The village did not feel unfamiliar.
That was what frightened Lucy most.
As Merlin drove the rust-worn road into the settlement tucked against the mouth of the Evergreen Forest, Lucy felt something stir beneath her skin — not fear, not wonder — but recognition.
Every narrow lane.
Every hanging lantern.
Every wooden door warped with age.
Every stone underfoot.
It all whispered her name.
"This is impossible…" Lucy murmured, pressing her fingers against the cold window glass.
Merlin glanced at her.
"You okay?"
Lucy swallowed.
"I… I don't understand. I've never been here. I know that. But I feel like I've lived here."
Merlin did not answer immediately.
The village was silent — too silent.
Lights flickered inside homes, yet no laughter drifted from within. No children played in the alleys. No voices called from doorways.
It felt as if the entire settlement were holding its breath.
As if it were waiting.
The car slowed near a massive ancestral house at the village center. Thick wooden beams shaped the structure. Old protective symbols were carved into every doorframe and beam.
"This is the chief's residence," Merlin said.
Lucy's chest tightened.
She stepped out of the vehicle slowly.
Her foot touched soil.
And in that instant, a memory crashed through her skull like thunder—
A child's laughter.
Bare feet running through rain.
Her father's voice, warm and alive.
"Lucy, don't go near the lake!"
She staggered.
Merlin caught her arm.
"Lucy?"
"I… I heard him," she whispered. "My father."
Merlin went still.
Before he could ask anything further, the great door of the chief's estate opened.
An old man stood at the threshold.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
Weathered like stone carved by centuries of storm.
His eyes locked onto Lucy.
And something ancient passed through them.
Slowly, the old man placed one hand against the doorframe.
"…You've come."
Lucy stared at him, heart thundering.
Her lips moved before her mind caught up.
"Chief... Omar."
The name fell from her mouth like destiny.
The old man stiffened.
His breath caught.
A murmur of shock escaped him.
"No one," he said slowly, surveying her face with a dawning terror, "calls me that anymore."
Lucy frowned.
"What do you mean? That's your name."
Merlin turned sharply toward her.
"Lucy— how do you know him?"
The chief stepped back as if she had struck him.
"…I have never seen you before," he whispered. "Never. And yet… you speak my name like it is written on your soul."
Lucy felt dizzy.
"I don't know how I know you. But I do. I… I feel like I've known you forever."
Chief Omar stared at her as if watching the dead rise.
Then, without warning, he stepped aside.
"Come in," he said hoarsely. "Both of you."
They entered.
The house breathed history.
The scent of old books, sacred ash, dried herbs.
They were escorted into a vast inner hall where a low table sat between cushions.
Tea was served.
But Lucy's hands trembled too hard to accept the cup.
Chief Omar sat across from her, never taking his eyes off her face.
After a long silence, he spoke.
"…Why are you here?"
Lucy lifted her shaking gaze.
"I came for my father."
Omar closed his eyes.
The strength seemed to drain from his shoulders.
"He told me…" the chief whispered. "He told me this day would come."
Lucy leaned forward.
"My father said something to you?"
Omar slowly nodded.
"Many years ago. He said if his daughter ever came seeking the truth… I must tell her to leave immediately. To run away and never look back. To live peacefully with her grandmother and forget him as if he had died long ago."
Lucy clenched her fists.
"My father is dead."
Omar inhaled sharply.
"And not by accident," Lucy continued. "Not by animals. Not by fate."
Silence collapsed heavily between them.
"I will not run," she said.
Omar looked at her with sorrow flooding his ancient eyes.
"You should not dig into graves that do not belong to the dead alone."
Merlin leaned forward.
"Then don't tell her about the death," he said firmly.
Omar turned.
"I won't."
Merlin's voice hardened.
"But tell us everything else."
The old chief studied Merlin for an extended moment.
"Captain Damien's son," he murmured.
Merlin stiffened.
"…You know my father?"
Omar's gaze darkened.
"Yes," he said softly.
"And he stood before these gates with your mother one winter, carrying his newborn son like something sacred."
Merlin swallowed.
Omar exhaled.
"You have no idea what kind of forest surrounds you," he said. "Or what kind of beings sleep beneath your feet."
Lucy's pulse quickened.
"Tell us about the werewolf," Merlin urged.
Omar's expression hardened.
