Crystal Clear Eyes Conceal the Future

After Helise and Hubert gave up on Fatenai leading the way, they left the cabin early the next morning without even saying goodbye to Fatenai. Fatenai returned to her life from not long ago, practicing her sword daily and learning from Darwin about cultivating plants collected from the forest. Every day, she also waited for Little White to bring them new plants and new surprises.

Helise and Hubert were an unremarkable interlude; nothing had changed.

Another week passed. The weather was exceptionally good. In the early morning, just as the sky had fully brightened, the morning mist had not yet completely dispersed. The dawn light poured down from the lush green tree canopy, softly spreading across the land. The mist further wove a thin, shimmering veil, drifting in mid-air, dreamlike and ethereal.

This was Fatenai's thought as she walked through the forest.

She wore a white shirt and practical pants, carrying a brown backpack that seemed a bit heavy for her. Her long, platinum blonde hair was simply tied back. She walked with an elderly man who appeared to be slow-moving due to his age, but was actually walking with light steps. A dog followed behind them.

Darwin had suddenly had a "whim" to go on a "field expedition" and strongly invited Fatenai to join.

"Look at that Manelda Mushroom. When the magical conditions in the morning mist change, its growth also differs somewhat," Darwin, a workaholic dedicated to his work, said. Although Fatenai had once spoken like this, his expression of enjoyment was entirely different from Fatenai's occasional painful memories. "Look what that is?"

"Waterdrop Grass?" Fatenai discerned where Darwin was pointing. "Perhaps a Balo Flower? Their leaves are very similar..."

"Waterdrop Grass is interesting. When you touch it, water droplets appear on its leaves, a characteristic unheard of," Darwin said, his words making Fatenai feel profoundly ignorant. "Plants growing in pots are also not typical. For example, Waterdrop Grass doesn't grow in very damp soil, while Balo Flowers are the opposite, no matter how similar they look."

Fatenai nodded humbly, a large part of her feeling guilty.

Some things could not be compensated for by a few days of study. Darwin probably knew what she was thinking, so he brought her out. Such conversations were of no benefit to him, who knew a lot; it was a waste of breath, but Fatenai benefited greatly.

After a day, she understood that the so-called expedition was just a lesson for her. This perhaps went beyond Darwin's original intention in teaching her. Fatenai understood Darwin's kindness and was immensely grateful.

This kind of life continued for a full five days.

"The soil is starting to turn black." Darwin was not in a good mood today. He squatted in front of an open space and dug out some soil with the small shovel he carried, sniffing it in his palm. "It's as if something has contaminated it—how strange. If it causes these plants to die, why have they lived for so long?"

"The Rose Month is approaching," Fatenai recalled something. "The continent will have five months without sunrise, and the entire land will be covered in darkness. Perhaps this is an omen—the color of this Shuluo Grass is also starting to dim. They should have the ability to protect themselves, but I don't know how they will do it."

Rose Month. In this world, roses were not a metaphor for love and beauty. On the contrary, they symbolized evil and darkness, representing the world's unusual five sunless months, which turned the land pitch black, preventing plants from growing and leaving the fields barren.

Next month would be the first month of Rose Month, and she still hadn't found a way to survive these five months.

She couldn't live without eating or drinking like the Summoners, nor could she live in a town. More importantly, she had no income, and even if she went to town, she wouldn't be able to find a place to stay. This was the reality Fatenai had to face.

"Incredible! Simply unimaginable, but it's also quite interesting!" Darwin had no such worries, only finding it interesting. "No sunlight! Then plants cannot grow. How do they handle this situation? And how will magic flow then? I'm so looking forward to it!"

Fatenai was not in the mood to answer Darwin. She began to think about what she had recently learned about plants that could be used as materials to last for five months.

Suddenly, Fatenai stopped. She heard a faint, whimpering sound. The sound sent a shiver through her heart, as if the source was about to die.

There were daily battles in the forest, mostly between animals, or disputes between adventurers, but Fatenai had witnessed very few of them. This sound was like that of some animal. While she was still thinking, Little White, who was following behind her, had already rushed towards the sound anxiously.

