re still at Veil?” Yon wondered aloud, crouching to scoop up a handful of the snow. “It feels like the other side of the world here.”

  “When we walked in, it didn’t feel any different,” Red pointed out. “Not like when we first got to headquarters—”

  Before he could finish, a snowball smacked him square in the face.

  He stood there, stunned, bits of snow clinging to his skin. Then he slowly wiped it away and turned to Yon.

  “You—”

  But before he could retaliate—

  “Help!”

  A child’s scream tore through the quiet. The sound of hurried footsteps crunching through the snow followed.

  “Help!”

  Tyson moved before the figure was even visible. The others barely had time to react before they followed suit.

  Finally, the source of the voice emerged—a child, no older than seven, sprinting toward them. She wore nothing more than a yellow blouse, blue jeans, and strap-close sneakers. At first glance, she looked ordinary.

  But then they saw it.

  A silver metal device, shaped like a ring, was clamped tightly around her head. Too tight. Uncomfortably so.

  She ran straight to Tyson, gripping his sleeve. “Y-you have to help me, sir! Before they catch me!”

  Blue knelt, lowering herself to the girl’s height. She noticed how the child trembled, her eyes darting anxiously. “Wait, slow down, sweetie. Who’s after you?”

  The girl turned her head. “The bad scientists! They put this on my head!” She jabbed a finger at the ring. “I ran away, but they’re coming! You have to take me back to the city so I can go home!”

  Blue glanced at the others, her expression uneasy. “What do we do?”

  “Honestly? This sounds insanely shady.” Yon said immediately. “If we take her, we might screw up every chance we have while also pissing off people we don’t want to mess with.”

  “Yeah, but if it’s the kind of place that would do this to someone, why would we even want to go there anymore?” Tyson countered. “I think we should—”

  A yawn interrupted him.

  From above, on a thick tree branch, someone stirred.

  “Damn, I fell asleep…”

  All heads snapped upward. A figure sat lazily among the branches, rubbing their eyes before stretching.

  Yon exhaled. “Lots of people hiding in trees today…”

  The stranger blinked at them, then sighed.

  “Argenta, why are you messing with these kids?”

  The little girl—Argenta—gasped and darted behind Tyson.

  “And now you’re touching strangers,” the man muttered, rubbing his temples. Then, with a nonchalant motion, he pointed at her. “Yo, I gotta take that one back home, so excuse me.”

  Tyson didn’t respond.

  He couldn’t.

  His voice caught in his throat, a slow, creeping shock settling over him.

  Blue, however, stepped forward. “Sorry, but we can’t do that. We don’t know who you are, and she’s clearly scared of you.”

  The person raised his hands in mock surrender. “My bad. Name’s Cosmo.”

  The group exchanged glances. There was something immediately odd about him—besides the fact that he had apparently been sleeping in a tree. He didn’t look any older than they were, yet he had casually referred to them as kids, as if he were far older than them.

  As for why Tyson couldn’t find his voice—standing on that branch, with pure long white hair tied in a ponytail, a warm bronze complexion, and strange silver eyes that shimmered with an unfathomable depth.

  He looked exactly like—

  “You’re… the King…”

  The words slipped out before he could stop them.

  Cosmo blinked, then tilted his head.

  “Hm? …Uh. Thanks?”