The moment I turned my back on Old Man Barney's shop, there was not a shred of hesitation in my steps.
I heard the old man's voice calling after me, but I didn't look back.
I couldn't look back now.
If I turned my head, I knew this resolve would be dulled by the only warmth that had held me together in this bleak heap of scrap.
My eyes were fixed on a single point.
Beneath the ash-gray sky, the Scrap Mountain rose like a colossal tombstone.
And sleeping at its peak, 'The Cursed Ship.'
Until yesterday, it had been a mere pull toward the past.
But not anymore. Now, I needed power.
Overwhelming power, to protect my only family, and this second home I'd grown to care for without even realizing it.
The weight of the 'Sky Hammer' on my back was as heavy as ever, but my steps were no longer those of a 'Junker' hunting for scrap.
They were the steps of a 'Pilgrim' going to face her origin and destiny. If the Sky Hammer was a tool for survival, my will was now aimed at a goal beyond survival.
*
The path to 'The Ship's Graveyard' was more than just treacherous; it was a living hell.
My only compass was the faint warmth of the 'Arkelos Crystal Shard' pulsing within my coat.
Normally, I would have taken the safest and fastest route, one my feet and eyes had memorized over the past ten years.
But now, my steps relied solely on the pull of the pulsing crystal.
It was leading me into the deepest, most twisted veins of the maze, to places I had never been.
The first gate was a massive, vertical cliff of steel, known among Junkers as 'The Weeping Wall.'
Its surface was coated in a slick, sticky film of rust, oil, and toxic liquids that had trickled down for centuries.
With my gloved hands, I clung to protruding bolts and warped pipes, pulling myself up precariously, like an acrobat.
That's when it happened.
A glob of oil from above splattered onto the old bolt my boot was resting on.
Squelch—
With a sickening sound, my boot slipped.
"Kuh!"
A short cry escaped me as my body tilted into the void. Hundreds of meters below, I could see the swirling sea of clouds opening its maw to swallow me.
But ten years of instinct were faster than fear.
The moment I fell, I frantically scrabbled at the wall with my free hand.
My fingertips caught the sharp edge of a steel plate.
I threw my entire body weight into the grip.
A tearing pain soon flowed through my arm, but the fall had stopped. I hung from the steel wall, gasping for breath, my heart hammering against my ribs as if to break them.
My glove was torn, and I could feel the metallic tang of blood seeping from my palm. But I lifted my head. Fear was a luxury I couldn't afford right now.
With every inch I pulled myself upward, a constant shower of 'Rustfall'—fine metallic dust—fell like snowflakes, obscuring my vision.
When I carefully placed my foot, corroded steel fragments screamed as they broke away, plummeting into the distant sea of clouds hundreds of meters below.
But strangely, I wasn't afraid.
Rather, with every step forward, I felt the crystal in my coat glow warmer, and the blood in my veins run hotter.
A strange sense of relief, as if I were hearing the warm voice of home calling to me from within the cold heart of steel. The crystal's warmth was more than just a guide.
It was the very force that gave me strength.
How long had I been climbing? I finally reached a dead end where all paths ceased.
The wreckage of three colossal warships, impaled through one another, blocked the way forward like a giant steel fist.
Beyond it, I could feel the crystal pulsing, burning as if it would burst. My destination was on the other side.
But this place was a legendary zone known as 'The Grinder,' rumored to crush everything in the deepest parts of the maze with immense pressure.
My eyes narrowed. Without hesitation, I drew the Sky Hammer from my back. I couldn't just swing wildly.
One wrong impact on this unstable structure, and the entire area could collapse in an instant.
I slowly scanned the structure of the wall.
Then, a 'Blue Aether Flame' flickered in my left eye, and I could see the creaking balance of forces.
The twisted armor plates, the H-beams bent under pressure, and the point where the power cores of the three ships were miraculously interlocked in equilibrium.
That was my target: the connection point of the power cores, the weakest link.
"Hah—!"
With a short exhale, I swung the Sky Hammer with all my might.
CRACK—
It wasn't a simple boom.
It was a sickening, grinding rupture—the sound of a giant's bones, compressed for centuries, finally snapping. A massive fissure spiderwebbed across the wall.
Again!
CRUNCH—
With the roar, rusted fragments rained down.
After a few more strikes, the connection point finally shattered, creating a dark hole just large enough for one person to squeeze through.
Without a moment to brush off the dust, I shoved myself into the opening.
At the same instant, a deafening, earth-shattering roar erupted behind me.
The entire unstable steel platform I had just been standing on collapsed into the abyss that yawned open like the jaws of a great beast.
If I had been just one second later… The image of myself plummeting into the chasm sent a cold sweat down my spine.
I passed through the hole, gasping for breath, and emerged on the other side.
And for a moment, I could only stare blankly at the scene that unfolded before my eyes.
It was a vast cavern, filled with a strange silence unlike anywhere else in Rust Haven. All the surrounding scrap debris had been pushed back as if by a great force, creating a circular space. And in its center, bearing the weight of centuries, the 'Cursed Ship' lay dormant.
Up close, the sight of the ship was overwhelming.
Most of it was entangled with the wreckage of other ships, looking like part of the colossal scrap heap itself, but the elegant curve of its keel, soaring through the sharp wreckage of other shattered ships, was like the spine of a giant.
