Beginning Beyond The Horizon

Abrafo, U-ri and Bong and sat at a small campsite to rest and began to eat the cherimoyas collected by Abrafo, while U-ri began to grill the squids Yul had caught.

Although he held a cherimoya in his hand, Yul didn't have much appetite for it. His heart was filled with worries about Hajime, Meiji, and Michio. He placed the cherimoya next to the unconscious Hajime and stood up.

"Where are you going?" Abrafo asked.

Yul sighed and said, "I'm going to find Michio and Meiji. There's no point in me sitting here worrying."

Abrafo wiped his hands, stood up, and said, "Okay, I'll go with you." He looked down at Bong. "You stay here and protect U-ri and Hajime."

Bong said, "Fine."

Abrafo turned to Bong in surprise and said, "Wow, you've never been so obedient."

Bong bit the cherimoya and said, "I'm hungry and tired from walking."

As Michio approached the camp, he noticed Yul and Abrafo are getting ready to go scout. From such a distance, he could smell the aroma of barbecue. Hearing his stomach growling, he quickened his pace.

When Michio was very close to the camp, he shouted, "Hey!"

Yul and Abrafo turned to their left and saw Michio walking towards them carrying many bags.

"Michio, you bastard!" Abrafo shouted angrily. "What's wrong with you?"

When Michio arrived at the campsite, Michio was panting and trying to catch his breath. "Look everyone..." he said with a smile. "I found our stuff."

Abrafo asked, "Where is my godson?"

Michio threw U-ri medicine box and other bags on the ground and said, "He fell asleep after I fed him."

U-ri walked up to Michio angrily and said, "Why do you leave the safety of the bracelet in the first place?" He hit Michio on the back of the head. "Then how did you get these lost items?"

Michio said innocently, "A monkey show it to me." He raised his head and found the monkey sitting next to Hajime. He pointed at the little yellow monkey. "The monkey led me to our lost items."

The three Tanzanies and Bong looked at the little yellow monkey eating cherimoya beside Hajime.

Michio untied the belt slash and handed Meiji to Yul. Yul looked at Meiji, then at Michio, and asked, "Why did Meiji cry?"

Michio's eyes widened, and he said, "Guys, you're not going to believe me. Meiji is hanging upside down from a black wolf's mouth."

"Michio!" Abrafo, U-ri and Bong shouted in unison.

Michio scratched the back of his bald head and smiled innocently.

"Meiji!" Hajime screamed from his sleep and sat up.

Yul quickly walked to Hajime and said, "Don't worry, Meiji and Michio have returned safely." He handed Meiji to Hajime.

U-ri grabbed the back of Michio's neck and dragged him to a sitting position. "Now you'd better explain yourself," U-ri said. "Do you know how worried we were when you came back, and you are not here. The worst part was when we heard Meiji's painful cries."

Michio show no resistance and said, "Alright... Alright... I will explain, you don't have to drag me down." Michio sat between Abrafo and U-ri. He reached for a grilled squid, but Abrafo quickly pried his hand away. "Hey, let me eat and talk at the same time."

Abrafo said, "Talk first. I want to know every detail of how my godson ended up hanging upside down in the black wolf's mouth."

Michio said, "Well, I followed that monkey." He pointed to the yellow monkey. "He took me to a rock next to a tree, where our stuff was. I had trouble finding the clay pot with one hand, so I put Meiji on the rock, and suddenly, a black wolf came out of somewhere and grabbed Meiji's leg."

Hajime quickly rolled up Meiji's pants and found no wounds. "Where is the wound?" Hajime asked.

"I don't know. When I picked him up from the ground, the wound had healed," Michio said.

Bong shook his head in confusion and asked, "Wait...wait...you picked him up off the ground?"

Michio explained, "Well, the wolf refused to let go of Meiji at that time, so Meiji cried, and at the moment Meiji cried, another powerful roar came from nowhere, extending from the top of the mountain to the foot of the mountain. I don't know why, but the wolf was so scared he let go of Meiji and ran away with his tail between his legs." He looked at Hajime. "Meiji, like you, has the ability to heal himself."

