Ren Zu stepped out of the simple cabin with silent footsteps, the wooden door creaking just once before closing on its own behind him.
The bamboo forest welcomed him like an old acquaintance; after all, he had spent quite a long time in this place…
The tall, green stalks rose in almost perfect rows, forming natural corridors that filtered the dawn light into soft golden and greenish beams. Each slender stem swayed gently with the morning breeze, producing that characteristic sound—a continuous, rhythmic whisper, like thousands of pages being turned at once by invisible hands. Droplets of dew still clung to the narrow leaves, occasionally falling with tiny, almost inaudible plinks against the damp earth. The ground was soft, covered by a thin layer of dry leaves and dark green moss that muffled any sound of footsteps.
The air was fresh, carrying the clean, slightly sweet fragrance of morning-dampened bamboo. There were no bird songs yet, only the living silence of the forest awakening. Low-lying mist hovered close to the ground, wrapping around the bases of the stalks and creating the illusion that the earth itself was floating. Rays of sunlight pierced the canopy at slanted angles, illuminating motes of dust and pollen that danced lazily in the air, turning the scene into something almost dreamlike.
He walked unhurriedly, his dark purple robes brushing softly against the lower stalks, the fabric moving with a fluidity that seemed to defy gravity. His long black hair rippled behind him like spilled ink, a few loose strands dancing in front of his flawless face.
After a few minutes, the bamboo grove began to thin.
And then… a lake appeared—a perfect mirror of clear, still water, surrounded by a shore of smooth moss-covered stones and a few larger rocks rising from the surface like tiny islands. The water was so transparent that it reflected the morning sky with absolute precision: the pale blue of dawn, the first hints of orange and pink on the horizon, the thin clouds slowly dissolving. There were no ripples, no jumping fish, no wind strong enough to disturb the surface.
Around the lake, the bamboo formed a natural wall, creating a small green amphitheater where sound seemed to die before it could even be born. A few wildflowers grew among the stones—small, white, almost translucent—and the dew on them sparkled like tiny diamonds.
Ren Zu stopped at the water's edge.
He gazed at the motionless surface. And murmured, almost to himself, his voice low and laden with distant nostalgia:
"It's been almost five years, hasn't it?"
Counting the last two years, it had already been five since he was reborn in this world. Time, curiously, seemed to have flowed in two directions at once—far too quickly when looking back, far too slowly while living through each moment. In that interval, he had gone through highs and lows, moments of progress and constant danger, where every decision had to be made with near-surgical precision.
Nothing he had achieved came by chance… Well, except for the things he gained through his unique ability, but that was another story. The point was his journey in this world: every step had been calculated, every move executed with the utmost care, because he knew exactly what was at stake. A single mistake would not mean mere failure—it would mean the end. And yet, everything had been working out. To any outside observer, his path might seem almost absurd, as if luck were always on his side, as if everything simply "worked out."
But that view was superficial. What no one saw was the weight behind each choice, the constant tension of walking along a line so thin it was barely perceptible. There was no room for slip-ups, no space for hesitation. Living that way demanded more than intelligence; it required absolute control, discipline, and a mental resilience that bordered on the limit.
Well… perhaps no one had noticed precisely because of that.
He was an excellent actor.
"Hmph…" A feminine voice sounded beside him, light but laced with impatience: "You're still here, wasting time on this kind of useless reflection? Hasn't it already been a year? Don't you need to return to the Illusory Demon Realm?"
As if the air itself had condensed, a figure began to slowly take shape beside him, emerging from nowhere with an unsettling naturalness. Hei Jiayue hovered a few centimeters above the ground, her body slightly tilted, as though gravity were optional for her. Her long dark hair cascaded downward, following the subtle motion of her levitation, while her arms remained crossed over her chest. Her sharp gaze—almost irritated by nature—fixed directly on Ren Zu, carrying clear disdain… and something harder to name.
Ren Zu did not answer immediately. His eyes still rested on the lake ahead, as though her words were merely another ripple on the tranquil surface. In recent days, he had spent hours in this place, immersed in thought, revisiting decisions, organizing ideas… and, occasionally, putting everything into verses that no one but him would ever read…
For Hei Jiayue, however, this had already crossed the boundary of patience. She had watched him for days, seeing him repeat the same silent ritual, detached from any concrete action, and it was beginning to make her restless. So she decided to manifest. Not just to break the silence, but to demand an answer…
"Good morning, Jiayue…" Ren Zu said casually.
That made her expression harden slightly.
"Who gave you permission to act so informally with this queen?" she retorted, frowning lightly. "I didn't appear here to exchange useless pleasantries…"
He finally shifted his gaze from the water, turning to her with his usual calm.
"I figured. Well, seeking answers to questions that naturally arise in the heart is inherent to being human. Reflecting on life's choices is too, since it allows us to mature. But since when did I let you become so arrogant? Do you want me to lock you in a cave for a couple of millennia?"
For a brief instant, the world seemed to stop.
The color drained from Hei Jiayue's face almost instantly.
The sharp, disdainful gaze from moments before faltered. Her eyes widened slightly, and the body that had floated with perfect arrogance lost some of its stability, dropping a few centimeters in the air.
"W-Wait…" Her voice cracked for half a second—something extremely rare. "You… you're not serious, right…?"
Ren Zu didn't reply, merely watched her with a calm, serious look that said he wasn't joking.
That was enough.
"M-Master!" The change was abrupt, almost violent.
Her crossed arms dropped immediately, and she drifted a little closer to him, hovering restlessly like a child who realized she had gone too far.
"I was joking! It was just a joke!" she said hurriedly, her voice carrying an urgency completely at odds with her usual demeanor. "You can't just lock me in a cave for millennia every time I say something!"
