I felt something pressing against my cheek.
I opened my eyes and found Elena staring at me with a gentle smile.
"Good morning, Nox."
"Good morning?!! Don't tell me you stayed awake all night."
I stood up, worried for Elena.
"Yes, but don't worry. I managed to maintain the platform. I couldn't wake you because you were exhausted, so I had no other choice. Besides, I plan to sleep during the day."
Elena raised her hands, trying to calm me down.
"Girl, are you serious? Give your body a break."
I scolded Elena, annoyed by her behavior. I intended to continue, but Ronan woke up because of our conversation.
He lifted his tired body, rubbed his eyes, and yawned.
"Good morning, you two"
We greeted him back, and I stopped scolding Elena.
Swoosh!
The mountains suddenly flipped, announcing the coming of morning.
We fell down but managed to stabilize ourselves and land on the ground.
"Ah, let's eat first, then continue our journey. Also, I expect the clones will attack at night too, so make sure to rest well while I carry you—especially you, Elena."
I said, narrowing my eyes at Elena with the last part.
"Don't look at me like that! I tried to be considerate."
She turned her face away and puffed her cheeks, annoyed by my words.
"That's not consideration, that's foolishness. You need to act with your mind, not your heart, or you won't survive."
"Stop trying to lecture me and prepare the food. I'm hungry."
She lay on her back, staring at the sky in boredom.
I sighed at her childish behavior.
I pulled out the bag we made earlier and took out the food we had prepared. We had roasted the meat beforehand, afraid of running out of firewood—since finding trees in this wasteland was difficult. Maybe one day we'd be forced to eat raw food.
Each of us quietly ate our portion. None of us were satisfied, but we didn't complain.
"Life would be easier if Awakened could use artifacts. I'd have a storage ring and never worry about food again."
Elena complained in annoyance.
We agreed with her. After all, for some reason, Awakened couldn't use artifacts. Even our status screens wouldn't show the artifact slot until we became Bearers.
"Not just food—if Awakened could use artifacts, many of them would have survived the World of Corruption."
I added, agreeing with her words.
"I read that this is because the shard doesn't accept us. We can only use armor and memories. The shard considers any Awakened who needs artifacts to pass through the ninth-level gate unworthy to be its master."
Ronan joined in the discussion.
'Hmm? That's strange. I've read so many books, but I never found such information—not even in books about artifacts. Where did he get that?'
Doubt rose within me at Ronan's words.
I glanced at Elena and found her surprised by his statement as well.
"Ronan, how do you know this? I've never heard it before."
Elena asked him, curiosity in her eyes.
"Eh?! Well… it was just some theory I read randomly. Seems like it didn't get much attention, but I think it's correct."
Ronan spoke nervously, flustered by the sudden attention.
"Enough talk. Let's continue our journey."
I said as I stood up and brushed the dust off my armor.
I crafted the mobile vehicle again, just like yesterday. We all climbed aboard, ready for the trip.
Elena fell asleep in my arms as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Ronan glanced at me, embarrassed, but chose to be considerate and stayed silent.
Our journey continued quietly—well, if not for Elena tossing and turning and talking in her sleep, mumbling about candy and food.
'She really loves sweets… Maybe I should buy some for her. But first, we need to get out of the Abyss World.'
I thought, then shifted my gaze toward Ronan.
"Ronan, if I'm not mistaken, you're from an Awakened family, right?"
Ronan was surprised by my question and turned toward me, shocked. Normally, I rarely spoke unless it was to give orders.
"Yeah, that's right. I'm not a noble, but my father is Stage 7 and my mother is Stage 8."
He scratched his cheek, embarrassed as he spoke.
"Do you guys control a Wind Shard?"
"No. My father has a Fire Shard, and my mother an Earth one. Basic elemental shards are too common, so there's no point in monopolizing them."
He shook his head, denying my assumption.
'He's right. For some reason, fire, wind, earth, and water shards—called the basic elemental shards—are abundant and considered the weakest.
Higher-ranked shards include lightning, ice, magma, frost, and plant.
And then there are even higher ones—shards like shadow, light, time, and space, or those with unique abilities, like Beast Transformation shards that allow users to turn into monsters or mythical creatures. Silas also told me darkness falls into this category.'
I recalled what I knew about shard ranks. There were many types, especially bestial shards or those with unique powers like poison or curses.
There were shards tied to natural disasters or mysterious abilities, making it impossible to know their exact number.
'I've also heard of shards powered by emotions, others by mental strength, and even spiritual powers. Damn it, there are way too many. Some even embody special concepts, like Sword Shards that harness cutting power… or stranger things.'
Suddenly, I felt irritation from my shard.
'Don't worry, I won't replace you.'
I chuckled bitterly as I tried to calm it down. I felt like it was saying it was the best shard and none could compare.