Its surface was entirely covered in dark red rust and gray dust, and scrap fragments that had fallen from above over the long years were embedded in it or had melted onto it, encasing its original form like a thick stone shell.
Mesmerized, I walked closer to the ship.
With each step, the crystal shard in my pocket grew hotter, as if it would burst, and a strange ringing began to sound in my head.
The fate of 'Steel-Tooth Jack' flashed through my mind, but there was no turning back now.
And finally, I stood before the ship's hull.
I raised a trembling hand and placed my palm on the centuries-old rust and dust.
A cold touch. The touch of dead metal.
But nothing happened. Was it all just a vain hope?
Just as I was about to pull my hand back in disappointment, it happened.
Vvvvvvvmmmm—
From the point of contact, a dazzling pulse of blue light erupted.
"Kuh…!"
It wasn't just light. It was a massive wave of energy that surged through my body.
The pulse of light blew away the centuries of rust and dust, revealing the ship's true form.
Where the dark red rust had peeled away, a smooth hull of deep indigo crystal alloy shone with the deep light of the night sky.
Above it, like the skeleton of a living creature, intricate mechanical devices of countless interlocking gears and valves gleamed in gold and silver.
Polished copper pipelines flowed along the hull's elegant curves, brass railings lined the deck, and steel-reinforced joints strengthened the ship's main connections.
It was a wondrous sight I had never seen before, like a living crystal body clad in exquisitely crafted mechanical armor.
It was not a mere machine. It was a living work of art. It was the very soul of Arkelos.
And with that dazzling sight, forgotten sensations stormed through my mind.
The sweetness of 'Stardust Jelly' melting on my tongue. The tingling sensation of Aether Spores on my skin in the air of the 'Star-Cluster Festival' night. The clear, transparent melody of Mom's favorite 'Crystal Harp' echoing through the garden as it struck the crystal pillars. The great blue river of Star-Cluster Jellyfish crossing the night sky, seen from Dad's shoulders.
"May your light fly the farthest and light up our tomorrow."
Mom's gentle voice as she hugged me.
"My daughter is the best!"
Dad's proud laughter as he lifted me high. Happiness. Love. Warmth. All the feelings I had forgotten for ten years—no, all the feelings I believed I had forgotten—came rushing back at once.
I fell to my knees under the unbearable weight of emotion.
Tears streamed down my cheeks. They were not tears of sorrow. They were the tears of someone who had finally found her lost self again.
Before me, collapsed from the aftershock of the resonance, the ship's hatch opened smoothly, without a sound.
From within, not darkness, but a soft blue light emanated, as if calling to me.
I wiped my tears, pushed my staggering body upright, and stepped inside.
The interior was a marvel in itself.
As I stepped inside, the walls and ceiling of the corridor began to glow, guiding my way.
It was not a cold, linear metal corridor like those on an Imperial ship.
All the walls and passages were made of soft curves, and through the translucent blue crystal walls, I could see blue Aether pulsing and flowing like blood vessels. The 'Artery of Light'.
With every step, the crystal on the floor reacted softly, creating waves of light beneath my feet.
A sense of mystery, as if I had entered the body of a giant creature. This place was alive.
Following the guidance of the light, I could glimpse other spaces on either side.
In one, a cabin with beds made of ergonomic curves. In another, what looked like a medical bay or a laboratory, filled with transparent crystal devices of unknown purpose, lay dormant.
Everything was perfectly preserved, without a speck of dust, as if it had been used just yesterday.
Finally, the flow of light led me to a large, circular door.
As I approached, the door opened smoothly like an iris, without a sound, and welcomed me inside.
It was the bridge.
It was a space completely different from the bridges of Imperial ships, which were filled with mechanical controls and complex instrument panels.
A wide, tranquil, circular space.
Beyond the massive transparent crystal window at the front, the ashen landscape of Rust Haven, which I had just escaped, unfolded like a painting.
And in the center, where all the light converged, a single crystal sphere floated in the air.
The 'Core Synapse.'
Mesmerized, I approached it and raised a trembling hand.
In that instant, the entire bridge awoke.
From the floor and walls, countless information windows rose like holograms.
The orbits of stars, energy flow diagrams, surrounding terrain information. And on the large central screen, an emblem of blue crystal and wings appeared clearly.
It was the emblem of Arkelos.
'Jayn Rumor.' A voice echoed not in my head, but directly in my soul.
It was not a mechanical sound. It was a warm voice, like the longed-for voices of my mother and father combined into one.
'You have returned.'
I saw my reflection in the screen.
For the last ten years, I had survived in the ashes, wearing the mask of the 'Ghost.'
But what was reflected on the screen now was no longer a ghost.
The last survivor of Arkelos. Jayn Rumor.
"Yes... it's me."
In the emotional moment of reclaiming my name, a colossal energy, as if to devour everything, erupted from the 'Core Synapse' I was touching.
The awakened ship, the 'Lumina Rip,' was roaring.
The ceiling of the bridge opened, and a massive pillar of blue Aether waves pulsed out, echoing across the entire sky.
A signal of hope, tearing through the eternal twilight of Rust Haven and reaching to the highest point of the sky.
And at the same time, the most dangerous beacon, one that would summon the shadow of the Celestial Empire.