Chapter 10
Some time had passed since Hoku sprinted out from the Return's shadow.
After minutes of running beneath the slivers of sunlight filtering through the branches, he glanced back to see if anything was following.
He already felt the blood rushing to his head.
He was sure that he had already surpassed his limits, but beyond certainty on how long he could keep up.
The sunken reverberations in the distance pursued; however, it wasn't until he heard the immense impact of a collision that he reached a complete halt on the path.
As he sprinted, one of his legs faltered, scraping over the dirt, and he pitched forward.
His palm grazed the ground before he regained his footing.
Just then, a vicious current of wind followed the sound of two solid giants colliding.
His legs shook, but it wasn't from fear or exhaustion, setting aside how presently he was plagued by both.
The forest was trembling beneath him.
'Did the creature form a crater on the surface this time? Would she survive an encounter with something like that?'
When the trembling beneath him finally eased, he slowed and turned to look back along the path he had come.
Would she survive this?
The thought did not last.
A voice drifted from ahead.
"Strange how it fades once you reach a certain distance, isn't it?"
Hoku reeled back in fear, but before he could locate the source, a softer, more feminine voice sounded,
"Shh! Imbécile."
A coldness crept through his stomach as movement gathered among the middle branches of the tree before him.
At the same moment, a young man leaned forward from the canopy, peering down at him with an apologetic grin.
". . ."
Hoku looked back and forth with a bewildered expression.
"He probably thinks we're weird now. Can we get down?"
The woman looked away from Hoku and nodded fervently.
"Thank goodness! My damn legs were starting to cramp," the boy said, evidently relieved.
Hoku watched quietly as he gripped the branch with both hands, crouching briefly before letting his legs dangle.
Using another branch for leverage, he swung forward and landed away from the tree.
The woman, on the other hand, climbed to the lowest branch before leaping down.
Hoku took a step back from the two, his fists clenching unconsciously.
Light refracted in their brown eyes, lending them a warmth that felt almost tangible.
"I am Fleur, and this is Abel," the woman said. Her accent gave her voice a distinct allure.
She didn't wait for a response before asking, "Will your head be alright?"
Hoku cleared his throat and muttered, "Yeah. I Got thrown into a tree."
Fleur's posture stiffened and she nodded sympathetically.
The sense of unease settled a bit in his stomach.
The man's skin held a warm, bronze undertone.
His face was well-proportioned, with smooth yet firm lines.
He had dark, slightly disordered hair that framed his face and matched the deep brown of his eyes, giving him a steady, unassuming look.
Despite this, he seemed more buoyant than anything else.
There was an unmistakable likeness between the man and the woman.
She had the same facial symmetry, the same balanced expressions.
Her complexion, however, was a touch lighter, while her hair and eyes held a darker tone, as if taken from the same palette but shaded differently.
The waves draped loosely over her shoulders, and the fringe across her brow drew more notice to her eyes that tilted slightly upward at the corners.
As Hoku studied their faces longer, he noted the smaller details that persisted, like the length of their lashes, and curved nose bridges.
Fleur seemed to realize him scrutinizing back-and-forth. She gestured toward Abel and said calmly, 'We're fraternal twins.'"
Abel grinned and added, "Yeah, but I'm the smarter one—if you have questions, ask me."
Fleur stomped her foot near him without warning. Abel instinctively jumped back, swinging a leg toward her.
She caught it with ease and pressed her fingers into the sole of his worn brown shoe.
"Wait—"
Fleur let out a quiet snicker before yanking his leg upward. Abel lost balance at once, his other foot kicking into the air before he landed hard on his tailbone.
Hoku chuckled without much thought, watching them bicker.
Abel grabbed Fleur's ankle, refusing to let go. It quickly became apparent who was stronger.
Fleur simply dragged him along as if his resistance was meaningless.
"You call this smart?" Fleur remarked, dragging Abel further from where he had stumbled.
Hoku took the chance to interject their argument.
"I have a few questions."
Fleur let go of Abel's ankle and he sat up on the ground, crossed his legs.
Fleur adjusted her posture as well and cleared her throat as she patted down her clothes.
"Go ahead, kid," Abel said.
"Just call me Hoku. Do either of you know Juno Mirai?"
"Hoku?..."
"Mirai!"
Their voices overlapped, folding into each other. Hoku held back, uncertain of how to react.
Abel, who had been the one to repeat Juno's surname—was the first to offer an explanation.
"She's a binary star, one of only two voyagers in the timestream. She and Li are—" Abel abruptly halted. "Why hasn't she returned?"
'Binary star? Voyager?'
Hoku inhaled and gave a direct account of what had happened.
"She slapped me, said there were others, and warned that the forest was crawling with monsters. We were scouting a path to some place called the Nucleus when a massive creature crashed down, and left a crater, before it began floating above us. I ran after barely escaping with my life, but she stayed behind."
Abel's lips parted, and the creases of his mouth expanded.
Fleur turned to Abel, and her eyes widened briefly before her expression steadied.
"Was she using her fan?"
Hoku raised an eyebrow.
"A red Chinese fan."
Abel exhaled, brushing off the tension that had built up. He got to his feet and dusted off his clothes.
"Then there's nothing to worry about. She'll be back soon."
Hoku let out a slow breath as a quiet sense of reassurance settled over him.
"That's good to hear. I also wanted to ask ab—"
Fleur abruptly lifted a hand in front of his face.
"Wait."
Abel peered over, a frown forming at the unexpected gesture.
Without another word, she glanced ahead. Hoku took notice of the intensity in her expression.
Abel stiffened, realization dawning a step before Hoku.
His voice turned grave. "Someone's following us."
The Memoir Chapter 7
Rule 12
The safe zone should be utilized under highly restrictive circumstances. It has a capacity that can be exceeded and will weaken with the presence of each individual. If commotion outside fades rather than halts, consider searching for a new region to reside. It generally takes around a day and a half for the safe zones to become completely ineffective.
「This section has no objective」
-The Memoir Chapter 7 end-