It was a long walk. The two subordinates and the woman guided me, but the atmosphere was quiet—almost suffocating. I couldn't bring myself to speak, and the only sound echoing through the corridor was the steady rhythm of our footsteps. Then, suddenly, we stopped.

  I couldn't see anything because of the blindfold, but I knew we had finally reached our destination. A single footstep echoed ahead, followed by a knock. Then, the woman spoke.

  "Commander, we are here."

  Hearing that, the two men began untying the rope around my hands but left the blindfold in place. A door creaked open—I assumed—but with my vision obscured, I couldn't be sure.

  "You both may leave now," the woman said.

  I heard the two men take a hesitant step forward, as if reluctant to go, before their footsteps grew distant. Just as they fully disappeared, I felt the woman grasp my hand and pull me into the room.

  A faint scribbling sound filled the silence. Our footsteps echoed against the walls, but the overwhelming quiet was unnatural, almost oppressive. The only audible sounds were the woman's footsteps, my own, and the pen scratching against paper.

  Then, suddenly, a hand touched the back of my head, untying the blindfold. As the fabric slipped away, my vision adjusted, and the first thing I saw was Lucas—his beauty almost unnatural.

  He sat at a large wooden desk, surrounded by towering stacks of books and scattered papers, writing something with unwavering focus. The room was well-furnished. To my left stood a bookshelf, followed by a closet with a mirror attached to it. To my right, statues clad in armor held swords, with various weapons displayed along the wall. A crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling, casting a soft glow across the room.

  Glancing toward the mirror, I caught sight of my own reflection. My face remained unchanged—average features, black hair, red eyes, pale skin, and a well-built physique, neither too skinny nor too muscular.

  The woman stepped closer to Lucas.

  "Commander, he's here," she announced.

  Lucas paused his writing and glanced at me with deep blue eyes, blurred slightly by his glasses. His long hair was tied back in a ponytail, and he wore a white long-sleeved shirt with black gloves. His long coat hung neatly on the chair behind him.

  Without a word, Lucas stood, adjusting his hair before opening a drawer in his desk. He rummaged through it for a moment before stopping abruptly. Then, he pulled out a small blade and, without hesitation, threw it directly at my chest.

  My heart lurched, but just before the blade could pierce me, it dissolved into nothingness—vanishing into thin air. Shocked, I fell to my knees, gasping.

  Lucas spoke.

  "Just as I thought. Tell me, do you think you are human? Or is it perhaps because of that necklace of yours?"

  A glow radiated from my chest. Looking down, I saw the source—it was the necklace, emitting a soft blue light.

  "Just as we expected," the woman murmured.

  Fear gripped me as I turned to Lucas.

  "Wh-what’s going on? Why did you suddenly—?" My voice wavered, but before I could finish, I saw the way he stared at me.

  "I do not see you as a monster," he said, his voice calm yet firm. "But your existence is... unknown to us."

  Lucas stepped closer.

  "Tell me, are my eyes telling the truth? That you are human? Or are they deceiving me?"

  I didn't know what to say. I had no answers, only fear and confusion. Lucas let out a heavy sigh.

  "Julian," he continued, "or at least, that is what my eyes tell me. Do you know who you are? Tell me the truth, and we will grant you mercy."

  His eyes changed—no longer blue, but gold. The moment I saw it, a memory resurfaced. The first time I met him, I had suspected Lucas of having the ability to read minds, though I was never certain. But golden eyes…? What did that mean?

  I had always thought about what I would do if we met again, but I discarded those thoughts immediately. Knowing his abilities, I couldn't afford to lie or make up a story.

  But this time, I forced myself to remain calm. I refused to let fear control me again and be manipulated again.

  Lucas smiled. He could see it—the difference in my demeanor. The last time we met, I had been consumed by fear for unknown reason. But now, I was composed.

  I met his gaze and spoke.

  "I’ve lost it. I cannot remember who I am or what I am."

  I stopped, knowing they suspected me of being a monster. Then, I added,

  "Whether I am a monster or not… that depends on what you believe. Isn't it all because of this necklace?"

  Lucas scoffed.

  "Julian, you are not human—at least, not in the way we understand. That is the truth. However, we are conflicted. Every monster we have encountered acts on instinct alone. They rampage, they attack, they kill. That is the difference between a monster and a human. But you… you have intelligence. You can communicate. That makes you unlike any monster we have encountered before."

  His words unsettled me.

  "Then why?" I asked, standing up. "Why am I being treated this way?"

  Lucas replied, "Julian, you had no left arm the day we found you. You were heavily wounded, with three holes in your abdomen. There was no blood—as if it had dried up." He paused before continuing, "Julian, you were practically dead when we found you. With wounds like that, it would have been impossible for a human to survive, and yet... you were still breathing."

  I was too stunned to speak. Fear was evident in my eyes.

