'A... aaargh, give me back my blood, you disgusting water bugs...'
Kalm cursed silently, his eyes dimming, as he blew into the small black whistle with everything he had left in his lungs.
He prayed — truly prayed — that it would work. That the winds might be on his side, just this once.
In that moment, it felt as if the world had slowed to a crawl… as if everything around him froze in place.
Cold winds howled past his ears, stinging his skin. The treacherous river waves kept battering the small black boat, refusing to calm.
Then, amidst that strange stillness that seemed to silence the world for a heartbeat…
A sharp, high-pitched sound echoed across all directions.
It rang so loudly that everything froze, stunned into motionlessness.
The sound bounced off the riverbanks and came back even louder.
To Kalm's ears, it was beautiful.
But to the leeches — it was torment.
They dropped, frozen mid-movement, paralyzed in midair or mid-jump as if their brains had simply shut down.
A surreal sight — thousands of leeches, suspended, then falling like shattered dolls. As if they'd stared death in the face.
But Kalm paid them no mind. Not truly. His entire focus narrowed to a single problem:
**His own survival.**
He remembered what Kalystra had told him —
*"Draw your sword and fight… if something happens to you."*
Without hesitation, Kalm tossed aside the whistle and drew his beautiful black blade, desperate to rid himself of the parasites still latched onto his body.
He had only a moment — mere seconds — before the monsters would regain their senses and rip him apart.
The sword flashed as it came free, its dark blade shimmering with a deadly promise — the end of anything it touched.
Thankfully, the sword wasn't too heavy or long. It gave Kalm just enough control.
He swiftly directed its edge at the leech clamped onto his left palm.
With a scream of effort, he thrust the blade toward its head, aiming to sever it —
But then his blood ran cold.
A chill pierced his spine.
*"Wh... what in the name of the hells…?"*
The sword hadn't cut. Hadn't pierced. Hadn't even scratched the leech's hide.
It wasn't Kalm's inexperience, nor the angle, nor the creature's body, or even the exhaustion dragging him down.
None of that explained it.
No — deep in his core, Kalm *felt* it:
The sword… had rejected him.
Not failed him — **rejected** him.
It wasn't just a blade anymore. It was as if the sword, or the world itself, had refused to let *him* wield its power.
His expression twisted with confusion, his eyes trembling.
*"Why… why wouldn't it let me use it…?"*
He didn't wait for an answer.
In a flash, he threw the sword between his feet and gripped the leech on his shoulder with his right hand —
Then reached for the one on his elbow with his left.
He yanked them both off with everything he had.
He cried out as their fangs tore tiny lines in his flesh —
And then hurled them both into the river.
*"Just a little more time... one more second, please…"*
Then, he turned his attention to the leech still biting into the palm of his left hand.
Gritting his teeth, Kalm wrapped his fingers around it and pulled with every last ounce of strength.
Its fangs tore into him as he ripped it free —
But just before it came off, its eyes lit up with madness once more.
It hissed grotesquely and bit down harder, stabbing deeper into his raw hand.
*"Aaaagh!"*
Kalm screamed in agony, trying desperately to remove it —
And deal with the other one still gnawing at his side —
But his hope began to crack like brittle glass beneath a heavy step.
His grip weakened involuntarily.
He couldn't even form a proper fist anymore.
His vision blurred. His eyelids grew heavier.
That creeping, agonizing cold spread across his body —
A chilling herald of death.
Kalm was fading.
Exhaustion consumed him, his body utterly drained.
In his mind, he knew: this was blood loss. The sharp, soul-deep pain of those wretched fangs.
But in the real world…
He couldn't do anything. Nothing at all.
His muscles slackened. His strength evaporated.
Slowly, his body tilted forward, falling toward the river below…
His head drooped under its own weight.
But then — from the shadow dome cloaking the tiny boat —
Two impossibly sharp black spikes shot forth.
One pierced straight through the head of the leech on his side.
The other struck the one clinging to his left hand with perfect precision.
Their jaws went slack.
They let out dying hisses — like whispered gasps of despair.
But it didn't stop there.
Each spike split into smaller barbs, bursting inside the leeches' bodies,
Tearing them apart from within…
Leaving them riddled with horrific punctures.
At last, the madness faded from their eyes.
