Kayaku stared at the glowing words on the map.
His eyes widened in confusion.
"What…?" he muttered.
"Three keys…?"
This map is crazy…" he said, shaking his head.
"It's like some kind of game."
He looked again at the strange message.
"Unknown quests… mysterious keys… and puzzles everywhere."
Dodo frowned slightly.
"Yeah… but someone clearly wants us to follow this path."
Atoi quietly folded the map, his eyes still thoughtful. Kayaku continued talking, complaining about the strange map and its mysterious quests.
"This whole thing is ridiculous… keys, puzzles, glowing maps…"
But Dodo and Atoi were not really listening.
They had already walked to the pillar and sat down beside it. The cold stone
stood quietly behind them.
Kayaku finally noticed and looked at them.
"Hey… are you even listening to me?" he said in frustration.
Dodo glanced at him calmly, while Atoi simply looked up at the tall pillar in silence. Frustrated, Kayaku clenched his fist.
"With all these crazy clues—!"
Bang!
He punched the pillar in anger.
At that exact moment, a stone with a carved sun symbol slid into the pillar with a loud grinding sound.
Grrrrr…
The ground trembled slightly.
Dodo and Atoi quickly stood up.
"What was that?!" Dodo said.
Suddenly, something changed in the forest.
Between the tall pine trees, three separate paths slowly revealed themselves, each leading in a different direction.
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Far away from the forest, deep within a lost castle, an old man sat quietly on the cold stone floor.
The castle was silent and broken by time.
Dust drifted slowly through the dim light.
The old man closed his tired eyes.
In his mind, a single name echoed.
"Ermin…"
His voice was weak.
"I could not protect our land… but the sword is still there."
He slowly lifted his head.
"I have waited for so long… yet no one has come."
A deep silence filled the ruined hall.
Then he whispered softly,
"Perhaps… my time is coming."
"But I still believe…
one of your blood still lives in this world."
"I am going to my last fight."
He paused for a moment.
"I know… I may lose this battle."
His eyes moved toward the ancient weapon resting nearby.
"But my only hope… is Enhok's sword."
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Atoi walked over to Kayaku's side and looked closely at the stone he had punched.
He examined the sun symbol carved into the pillar.
Then he noticed something important.
Around the symbol, there were three small sockets carved into the stone.
They were shaped like keyholes.
Dodo walked closer to the pillar to see what Atoi had found. she noticed something near the three key sockets. There were other strange symbols carved beside them.
Her eyes widened.
"Atoi… come look at this," she called.
She pointed at the carvings.
"Look at these symbols."
The pillar stood silently in the middle of the pine forest.
Atoi then turned his head and looked toward the three different paths that had appeared between the trees.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
He was thinking.
The wind moved softly tWhrough the tall pines.
Finally, Atoi spoke.
"I understand now."
Dodo and Kayaku looked at him.
Atoi pointed toward the three paths.
"We each take one path… and find the keys."
When Kayaku heard Atoi's plan, he immediately shook his head.
"No… no…!" he said quickly.
"That can't be."
He turned and looked at Dodo.
"Look at her," Kayaku said with concern. "She's a girl. It's too dangerous for her to go alone."
Dodo crossed her arms and looked straight at Kayaku.
Her eyes were sharp and a little annoyed.
Atoi looked at both of them calmly.
His voice was firm.
"There is no other option."
He glanced toward the three paths between the pine trees.
"If we want to find the keys… we must split up."
Kayaku ran his hand through his hair in frustration.
He looked completely overwhelmed.
"Have you both lost your minds?!" he shouted.
His eyes moved from Atoi to Dodo.
"This is crazy!" .
Dodo looked at Kayaku calmly.
"Kayaku-sama…" she said softly.
"If we want to find the keys, we have to follow these paths."
She pointed toward the three directions between the pine trees.
"Once we find them, we can come out of this place… and continue our journey to Misty Rain."
A long silence followed.
Kayaku lowered his head, thinking deeply about the task.
His eyes slowly moved toward the three paths.
"If we do this…" he said quietly, "then once the task is complete, the three of us must return here… together." He paused for a moment. "Otherwise… someone might get lost… and never make it back." The wind passed through the pine trees, carrying a heavy feeling. This was not just a choice it was a risk.
Kayaku lifted his head and looked at the three paths.
After a brief moment, he spoke with quiet determination.
"Alright… then I'll take the straight path."
His eyes were steady now, the hesitation gone.
Atoi looked at them… and simply smiled.
"I'll go left," he said calmly.
Dodo nodded, her eyes firm.
"Then I'll take the right path."
The three of them stood at the edge of the forest paths—
each choosing their own direction.
Kayaku walked over to Dodo.
"Without speaking, he pulled the blade from his waist."
For a moment, he held it… then extended it toward her.
Dodo looked at him, surprised.
Kayaku's voice softened.
"Take this… it will always protect you."
The wind moved gently through the trees as she accepted the sword.
The three of them stood in front of their chosen paths.
Each path stretched into the forest, quiet and unknown.
For a moment, none of them spoke.
They simply stood there, ready to go their separate ways.
The three of them looked at each other one last time. No words. Just understanding. Then They stepped forward. Each of them moved onto their own path. The forest swallowed them slowly, one by one. A cold wind swept through the valley, brushing against the tall pine trees.
The branches swayed gently…
as if watching them disappear into the unknown.
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The old man sat on the cold floor in front of the ancient throne.
The empty hall was silent.
He slowly lifted his head and whispered his final words.
Then he took a long, heavy breath.
"Dodo…"
"it is time… for us to see each other....."