The breeze carried the sound of waves lapping the shore as I stepped away from the stream. My feet moved almost on instinct—quiet and deliberate—each step pressing lightly against the forest floor. No path, no plan. Just... go.
The trees thinned, and I found myself back near the edge of the beach. I saw them again—the same three teens from earlier. They hadn't left. Great.
They were still scanning the area, arguing over what they'd seen. Red-Hair stood with a pan in her hands, clearly the loud one. The tall boy with the spear kept looking towards the water, while the smaller one with the slingshot seemed... nervous? Or maybe just bored.
I crouched low behind a large tree trunk. Just watching. Observing.
Then a twig snapped beneath my foot.
All three heads turned in my direction.
"There!" Red-Hair pointed again. "I knew it wasn't debris!"
I stayed seated for a moment. Then I stood up and slowly stepped out from the trees—hands raised halfway, not in full surrender, but enough to say 'I'm not here to fight.'
They didn't take it that way.
Immediately, the boy with the slingshot raised it toward my chest. The other two followed—Red-Hair with her frying pan, and the spear kid raising his weapon like he meant it. Their eyes were full of caution... and fear.
So this is how I look to them. Mysterious. Dangerous.
A paper angel in a world that doesn't know what paper angels are.
"Wait," I said calmly, not moving. "I'm not your enemy."
"Who are you?" Red-Hair demanded. "And what are you wearing?"
I glanced down. Right. I still looked like Konan—flowing blue hair, Dark, high-collared cloak emblazoned with clouds as red as blood, well…..such a vibe. Not exactly beach casual.
"Long story short? I woke up here. I don't know how or why. But I'm not here to hurt anyone." I met their eyes one by one. "I just want to understand where I am."
The boy with the slingshot narrowed his eyes. "You're not from here."
"No," I said. "But I'm also not some threat. If I wanted to attack you, I wouldn't be standing still with my hands half-up while you point weapons at me."
They hesitated.
Then, slowly, Red-Hair lowered her stick. "...She's not wrong."
Slingshot Boy frowned, then followed her lead. The spear kid just blinked and rested the spear under his arm.
"We thought maybe you were a pirate," he mumbled.
A pirate? I guess that's a fair suspicion in a world like this.
"I'm not," I said simply. "I'm just... a traveler."
Red-Hair tilted her head. "You got a name, traveler?"
I paused for a heartbeat. Then: "Ame. Ame Noa."
system: | current mission progress: 3%—initial trust established|
"I'm Rina," Red-Hair replied. "This is Koji—" she gestured to Slingshot Boy, "—and that's Taro."
Taro gave a small wave, then looked away shyly.
Koji still seemed skeptical. "You don't look like someone who just washes up on shore."
"That's because I didn't," I replied. "I landed here. Somehow."
"Landed?" Rina blinked. "Like... fell from the sky?"
"Something like that," I said, half-smiling. "I don't remember much before waking up."
Technically true. Not the whole truth, but enough for now.
"Well... that's kinda sad….." Taro mumbled. "Are you, uh, hungry or something?"
I blinked. "Actually... yeah. Starving."
Rina slung her pan over her shoulder. "Come on. There's a small village inland. The village chief will want to know about you anyway."
system: |Mission progress 4%|
As I followed them into the trees, a strange warmth settled in my chest. Not comfort exactly... more like the quiet thrum of possibility—unfamiliar, uncertain, but alive.
These three didn't know me. I didn't know them. But something about their cautious kindness felt real and surreal.
And honestly... it's not such a bad feeling..
_________________________________
A/N: Realized I made a dumb mistake in the last chapter—accidentally mentioned a Sea King in East Blue (oops). It's fixed now! Dropping this new chapter to smooth things over, haha.
Also, not gonna lie, I'm still not sure if my novel's actually interesting. Feels like it might be lacking tension… but hey, it's still just the beginning. We'll see where it goes