Hajime said, "How could that be? Master Budi and Master Yuuto never mentioned this to me. I am sure that if Meiji had any sigh of power in his body, Master Budi and Master Yuuto would not let Meiji leave the temple with me."

U-ri said, "Maybe they don't know that Meiji has such abilities, or maybe Meiji only shows signs when in danger."

Yul sat quietly, listening to everyone's opinions and looking at Meiji who was sleeping comfortably in Hajime's arms. He quickly pulled a dart from Abrafo's belt and cut Meiji's left calf. 

"Yul!" Abrafo quickly grabbed Yul's hand. "Are you out of your mind?"

Suddenly, a high-pitched scream escaped from Meiji's little mouth and resounded throughout the island. Everything was as silent as before. The angry thunderous roar sounded again, and the ground beneath the feet of the people sitting on the beach began to shake.

Hajime looked at Yul and asked angrily, "What do you want to prove?"

Yul stood up and turned around to see where the thunderous roar was most likely coming from. However, because the thunderous roar was so loud that it reverberated throughout the island, it was difficult for him to determine which direction the roar came from. Still, one thing is for sure, he has the right idea. They were indeed not far from the gate to No Man's Land.

"That roar," Yul said. 

Abrafo who was still angry with Yul from hurting Meiji, so he stood up quickly and asked irritably, "Who made such annoying roar?"

Yul said, "That roar belongs to Eldrys."

Michio quickly stood up and asked, "And how do you know?"

Yul said, "Eldrys believed his master was in danger."

Bong said, "His master is locked inside the Trap Pavillion in Kinigan Island. There was no way he could sense his master's scent that far away."

U-ri finally understands Yul. ""What if he mistakenly thinks that Meiji is Huoyan? Both Huoyan and Meiji were born from pure phoenix eggs," he said.

Abrafo said, "Okay, but our little Meiji is not a Nephilim."

U-ri said, "Even so, he is a half-blood."

The yellow monkey pointed at Meiji's blood with his fingerless hand and began to make predatory sounds, trying to attract the attention of the people around him, but no matter how he tried, the people standing in front of him could not understand his good intentions. The monkey heard giggles coming from a distance and quickly turned around and ran into the forest.

"Brother monkey," Michio called, watching the monkey disappear into the bushes. "What's wrong with him?"

Bong looked at the direction where the monkey disappeared and sighed. "Thank God, the monkey finally disappeared," Bong said. "It was so uncomfortable to look at the monkey."

"Do you look down on people with disabilities?" Abrafo asked.

Bong said, "No... not at all. I think there is something strange about that monkey and it makes me feel uncomfortable."

Michio said, "How come we don't have that same feeling as you do?"

Bong said, "Because I am different from you. That monkey disappeared so quickly. There must be something on the island that scared him."

The giggles sounded loud enough that the Tanzanies and Bong could clearly hear the giggles. The Tanzanies and Bong quickly gathered back-to-back, with U-ri holding Meiji standing in the middle.

Goddess of beauty slowly walked out of the sea, wearing a cyan dress, and walked towards the people on the beach. Her eyes were fixed on Hajime who was standing not far away.

Goddess of beauty smiled brightly and said, "I never thought that one day, I would be able to see you face to face again." She pointed at Hajime. "But it's a pity that you don't remember me."

Hajime asked, "Should I remember you?"

Goddess of beauty giggled and covered her mouth with her fingertips. "You don't need to remember me, as long as I know that you are walking and suffering, that is enough for me. Like I had said in the past, I would rather the last descendant of my enemy suffer as a breathing person than a motionless corpse." She stared at the gathered mortals, giggling when she saw their facial expressions. "I'm prohibit to harm mortals, so I won't hurt any of you. You want to know what the relationship is between that child and Huoyan?"

Yul said, "Please do tell us."

Goddess of beauty smile and said, "It's because Huoyan's blood is circling inside your son's every veins."

Michio said, "Then he will have the ability to control Eldrys."

Goddess of beauty laughed, and the laughter echoed. "Wrong," she said with a bright smile. "Eldrys will tear that child apart at first sight. It's not a good idea to emulate Eldrys's beloved master who fought a bloody battle to free him from prison." She smiled.