1.
Time continued to pass.
Ruby, who had once been small, had grown into a girl, and the once-shabby village had come to resemble a real town—a few years, neither long nor short.
In that time, the only thing that remained unchanged was the Great Prophet of the Red Clan.
“You’ve come, Ruby.”
Only Rose Red.
Ruby, who had grown much taller since the beginning, walked over with soft steps and sat beside Rose.
“You haven’t aged at all, Sister. I’m jealous.”
“That’s what most people say to the undying. But Ruby…”
“I know, for you it’s a curse.”
…Squeeze.
Even after growing, her still-small hand gently held the ever-unchanging woman’s hand in comfort.
“But I’m here for you.”
“…Yes, you’re here.”
The glittering eyes of the red child stared straight into the faded woman.
“I love you, Sister.”
“…I love you too.”
“I’ll bring you more flowers later.”
“…Even if I tell you not to leave.”
It was a moment in a late afternoon.
2.
The man chased after freedom.
Turning his back on heavy things like the fate of a Sword Saint, or the destiny of his family.
“Whew… Was it around here?”
He had finally reached the freedom he had dreamed of all his life, and stretched his hand beyond it.
But there was nothing.
Only the shadows cast by the emerald-green underbrush and the towering trees filled the scene.
The woman of fate who was supposed to bestow freedom upon him was not there, just like all the other places.
“…Guess I’ll rest for a bit.”
Rustle.
Dalan cut down a suitable tree, made a stump, and sat down with a soft thump.
“Tsk. That damn quack… Said she’d be in some forest.”
The words of the prophet who had taken a gold coin from him years ago during his aimless wandering—
—In a forest full of green, the woman of fate awaits, and you shall love her unbound by time!
To cut to the conclusion—
“Bullshit. Total crap.”
His already late marriageable age had been postponed by several years of wandering, and yet the only thing welcoming Dalan were the trees and the insects.
“It’s not like I’m desperate to fall in love or something, but still… Tsk, how many forests is this now? Bastard could’ve at least given proper directions.”
As he had said before, Dalan was not particularly interested in marriage or love.
If given the choice between doing it or not, he’d usually choose not to—he simply didn’t care that much.
But the journey following the prophet’s words, and the love he was meant to gain at its end—
Like the fairytales he’d read as a child, he had been swept up in the romance-tinged adventure and wandered far and wide.
“Enough. That’s it. I just won’t bother anymore. There’s still so many places I haven’t seen yet. I wasted all this time wandering through forests just because of that guy’s nonsense.”
Even the prophecy itself had merely been a part of the adventure for Dalan. So, having failed even in the emerald forest, he brushed off his backside without regret and stood up.
“Destiny, love, prophecy… Sure, sounds romantic, but it doesn’t really suit me.”
He smirked and looked around.
Lush vegetation.
Refreshing scents.
Vast nature.
The results of living freely, without a single worry or attachment.
“Yeah, this is more my style.”
Living bound by something was, by nature, something he couldn’t accept.
“Destiny and love… Thinking about it, maybe that prophecy just ended up shackling me again… Well, at least I realized it now.”
A middle-aged man smiling brightly once more.
That was the kind of man Dalan was.
Someone who chased after what he wanted, but the moment he felt entangled in something, he’d pull himself free again to chase after freedom.
“Let’s go back to how things used to be. Screw prophecy or whatever—just go wherever I want.”
Just as he was about to step away from all destinies and walk toward true freedom—
Crunch.
A noise came from right behind him.
‘…All of a sudden?’
Something appeared without any sign or warning.
“Don’t tell me… a magic beast?”
Dalan swiftly turned and swung his sword toward the source of the noise—
“…An arm?”
He was confused.
A pure white forearm had jutted out bizarrely from the empty air.
“Ehh…? What the hell is that…?”
Before he realized it, Dalan had sheathed his sword again and, as if entranced, reached out and pulled the hand.
Crack!
“Ugh!”
“Waaah?”
Thud!
A red-haired girl suddenly popped out from the empty air, as if being pulled along.
Blink, blink, blink.
After coming to their senses, Ruby and Dalan sat silently, simply staring at each other for a while.
“Uuuuuh…?”
“Huuuh…?”
This was the first meeting of the two.
3.
The Red Clan.
A rare race, like witches or elves, gathered around the only immortal: the Great Prophetess.
After several kingdoms were wiped from the map due to the Great Prophetess’s prophecies in the past, the Red Clan was exiled to the Emerald Forest by the Babylonia Empire.