  "D-Dead? That’s how you found me?" My voice trembled with fear.

  Despite my reaction, Lucas continued, "We were tasked with exploring the forest when we discovered the base of a cult outside our land, near the barrier where the monsters roam. We didn’t know what they were doing, but we stumbled upon them in the middle of our exploration. They were performing some kind of ritual—but whatever it was for, we’ll never know, because every single member of that cult was dead."

  Lucas’s golden eyes remained locked on me as he spoke. "The ritual failed. We assumed they summoned something terrifying—something that killed them all. We called in the Wolves Squad to investigate and then continued our mission deeper into the forest as ordered. I can’t disclose what else we found during that exploration, but I will tell you this much—where we found you is all the information you can have… for now."

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  I thought for a moment. Wolves Squad… was that the person from earlier?

  Lucas continued, "Anyway, we wandered further until we were quite far from the cult's base. Oddly enough, we didn’t encounter a single monster during our search—which was highly unusual. And then, we found you, Julian… by the White Tree, connected to it."

  I listened carefully, but his last statement confused me. "C-Connected? How so?"

  Lucas closed his eyes before explaining, "The roots of the tree, its trunk, and even its leaves were attached to your body—as if the tree was healing you. The necklace you wear was also glowing. Remember what I said? That you were dead? The tree and the necklace were trying to heal you, but even so, the holes in your abdomen remained, and your left arm was still missing."

  He continued, "That tree was unlike any other. Its bark was pure white, its leaves golden—it was glorious. And the necklace was radiating a golden light. You were glowing as well, perhaps because of its connection to you. We tried to approach you, but the moment we got close, the once-glorious tree turned black and withered. Your healing from the tree stopped, as if it had sensed us. However, the necklace remained unchanged—except for one thing. Instead of golden light, it began to emit a blue glow—the same glow it has now."

  Lucas's story made me question everything. My connection to the necklace—the one that showed me that terrifying woman—was making it difficult to process all this information. 'If the tree healed me… was it because of that woman? I wondered. And what about the tree itself?'

  Lucas, observing me closely, asked, "Have you finally remembered something? Anything about yourself or the necklace?"

  I looked at him and replied, "I don’t know… I’m not sure," a sad expression crossing my face. I didn’t reveal what I had seen in the necklace—I feared it would only fuel more suspicion about me or lead to a stricter investigation. However, I wasn’t lying either.

  Lucas sighed, then turned to the woman. She spoke up, "Did you see anything?"

  Lucas shook his head. "No. It’s still the same."

  Still curious about how they found me, So I asked, "So… what happened after the tree withered?"

  Lucas turned to me, smiling. The golden hue in his eyes faded like ink dissolving in water, returning to their usual deep ocean blue. "We removed you from the tree, but then we were swarmed. We ran as far as we could with you. Truthfully… we only took you because we wanted the necklace on your chest."

  The necklace… I thought.

  My curiosity grew stronger. "Then why haven’t you taken it from me?"

  Lucas walked toward me and reached for the necklace. The moment his fingers touched it, a surge of electricity erupted, stinging his hand. He immediately pulled back and looked at his palm. "This happens every time we try to take it from you."

  However, I noticed something—the electricity didn’t penetrate his skin. It was as if his black gloves had protected him.

  The scene reminded me of when I had also tried to remove it, but Lucas asked me, "You also tried to remove it, right? And it stung you as well?"

  I jolted at his words. This time, I really didn’t know what kind of ability Lucas had. So, I asked, "Ho-how did you know?"

  I was hoping Lucas might reveal his ability so I could be more cautious next time.

  But Lucas ignored my question. He turned around, walked to his desk, and sat down again. Then, he said, "I'll be honest with you." He crossed his arms and legs as he leaned back in the chair and continued, "The day we brought you to our base, we tried everything we could to remove it from you. We even attempted to kill you at that time, but the necklace was persistent."

  Lucas raised his hand and looked at the one he had used to reach for the necklace. "The necklace adapts. Even when we tried to protect ourselves with armor, it would change its method, finding a way to penetrate the armor and injure—or even kill—us in the process. It’s protecting you. We cannot get close to it. It holds a power we do not understand, and yet… you are its wearer."

  He continued, "Also, about your missing left arm and the holes in your body... in just three days, the necklace had already healed you. But your body was still in ruins—your veins, everything. Then, two days passed, and there was no change. You remained in that state. But on the third day, when I visited you, you were already awake, as if your body had healed in an instant. We weren’t observing you at that moment, and we were already on the verge of giving up."

  Lucas’s story brought back memories of the day I woke up—the unbearable pain I felt when I tried to move even a single part of my body.

  Lucas then asked, his voice firm, "So tell me, what happened when we weren’t watching you?" He glared at me, demanding an answer. "Don’t tell me you’ve forgotten that as well. I remember finding you on the floor when I opened the room. I didn’t ask then, but now’s the time."

