"Kids! How many times do I have to tell you! It's dangerous to play in the woods!"
Kona, Layla, and Gunn, laughing and jumping, were running out of the forest, which surrounded the Gerga Village for tens, some say hundreds, of kilometers.
"Look mother! We've found a lost weapon from the era of the Great Mages!"
Eyes full of excitement, Kona ran towards his mother, proudly holding a stick that vaguely reminded the woman of a rapier. The boy's white hair was flowing in the wind, his pale eyes shining under that beautiful sunlight, as the boy jumped in his mother's arms.
You see, Kona was what we'd call an albino. In these regions, luckily for him, this wasn't seen as anything bad, but outside of the Banerya Kingdom, which extended along the coast of the southern region of the Mainland, people with this condition were isolated and sometimes even killed for religious and cultural beliefs.
Kona and his friends, a little girl named Layla, and an aspiring scholar called Gunn, had decided to spend these hot summer days exploring the enormous forest around the village, in an attempt to imitate their fathers, who'd go out there hunting for food.
Despite the bravery of the children, this habit wasn't really appreciated by their parents.
"It's really nice, Kona, but you kids really shouldn't go around exploring the forest. It's full of animals and God knows what other creatures, definitely not the place for a bunch of nine year-olds."
"You little..! What are you doing? Messing with my wife?"
Kona's father, a tall, slender man named Junas, very much liked making fun of them and, unlike his wife Eve, kind of supported their adventurous spirit. In situations like this one, he'd always say that experience is the best teacher, and go on ranting about his old adventures, when he used to work as a mercenary, before meeting the love of his life.
Of course, the kids were captivated by these adventurous stories, which fueled their enthusiasm and made their spirits burn - something Kona's mom, as well as the other parents, wasn't quite fond of.
"And what in the world is this fierce, bloody weapon that you've got here!?"
Junas grabbed the "lost weapon from the era of the Great Mages", and began swinging it jokingly towards the kids.
"Junas, c'mon, stop it!"
Eve started laughing at that childish of a man. He was usually extremely reliable, but at times he acted *extremely dumb*.
The rest of the day went on as per usual, and the three kids spent the evening planning their next great adventure:
Gunn, who was looking at him all frowned, tilted his head slightly.
"Um, Kona, can you give us a recap of the plan?"
The small fireplace was crackling, sending deep shadows along their faces, as Kona jumped up from his chair.
"All right, listen up! We all remember the ruins we found today, right?"
Layla and Gunn nodded.
"Very well. Tomorrow, when the sun rises, we'll find our way in. Remember, the adults can't see us, otherwise they'll want the treasure for themselves!"
Layla and Gunn nodded even more aggressively."We'll meet behind the old windmill, at the western edge of the village. Remember, we need torches, otherwise we won't see a thing. Layla, are you sure that you can bring *those*?"
"I'm not a dummy like this one over here!" - said the girl, pointing at the poor Gunn - "Of course I'll bring them!"
The kids' plan involved Layla stealing some of her father's weapons, which they'd use to venture inside the ruins hidden in the depths of the forest. If the adults knew about it, they'd probably be *slightly* against it.
The next morning, as the sun painted orange trees and rooftops, the trio ventured in the forest, fully equipped and ready. Well, as ready as three nine year-olds can be.
Leading the pack through the dark forest was Kona, holding an old, beat up dagger bigger than his head. Layla, with her training bow, was just a few steps back, while Gunn, dragging along an old staff, was stumbling in the roots of the ancient trees, a couple more meters behind them.
The boy with the staff was feeling quite unsure about this secret mission:
"Guys, are you sure? Are we really doing this?"
"C'mon Gunn! Aren't you a true adventurer?"
Kona lifted his dagger towards the sky, his pale eyes burning with passion in the few light rays that had started infiltrating through the branches. He was determined: the ruin's treasure and the glory of adventurers was waiting for them!
"Imagine how glorious our return will be, Gunn!"
Layla also felt quite excited about this. The young girl, walking among the giant trunks, felt like Khanaara, a famous heroine of the legends, whose bow was known to pierce entire mountains.
And Kona, with that dagger she gave him, looked just like the famous swordsman, Doran, Khanaara's husband.
Layla blushed, her thoughts flowing: the lack of attention made her stumble, faceplanting into a pile of leaves.
"Pahh! Layla! What kind of heroine does that!"
Kona's smile showed all 32 of his teeth, his finger pointed at the unfortunate girl.
Gunn, on his part, wasn't feeling very joyful. The secrecy of the mission and the forest's atmosphere, something about this situation was unsettling him.
------
The sun was now high up in the sky when the kids finally arrived. There they were, the ancient ruins! A small structure, almost buried in the ground, leaves and branches hiding it from an inattentive eye. The mossy stones, placed there in some remote times, and eaten by the forest, had the kids hesitate for a moment, in admiration.
"Here we are, team! The treasure is waiting for the heroes!"
Kona couldn't help but jump with excitement. Finally, their first great adventure! What would his mom say, when she'd see them return with a pile of gold so big it could turn the village into a never ending city. Of course, Kona had never seen neither gold nor cities.
Approaching the mossy stones, however, an unsettling detail caught Gunn's eye.
"Hey, um, guys… The door, it wasn't open yesterday, was it? What if someone is in there? A bandit? A monster?"
"Gunn, are you pissing your pants? There's nobody here! Tell him, Layla!"
Gunn looked down. Kona wasn't a bully, but sometimes he'd get a bit carried away. He was a really good friend, always ready to help and have fun with him. But sometimes, he had this side of his... It wasn't very nice.
"Yeah, right! Nothing to be scared of!"
Layla was also looking down, her voice shaky and scared, despite her words. She remembered the door to be closed as well.
"Tell him, Layla. There's nothing to be afraid of! It was already open, I'm sure! And if it wasn't, what could it ever be? A pig? A dog? We're not afraid, we're adventurers!"
Kona stepped forward, a big grin on his face, cutting the branches and leaves with the dagger, advancing towards the open entrance of the ruins.
The boy didn't know it yet, but his friend was right. Something was moving in the obscure depths of the mossy ruins.