Takeshi wandered aimlessly for hours, often changing direction as he passed through various minor biomes. Throughout his journey, he moved without any knowledge of this fascinating world. His only goal was to find a village—or at the very least, a secluded house—where he could spend the night.
He was especially insistent on this for two reasons: first, he had no idea what dangers the night might bring in this unfamiliar world; and second, back on Earth, he had always lived with a roof over his head. Sleeping outdoors was completely foreign to him. The aching back pain from the previous night, which he had spent lying in the wilderness, only strengthened his resolve to find shelter.
Fortunately, after hours of searching, he finally stumbled upon a small village.It consisted of a dozen modest wooden houses and gave off a cozy feeling that instantly drew Takeshi in. He quickly walked along the dirt path, worn smooth by the passage of countless footsteps.
As he entered the village, he saw a few people moving down the main street, dressed in tattered clothes. They all gave him wary glances. From this, Takeshi concluded it was quite a poor village—something that was also clear just by looking at the houses—and that the inhabitants weren't particularly fond of travelers.
Taking into account their reactions, and the fact that he had no money, he realized it would be extremely difficult to find a place to stay.
He glanced toward the horizon where the sun was beginning to set and thought:
Well, worst case, I'll spend the night here on the village streets. At least I won't be exposed to danger. I doubt anyone—or anything—would attack me in the middle of a village, no matter how small it is.
But that was assuming none of the villagers were willing to take him in. With that thought, he began going from door to door, politely asking if he could stay the night.
As expected, each of the homeowners turned him away. They cited the same reasons: he was an unknown traveler, and he had no coin. Only one family offered him a small mercy—they told him he could sleep at their doorstep for the night, but that was the best they could do.
With no better options and the sun now fully set, Takeshi gratefully accepted their offer.
He lay down on the wooden porch. It was uncomfortable and creaked with his every movement, but that didn't bother him. He was just relieved he wouldn't have to sleep in the forest again.
As he lay there with his eyes closed, trying to fall asleep, a strange sensation suddenly swept over him.
A gust of wind brushed against his body, oddly cold and foreign.Curiosity stirred in him. He opened his eyes—
And what he saw left him speechless.
There was no village—at least, not anymore. Takeshi now found himself inside a dark cave. He sat on the ground, bewildered, his eyes slowly adjusting as he carefully studied the natural rock walls surrounding him.
The uncomfortable wooden porch was gone, replaced by a layer of gray sand that shifted beneath him, almost as if it were alive.
Along the edges of the cavern, near the dark stone walls, a few strands of golden grass swayed gently. It seemed to be the only form of life in this gloomy, lifeless place.
Still dazed, Takeshi stood up.He turned around, only to see a cold stone wall behind him—the dead end of the cave. His only path was forward. With one hand resting cautiously on the hilt of his blade, he began moving through the strange cavern, his steps slow and wary.
But after only ten meters or so, he saw an exit.
Emerging from the cave, Takeshi found himself standing on a ridge elevated a dozen meters above the ground below. It offered him the perfect vantage point to scout the unfamiliar landscape.
What he saw left him speechless.
A vast, lifeless expanse stretched out beyond the horizon. The ground, covered in that same shifting gray sand as the cave, was also blanketed in a layer of soot.
Towering above the desolate terrain were massive, pale bones—some curved, some jagged—jutting from the earth like the remnants of some colossal creatures. It was like an uncanny forest, a wilderness made of bone instead of trees.
Above him, the sky was cloaked in dense gray mist. Only faint hints of orange light managed to peek through, veiled behind enormous sheets of silk-like material that hung from unseen points high in the sky, draping over the world like funeral shrouds.
Takeshi stood frozen, his mind spiraling with questions.
Where am I? What is this place? What happened to the village?
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't calm himself.
Over the past two days, he had endured one impossible event after another—being transported into a book's world, conversing with a demon, and unknowingly slaughtering other people. Yet even after surviving all of that, the sudden, surreal shift of reality around him struck deeper than he expected.
This was different. This felt... wrong.
