Richard's way of revealing too little information makes me sigh in annoyance. But I suppose he wants me to gain experience of my own, uncomfortable and dangerous as the process is.
"Isle of Prisons... Isle of Prisons... Isle of prisons..." I kept muttering under my breath as wings fluttered, allowing me to fly over the surface of the ocean towards the island.
"Why exactly are you repeating the island's name over and over again?" Pangu asked. "It's not like you are going to unravel something by saying the name."
"It's just that the name is invoking some sort of familiarity," I explain. "But no matter what, I can't pinpoint what it is."
Then it struck me. "Ah, but of course!"
"Of course, what?" Pangu asks, startled.
"The prophecy!"
"Which prophecy?"
"Come on, Pangu, now is not the time to act like that."
"Orion, do you have any idea how many prophecies I have heard ever since I was born?"
"The prophecy that I issued..."
"Great, what about it?"
"Pangu! The prophecy says, 'Ice shall face the Prisoner's wrath'. I am Ice, that much is clear. We are currently heading to a place called the Isle of Prisons. Unless it's one big coincidence, this Prisoner must be here."
"Yeah... I don't feel it's a coincidence either..." he replies. Now that I know that the event that I foretold may be happening soon, a sudden sense of fear overwhelmed my heart. I hope I can withstand this 'wrath', and I wonder that if I do, how much of it would change me...
"In any case, we can only know when we reach the island. But you have to be extremely careful, Orion," Pangu said, and I nod.
There was a shortage of oxygen in the area, and this was becoming more apparent as we neared the shores of the island. Nonetheless, I didn't really need the oxygen formed by the atmosphere around Midgard. I could just make my own.
The rune of wind on my right wrist started emitting a white glow. Immediately, I could feel the air circulating in my blood. Soon after, I landed on the shore.
No sand, no soil, no rocks. The entirety of the island, as far as I can see, was a consistent flat black stone surface. The only source of light here was the Blade Tower, similar to the one in Mount Evergreen, and without it, I am sure that it would be as dark as the night. Above my head, the sky was in turmoil as chaos reigned there.
Some part of me still wasn't convinced that magic wouldn't work on Isle of Prisons, so I tried casting some basic spells. Unfortunately, I wasn't successful.
I don't know what danger is supposed to be here, as there is nothing. Even then, I didn't let my guard down, no matter how peaceful it may seem. "If you sense anything, Pangu, let me know immediately," I told him, knowing that his instincts are currently better than mine.
"Of course," he replied, but his voice came through our mental link. "Why does it seem like my voice was in your head?"
"Because it was," I replied with a frown. I wonder again what I am getting myself into. I looked back at the tower. Although it appears to be near, that is only an illusion of the emptiness of the island. Not wanting to go there on foot, I unfurled my wings and started flying there.
However, I only flew a small distance, less than a meter, when I felt like a mountain was atop my shoulders. I was pressed to the ground with unbelievable force. Great, just what I needed, messed up gravity.
I struggle to raise my head from the ground and look at the faraway tower, which would take me a few days to get to when flying under normal circumstances, and wonder what has happened that made Isle of Prisons like this.
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Updated on 5/10/2025