The Wind Season is almost over.

It’s 4 PM on Day 100 of the Wind Season—roughly eight hours until it ends. I’d been keeping Aefina company outside while she sunbathed. Lately, she’s taken to basking in the sun more often, and I naturally joined her. But with the sky turning gloomy and rain threatening, I ushered Aefina back indoors.

The moment we stepped inside, I spotted Mira standing lost in thought. I genuinely like Mira—not in a romantic way. She’s incredibly thoughtful and gentle, radiating a quiet reliability that makes you instinctively want to lean on her. During our stay here, she’s helped Aefina and me countless times. Paired with her unique facial markings and sign-language communication, Mira always draws attention.

“What’re you up to, Mira?” I called out. “What’re you up to” really is the perfect casual greeting.

“Hello, Mira…” Aefina chimed in. She’s started initiating greetings on her own lately.

[Good afternoon, both. I was just about to prepare dinner.] Mira bowed slightly.

“Oh? The potato stew at lunch was great,” I said, mostly praising the potatoes.

[Thank you. Excuse me for now—see you later.] She turned and left.

“Huh? Why are you two still here?” Nia popped up while wandering the house, looking genuinely surprised to see us.

“What do you mean? Shouldn’t we be here?” I’d grown used to Nia’s constant overreactions.

“Aren’t you supposed to be out already?” She glanced out the window.

“It looked like rain, so we came in.”

“Not that! Did you forget what Lord Ebia said?”

“Ebia?” The name sounded familiar. After a few seconds, I remembered. “The Wanderer? What about him?”

[“On the last day of the Wind Season, after sunset, a walk is a fine idea. The wind that night is exceptionally gentle—especially if you head east.”] Nia huffed, exasperated. “He told *you* directly! Can’t you remember anything?!”

“It’s about to pour. A walk isn’t worth getting drenched over.”

“Do you think a Wanderer would casually mention good weather for a stroll? He said it for a reason! Besides, this isn’t rain—it happens every year around now.”

“What reason?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where exactly should we go?”

“East.”

“More specific?”

“I don’t know.”

“What’s over there?”

“I don’t know.”

“…” What *do* you know? I stared at her like she was Aqua from *Konosuba*. Was she just stirring trouble?

“…Just go already! Lord Ebia mentioned it for a reason—there’s probably a reward.” Nia’s bluster faded, sensing her own pettiness.

“But he said *after sunset*. Wait—” I started.

“Dinner’ll be saved for you. Go!”

“Why not you? You seem way more interested.”

“He told *you*. You go. Now. No excuses.”

And just like that, Nia shooed us out. Naturally, Aefina followed me.

“Uh… which way is east?” I scanned the surroundings, turning to Aefina.

She didn’t answer. Instead, she pointed.

After two steps, she stopped. Before I could ask why, she shifted into her true form—a dragon—and coiled her tail around me, lifting me onto her back.

“If we’re searching for something… this is faster,” she explained, wings flaring as we lifted off.

So Aefina carried me eastward. Honestly? The wind *was* pleasant today. With the Fire Season approaching, the air had warmed, yet the breeze remained refreshingly cool against my skin.

As time passed, the wind strengthened—like a dying man’s last breath. Aefina began shielding me with a barrier of magic. With dusk nearing, the earlier gloom seemed to fade.

Strangely, Aefina’s flight was nearly silent. Logically, wings that size should’ve roared with every beat. Yet on her back, I heard only the wind rushing past us.

Not knowing what to say, I simply gripped the bone spikes along her spine and watched the endless Rajeno Forest below. Aefina rarely spoke unprompted, so we flew in quiet companionship. Just a human and a dragon circling aimlessly above the treetops. Hopefully no one spotted us… though Rajeno Forest housed large flying creatures anyway.

By the time the moon rose, we’d seen nothing unusual—or rather, *Aefina* hadn’t. From a dragon’s back, spotting details was impossible for a human. But a Great Dragon’s vision? She could track a squirrel through dense foliage.

