First Encounter

Straightening her clothes and confirming there was no lingering scent of gunpowder or any visible wounds, Yisha pressed the doorbell of the Itsuka residence.

“Coming~”

The door swung open with a cheerful, lively sound, revealing Kotori.

“Onii-chan, Yina, Yisha’s here!”

After announcing their arrival to the occupants, Kotori bounced back inside.

“My apologies, I was delayed by something on the way.”

Shaking off water, putting away her umbrella, and removing her shoes, Yisha stomped her foot in slight annoyance. Even with an umbrella, strong winds always managed to blow some rain onto her.

“If you don’t mind, use this.”

As if sensing her thoughts, Shido directly handed Yisha a towel hanging on the entryway wall.

“Thank you.”

Taking the towel, Yisha made her way to the living room, drying her damp hair as she walked.

As expected, Kotori was comfortably lounging on the sofa, savoring a Chupa Chup while engrossed in a drama. It was the kind of show whose plot clichés were obvious from a single glance.

“Yina, why are you here?”

A dark line appeared on Yisha’s forehead as she noticed the girl watching the drama with Kotori.

‘Who was it that said dramas were only for those with too much time on their hands?’

“Hmph! Sister, don’t talk! It’s just getting to the good part!”

Slap!

A slap landed squarely on her forehead. Well, there was no reasoning with her until the drama finished.

“Shido, do you need any help?”

Yisha offered, thinking that since she was idle anyway, she might as well help with dinner. However, her offer was quickly declined.

“No need, I can manage by myself.”

‘Alright, it seems I’m rather superfluous.’

Shaking her head, Yisha quietly settled onto the sofa and pulled out her phone to browse.

The rain continued to fall. Inside, everyone pursued their own activities, yet an unusual harmony prevailed.

Rain. Torrential rain, as if it sought to completely drown her.

Lightning clawed across the sky, displaying its awesome power. The furious wind, combined with the raindrops, relentlessly stripped away her body heat, and the muddy ground was almost impossible to traverse.

‘Where could she find shelter from the rain?’

The girl walked slowly through the dense forest, never stopping, never resting.

No matter how tired, how weary, how miserable her body felt, she could not stop.

To stop would mean never leaving this place alive.

Five hours prior, a Spatial Quake had brought her here. Facing a Spatial Quake that occurred only once a month, her sole option was to survive in this desolate place.

Upon landing, a deluge of rain poured down. Mindful of potential landslides or mudslides, the girl deliberately steered clear of hazardous areas. However, the consequence of this caution was her inability to find a cave or rock formation for shelter.

The rain intensified, and her steps became increasingly arduous. Each movement seemed to demand every ounce of her strength to continue.

Gradually, the girl began to falter. The raindrops stinging her face even started to feel warm, the wind picked up, and stones on the ground tumbled with its force.

‘Damn it, if the wind gets any stronger, I’ll be blown away.’

Realizing the situation was growing dire, the girl quickened her pace. Yet, her reprieve was short-lived, for a deadly problem soon emerged.

“Awoo~!”

A wolf’s howl echoed from the forest ahead. Then, a pair of eyes materialized from the darkness, and with its approach, its body began to emerge into the girl’s sight.

‘Damn it, adult, slightly lean build. Judging by its disheveled fur and the mud on it, its recent life hasn’t been easy…’

The girl analyzed the wild wolf, which stared intently at her, and forced herself to stand upright, confronting it.

‘The first rule when encountering a wolf is never to run. That only gives them the impression you’re weak and easy prey.’

Recalling a book she had once read, the girl placed her trembling hands behind her back. Frankly, it was useless; her entire body was shaking, trembling with the imminent threat of death.

She continued to eye the wolf, which, despite appearing ravenous, remained calm and circled, showing no immediate intention to pounce.

The girl continued to observe it, but the wolf was also observing her, and its movements revealed an extremely critical detail to the girl.

‘Her teats are empty… This is a female wolf, one that’s just given birth?!!!’

In an instant, the girl understood the wolf’s intentions. Her hope that the wolf would perceive her as too difficult to deal with and leave immediately shattered.

Imagine a mother wolf, having recently given birth, whose hunting was exceptionally difficult during her pregnancy, now out hunting in a downpour, encountering a human who appears easy prey. What choice would you make?

‘Calm down. Empty teats and a long period without food mean her mate is either dead, gone, or lacks sufficient hunting ability. Therefore, I only need to deal with this one.’

Slowly shifting her stance, the girl maintained her standoff with the wolf. However, the girl was continuously retreating in the direction she had come from, and the wolf, showing no intention of letting her go, followed closely, maintaining a distance from which it could pounce at any moment.

‘There’s a river over there. Could I use it to wash it away? No, that would require me to throw it in. How then…’

Suddenly, the girl seemed to remember something. Then, she gave the wolf a meaningful look and continued to retreat slowly.