The monsters dropped lifeless into a small puddle of red.
Kalm let out a groan and barely held himself upright on the boat.
*"Haaah… s-she saved me… again."*
He exhaled, slightly relieved, as he saw Kalystra approaching him with two calm steps.
His eyes were half-closed, pain still burning through every inch of his body —
Yet even through the haze, he could see her expression…
Concern.
There was a faint gentleness in those beautiful eyes.
*"It seems trouble is truly in love with you, little Kalm,"* she said softly.
*"All the conditions… are now complete."*
Kalm leaned his head back against the boat's mast, and with great difficulty, forced a half-smile onto his lips.
He spoke in a faint voice, barely audible.
**"Haaah... y-yeah, that's true… unfortunately."**
Kalm needed time — time to recover at least a sliver of strength and vitality.
All the blood he'd lost was becoming a serious problem…
He didn't even know if resting now would keep him alive.
But could he even afford to rest?
Surrounded by a swarm of leeches capable of slaughtering an army of seasoned warriors...
And gods know what else might be lurking beneath the river's surface...
Letting his guard down for even a moment could mean certain death.
*"Oh great, another delightful experience to add to the list..."*
He scoffed inwardly, reflecting on his current state.
Even if he were in peak condition, a single wrong move would be enough to kill him — like a bug being swatted.
One could say he survived earlier purely by luck.
Without that, he might already be lying at the bottom of the river, a bloodless corpse, nothing left but bones…
**That is, if the leeches were kind enough to leave even his bones behind.**
'No… that wouldn't have happened. Kalystra would've done something... for sure…'
As he tried to rest, her voice came — soft, yet carrying a strange kind of sympathy.
**"Your curse has activated, Kalm. Along with your Traits… the conditions for your arrival have been fulfilled."**
His eyes widened slightly.
*"Wait… curse? You mean… I'm cursed now?"*
He suddenly remembered — everything Kalystra had done…
It was to transfer the curse of *The Lost One*, along with his traits.
Kalm took a long breath, then exhaled slowly, trying to summon the strength to speak.
In a hushed voice, he asked:
**"A curse...? What curse, Kalystra?"**
A faint light flickered in his eyes as a memory surfaced —
The sword…
It had refused to obey.
Not because he lacked strength or skill —
It was as if the sword itself, or the world, didn't *want* Kalm to wield it.
No — not didn't want — **forbade** him from doing so.
It wasn't just reluctance. It was rejection.
That feeling had invaded his chest earlier — strange, heavy.
Not because the weapon was sentient.
Not because he lacked some hidden bloodline or ability.
It was far simpler than that.
**The world itself didn't want him to hold a blade.**
Kalystra gazed at Kalm for a long moment.
Then, her eyes shifted toward the sword.
Finally, she spoke:
**"The Lost One had four names. All of them referred to him.
But he also carried one flaw.
Or perhaps… one curse."**
She let out a slow sigh as if remembering something ancient.
Meanwhile, Kalm's heart pounded — desperate to know more.
**"What flaw, Kalystra?"**
She raised a finger and pointed at the sword.
"He was forbidden from wielding weapons.
Not just forbidden — incapable.
Any weapon he holds becomes nothing more than a useless object.
The laws of existence themselves cursed him with that fate."
A deep, shocked expression overtook Kalm's face.
His eyes narrowed, dread clenching his soul.
*'Isn't… isn't that like the game ending before it even begins…?'*
With effort, he raised his hand and covered his face, his body trembling slightly.
**"You're not joking… are you?"**
Kalystra shook her head.
**"It goes even further than that.
Your fists, your body — they won't become weapons either.
No matter your rank, your will, your determination, or how hard you try…
You will never surpass being just an ordinary human."**
Her words struck like lightning.
They burned away every little hope that had just begun to bloom inside Kalm's chest.
It was like a flower on the verge of blossoming — kissed by a single ray of sunlight —
Only to be crushed by a raging storm that knew no mercy.
*"Haaah… why is everything so damn complicated…?
Just let me fail the test and die already..."*
With that thought, Kalm closed his eyes and allowed his body to rest — even if only for a moment.
He would have to think long and hard about everything from the beginning…
Or maybe…
Maybe he should just give up.
Awake, but with no more strength than a normal man…
That was absurd.
Too absurd to believe.