After several minutes of staring into the eerie landscape, Takeshi finally gathered himself. There were too many questions and no answers. The only thing he could do was move forward and search for them.
He slowly made his way down the narrow ridge, which conveniently sloped toward the ground.As soon as he carefully descended, Takeshi found himself within the so-called "forest of bones."
He moved warily through the eerie, endless labyrinth, carefully inspecting the towering remains around him. Some of the bones were ten times his size, rising like ancient monuments to a forgotten age.
Takeshi couldn't even begin to imagine what kind of monstrous beasts these colossal remains once belonged to.
What disturbed him even more were the tombstones.
From time to time, at the base of the larger bones, simple grave markers stood solemnly. They bore no names or dates—just smooth, weathered stone. Yet the sheer number of them was unsettling. In just a few minutes of walking, Takeshi counted over fifty.
Before long, he realized he had become lost.
The cliff where the cave entrance had been was nowhere in sight, completely obscured by the towering skeletal remains that loomed around him. Every direction looked the same—an endless maze of twisted bone and silent gravestones.
He was just beginning to consider how he might find his way back—figuring there was likely nothing more to discover in this grim, lifeless graveyard—when something suddenly pulled his attention away.
A rustling sound came from behind.
He turned quickly, and his eyes locked onto one of the bones—an enormous one, protruding from the ground in an inverted V-shape.
It moved.
With a grinding, powerful motion, one of its long, curved segments rose from the sand and soot, lifting high into the air. At its end was a massive skeletal hand.
It placed its massive hand onto the ground and pushed downward. As it exerted an immense force, the ground behind it began to rise—first forming a small hill, then growing larger by the second.
Heaps of gray sand and soot spilled from the rising mound, tumbling back to the earth in cascading waves. Soon, as the sand slid away, pale white bones began to emerge from beneath it.
Bit by bit, the full form of the creature was revealed.
It was a colossal skeleton, at least eight times larger than Takeshi. Half of its massive skull was missing, with the jagged edges scorched black by old burn marks.
Within its single remaining eye socket burned a dim white flame, streaked with veins of black and gray, flickering like something barely alive—or something that refused to die.
From its gaping jaw, mist billowed outward in slow, rhythmic bursts—as if the creature were breathing.
The monstrous skeleton had no back legs. It supported its body solely with its two enormous arms, hunched forward in a grotesque, spider-like stance.
It was an awe-inspiring and horrifying sight.
Takeshi stood frozen, paralyzed by the sheer presence of the being before him. Just one glance was enough for him to understand—this creature was ancient. Primeval. And whatever power resided within it was beyond him. His katana, no matter how sharp or swift, would be useless here.
The longer Takeshi stared at the monstrous creature, the more the fear within him swelled.
The towering skeleton turned its gaze toward him, then slowly shifted its weight onto its left arm. With deliberate menace, it raised its right hand high—clearly preparing to crush him.
Takeshi remained frozen, paralyzed by terror.
Maybe, if he tried, he could have dodged the incoming blow.But the fear had him in its grip—overwhelming and absolute.
Then, the massive skeletal hand began to descend with terrifying speed, especially for something so large.
Instinctively, Takeshi closed his eyes, accepting what he thought was the end.
But then—he heard something.
First, a sharp sizzling sound… and not even a second later, a thunderous boom.
His eyes snapped open just in time to see a fireball slam into the creature's hand.
It didn't inflict any real damage, but it was enough to stop the giant from bringing its attack down on him.
Takeshi stared in awe, stunned.
Then a voice shouted from behind him.
"What are you doing?! Run!"
The words jolted him back to reality. Snapping out of his trance, Takeshi turned and sprinted toward the direction of the voice, barely watching where he was going.
When he finally caught up to the figure ahead, he noticed the man had also stopped running. Takeshi came to a halt beside him, panting.
He looked up at the man.
Just as he turned to face him the man said with a mix of exasperation and disbelief:
"What do you think you were doing, staring death in the eyes like that? Is this your first time in the Shadow Realm?"