The girl and the wolf remained in a stalemate for an unknown duration. By the time the girl reached the riverbank, she was utterly exhausted.

Unlike a typical river, no man-made bridge spanned this one; instead, a massive log lay across it.

‘Either fight it on the log, or flip it off the moment I get off… No, the second option is impossible, I don’t have enough strength.’

She retreated, stepped onto the log bridge, and backed up until she was almost at the other bank. After confirming everything was in order, the girl looked up at the other end, where the wolf was testing the log’s sturdiness, assessing if it could support its weight.

‘It’s willing to risk both of us falling into the water and dying just to get to me. It really must be desperate.’

Lowering her center of gravity, the girl adopted a martial arts stance, though she was unsure if techniques effective against humans would work on a wild beast.

The wolf also lowered its front body. The girl tensed, knowing that for most animals, a lowered stance signaled an attack.

“!”

Even though the girl had anticipated the wolf’s burst of speed multiple times, it was nothing compared to the reality. In fact, its explosive speed far exceeded her imagination; to the girl, whose nerves were already frayed from the standoff, it moved like a bolt of lightning.

She instinctively raised her arm to block the attack, and the searing pain that followed tore through her composure. Yet, her pre-planned movements did not falter.

Her fist landed heavily on the wolf’s flank, followed by a kick, but the wolf, having released its claws and teeth, dodged it.

Without giving the girl time to retract her leg and regain her balance, the wolf charged, tackling her to the ground. Then, it aimed for her neck, biting down!

“Ah!!!”

The moment she fell, the girl threw up her arm to shield her neck. While it successfully blocked the wolf’s bite, the agony radiating from her arm drove her to the brink of madness.

Her right arm was clenched in its jaws, while her left hand tore at one of its front paws, attempting to throw it into the river.

It had to be said, if her clothes hadn’t been thick enough, its front claws would have already dug into her skin.

The wolf seemed to understand that if it let go, it might not only fail to bite her neck but could even be pushed into the river by this human. To prevent such an outcome, it could only increase its force, attempting to sever the girl’s arm directly.

“Snap!”

What sounded like a perfectly normal noise carried a different meaning to the wolf’s ears. Without a moment’s hesitation, it released its grip and fled back the way it had come, not even needing to think!

The girl was bewildered. Yet, after the long trek in the rain, the standoff with the wolf, and the final desperate struggle, she was at her physical and mental limit. The only thing she could do was turn, trying to discern who had driven the wolf away.

“You… are you Setsuna?”

‘Who? Who is Setsuna? Who is speaking?’

Darkness enveloped her vision; she saw nothing. Her body had been pushed too far, and with the immediate danger gone, the girl who had barely held on by constantly secreting hormones collapsed onto the ground.

Footsteps approached from afar. Then, the cold raindrops that had continuously struck her body vanished.

No, they must have been blocked, for she could hear the sound of rain hitting an umbrella.

“Save… save me.”

She reached out, attempting to grasp the newcomer. Whether male or female, good or bad, young or old, she just needed someone to save her…

“Never mind that, let’s just save you first.”

In her dark vision, a light suddenly appeared. That light illuminated what she saw—an old man.

“After all, these eyes are passed down through our lineage.”

The next moment, the girl lost consciousness.

Her consciousness still drifted, yet her body was being continuously shaken, causing her muddled senses to gradually clear.

“Sister, Sister, don’t sleep.”

Opening her eyes, she saw someone of breathtaking beauty calling her. It was just that their long hair was tickling her nose.

“When did I fall asleep?”

Internally cursing herself for being too relaxed, Yisha asked casually.

“Shortly after you sat down and started looking at your phone. Tell me honestly, did you dream of something?”

Yina’s face was etched with worry. Yisha scratched her head, unsure what Yina meant, until Yina lightly tapped her cheek.

“I… I cried?”

Touching her face, the glistening moisture on her hand provided a clear answer.

“It’s nothing, just… I dreamed about when I first met Master.”

Yisha smiled as she replied, aiming to alleviate Yina’s concern.

“Master…?”

Yina, however, seemed inexplicably downcast. Seeing this, Yisha gently patted her head.

“It’s alright. Master, that old man, is strong and healthy. It’s just an illness; it’s no big deal.”

“Right…”

Yisha recalled the days she had lived with Yina and Master, a smile unconsciously gracing her lips.

A year and a half ago, she had gone back to find Master, with Yina accompanying her. Unfortunately, Master was no longer there, having only left them a letter stating he was going to seek treatment for an illness and not to worry.

‘But a year and a half? What kind of illness takes that long to treat?’

Soon, this question was dismissed by Yisha. Perhaps Master was simply traveling on the side during his treatment.

Yisha, who had gone to help Shido carry the dishes, failed to notice the rare despondency in Yina’s eyes.