Episode 110

“Sharon!”

At the sound of my urgent voice, Ludwig and Desar rushed toward me.

“What happened?”

“My lady, the little one…”

“She disappeared! She was right beside me just a moment ago…”

Ludwig placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

“First, let’s stay calm. We put a tracking pendant in her bag earlier. Let’s check it.”

His words snapped me back to my senses. I hastily pulled out the pendant.

Three red dots blinked together on the surface.

“…Why isn’t it showing her location?”

Sharon’s marker was completely missing.

‘But I checked that they were working fine before we entered the mountain!’

There were only two reasons why her location wouldn’t show:

Either the magic tool had malfunctioned…

Or she was already too far away.

It had only been a few minutes since she disappeared—there was no way she could have traveled that far.

“Sharon’s must be broken…”

“If we move quickly, we’ll find her before sunset.”

“She can’t have gone too far yet, my lady.”

Ludwig and Desar’s words helped me refocus. I nodded firmly.

We quickly spread out and began searching for Sharon.

The sun was still in the sky, but in just a short time, dusk would fall, and the forest would become dark.

‘We have to find her quickly.’

I pushed through the dense undergrowth, calling out her name.

‘She’s a smart child—she wouldn’t have wandered into a dangerous area…’

I ran along the herbalists’ hidden trails, scanning for any sign of her.

“Sharon! If you can hear me, answer me!”

I should have stayed closer to her when she started feeling down about not finding the fruit.

‘She has Lisbeth’s disease too. She probably wanted to find the fruit more than anyone else…’

A child’s heart could be fragile, and the thought of returning empty-handed must have scared her.

“Sharon!”

I had been running for a while when I decided to check the pendant again, hoping her location had reappeared.

But still, only the three scattered dots blinked on the surface.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead and tucked the pendant away, preparing to resume my search.

Then—

“…”

“Huh?”

A small sound came from beyond the bushes.

So faint that it would be easy to miss.

“Sharon? Is that you?”

I pushed through the undergrowth and moved toward the sound.

* * *

At the same time, Sharon pushed through the tall bushes, glancing around nervously.

She had set out with confidence, determined to find the fruit and bring it back to Sierra, but now she was lost.

“Ugh….”

Even the magic tracking pendant that Sierra had given her wasn’t working. No locations were appearing.

She had tried retracing her steps, convinced that she could find her way back, but somehow, she kept ending up in the same place.

“…Did I really come this way?”

The path was lined with trees and plants she had never seen before.

The twilight glow that had covered the sky earlier had now faded into a dim, eerie light—like dawn before sunrise.

Sharon shivered, feeling an unexplainable sense of unease.

Then, she saw something.

“Huh?”

A massive tree stood ahead, and she immediately ran toward it.

It was the same tree she had seen before getting lost—the one marked by herbalists.

Certain that she had found her way back, Sharon carefully examined it.

“What is this?”

The tree’s trunk had split into two, forming what looked like a natural doorway.

Between the two halves, there was a faintly shimmering barrier.

Cautiously, Sharon reached out to touch it.

The moment her fingers brushed against the surface—

“Wha—what?!”

A force yanked her forward, and before she could resist, she was pulled inside.

“Ugh… what was that…?”

She tumbled onto the ground, rolling over once before pushing herself upright in confusion.

At that moment, the pendant she carried beeped loudly, signaling its reactivation.

“So that’s why….”

Just as her location reappeared on the tracking pendants, Desar’s voice rang out.

“There you are.”

Tears welled in Sharon’s eyes as she ran straight toward him.

“Big brother Desar!”

“Where have you been? Everyone was worried about you.”

“I—I’m sorry!”

She lowered her head.

“I used to run through this mountain all the time when I was little… I didn’t think I could get lost.”

“Next time, don’t wander off alone.”

“Okay…”

Desar sighed, then gently ruffled her hair.

Just then, Ludwig emerged from the bushes, making his way toward them.

His gaze settled on Sharon.

“Good. We found you before sunset.”

“Let’s regroup with the lady and head down.”

Desar pulled out his pendant to check Sierra’s location.

“….”

“What’s wrong?”

Ludwig asked, noticing Desar’s sudden silence.

“…The lady’s location isn’t showing.”

“What?”

Ludwig frowned and immediately checked his pendant.

Just as Desar had said—Sierra’s marker had disappeared.

“It’s not a malfunction. It looks like there are areas in this mountain where the signal doesn’t reach.”

At that moment, Sharon hesitantly spoke up.

“Um… I think I just experienced something really weird.”

* * *

“Sharon!”

I hurried forward but then stopped, mumbling to myself.

“I was sure I heard something from this direction.”

Had I misheard? Or was it just a small animal making noise?

For some reason, it felt like I had been walking in circles for a while now.

‘Wait… did I get lost? The sun is about to set soon.’

The thought made me look up at the sky, and what I saw made me doubt my own eyes.

The sky, which should have been tinted with the colors of dusk, was now a vivid, watercolor-like blue, as if time had reversed itself.

Sunlight poured through the thick foliage, making the surrounding greenery glow brilliantly.

“…What is happening?”

I murmured, pulling out my pendant—but it was already unresponsive.

I felt like I had been dropped alone into an unknown world, untouched by human hands.

“Getting lost at my age… I won’t be able to face Sharon after this.”

I sighed softly, thinking of retracing my steps.

But then, I stopped in my tracks.

“That…”

A massive tree stood in the distance, its thick branches casting deep shadows.

Beneath it, a woman lay motionless on the ground.

‘That’s not Sharon… right?’

Cautiously, I approached her.

When I got closer, my eyes widened.

Her face was almost unnaturally beautiful—as if a master craftsman had sculpted her with perfect precision.

And I knew her.

“Tias…?”

She didn’t stir, her eyes remained closed in a deep sleep.

Her long, wavy blonde hair spilled over the grass, and she wore a pure white dress, her hands neatly folded over her chest.

She looked so different from how I had seen her in my dreams.

The woman who had once seemed invincible now looked as fragile as glass—as if she would shatter at the slightest touch.

Around her, countless flowers bloomed.

Was I seeing an illusion? Or was I trapped in another dream like before?

‘This can’t be real. Tias… she’s been gone for so long.’

As if in a trance, I reached out and gently brushed my fingers over her face.

Her wavy golden hair and white dress… She looked so much like me.

Like I was looking into a mirror.

‘If I were older… would I look like this?’

Just then, the woman who had seemed forever asleep slowly opened her eyes.

The moment I met her clear amethyst gaze, I froze.

Before I could say anything, Tias pulled me into her embrace.

“You’ve finally come.”

She spoke as if she had been waiting for me for a long time.

Held in her arms, I couldn’t tell if this was a dream or reality.

But for some reason, she didn’t feel unfamiliar.

It was as if I had always known her—as if this warmth had been familiar all along.

“It’s alright,” she whispered. “Your memories will return in time. Don’t be afraid.”

“You… know me?”

Tias let out a soft laugh.

“Of course. You are my—”

The rest of her words were muffled, like they had been swallowed by the wind.

She smiled and gently stroked my hair.

And before I could hear the words I so desperately needed to understand,

I lost consciousness in her arms.