"The villagers do not call him that."
Lucy whispered.
"What do they call him?"
Omar's lips trembled.
"…Volmer."
The forest itself seemed to hush.
"The guardian of moon and beast," Omar said. "The abandoned god."
Lucy's breath caught.
"And the others?" Merlin asked.
"The Divine Beasts," Omar continued. "Arcis, the winged lion of flame. Vernes, the twin-faced eagle of wind. Nago, the five-headed serpent of water. Zoro, the horned titan of earth."
Omar clenched his fist.
"And Volmer… born of wolf and man… cursed by betrayal."
His eyes drifted away from them.
"…And now, awake."
Lucy shivered.
"Then… that girl on the cloth… what is she?"
Omar flinched.
Lucy's voice barely remained steady.
"The one in his eyes. The one he called back."
The chief looked directly at her.
"You."
Her world stopped.
"What?"
"You," Omar repeated. "Lucy Desmond."
Merlin shot to his feet.
"What are you saying?"
Omar closed his eyes.
"She does not remember…" he murmured. "Just like he hoped."
Lucy felt something rip open inside her.
"Remember WHAT?!"
Far beneath the forest's roots…
Beyond rock… beyond time…
Down 999 stone steps carved by hands now dust…
A deep cavern opened.
A sacred valley hidden from the sky.
At its center stood a monument of black stone.
And surrounding it, a vast crystal lake glowing faint blue.
A procession emerged from the cave tunnel.
Men.
Terrified men.
They dragged a young girl with them.
Her mouth was bound.
Her eyes desperately searching for a miracle.
They stepped onto the causeway crossing the glowing lake.
Their knees buckled as they neared the monument.
They dropped to the ground.
"Hail Great Nago— Lord of Water and Serpent!" one cried in fear.
"Accept our gift!" another sobbed.
They hurled the girl forward.
She screamed.
She begged.
She clawed at stone with bloodied fingers.
The lake began to ripple.
Then boil.
A massive shape rose.
Five heads.
Five glowing eyes.
Fangs longer than swords.
Nago emerged like a nightmare from myth.
The central head leaned in.
Its voice rolled like thunder through water.
"Another sacrifice," it hissed. "Again?"
"We beg you!" the men cried. "Give us strength! Protect our homes! Curse our enemies!"
The serpent stared at the sobbing girl.
Its eyes burned.
"…Humans," it growled. "You promise loyalty and offer blood. Every. Single. Time."
The serpent lunged.
It swallowed the girl whole.
The men froze in terror.
They dared not move.
"L-Lord…?" one whispered.
"Did we… succeed?"
Silence.
Then—
The heads snapped toward them.
Something far more furious than hunger gleamed in Nago's eyes.
"Did you just ask me… if you were successful?"
The serpent struck.
One by one, it devoured them all.
Limbs vanished.
Screams drowned.
Bones crushed.
Blood stained sacred water.
And then— stillness.
One head lifted slowly.
It turned toward the monument.
Something else stirred.
Heat.
Flame.
Power.
A distant roar echoed across the dimension.
A roar of rage.
Nago hissed.
"…Arcis."
The monument glowed red.
A lion's silhouette flickered within flame.
Eyes of fire opened.
A thunderous voice boomed.
"She has returned."
Nago recoiled.
"…Impossible."
"She is alive."
The lion's voice shook earth.
"And the forest feels her."
Why do I feel like… something is screaming inside my chest?"
Omar knelt before her.
"Because," he whispered, "your soul does not let yoyknow until right time."
Merlin looked alarmed.
"Explain."
Omar hesitated.
Then spoke.
"…Your father was not just a forest officer. He was a warden. A watcher. A man tasked with guarding something no human should ever understand."
Lucy's breath quivered.
"He loved you," Omar continued. "More than life. More than truth."
Lucy began to cry.
"He refused to let the forest have you."
Her chest heaved.
"He believed… if you grew up human… you would live free."
Merlin whispered.
"But the forest doesn't forget."
Omar nodded gravely.
"And neither does Volmer."
Lucy whispered.
"Then why… why me?"
Omar gently reached out.
And touched her forehead.
And something exploded inside her—
Moonlight.
Blood.
Fire.
A wolf's howl in her chest.
"Because," he said, voice breaking…
"You were born of a promise the forest never agreed to forget."