"There's no need to bow. We just happened to pass by and defeated the monster," Sena said, sounding a little nervous.
The inland man slowly raised his head. His gaze was firm, unwavering."No. You are the heroes spoken of in the legends. Just as the prophecy foretold. We hope the heroes will come to our village and celebrate the Day of Liberation with us."
Sena fell silent for a moment, then gave a small nod."Alright. We'll celebrate together with you."
She glanced at Liana and Elian in turn."What about you two?"
Elian briefly checked the status of the inland people. Nothing seemed suspicious. Their strength was nowhere near enough to pose a threat. After a short consideration, he decided to go along. Liana nodded in agreement as well.
Before leaving, Elian used wind magic to gather the tree monster's leaves and stored them inside his storage ring. Seeing that, Sena looked intrigued. She cut off a few small roots and picked up the remaining leaves scattered on the ground.
The inland man instructed one of his people to run ahead to the village to deliver the news. After that, we followed the path he pointed out.
"By the way," Sena said, breaking the silence, "where exactly is this island? And how are you able to speak the Celestra language?"
The inland man seemed to think for a moment before answering."I don't really know how to explain it. The language we use is actually Alph. We've been cut off from the outside world for thousands of years… and we can't leave this island."
His voice grew quieter. Sadness was clearly visible on his face.
"Is there a reason you can't leave the island?" Sena asked, curious.
Elian felt a bit intrigued as well. None of this had ever been explained in the game.
"Several thousand years ago, our tribe was brought here by a god," the inland man continued. "We don't know why. What's certain is that we cannot leave this island. Our bodies would be destroyed if we tried to cross the barrier separating this world from the outside."
He took a deep breath before going on.
"Then, about a thousand years ago, something strange happened. That tree monster appeared. At first, it wasn't very strong. But over time, its power kept growing. We were forced to offer the soul of one tribe member every month. If we resisted or angered it, the monster would carry out a massacre."
His face tightened.
"The chief at that time—famous for his prophecies—said that one day, people would come to destroy the monster. And… those people are you. I'm grateful that this day has finally come."
He smiled.
Elian frowned. He couldn't read anything from the explanation. Sena kept asking more questions, but eventually the inland man suggested that she ask the village chief directly.
About thirty minutes later, they arrived at a village made up of simple huts built from wood and leaves.
The villagers had already gathered. Monster meat was being roasted over open flames as they danced and played instruments with great enthusiasm. They welcomed Elian's group warmly, inviting them to dance and celebrate the death of the tree monster. Flower necklaces were quickly placed around Elian and his companions' necks.
After the dancing ended, they gathered inside the chief's hut to eat together.
Elian, who had increased his strength several times during the earlier battles, felt extremely hungry. He devoured the monster meat without restraint. The amount he ate left his companions staring in shock.
"Hahahaha! A strong guy obviously needs a lot of food!" Martin laughed. "Elian, let's see who can eat more!"
He began eating just as aggressively, trying to keep up with Elian's pace.
'What an idiot,' Elian mocked him inwardly as he shoved another piece of meat into his mouth. Besides, from the beginning, his real reason for coming here had been the food—especially after hearing the word celebration.
"I'm glad the heroes are enjoying our tribe's food," said an elderly man who entered the hut, followed by two others. "Allow me to introduce myself. I am Toruk, the chief of this tribe. Please forgive me for not greeting you earlier. I was praying to our ancestors to deliver the good news."
"It's fine," Sena replied. "We heard that you know more about this island. Could you explain it to us?"
Toruk stepped forward and sat on the ground beneath his wooden chair. He looked at Elian's group and began to speak.
"As you already know, this island is divided into seven regions, each with its own characteristics. Six regions represent different elements, while one region—the element of wind—is designated as a safe zone."
"Is there a geographical reason behind the island's strange structure?" Sena asked again.
Toruk shook his head slowly."I'm sorry. I don't know about that."
Sena looked a little disappointed."Then do you know what caused the tree monster to appear?"
"It's quite simple," Toruk answered. "Each region of the island is saturated with dense elemental energy. Those elements eventually condense and turn into monsters—like the one you fought."
Sena looked uneasy."If that's the case, then there must be other monsters like the tree monster in other regions."
Everyone was startled. Fear slowly crept across their faces as they imagined the existence of such beings—creatures capable of wiping them out at any moment.
Elian, on the other hand, felt pleased by this development.
Originally, he had planned to hunt the tree monster, defeat it, then distribute the leaves he collected to lure others into searching for similar monsters—with promises of points and treasure. After that, he would take everything from them.
However, William and his group appearing unexpectedly, along with how deadly the tree monster turned out to be, had forced his plan to change. But now, with the news that powerful monsters truly existed on this island—and that their group had successfully defeated one—Elian was certain that others who believed themselves strong would start hunting them.
"I think we should warn the others," Elian said flatly.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"In that case," Toruk said cheerfully, "how about I tell you a legend passed down in our tribe?"
Everyone agreed. Listening to a story while eating sounded pleasant. Elian himself enjoyed stories. They all listened attentively as Toruk began.
"Actually… this world is a farm."
All eyes turned to him, shocked by such an unexpected opening.
"Long ago, people from another world used this place as a special breeding ground. But because of an interworld war, this border region was caught in the conflict and destroyed."
Toruk continued in a heavy voice.
"When the reinforcement forces managed to reclaim this world, they were saddened by the devastation they found. So they tried to reconstruct it and let it recover over time. Slowly, new life began to grow. And our ancestors were among that life."
Sena frowned."So… according to your tribe's legend, are we livestock?"
Toruk shook his head."Perhaps to them, we were livestock. But to ourselves, we are thinking beings. That's why we resisted those creatures from another world. But the gap in knowledge was too great. We lost."
He paused briefly before continuing.
"Somehow, the founder of our tribe survived… and arrived in this world."
Elian's heart trembled when he heard that.
"Wait," Sena interrupted. "What do you mean the founder of your tribe wasn't originally from this world? Where did he come from, and how did he get here?"
"That's correct," Toruk replied, pointing toward a stone tablet. "Our founder did not come from this world. But how he arrived here was never explained."
"That tablet was left behind by him at the brink of his death. For thousands of years, no one has been able to read even a single word written on it."
Everyone turned toward where Toruk was pointing. Only now did they realize that the stones lining the inside of the hut were not ordinary stones. Elian studied the characters carved into the tablet—alien, unfamiliar, completely incomprehensible.
"Sometimes," Toruk continued quietly, "I wonder… what about this world? Could this world itself also be a farm?"
He smiled bitterly.
"But slowly, I came to realize one thing. We who live on this island… are nothing more than livestock."
The room fell silent.Not a single person could say a word.