THE ELEMENTALS Beginning of a New Era

The cold breeze of early dawn slipped through the cracks in the worn wooden hut. Harsha slowly opened his eyes, greeted not by the hard surface of the floor, but by something soft draped over him — a worn shawl, barely thick, yet warm enough to shield him from the chill.

He sat up slowly, running his fingers across the fabric. Faded blue, patched in places. It wasn't there last night.

He looked around.

Zubo was gone.

A quiet breath escaped his lips. Was it him? Maybe. Probably.

Harsha folded the shawl neatly, placed it beside him, and stepped outside. The jungle mist was thick, and the sky above was painted in pale orange streaks. Not far from the hut, a small stream flowed gently. He walked to its edge, splashed cold water on his face, and rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

The reflection in the water looked different now — not stronger, but certain.

He washed, dressed, and strapped his travel pouch tightly. He was ready.

Before leaving, Harsha turned back one last time and walked toward the main orphan shelter — where the others were waking up. Some glanced at him without expression; others whispered quietly.

Zogo sat on his usual chair, puffing on his crooked pipe. And beside him, as always — Yug. Reclined lazily, arms crossed, eyes half-lidded but watchful.

Zogo grunted.

> "Before you go, there's something left."

He looked at Yug.

"Yug… you've got nothing better to do. Harsha nearly defeated you. Admit it — if you hadn't used that temporary Elemental Stone that granted you lower-tier Earth resistance, nullifying most of the shock impact… you would've lost."

The others glanced at each other, startled by Zogo's bluntness.

> "So I want you to guide him," Zogo continued. "This time, no pride. Just purpose."

Yug let out a short laugh.

> "I already made myself clear. I don't follow losers."

He tilted his head toward Harsha.

> "If you think I'll be your guide, you're mistaken. You lost, remember? Don't you have any pride? Or are you here to beg again?"

Harsha stared back calmly.

> "I came here to say goodbye. Not to beg."

He slung his pouch over his shoulder.

> "I don't have time. My quest won't wait."

Yug stood up slowly, eyes narrowing.

> "Then go back home, kid. That forest — The Sacred Forest of Shadow — isn't a game. You don't survive there by being brave. You survive by being smart."

Harsha didn't flinch.

> "This quest is more important than my life. If I don't complete it, I won't survive anyway."

A pause. Then, Yug sighed, pulled a folded note from his belt, and tossed it toward Harsha.

> "Here. Take this. It's useless to me now."

Harsha caught it mid-air. A journal — faded brown leather, handwritten markings inside.

Yug didn't stop.

> "You know why blue gem monsters are rare? It's not the Shadow Monster that's the problem."

He pointed to the forest behind them.

> "It's that place. The forest rotates every hour. Directions change. You won't leave without a proper guide."

Yug turned away, muttering.

> "But whatever. I won't stop you. Your face already disgusts me."

Harsha looked at the front of the note. Scribbled across the top, in bold black ink:

"The Half-Blood Prince"

He didn't ask who that was. Didn't need to. He simply tucked it away and turned to leave.

But Zogo raised his hand.

> "Boy—wait."

Harsha paused.

> "You've got potential. If you keep going like this… you might become the greatest adventurer the world has ever seen. But don't walk into that forest. Not alone."

Zogo scratched his chin and laughed bitterly.

> "If you had more gold coins, maybe I'd go with you myself! But as it stands... I'm sorry."

Before Harsha could reply, a soft voice came from the crowd of orphans.

> "I'll go."

Everyone turned.

It was one of the smaller boys — the quiet one. Messy hair, thin frame. He stepped forward nervously, but his voice was steady.

> "I'll go with Mr. Harsha. I'm a guide too… not as strong as Yug or even the others, but I've traveled with him many times."

Harsha blinked.

> "Zubo… you're a guide?"

He turned to Zogo.

> "You said there were no guides left."

Zubo stepped forward, his tone firmer than ever before.

> "I was the first offer made to you. Remember?"

Harsha's eyes flickered with confusion for a moment.

Zogo's expression darkened, his pipe paused mid-air. He hadn't expected Zubo to bring that up again.

He grunted.

> "Tch… Of course he doesn't remember. I offered you that boy before — as your guide. But there was a condition."

He looked directly at Harsha, voice hard.

> "If anything happened to him during the quest… you would take his place. As my servant. For the rest of your life."