'Maybe you're right. But I've failed to fully understand your abilities, so who knows.'
The shard went silent at my words, as if it had given up trying to convince me.
My internal conversation lasted a few seconds before I spoke to Ronan again.
"So, what do you want to do once you leave here, Ronan?"
It was a pointless question—just curiosity. After all, we had been together for a while, facing life-and-death situations, and would face worse in the future. We needed to know each other better.
"I plan to join the army with my father. I want to contribute something of value to society. I've heard they're trying to reclaim North America, mainly because of the fear that monsters might cross the ocean and attack other continents. So I plan to join them."
Ronan shared his goals quietly, his face serious.
"Why risk your life for another continent? You're still weak. You'll be cannon fodder—dying on the battlefield while the strong sit on luxurious chairs, giving orders without a care."
I said what I felt. After all, only the weak suffer in wars. They live in fear and pain, then die forgotten. Meanwhile, the strong? They fight a battle or two, claim all the glory, then use it to gain even more power.
Ronan smiled sadly at my words.
"You're right. But, Nox, I'm from Canada. My homeland was lost, and I want to reclaim it. That's my dream and my parents' dream. I still remember the day my father told me we had to leave and run. Nox, you didn't see how people ran for their lives—how they trampled each other in panic. Some fell to the ground and were crushed under the stampede. I was only four years old, but I'll never forget that day, no matter how hard I try."
He spoke with sadness, his body trembling as he recalled what happened fifteen years ago.
"Maybe I didn't see that, but Ronan, you know most shards, artifacts, weapons, and armor were discovered in historical sites. And who had the greatest and oldest civilization? My country. It was plundered and destroyed by other nations. The same happened with Egypt. We still suffer from the consequences of that day. Even with the alliance trying to fix humanity's mistakes, they couldn't. My country became corrupt. It's hard to live there. The scars from that day still remain to this very moment. I mean all those shards and equipment and yet there is no noble family in my country . "
Ronan smiled sadly and nodded.
"I agree with you. And I'm sorry for what happened to your people. Humans are truly greedy creatures."
We fell silent for a moment before Ronan spoke this time.
"What about you, Nox? What do you plan to do once you leave the Abyss World?"
His question surprised me.
In truth, I hadn't thought much about the future, because I didn't know what to do.
"Who knows? I plan to buy a nice house, eat delicious food. I also want to buy games, watch anime, read novels… I want to make up for everything I've missed."
Ronan laughed when he heard my words.
"Seriously? That's what you're thinking about? Anime? Novels?"
"Don't blame me. I spent part of my life with an old, senile man who had tons of anime and novels—it made me addicted to them."
"Alright, alright. But Nox, let's be serious. What do you really want to do?"
Ronan stopped laughing and spoke calmly.
I paused for a moment, thinking about my words.
"Fine. I made an agreement with someone to be on his side and carry out missions with him. Supposedly, his missions are about humanity's survival. But I made it clear I won't do anything I don't want to do."
Ronan went quiet for a bit, pondering my words, then he spoke again.
"You said there are no noble families in Iraq. So what do you think about creating a Dark Family? After all, you have a unique shard—this means you're qualified to establish a high-ranking family."
His suggestion shocked me. Who would've thought he'd say that to me?
"Me? Create a noble family? Don't joke with me. Do you know how much I hate nobles? I'd rather die than be one. Besides, I hate complicated things. Becoming a noble means I'd have to deal with all kinds of annoying matters—responsibilities, expectations I don't want. No thanks. I'd rather be free."
I shook my head, rejecting Ronan's suggestion.
"You hate nobles, yet you let her sleep in your lap."
Ronan said, glancing at Elena sleeping peacefully.
"She's an exception."
I replied, turning my face away in embarrassment.
"I understand. But Nox, you're not a narrow-minded person. You know not all nobles are scum. You should understand their circumstances too."
"Maybe, you're right. But I still don't want to create a noble family."
Ronan decided not to press me any further, while I fell silent, thinking about his words.
'How ridiculous. Elena isn't like those scum. Even Sora might be a good person—but I know he wouldn't hesitate to use his power if needed. Maybe I'm not much different from them. I'm someone who will do what I want. But at least I'll feel regret and sorrow, even if I hide it. Yes… no matter what I do, I'm still human inside. A human forced by the world to do what he doesn't want.'
I thought as I looked at Elena, who had buried her face in my stomach, clinging tightly to my waist.
'If I created a family, I'd need to marry. Maybe Elena wouldn't mind that. Wait… why am I thinking about marriage? We're not even dating!'
My face burned with embarrassment at my own thoughts.
I looked ahead, trying to calm myself down.
'Let's just get out of here quickly. After that, I'll think about what I should do.'
…