She looked away for a second, clearly uncomfortable, before meeting his eyes again.
"I… I was just bored!" she added in a smaller, almost sulky tone. "Watching you stand there thinking all day is annoying…"
The contrast was almost comical.
The same Hei Jiayue who had moments earlier called herself "queen" now hovered before him with a tense expression, clearly trying to avoid a fate she took very seriously.
Ren Zu stared at her in silence for a few seconds. Then, a faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
"You still believe that threat? You know I'm joking, right?" he murmured, his voice low, almost carefree.
His eyes analyzed every reaction of hers with precision.
Hei Jiayue froze.
"…Tch."
She looked away again, this time clearly annoyed with herself.
"That doesn't count, Master…" she grumbled, crossing her arms once more, though without the previous confidence. "Anyone would react that way after seeing the expression you were making…"
Ren Zu didn't answer right away.
The smile lingered for another moment… then vanished.
"Relax…" he said at last, turning his gaze back to the lake. "I didn't intend to lock you up this time…"
"…This time?" She froze again. "W-Wait, what do you mean by 'this time'?!"
But he no longer seemed interested in pursuing that topic, and she didn't get much chance to press him either. A certain "glutton" had awakened. Both of them heard a long, lazy yawn, followed by the far-from-discreet sound of a stomach rumbling loudly enough to echo across the calm lake like distant thunder.
The air around them seemed to distort for an instant, and then, without any warning, a small figure appeared floating right between them. Hong'er materialized as if summoned from the void, her ruby-red hair shining under the filtered rays of the bamboo grove, cascading down to her waist. Her face was one of childish perfection, large innocent eyes blinking sleepily, but her mouth was already half-open in anticipation, revealing sharp little teeth that seemed made to devour entire worlds. She yawned again, rubbing her eyes with the back of her tiny hand, before fixing her gaze directly on Ren Zu. Her lips curved into a mischievous and hungry smile at the same time.
"This young lady has woken up~" she announced to herself, her voice sweet and childish yet laden with voracious urgency. "Master… Hong'er is hungry!"
Hei Jiayue, who was still hovering with arms crossed and a somewhat sulky expression, suddenly turned toward the newcomer. Her eyes narrowed.
"You again? Right now?"
Hong'er didn't even glance at her. Her focus was entirely on Ren Zu, as if the rest of the world had vanished. She drifted closer to him like an impatient child, tiny hands stretched forward.
"Master, Hong'er dreamed about delicious food all night! Those 'Swords' like Master calls them—really big, shiny ones, full of strong energy… The ones that crunch when bitten and explode with flavor in the mouth~" She licked her lips dramatically, eyes sparkling like two red gems. "This Young Lady wants to eat now! Please, please, give it to Hong'er! Hong'er was a good girl, slept properly, and didn't eat anything secretly yesterday!"
Ren Zu let out a soft sigh, but the corner of his lips lifted in a resigned smile.
"You woke up at just the right time, huh?" he murmured, extending his right hand. With a thought, the space beside him trembled subtly, and several swords began to materialize out of nowhere, drawn directly from his "personal storage" space.
The first was a Deep Emperor Sword, its silver blade veined with pulsing bluish lines like living veins. The second, a wider Deep Sovereign Sword of deep black. The third was a Deep Tyrant Sword…
Hong'er let out a squeal of pure delight, clapping her hands in the air.
"Yay! Master is the best! You know how to make a young lady happy! Hong'er loves you~"
Without ceremony, she launched forward like a small red hurricane, opened her impossibly wide mouth, and bit the entire first blade in one go. The sound was like metal being crushed by diamond teeth. In seconds, half the sword was gone, fragments of light escaping like sparks as she chewed with visible delight, cheeks puffed out like a squirrel with nuts.
"Mmmph! Delicious!~" She swallowed with an audible gulp, eyes half-closed in pleasure. "Next!"
The black Deep Sovereign Sword was next. She grabbed it with both hands, spun in the air as if it were a giant lollipop, and took an enormous bite at the base. Chunks flew outward but evaporated before touching the ground, completely absorbed by her small body. Her red hair seemed to glow brighter for a moment, and a faint tremor of power emanated from her…
Hei Jiayue watched the scene with a mixture of disbelief and disgust.
"How can someone eat metal like that… and still make the face of someone tasting a royal banquet?"
Hong'er, mouth still full of the third sword (which she was devouring like a skewer of meat), turned to Hei Jiayue and stuck out her tongue.
"This young lady eats whatever she wants! You don't understand because you only eat boring grown-up things~"
Ren Zu chuckled softly, crossing his arms as he watched the little glutton in action. In less than a minute, the three swords had vanished, reduced to nothing but pure energy absorbed by her body. Hong'er finished by licking her tiny fingers, expression satisfied and sleepy once again.
"Ahhh… tummy full for now~" She floated over to Ren Zu and clung to his arm like a koala, rubbing her face against the dark purple fabric. "Master, Hong'er wants more tomorrow, okay?!"
Ren Zu gave her head a light pat, ruffling her ruby hair.
"I'll see what I can do. But rest a bit now. I don't want you falling asleep in the middle of a fight…"
Hong'er let out a cute "hmph," but was already yawning again, eyes heavy.
"This young lady obeys… but only because Master is nice…"
With that, she slowly dissolved into the air, returning to his inner space—probably to nap in the most comfortable spot she could find.
The lake returned to absolute silence. Hei Jiayue still hovered there, expression stunned.
"…You really spoil that… thing."
Ren Zu shrugged, turning his gaze back to the still water.
"You're not the first person to tell me that…"
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