A murmur spread through the crowd of orphans.

Zubo didn't waver.

> "That deal doesn't matter anymore. I've made my own decision. I'm going. Not as a slave. Not under any condition. I choose to follow him."

"Every time Yug stepped into that shitty forest, I was there with him. I saw how it works, how it twists and changes. Maybe I'm not as skilled as him—but I know enough to guide you now."

He looked at Harsha.

> "I've made my decision. I'll follow you. Not as a slave. As a guide."

Zara interrupted, voice tense.

> "Zubo! You're not skilled like Yug! You don't know how to handle the Shadow Monster. Don't do this."

But Zubo didn't back down.

> "I won't grow hiding behind others. Let me prove I'm more than what you think."

The crowd murmured again. Zogo scratched his chin, annoyed.

> "Fine. But if you leave with him, Zubo… you owe me one gold coin per day. You're still my property. No free rides."

Harsha stepped up.

> "I'll cover it. Every coin. And I swear — not a single scratch will touch him."

Zubo bowed his head slightly.

Then without a word, he ran inside the hut.

Moments later, he returned with a packed bag.

Harsha raised a brow.

> "You… already packed?"

Zubo smirked.

> "I knew I'd go with you. I just waited for the right moment."

Harsha smiled faintly. For the first time since arriving, he wasn't walking alone.

The last of the words had been spoken. Promises made. Warnings ignored.

Without looking back, Harsha adjusted the strap on his shoulder and stepped forward. Zubo followed quietly, his worn backpack bouncing gently on his back with each step.

The jungle mist thickened around them, curling like smoke from the trees. The orphan shelter faded behind them, replaced by the looming silence of the wild ahead.

As they walked deeper into the unknown, Harsha glanced sideways, breaking the quiet with a smirk.

> "So… what've you got stashed in that bag? Treasure? Snacks? Secret weapons?"

Zubo didn't look at him, but a subtle grin curved his lips.

> "You'll find out when the time's right."

He paused just long enough to make Harsha wonder, then added with a quiet chuckle,

> "Let's just say… I packed for more than survival."

Harsha raised a brow but said nothing. He liked the mystery.

Together, they walked—one step at a time—toward a place that had swallowed many before them.

Ahead, the edges of the Sacred Forest of Shadow emerged. Dark. Still. Watching.

It didn't roar or move. It didn't need to.

Its silence was warning enough.

And as they crossed the last stretch of clearing, the device on Harsha's wrist blinked:

⏳ 5 days, 23hours, 37 minutes remaining.

The sun hung low behind thick jungle branches, casting strange shadows across the leafy trail. Harsha and Zubo — a human boy and a goblin of the same age — had just left Zogo's hut, stepping beyond the village walls and into the unknown.

Their journey toward the Sacred Forest had officially begun.

Despite their differences, both boys walked with the same silent question in their hearts: What lies ahead?

---

"So…" Harsha broke the silence, "why did you agree to come with me on this journey?"

Zubo slowed, his smile fading into a thoughtful pause.

> "Well, I'm not the smallest kid back in the village. There are little ones who can't earn yet, so someone has to take responsibility. The older ones — we have to step up."

He scratched the back of his neck.

> "But honestly… no one offers quests to someone like me. I'm weak. I'm not clever like Yug. Zogo assigned me to you by tricking you — same as always. That's how he keeps us moving."

Harsha stayed quiet, listening.

> "I want to grow stronger. I want to be able to provide for my family without relying on others. I'm tired of being the one everyone ignores. I want to be… respected. Like Yug."

He glanced at Harsha with a half-smile.

> "And maybe… this is my only chance to get out of my comfort zone."

There was a long pause.

Harsha stared at the path ahead and smirked to himself.

> "The developer really planned this well. If I'd won that test, I'd have gotten the smart, overconfident one who would've made every task easy. But since I lost…"

> "…I got Zubo. Brave, honest, but weak. Not bad. This'll make things more interesting."

> "At least I got a guide."

As the trees thickened and vines began to hang lower, Zubo broke the silence.

> "What about you? Why are you chasing after a hundred blue gems? It's not like Zogo assigned you a real quest. He tricked you with a fake contract."

Harsha chuckled, calm and vague.

> "Some secrets are meant to stay hidden."

Next chapter:17 No Turning Back