Atom was on his way to find his sister.
The mountain of Nori was no longer his problem but. Time...
If he wanted to reach Ana before the kidnappers escaped, he had to move fast. Every second felt heavier than the last.
He pushed forward, choosing the straight path that led to the peak — the very tip of the mountain that touched the sky.
"If I can reach that point… I'll find her."
As he climbed, something unusual caught his eye.
The trees — they weren't scattered randomly. Each one stood in a strange order, aligned as though someone had placed them with purpose.
From above, the forest would look like a maze. A pattern.
Not nature's work — but a man's.
A hidden road, carved by civilization itself, buried within the mountain.
Atom tightened his grip on his sword.
"Someone made this place…" he murmured. "Then Ana must be here."
Atom had begun to understand the truth behind the Mountain of Nori — how those who once lived here had shaped this land.
But now, it looked nothing like a home.
It was abandoned.
Forgotten.
Even the animals had left, as if life itself refused to exist here anymore.
The air grew still. The forest quiet.
Not a leaf rustled, not a bird sang.
Atom noticed the sudden calm. The wind, once howling through the trees, had gone silent.
The straight path before him seemed almost to invite him onward — it was a perfect line guiding him to the mountain's peak.
He moved swiftly, his steps light but determined.
In just minutes, the peak was within reach.
Not far now.
Not anymore.
Meanwhile, far below, Sil had finally regained his strength.
His legs no longer trembled. His breath was steady again.
For the first time in days, he could move — freely, normally.
"Now I can move... finally."
Sil steadied his breath, his body no longer trembling.
"I have to hurry and find her... I know where they might have gone."
Both Atom and Sil were running — unaware that their paths were crossing.
Different roads, same destination.
The peak of the Mountain of Nori.
"It's not far," Atom murmured, his steps barely touching the ground. For someone like him, distance meant nothing.
"It's far... but I'll reach it!" Sil clenched his fists, his body aching yet driven by something stronger than pain — determination.
Meanwhile, back at the king's castle…
A shadow was rising.
The other self of Atom — his mirror of darkness — had fully regenerated.
Slowly, he began to move, his black cloak whispering against the floor.
The air around him bent, heavy and suffocating, as if darkness itself was adapting to him… accepting him as its own.
At the edge of the island...
The fixation in the air finally loosened.
The villagers felt a fleeting sense of relief.
The child had stopped crying.
"The wind… it's back to normal," someone whispered.
But none of them dared to move.
They knew — this calm wasn't peace. It was only the eye of the storm.
"If we move… we die," the old man muttered, his voice trembling.
"For how long do we have to stay like this?" the grandson asked, barely breathing.
"The air is calm," the old man replied, "but the king's wrath is not."
The baby stirred, tiny hands waving, legs twitching.
"But… the baby can move," the grandson said softly.
"That's because he doesn't think yet," the old man answered.
"He's pure. He doesn't know fear."
The baby giggled in the grandson's arms — a small, innocent sound amidst deathly silence.
The grandson froze, refusing to move even an inch.
"Just a little longer," his grandfather whispered.
"Hold it... for a few more minutes."
Atom finally reached the top of the mountain.
But even now, his face remained blank — emotionless.
As if reaching the summit wasn't victory, but only another step into the unknown.
He stood there in silence, letting the wind brush against his cloak. His eyes scanned the horizon — sharp, calculating, relentless.
Each path, each bend, each valley — he traced them all in mere seconds.
A total of 1208 paths…
109 of them lead to abandoned villages.
His mind mapped everything like a machine.
Few minutes before... miles below, Sil was sprinting through the forest path leading to the peak.
Then, a strange sensation hit him — a ripple in the air, followed by a boom.
A thunder roared across the mountain, tearing through the silence. The wind cracked like lightning, shaking the trees.
Sil stopped, eyes wide.
"What was that…?" he whispered.
He looked around, but there was no one — only the echo of that impossible speed fading into the distance.
And then, his heart began to race.
"It's not far… just a little more," he told himself, breathing hard as he dashed forward again — towards the peak, towards fate.
"It's only a matter of time before I reach the peak… just a little more," Sil whispered to himself, forcing his tired legs to move.
And then—he froze.
Up ahead, standing in the blinding light of the mountain's summit, was someone. His figure was glowing, wrapped in a haze of white smoke. The light around him shimmered like a mirage—almost divine.
Sil's eyes widened. His breath trembled.
"Wha—what? Is he…?"
For a moment, it felt unreal. Like he was staring at a spirit.
"GOD!!!" Sil shouted, tears welling in his eyes. The voice echoed through the valley.
It was Atom.
Overwhelmed, Sil raised his hands and ran forward.
"I'M HERE! I KNOW WHERE THEY COULD BE! I KNOW WHERE YOUR SISTER IS!!!"