ROSE

  My body feels heavy.

  Each breath comes out uneven, forced, as if the air itself refuses to fill my lungs. I try to remember what happened, but my mind returns only a vague, violent sensation—like being hurled mercilessly against something unseen.

  Everything hurts.

  When I open my eyes, a white light blinds me completely. I blink several times before my vision slowly begins to focus.

  I am in a strange room.

  Too clean. Too quiet.

  The walls are smooth, bare of banners, sacred symbols, or any trace of gods or kingdoms. I have never seen a place like this before.

  Am I… dead?

  But there is no mist. No divine voices. No cold emptiness like the one I always imagined awaited beyond death.

  Instead, unfamiliar objects surround me—strange shapes of metal and glass, some connected to my body by thin transparent tubes. There is no scent of blood or iron, and that absence unsettles me more than any wound.

  A constant sound breaks the silence. A sharp, steady beeping that makes my skin prickle. I turn my head toward it, but my body moves sluggishly, as though it no longer fully belongs to me.

  I am weak.

  Then I remember.

  My sword.

  The thought cuts through my mind like lightning. I try to sit up, but a sharp pain shoots through my back, forcing me down again. A cold sensation spreads inside me—different from fear. Deeper. More unsettling.

  I try to speak. To shout. To call for someone.

  No sound leaves my throat.

  Only then do I understand my situation.

  I am trapped. Defenseless.

  And for the first time since I first took up a sword… alone.

  Damn it.

  Suddenly, the silence breaks.

  Footsteps.

  Not hurried nor light, but firm and measured. Murmured voices follow from beyond the room, rising and falling in a language I cannot understand.

  The sound draws closer.

  My body tenses immediately. I try to move, to reach for something—anything—that might serve as a weapon, but my hands barely respond.

  A spell…?

  The door opens.

  Several figures enter the room, dressed in long white robes, clean and unmarked by insignias or sacred symbols. For a moment, I wonder if they belong to some holy order… or perhaps they are mages.

  Their faces are serious, attentive. They look at me as though examining something fragile. I sense no hostility, yet no relief comes either.

  They speak among themselves.

  I understand nothing. The language is entirely foreign, and still my fingers tighten against the sheets.

  Then I feel it.

  One of them steps forward.

  He looks no different from the others—same robe, same composed expression. Yet something inside me stirs.

  He is young, his features calm but firm. There is no threat in his face, only a strange, unsettling composure. Dark hair falls loosely over his forehead, framing brown eyes that seem to observe more than what is visible.

  For a moment, our gazes meet.

  My breathing stops.

  I do not know why.

  I have never seen him before… and yet my mind reacts as if his presence is not entirely unfamiliar. As though somewhere, buried deep in my memories, I have already known him.

  He says something. His voice is low, calm—different from the others.

  I cannot understand his words, yet the pressure crushing my chest eases slightly.

  Then, a distant memory crosses my mind.

  “How… are you… called?” he asks slowly, as if afraid even his voice might disturb me.

  A shiver runs through my body.

  That language… I have heard it before. Long ago.

  “Ro… se…” I answer with difficulty. “My name… is Rose.”

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  The words leave my mouth like a reflex, guided by a memory I cannot grasp.

  The man nods faintly.

  “Hello, Rose. My name is Ryujin… and I’m your doctor.”

  After that, he turns his attention to a strange object before him—a transparent surface covered in symbols and moving figures that respond to his touch, like ancient runes coming alive beneath his fingers.

  He begins speaking again, pointing at the shifting signs while the others gather around to observe.

  None of it makes sense.

  I should not be able to move.

  Their voices rise slightly as they discuss something among themselves.

  That is when I feel it.

  My fingers move.

  My legs respond.

  I can close my hand. I can move my feet.

  While they are distracted, I act. Carefully, I pull the tubes from my body, ignoring the sharp sting that follows. I sit up slowly, my heart pounding.

  Something is wrong.

  If I stay here, something worse will happen.

  I glance at them one last time to make sure they are not watching.

  Then—

  I run.

  The door bursts open as I shove it aside. They shout after me, words I cannot understand.

  I rush through the corridors as fast as my body allows. Dizziness clouds my vision, and a strange cold spreads through my limbs.

  “Rose!”

  I hear the young man shout behind me.

  I pass several people, stumbling into some of them, until two men in blue garments step into my path. Strange tools hang at their waists.

  They try to stop me.

  I do not think. I react.

  My fist strikes one directly in the face. Using the momentum, I lift my leg and drive it into the other’s chest. His body is thrown backward, crashing into a glass surface.

  The impact travels up my bones.

  I am exhausted.

  I descend a narrow staircase and find an exit.

  Leaving the enormous fortress behind, I stumble into what appears to be an alley. Everything around me feels foreign. Unreal.

  What in the world is happening…?

  I look back once to see if anyone follows and continue forward, breathing heavily as I move deeper into the darkness.

  Each step grows heavier. Even without armor, my body is reaching its limit.

  Memories return.

  I must find my sword.

  Defeat the Demon King.

  And survive in these unknown lands.

  A light ahead seems to call to me. I follow it.

  When I step out of the alley, brightness strikes me head-on. Not the warm light of the sun nor the flicker of fire, but something cold, constant… unnatural.

