It was time to keep moving, but before they truly set off, Kenzo stopped and turned toward Naty. Ever since she had explained passive abilities to him, one thought had refused to leave his mind. Lucian stood a few paces away, quiet as usual, watching the open horizon with an almost anxious focus.
— « Naty… could you explain to Lucian what you told me about passive abilities? » Kenzo asked evenly. « I don't think he knows what his is. Not because he's hiding it… but because he probably doesn't even know it exists. »
Naty studied Lucian for a moment, then nodded slowly.
— « Yes. You're probably right. »
Hearing his name, Lucian turned toward them, visibly surprised, but he did not object. If anything, he seemed relieved that someone was finally going to explain something to him after all the uncertainty they had faced since entering the Fragment.
The four of them then continued south on foot through the completely exposed land. For the first time in days, none of them rode on Madame's back. The terrain was too open, too unfamiliar, and even though Kenzo could not sense any Void Creatures nearby, he preferred to remain ready for anything.
— « This is going to take a while… » he said after some time. « We should conserve our strength. We don't know what's waiting ahead or how quickly it might come at us. »
The others silently agreed.
The farther south they traveled, the more the ground changed beneath them. The earth grew darker and wetter, clinging to their boots with every step. In some places, their feet sank slightly, leaving soft impressions behind.
Kenzo frowned.
Where is all this water coming from?
He had been inside the Fragment for nearly two weeks, and not once had it rained.
There were no rivers nearby either. Not even a visible stream.
— « Is the ground supposed to be this wet here? » Lucian asked, unease creeping into his voice.
— « No, » Ophelia answered immediately. « Stay alert. »
— « Details like this are never meaningless, » Naty added gravely.
They continued for several more hours, the silence growing heavier as fatigue slowly took hold. Then, without warning, something caught their attention.
Kenzo looked up and stopped dead.
— « You've got to be kidding me… »
The others followed his gaze.
Above them, the familiar gray mass that always preceded the fog was beginning to spread across the sky. But this time, something was wrong.
The cloud did not cover everything.
Directly above the place where the forest ended, the sky remained perfectly clear, as though an enormous piece had been cut away from the gray expanse. It looked like a chipped plate, an imperfect circle where the gloom simply refused to exist.
— « What is that…? » Ophelia murmured, narrowing her eyes.
— « We never would've noticed it if we hadn't come this far, » Naty said, clearly unsettled.
The late-afternoon light still shone above them, soft and almost comforting. Beyond the edge of the gray clouds, the sky remained completely open.
After a moment of thought, Kenzo spoke.
— « We should stop here. We've already been walking for more than eight hours without encountering a single Void Creature. »
No one disagreed. They were exhausted, both physically and mentally. So they settled beneath the strange patch of sky untouched by the fog.
Night fell slowly.
And for the first time since entering the Fragment…
— « Stars… » Lucian breathed, lifting his head. « It feels good to see a sky full of stars again. »
Ophelia shrugged.
— « They're just stars. Don't make such a big deal out of it. »
Naty gave a nostalgic smile.
— « In my homeland, you can see the most beautiful stars in the world. You should all visit someday. »
Kenzo let out a faint sigh.
— « Assuming we ever get out of here… »
— « Is that a promise? » Naty replied, turning his pessimism against him with a trace of mischief.
Kenzo did not answer, but despite himself, an amused smirk appeared on his face.
The wind began to rise.
— « It's colder here… » Lucian said, rubbing his arms.
— « Yeah, but we're far too exposed to light a fire, » Kenzo replied. « Hopefully this is our last night in this region, and we'll reach the end of it quickly tomorrow. »
Naty was about to answer when she suddenly stopped.
— « That would be really— »
Something cold touched her skin.
— « …A drop? »
Almost at the same time, the others felt it too.
A light rain had begun to fall.
Kenzo lifted his eyes. The stars were still visible, but thin clouds—nothing like the heavy clouds that brought the fog—had formed overhead, releasing a steady curtain of cold rain.
Naty waited for a moment, then said:
— « It's already cold enough. We should all shelter beneath Madame. »
Madame moved obediently, but despite her imposing size, she could not comfortably cover all four of them. They had no choice but to move closer, almost pressed together, backs touching as they shared what warmth they could while the rain continued to fall softly around them.
None of them spoke again.
Yet Kenzo could not stop himself from wondering when the real trouble would begin. Even though they had escaped the fog, he could feel a sense of imminent danger hanging over them.
After all, an entire week had passed without anything truly catastrophic happening.
And good fortune never lasted that long.
In the silence, with only the steady patter of rain surrounding them, they eventually fell asleep like that, huddled together beneath a star-filled sky the unstable Fragment had chosen, for one night at least, to leave untouched.