The Goddess of Light tilted her head, her radiant smile still warm as she looked at the six figures kneeling on the marble floor. Her voice flowed like honey into every mind. "Tell me, stranger… who are you? How did a sixth soul answer my call?"
Haoboi stood slowly, brushing dirt from his faded lungi and worn shirt—the same clothes he had died in. He met her glowing eyes without fear. In the language that somehow everyone understood, he answered simply, his voice steady and humble.
"I am Haoboi. Just a farmer from Churachandpur in India. I died by accident… a bull pierced my heart while I worked the fields with my family. I was in the dark nothing when your light pulled me here. I do not know why."
For a heartbeat the throne room stayed bright and welcoming.
Then the Goddess's smile shattered.
Her beautiful face twisted into cold fury. The light around her flared harsh and white, like lightning before a storm. The five other heroes flinched back.
"How dare you?" she hissed, voice cracking like a whip. "A useless farmer? In dirty rags that stink of mud and cattle? You slipped through my sacred summoning like some stray dog? Standing here, in my holy hall, breathing the same air as my chosen ones? Even your name is pathetic—Haoboi? It sounds like a cough!"
She stepped forward, silver hair whipping like snakes. "For someone like you, death was better. You are nothing. A mistake."
Before Haoboi could speak again, she snapped her fingers. A black portal ripped open beneath his feet—jagged edges swirling with green mist and the distant roar of monsters. He felt the floor vanish.
With a single shove of divine power she hurled him downward.
He fell.
Wind screamed past him as the portal spat him into darkness. Trees the size of mountains rushed up—twisted black trunks wrapped in glowing vines, leaves sharp as knives. The air reeked of blood and strange flowers. A roar shook the canopy as something huge moved below. Rare glowing mushrooms pulsed like warning lights between roots thick enough to hide entire villages. Wings beat overhead. Eyes glowed in the undergrowth. This was the Forbidden Forest of Eternal Night—the deadliest place on the continent, where even legendary adventurers entered in groups of twenty and rarely left alive.
Haoboi hit the mossy ground hard, rolling between giant roots. He pushed himself up, chest heaving, fists clenched. No wound from the fall. The goddess had at least left him his body. But the forest already knew he was there. Something massive crashed through the trees in the distance, drawn by the scent of fresh prey.
Meanwhile, back in the crystal throne room, the Goddess turned to the five stunned heroes as if nothing had happened. Her smile returned, sweet and perfect once more. Golden light poured from her hands, wrapping each of them in shimmering blessings—enhanced strength, magic affinity, weapons of legend, and the sacred mark of the Goddess on their wrists.
"Go now, my true heroes," she said warmly. "Save this world from the Demon King. I send you to the Dragon Kingdom, where the king and his archmages await your arrival with open arms and grand feasts."
Another set of shining portals opened. The five heroes—still glancing nervously at the spot where the farmer had vanished—were gently lifted and carried through. They landed inside the grand throne hall of the Dragon Kingdom: marble columns carved like coiling dragons, banners of gold and crimson, a mighty king in jeweled armor rising from his throne while rows of white-robed mages bowed low, chanting welcome spells that lit the air with sparks of power.
The Goddess sealed the portals with a satisfied flick of her wrist.
In the Forbidden Forest, far away, Haoboi stood alone in the deadly green darkness. A low growl echoed from the shadows. He picked up a thick fallen branch, testing its weight like a farmer checking a plow handle.
He whispered to the empty air, calm as ever, "I survived a bull through the heart. I can survive this too."
Somewhere in the distance, the biggest monster in the forest turned its many eyes toward the small human who smelled of earth and defiance.