  I let out a small sigh and thought, There’s no hiding it now. If what he said is true, then this necklace might be even more dangerous than I thought. Perhaps I could gamble my way out and let him handle it since I know nothing.

  I looked at Lucas and said, "When I woke up, my body was in a lot of pain."

  I didn’t want to tell him the part where I couldn't feel my body at all—it would make me sound like a monster. So, I mixed a lie with the truth. It was a lie that I woke up in extreme pain, but it wasn’t a lie that I still felt pain by just moving my body.

  I continued, "The first thing I noticed was that the necklace was glowing. I touched it."

  I stopped for a moment, gulping as fear crept into my voice before I went on.

  "And then… the room filled with darkness. Water pooled at my feet, rising higher and higher. A hand grabbed my ankle, and a woman emerged from the water. Her face was covered by another grotesque hand growing from her back. The water smelled different… and then, it turned to blood."

  I looked at Lucas and the woman beside him. They were listening intently.

  I continued, "The woman called me Julian Campbell… and she called me her son. But I don’t know who she is. All I know is that she was terrifying—her hands, her entire appearance."

  My heart pounded loudly, my hands trembling violently.

  "And then… she disappeared. And I collapsed onto the floor."

  I took a deep breath, composing myself before giving Lucas a serious look and asking, "At that time, how did you know the name Julian Campbell?"

  Lucas fell into deep thought before responding, "So that was the reason…" He paused before adding, "When we found you, I didn’t know your name. To be more precise, you didn’t have a name. Even after we brought you here, I couldn’t see a name on you. Perhaps… the woman you saw named you herself."

  I jolted at his words.

  Lucas continued, "If what you said is true, then that woman might be the original owner of the necklace—something completely unknown to us. And if she was the one who named you, she may have also given you intelligence… the ability to communicate with us."

  My heart pounded again, this time with an overwhelming sense of fear. I hesitated before asking, "Th-then… what am I supposed to do? If that woman truly gave me my name… if she gave me intelligence… why?"

  Before Lucas could answer, the woman beside him spoke instead.

  "We do not have enough information to explain why the woman you saw, or the owner of that necklace, granted you intelligence and healed you. As for what you should do, we already have plans for you, Julian. Regarding the woman, we will investigate her. But for that, we need your cooperation." She smiled. "We want you to join us and become one of us. That was our original intention."

  I was shocked by her words. "Join? What does that mean?"

  Lucas answered, "Julian… become a Worldwalker. Right now, no one here trusts you, and we are in charge of you. So, to keep you close to us, we want you to become one of us."

  Despite his explanation, I still asked, "Why? Doesn't becoming a Worldwalker grant power? Why give me one?"

  Lucas sighed. "It’s not that I don’t trust you—but they don’t. We proposed this to the others, and of course, some objected. But in the long run, having you as one of us benefits everyone. With that unknown necklace in your possession, we might finally get some of the answers we need."

  He added, "Right now, Julian, we need power. Because we don’t know how long we can truly survive in this world. And also… I see the truth in you. You might think I have the ability to read minds, but it’s not that—I can see the truth to every being i saw."

  Silence filled the room as I processed everything. Hera and Lucas watched me closely.

  Lucas broke the silence. "Julian, right now, no one can hear us in here. The room is sealed by a special crystal behind you."

  I turned behind me and saw the door and noticed a green crystal embedded above it.

  Lucas continued, "You are free to say whatever you want in here. It’s a difficult choice, after all. There are both benefits and risks to becoming a Worldwalker. Since you know nothing about it, I’ll give you a brief explanation."

  He leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes. "But don’t think we have all the answers. Some information about Worldwalkers has been lost."

  He continued, "The benefits of being a Worldwalker include gaining power to protect yourself—your strength, mind, senses, and everything about you will be enhanced. But the drawbacks outweigh the benefits. Becoming a Worldwalker will allow you to see things you shouldn’t. You will hear things you do not want to. And unknown entities may start lingering around you, waiting to devour you.

  "There’s also the risk of failure. If you don’t have the ability to become one, you will instantly die. In the worst case… you’ll turn into something far worse—a monster. A Nightspawn. And even if you do succeed, that risk never disappears."

  Lucas’s expression darkened. "Julian, if you become a Worldwalker…"

  His voice lowered.

  "Don’t ever get devoured."

  He let that warning sink in before adding, "If there’s one thing we know about Worldwalkers, it’s this…"

  He paused, his face filled with sorrow.

  "We are the nightmares of this world. The protectors who get devoured. Pathetic beings full of regrets and sorrow… who eventually become the destroyers."

  Lucas looked me in the eye and asked,

  "Julian… that is all I can tell you for now. So tell me—are you willing to take the risk and become a nightmare of the world?"