Night had fully claimed the sky, yet no anomalies appeared. Still… the stars tonight were breathtaking. The fierce wind had scattered all clouds, revealing a crystal-clear tapestry of stars—like a painted dream. Moonlight glinted off Aefina’s scales, turning her into a shimmering spirit woven from starlight.

As I admired her, a flicker of eerie red light caught my eye.

“Aefina—what’s that red glow to the right?” I pointed.

“Red light?” She scanned the area, puzzled. “I don’t see anything.”

“Right there! Ahead and to the right. Can’t you see it?” As we spoke, the glow intensified, clashing violently with the forest’s natural hues.

Aefina shook her head. That glaring red light seemed invisible to her. I rubbed my eyes. When I opened them, the glow blazed brighter—unnaturally vivid against the dark woods. Yet Aefina insisted she saw nothing.

Just as I considered asking her to land, she descended—straight toward the red light’s source.

“Huh? You *can* see it?” I asked as she flew precisely toward it.

“No. But I felt strange spatial fluctuations from that direction…”

In moments, we landed near the glow. Aefina shifted back to human form.

“Damn…” Up close, the red light was blinding—forcing me to shield my eyes with my arm. Walking was impossible.

“Luo Sa?” Aefina’s voice held a trace of concern as she saw me squinting in pain.

“…Too bright. I can’t see.” It wasn’t agony—just unbearable glare.

“…” After a pause, she took my hand. “Luo Sa, follow me. Slowly. Watch your step.”

So I stumbled forward like a blind man, one arm shielding my eyes, the other held by Aefina. At least a blind man has a cane.

Minutes later, the soul-searing red light vanished abruptly—as if it had never existed.

“Aefina?” She leaned closer when I suddenly stopped and lowered my arm.

“It’s… gone?” I blinked hard, adjusting to the darkness. Pitch black. Night had fully fallen. I was effectively blind.

“Shall we go on?” We’d spent hours searching for anomalies. With one appearing now, even Aefina was curious. If the Wanderer’s words meant anything, this was likely it. That unnatural red light and the spatial ripple Aefina sensed weren’t normal. Space was usually stable—disturbances meant someone had tampered with it. And that wasn’t easy.

*Crack—BOOM!*

A deafening explosion erupted ahead—first the shatter of glass, then a blast wave that nearly knocked me off my feet.

The commotion came from our destination. Aefina and I sprinted toward it.

Ahead lay a treeless clearing—not naturally formed, but violently cleared. It resembled a meteor crater. We hadn’t seen it from the air; this had happened within minutes.

A massive pit yawned before us—twice the size of a home swimming pool, perfectly circular. With the trees gone, moonlight revealed the scene clearly. The soil was charred black, like a wildfire site, yet cold to the touch. Trees within the pit had vanished. Beyond it, a ten-meter radius lay flattened—uprooted earth, snapped trunks, broken branches scattered everywhere.

Naturally, we looked toward the crater’s center. Moonlight glinted on something white amid the blackened earth. Aefina and I leaped down, her conjuring a light orb to guide us.

At the bottom, we saw what it was: a small figure with long white hair, face-down in the dirt. A Loli. She wore a tattered white dress similar to Aefina’s first outfit—but the entire left side was torn away, exposing a scorched back. The hem hung in jagged shreds.

“Mmm…” A pained whimper escaped her. Definitely female. Barely alive.

Her body was covered in wounds of all sizes—some charred, others still oozing blood nonstop. Left here, she'd be dead within an hour...

Just seeing this Loli gave me a headache. Causing such a ruckus in this place while covered in injuries, she was clearly no ordinary person. With wounds like these, a normal person would've died long ago, let alone be moaning like her. Anyway, she was massive trouble. Honestly, I wanted to pretend I hadn't seen her, but abandoning a half-dead little Loli here felt against my conscience. According to Nia, Wanderers usually appear to give benefits to transmigrators—including hints like this. Ebia must've called us here specifically for this Loli, meaning she's the "benefit" Ebia sent? That sounds awful. Let me be clear: I'm not some perverted Lolicon.

But seriously, why do I always find Lolis in the forest?