  I lift my gaze—and lose my breath.

  Towering structures rise before me, taller than any castle I have ever seen. Their smooth surfaces shine like polished crystal, covered in lights that change endlessly in color.

  The ground beneath my feet is hard, dark, and perfectly smooth, marked with white lines drawn with impossible precision.

  People move around me in a hurry, passing without even looking my way, dressed in strange, light garments.

  I never imagined the Demon King’s world would be this… strange.

  A sharp sound echoes nearby and a green light appears before me. My body reacts before my mind does. I step back and collide with someone.

  My hand instinctively reaches for my sword—

  And then I remember.

  It is gone.

  I swallow hard.

  This is the brightest night I have ever known. No torches. No flames. Yet everything is illuminated. Everything moves. Everything breathes.

  “Where… am I…?”

  My voice comes out weak, swallowed by the endless murmur of a place that never seems to sleep.

  This is not a kingdom.

  Not a fortified city.

  It feels more like a battlefield… but in a way completely foreign to me.

  I inhale deeply, forcing myself to calm down.

  “Calm yourself, Rosette of House Baker,” I whisper. “Think. Think.”

  The lights change. Mechanical roars fill the air. Creatures of metal move along the roads, and horror grips me when I realice people travel inside them.

  I walk quickly to avoid them. My body barely responds anymore.

  Then a hand rests on my shoulder.

  I turn, ready to strike.

  It is him.

  The young doctor stands there, slightly out of breath.

  “You’re fast,” he says. “Rose, don’t worry… we’re not going to hurt you.”

  More blue-clad figures arrive, riding white golems.

  “It’s alright, officer. Everything’s under control.”

  Ryujin gently takes my arm and guides me toward the side of the street.

  “You’ve given us quite a bit of trouble, Rose,” he says calmly.

  I do not resist.

  “It’s okay,” he adds. “You’ll be fine.”

  His voice is not comforting… yet my body stops trembling before I can stop it.

  Slowly, my breathing steadies.

  One of the white golems opens something like a mouth. Inside, more people wait. I immediately pull back, trying to free myself.

  “No… I won’t go in there.”

  He lets out a short laugh.

  “It’s just a carriage.”

  “…Eh?”

  “Have you never seen a car?”

  “A… car?”

  The word sounds strange. Unfamiliar. A peculiar name for a metal beast.

  Before I realice it, I follow his guidance and step into the golem’s jaws. Inside, it resembles the noble carriages of my kingdom—yet there are no horses pulling it.

  It moves on its own.

  “Good,” Ryujin says. “Relax. Let’s head back to the hospital.”

  Hospital…?

  I understand his words, yet some of them remain completely foreign to me.

  The interior of the carriage is unlike anything I know. It smells neither of wood nor aged leather, but of something clean—almost artificial. The surfaces are smooth and cool to the touch, and the city lights flow through the glass like rivers of color.

  I sit stiffly, back straight, as if still wearing armor.

  The golem begins to move.

  There is no jolt, no sudden pull—only smooth, steady motion. My stomach tightens and my hands grip the seat without noticing.

  “Relax,” Ryujin says, sitting across from me. “The worst is over.”

  I do not answer.

  My eyes remain fixed outside.

  The city slides past like an impossible dream. Endless towers rise on both sides of the road, covered in lights that shift endlessly in color. Some shine like stars; others flicker with symbols and words I cannot read.

  Everything moves.

  There is no silence. No darkness. Even the night feels alive.

  I watch the people from inside the carriage. They walk quickly, speak among themselves, stare into small glowing slates in their hands without paying attention to the world around them. None fear the golems. None prepare for battle.

  This is normal to them.

  I swallow.

  In my world, a city like this could only exist under the rule of a tyrant… or a god.

  “That place…” I murmur. “Is it a fortress?”

  Ryujin studies me for a moment.

  “It’s just another district.”

  Just.

  That word hurts more than any wound.

  I look away and press my forehead against the glass. It is cold. Solid. Real. None of this is illusion or passing magic.

  Memories return unbidden.

  Fields blackened by war.

  The clash of steel.

  The scent of blood and fire.

  Worlds divided by the sword.

  And now this.

  A city that shines without torches.

  A carriage without horses.

  A world that keeps moving… without needing heroes.

  My hands tremble.

  “Rose,” Ryujin says gently. “We’re almost there.”

  I nod, though I do not know what I am approaching.

  The golem slows and stops before a large white structure, illuminated by a soft light that contrasts with the chaos outside. My body reacts instinctively. It is not a castle, yet something about it feels authoritative. Ordered. Safe.

  The carriage opens its jaws once more.

  I step down carefully, my legs still protesting from exhaustion. The night air feels different here—calmer, contained, as if the building itself repels the noise of the outside world.

  I walk beside Ryujin without resistance.

  Before entering, I glance back one last time.

  The city remains there.

  Alive.

  Immense.

  Indifferent to my existence.

  I step into the hospital.

  And in that moment, I understand.

  I was not summoned to the Demon King’s world.

  I had fallen into a world completely different from my own.

  A world that did not need magic—

  And was far more terrifying than anything I had ever imagined.