One-Eyed Monster

Igor's inexplicable confidence utterly shattered Kadi. Despite how vivid Igor's explanations were, Kadi was baffled and overwhelmed. He could not understand why he had to play the role of a guide, nor why his panicked state suddenly dissipated. The sound of Igor's rambling seemed to hold some magical power, calming him down and erasing any worries.

I find the Red Leaf Tree quite strange. I've always wondered why its leaves turn green in early summer, yet change to red during Warm Winter.

Even then, Igor was still pondering the Red Leaf Tree... Though Kadi was utterly confused, his spirit, thoroughly crushed, left him with no energy to retaliate. He felt like a lamb to the slaughter, at the mercy of Ghost Wind Valley.

However, a sliver of hope remained in Kadi's heart—a hope Igor had given him. Though tiny, it represented a shred of respect for Igor, his rare human friend. Beyond this reluctant trust, Kadi had abandoned all hope of escaping Ghost Wind Valley.

Light? Kadi saw light everywhere in Ghost Wind Valley, even in broad daylight. If he were to follow the light, it would lead them nowhere. It would just result in him and Igor aimlessly wandering the valley, completely lost. Considering Igor's suggestion of following the light, Kadi eventually came to an embarrassing conclusion: it was a waste of time.

Igor kept rambling on. Everything around him was fascinating; he was utterly undeterred by the gradually darkening sky.

"Hmm, how have you lived in these mountains for so long and not discovered all these interesting things?" Igor asked Kadi, fiddling with the rope in his hands.

"Um, I'm patiently waiting for that 'light' you mentioned. Can I just be quiet and wait here?" Kadi's large eyes were already closed. For him, nothing else in his surroundings was worth his attention. It seemed they couldn't find a way out anyway and were destined to spend the night here. It would be better to rest now, in daylight, to conserve energy for fending off wild beasts when night fell.

"Uhh, right. Listen carefully to everything here; you might hear something unexpected." Seeing Kadi's unwillingness to respond, Igor found a way to console himself.

Indeed, they were trapped within a mysterious fog in Ghost Wind Valley, with no way out. Although Igor recognized the fog as an illusion, he was powerless against it; it simply wouldn't dissipate.

Igor knew he couldn't rush things. It was a battle of patience. But patience wasn't always easy to maintain. Hunger, for instance, couldn't be controlled. His stomach went GURU GURU several times; he was clearly hungry.

Igor rubbed his stomach and looked at Kadi, who seemed lost in thought with his eyes closed. Many new questions began to pop into his mind. They were diverse, yet shared a commonality: all of them pointed towards monsters.

No wonder monsters have different physiques from humans; they don't experience hunger. Their way of storing Energy must differ from humans. Do they absorb more Energy from the same food? Could it be that monsters have a particularly inefficient digestive system that stores swallowed food internally, which is why they hardly feel hungry...?

Igor kept wondering about one thing after another, not feeling any sense of impending doom or breakdown.

If Kadi knew what Igor was thinking right then, he would surely jump up and call him heartless for his utter lack of concern about their current predicament.

Unfortunately, Kadi had been so devastated by Igor's earlier actions that he had no mental energy left to think about anything else.

The reason Igor wasn't pondering how to escape Ghost Wind Valley was simply that he didn't know the way out either. He had noticed that many things before him were illusions, but he didn't know how to dispel them.

Igor was sure these illusions were composed of several paintings. He wasn't clear on how these paintings were made to look so realistic. However, Igor was equally sure that these paintings couldn't stay the same forever. Colors, patterns, and outlines—some aspects would inevitably change over time. Colors would fade, images would distort, and scales might alter. If it was a painting that had been there for a long time, such changes were bound to occur. This was something he had learned in one of the few alchemy classes at Yonder Travel Academy; as an avid learner with wide-ranging interests, Igor never missed out on such knowledge.

Even if someone constantly restored these paintings, they wouldn't be able to replicate their original appearance perfectly. Besides, Ghost Wind Valley was vast; it couldn't consist of just one painting. Restoring a single painting would be laborious enough. Restoring several, especially in a short period, would be impossible.

The key to leaving Ghost Wind Valley is to find the real path. The reason these real paths can't be found is that these paintings are deceptively realistic.

This isn't a complex problem, Igor thought. I don't know why Kadi is so stressed about it, even to the point of being frantic. It indirectly suggests that monsters' thinking doesn't differ much from that of beasts. When they encounter something they don't understand, they resort to the most primitive method of resolution: rage-infused roars. Kadi's roar probably isn't far off...

Igor blinked, So many people in this world are strange. Whenever they encounter difficulties, they constantly complain and get angry. Why can't they just calmly wait for the light in the darkness, like me? The light will always appear.

Those stars hanging in the sky are sometimes bright, sometimes dim. But I think they're mostly bright, because there's always light to pursue in this world. Therefore, no matter how dark the night sky is, light will always appear in some corner.

I'm waiting for this light, Igor muttered to himself. These paintings... I wonder when they'll change. They've been exposed to the outside air for so long, they should change soon, right? Don't make me wait too long. My stomach is already rumbling. It would be bad if I had to go scrounging for food and damage these paintings. Besides, waiting too long means spending another night in the wilderness, and that's not comfortable…

Igor mumbled to himself as if talking to the owner of these paintings.

Perhaps there truly is more light than darkness in this world. The owner of these paintings actually heard Igor's words. He slowly set down his bamboo slips and listened with keen interest...