Little White's human-like intelligence was incredible. Recently, when they went out, it wouldn't disturb Fatenai's research in the forest, only rolling around or chasing butterflies behind her.

What had it found? Or perhaps it recognized the owner of the whimpering sound.

Fatenai followed and walked forward, passing through a patch of woods. She found a wounded unicorn lying next to an Eisole Beech.

It was a wondrous creature that caught her eye. Its size was taller and larger than a horse, its coat pure white, and the tips of its fur were very special, appearing to glow from afar. Most prominent was the single horn on its head, a full two meters long. Its eyes were like clear crystals, very beautiful.

Unfortunately, the creature, which should have been greatly praised, had a very obvious wound on one of its legs—it seemed to have been pierced by a spear-like weapon, creating a bloody hole that was heartbreaking to see.

Fatenai clearly saw the unicorn's condition. Little White was already beside the unicorn. The unicorn weakly lifted its neck, and Little White rubbed against its neck, seemingly trying to comfort it. The unicorn's eyes were filled with weakness.

As Fatenai approached, the unicorn did not react negatively to her arrival, perhaps because it was too weak to be alert. Its beautiful eyes blinked, looking at Fatenai. Although there was no wariness or fear, there was still a hint of curiosity, stirring a sense of pity in Fatenai's heart.

"You poor thing, who hurt you like this?" Fatenai couldn't help but stroke the unicorn's fur. The latter seemed hesitant but, sensing no malice from Fatenai, allowed her to do so with relief.

Stroking the unicorn's fur, its pure white coat felt softer and more comfortable than any fur she had ever touched. Fatenai then turned her attention to its wound. Up close, the wound was shocking. Looking at the ground beneath it, the blue-black blood had already stained a patch of grass.

Blood was still gushing out. If she were any later, it might die from blood loss.

"What a sacred animal!" Darwin quickly caught up. Upon seeing the unicorn, he couldn't help but exclaim, "But how did it get so badly injured?"

The unicorn raised its head to look at Darwin. Perhaps because this creature was so unique, it seemed to be able to sense Darwin's presence, which also surprised Fatenai.

"Let's save you first..." Fatenai said, the patterns on the back of her hand gradually appearing. She slowly placed her hand over the unicorn's wound. To prevent it from struggling due to misunderstanding, she continued to comfort it, "Don't worry, I'll save you... Don't worry, relax..."

The unicorn was even more human-like than Little White. It obediently let Fatenai place her hand on its wound. As the pattern on her hand slowly melted away, Fatenai withdrew her hand, and the hideous wound was gone.

"Sometimes I feel like this is truly a miracle," Darwin praised. "The skills of these wielders are like the most powerful gifts bestowed by God upon humanity."

The unicorn also felt the strange change in its body. Its eyes gradually lit up, even with a hint of surprise. Its expressiveness further won Fatenai's favor, making her unable to resist patting its head.

"I heard you are not a religious person," Fatenai said, in a good mood, asking a question she hadn't asked before.

Darwin fell silent at her words. Fatenai thought she had hurt him and apologized, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to bring this up, I was just curious... After all, it's a world of God, but everything you've said challenges its authority, and yet you succeeded. This achievement surpasses everything."

"These achievements mean nothing to me," Darwin's accomplishments did not fully manifest during his lifetime, or rather, he didn't care about them. "It's what I wanted to do, nothing more, even if I never saw Emma again because of it."

"I'm sorry for bringing up your sad memories." Compared to her own disbelief in God, his wife was a devout believer. This contradiction led to some past events that even Fatenai found sad to hear.

"Do you want to study this world, Lonai?" Darwin's topic suddenly changed, as abruptly as Fatenai's question. Hearing Darwin's question, she thought for a moment and then nodded. Although she felt she was being clever when she said this, Darwin seemed relieved. "That's good."

This seemed like an insignificant interlude. No one knew what these words would foreshadow in the future.

Many years later, a disheartened adventurer met the most renowned mage of the time in Eisole Forest. That mage was as beautiful as legend, riding a tall and majestic unicorn, her platinum blonde hair reaching her ankles—like a goddess or an elf from an epic.

The adventurer asked her how to live in a world they disliked. She replied without hesitation.

"Know it, and make it your world."