2026-07-08 05:17:46Richard hit the ground hard enough to drive the breath from his lungs. Pain surged through every muscle as he rolled across damp earth and tangled roots before finally coming to a stop against the trunk of an enormous tree. For several seconds, he remained motionless, struggling to separate reality from the blinding white void that had swallowed him only moments before. His ears rang. His heart pounded violently against his ribs. Slowly, he forced himself into a sitting position.
The world around him was unlike anything he had ever imagined. Towering trees stretched hundreds of feet into the sky, their trunks wider than houses and their silver leaves shimmering as though every branch had captured fragments of starlight. Strange flowers bloomed across the forest floor, releasing tiny motes of blue light that drifted lazily through the air like living fireflies. Richard looked upward. His breathing stopped.
Three moons hung above the forest. One glowed pale white. The second shimmered with faint sapphire light. The third carried a deep crimson hue that painted the clouds with an unsettling scarlet glow."This... isn't Earth."The realisation settled over him with startling clarity. His apartment was gone. The academy was gone. Even the storm that had swallowed him had disappeared. Everything familiar had been replaced by a world that seemed to exist only in myths and fantasy novels. Richard pinched his arm.
The pain was immediate."I'm really here."He took a slow breath, forcing himself to remain calm. Panic had never solved a problem. Observation always came first. His eyes swept across the surroundings. The moss beneath his feet was untouched, suggesting few travellers passed through the area. The air carried an unfamiliar sweetness mixed with the scent of damp soil and blooming plants. Somewhere deeper in the forest, distant cries echoed, sounds unlike any animal he had heard before.
His pulse quickened."If I'm alive..."His voice sounded strangely small beneath the vast canopy."...then I need food... water... and shelter."The priorities remained the same. Different world.Same survival principles. He had taken only a few cautious steps when every instinct screamed at him to stop. The forest had fallen unnaturally quiet. Moments earlier, insects had chirped and unseen birds had sung among the branches.
Now...Nothing.Even the drifting lights seemed to hesitate. Richard frowned. Predators often announced themselves not by noise, but by the sudden absence of it. A low growl rolled through the trees. It vibrated against the ground beneath his boots. Richard slowly turned. Golden eyes stared back at him from the shadows. Then another pair appeared. And another.
A massive wolf emerged from the undergrowth. It stood nearly as tall as a horse. Black fur absorbed the surrounding light, making its outline difficult to follow. Jagged silver markings ran across its body like veins of molten metal, and every breath escaped its jaws in wisps of dark mist. Its claws carved deep grooves into solid stone with effortless ease. Richard's mouth went dry.
"This isn't a wolf..."The creature lowered its head. Muscles tightened. Richard recognised the posture instantly. It was preparing to charge. He searched desperately for anything useful.No weapons.No shelter.No escape route. Running would only expose his back. The wolf lunged. Richard threw himself sideways just before enormous jaws snapped shut where his neck had been.
The impact shattered a fallen log into splinters. His heart hammered violently. One mistake.One second too slow. He would have died. The beast wheeled around with terrifying speed. Richard forced himself to breathe. Fear clouded judgment. He couldn't afford that. His gaze darted across the clearing. Loose stones.Broken branches.Exposed roots.A narrow depression hidden beneath fallen leaves.An idea formed.Not a perfect one.But possibly enough.
The wolf attacked again. Richard sprinted toward the depression instead of away from it. The distance closed rapidly. Five steps.Four.Three.At the last possible instant, he leapt over the concealed hole. The creature followed without hesitation. The ground collapsed beneath its weight. Its front legs plunged into the pit. Richard didn't celebrate. Predators adapted quickly.
He grabbed a fallen branch sharpened by natural breakage and drove it toward the trapped animal's exposed shoulder. The branch pierced surprisingly deep. The wolf roared. It erupted from the pit in an explosion of dirt despite the injury."So much for that plan."Richard retreated while scanning the terrain again. The trees themselves offered another possibility. Several heavy vines hung between massive trunks. If he could weaken them...
He seized a jagged stone and struck repeatedly at one supporting vine. Fibres snapped. The wolf charged once more. Richard waited.Closer.Closer.Now.He threw his full weight against the damaged vine. The enormous branch suspended above the clearing crashed downward. Wood exploded. Leaves scattered. The massive limb slammed directly onto the wolf's back.
The forest shook. Dust drifted through the air. For several long seconds, neither Richard nor the creature moved. Finally...The beast twitched once. Then lie still. Richard remained frozen, breathing heavily. His hands trembled uncontrollably. He hadn't won because he was stronger. He had survived because he understood gravity, momentum, and the habits of predators.Knowledge.Even here...Knowledge still mattered.
A voice interrupted his thoughts."That's impossible."Richard spun around. A young man stepped from behind the trees, a bow already lowered at his side. He appeared no older than nineteen. His ash-brown hair was tied loosely behind his head, and weathered leather armour suggested years spent hunting dangerous beasts. Shock filled his grey eyes."I watched everything."
His gaze shifted toward the dead wolf."Nobody defeats a Shadow Wolf without mana."Richard blinked. A Shadow... what?"The hunter stared."You really don't know?"Richard slowly shook his head. I've never heard that word."The young hunter frowned."Then how did you kill it?"Richard looked back at the fallen predator.
"I didn't overpower it."I studied it."The hunter's expression became even more confused."What does that even mean?"It means every creature has habits."Richard pointed toward the shattered branch overhead."If you understand those habits... You don't always need greater strength."
The young man remained silent for a long moment before finally extending his hand."My name is Caelan Voss."Richard accepted it."Richard."Before either of them could speak again, something extraordinary happened. The Shadow Wolf's body began dissolving. Its black fur broke apart into countless glowing symbols unlike any language Richard had ever seen. The symbols spiralled upward before gathering into a brilliant sphere of light. Caelan's eyes widened."Wait...
"The sphere shot toward Richard. It struck his chest. The light vanished inside him. A freezing sensation spread through every nerve. Richard staggered backwards as unfamiliar symbols flooded his vision. Then a calm, ancient voice echoed inside his mind."Knowledge Authority Activated."Richard's eyes widened."What... is the Knowledge Authority?"The voice did not answer. Instead, countless golden symbols unfolded before him like the pages of an invisible book. And the impossible had only just begun.
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CHAPTER 9 — SECRETS BENEATH THE KINGDOM
The ancient map did not remain still. The moment the last beam of light emerged from the crystal, the stone platform beneath Richard's feet trembled again. Thin golden lines spread across the engraved continents like rivers of molten sunlight, illuminating mountains, forests, and kingdoms that no modern cartographer could have drawn with such impossible precision.Then the glowing points began to move. One by one, they pulsed beneath distant kingdoms scattered across the continent. Caelan took an involuntary step backwards. "...Those lights weren't there a moment ago." Richard's eyes never left the map. "No." His voice was barely above a whisper. "They're responding to something." Captain Seraphine rested one hand on the pommel of her sword while carefully studying the shifting lights."Can you read it?" "I don't know yet." Richard slowly knelt beside the map.Unlike the symbols carved throughout the library, these markings rearranged themselves each time he focused on them. At first,
CHAPTER 8 — THE FORGOTTEN LIBRARY
The first scream came from beneath the city. Richard had barely finished examining the newest plague victim when the stone floor beneath the infirmary trembled. Shelves rattled, glass bottles toppled from wooden tables, and frightened patients looked toward the ceiling as dust drifted from the ancient beams overhead. The trembling lasted only a few heartbeats. Then it stopped. No one spoke.The uneasy silence that followed felt heavier than the tremor itself. Captain Seraphine's hand instinctively settled on the hilt of her sword. "What was that?" Before anyone could answer, an elderly city archivist pushed through the crowded doorway. His grey robes were covered in dust, and his breathing came in uneven gasps. "Captain... there's been a collapse beneath the eastern district." He looked directly at Richard. "It happened below the oldest quarter of Grayhaven." Richard frowned."The oldest quarter?" The archivist nodded urgently. "There are tunnels beneath the city. "I've spent forty ye
CHAPTER 7 — THE CITY OF DEATH
The smell reached them long before the city walls came into view. Richard tightened his grip on the reins as a foul mixture of decay, stagnant water, and smoke drifted through the morning air. Even the horses became restless, snorting uneasily and slowing their pace as if instinct warned them to turn back. Captain Seraphine Valcrest rode at the front of the column, her expression growing more severe with every passing mile.Grayhaven should have been alive. It was one of the kingdom's busiest trade cities, where merchants from every province gathered to exchange grain, cloth, timber, and precious ores. Travellers often described its streets as so crowded that one could cross the market without ever touching the ground if one stepped from cart to cart. Now...The gates stood open. No merchants waited outside. No guards challenged approaching travellers. Only silence greeted them. A silence so unnatural that it made every knight instinctively reach for their weapons. "This doesn't feel
CHAPTER 6 — VISITORS FROM THE CAPITAL
The thunder of galloping horses shattered the uneasy calm surrounding the village temple. Every conversation stopped at once as dozens of villagers turned toward the eastern road. Dust billowed into the morning air, rising above the rolling hills like a gathering storm. The sound grew louder with every passing second until armoured riders emerged from the haze, their polished silver breastplates flashing beneath the sunlight. Each rider bore the royal crest of the Kingdom of Asteria, a soaring phoenix surrounded by seven stars.The Royal Knights had arrived. A tense silence settled over the village square. Farmers instinctively removed their hats, children hurried behind their parents, and even the temple priests straightened their robes. Everyone understood what the arrival of the Royal Knights meant. The matter had reached the capital.At the head of the formation rode a young woman upon a magnificent white warhorse. Her silver armour was engraved with elegant blue runes that shimme
CHAPTER 5 — TRIAL BEFORE THE TEMPLE
The first stone struck Richard before the temple guards reached him. It glanced off his shoulder with enough force to leave a sharp ache, but he neither flinched nor turned toward the frightened villager who had thrown it. The accusation spoken by the village priest had spread through the settlement with astonishing speed, transforming yesterday's cautious hope into fearful suspicion.Only hours earlier, the villagers had stood speechless before fields that had produced healthy green shoots after years of barren harvests. Mothers had wept with relief, children had laughed while running between the rows of new crops, and even the oldest farmers had stared at the earth in disbelief. Now those same people watched Richard from a distance as though he carried a contagious curse."The temple has judged him."Then he must have used forbidden magic." No ordinary traveller could change the land overnight."Richard quietly studied their faces. He did not see hatred. He saw fear. Fear had always b
CHAPTER 4 — THE IMPOSSIBLE HARVEST
The laughter had not faded by morning. Instead, it followed Richard wherever he walked through the village like an invisible shadow. Children pointed at him from doorways while whispering to one another. A pair of elderly women paused in the middle of drawing water from the communal well just long enough to shake their heads in pity before resuming their conversation. Farmers carrying worn wooden tools cast doubtful glances in his direction, and several openly chuckled as though the previous day's promise had become the village's favourite joke."That's the outsider."The one who claims he understands farming."I heard he doesn't even have mana."What can a scholar teach people who have lived on this land their entire lives?"Richard heard every word. Years ago, those whispers would have dug beneath his skin and lingered there for days. The academy had taught him how cruel ridicule could become when repeated often enough. Back then, every insult had felt like proof that perhaps everyone e
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