Since the death of the First Empress, even information about them had vanished, leaving them to be passed down as nothing more than legend—
“I-It’s real!?”
—Until Dalan discovered them.
“…Visitor, please don’t tug my cheek.”
“O-Oh, s-sorry.”
Startled, Dalan quickly removed his hand from Rose’s cheek and carefully sat down.
At the center of the Emerald Forest stood the largest tree.
Beneath it, in the Prophetess’s Shelter, were only Rose, Ruby, and Dalan.
“…”
“…”
“…”
Dalan and Ruby glanced sideways at each other, waiting for Rose to speak. After a long silence, Rose opened her eyes with a soft sigh.
“Please leave.”
“…Huh?”
“I asked you to leave the forest.”
Her mysteriously glowing red eyes—
A gaze that seemed to pierce the essence of a person. Under that gaze, Dalan opened his mouth, almost in a trance.
“No.”
“…Huh? This land is the sanctuary of the Red Clan, guaranteed by the First Empress!”
“Then I’ll become part of the Red Clan.”
“Wh-What kind of nonsense is that!?”
“…Exactly.”
Dalan knew it too.
That his words and actions right now were no different than the selfish whining of a child.
But he couldn’t help it.
Having cast everything aside and become a free man, the only remaining thread of fate still attached to Dalan—
That was.
—In a forest full of green, the woman of fate awaits, and you shall love her unbound by time!
It was love.
And so, for the first time since becoming a free man—
“Do you want me to leave?”
“…Yes.”
“Then I’ll leave and come back. Would tomorrow at noon be okay for you?”
“…What?”
—He threw himself entirely toward fate.
“Are you usually always in that place?”
“Leave.”
“Got it. I had fun today.”
One day—
“I brought some cookies. Want to try them? The innkeeper’s got some real skill.”
“…Leave.”
“I had fun today too.”
One month—
“Did you know in the bright yellow desert? There are snakes that swim through the sand, and that thing, well—”
“…Leave.”
“I’ll tell you the rest tomorrow. I had fun today, Miss Rose.”
One year.
And after that, how many years passed with these short, fleeting encounters, never missing a single day?
“Gramps!”
“Yo, Ruby. …Still, I told you to call me uncle.”
“Eh? Even being generous, you’re definitely middle-aged now.”
“Damn, time really is cruel. I gotta rejuvenate or something.”
“Hot pot? Sounds tasty!”
“…Yeah, let’s have hot pot today.”
“Yay!!”
He became best friends with the once-distant Ruby.
“How many years has it been now… Hey, don’t you ever get tired of coming here?”
“Just four years? That’s nothing.”
“Puhaha! Falling head over heels for love—how manly of you, Dalan. But hey, do you even know how old our Great Prophetess is?”
“She looks older than me on the outside, so it’s fine. Besides, what does age matter when it comes to love?”
“Oho~ That’s unexpectedly sweet talk for you!”
By the time even the villagers who once kept their guard up against Dalan had come to welcome his visits—
“…Huh?”
“What is it?”
“D-Dalan! B-Behind you…!!”
“Behind? ……Huh?”
The one who had never once left the forest—Rose—
“…It was noon, and you hadn’t come.”
—For the first time, stepped out of that place and came down to the village.
“U-Uhh…?”
A flustered Dalan.
“Hey, Dalan!! What’re you doing just standing there like an idiot!”
“Are you planning to keep the Great Prophetess waiting?!”
“Go on, give her a big hug already!”
The villagers, cheering him on—
“I-I, um… That’s not why I came. Please return for today, Dalan.”
Rose, cheeks flushed red under the countless stares, shyly turned to leave.
—In a forest full of green, the woman of fate awaits, and you shall love her unbound by time.
Murmuring that without thinking, Dalan—breaking her words for the first time—rushed toward her and pulled her delicate frame into his arms.
“I love you, Rose.”
“…Yes.”
“A-Aah…!!!”
Their eyes met.
“Kuhaha, Puhahahah!!”
“Kyah?!”
Lifting her up, Dalan kissed her right in front of everyone.
A kiss beneath the emerald foliage.
Cheering villagers.
And finally—Rose, the Great Prophetess, smiling.
Watching it all, Ruby clasped her small hands together and whispered.
“See? Love really is a good thing, isn’t it?”
4.
The love between Dalan and Rose.
Their love brought tremendous change to the once-isolated Red Clan.
“The Red Clan actually exists?!”
“Not just that—they requested trade! They’ve got top-quality paper and rubber in abundance!”
“W-What!?”
From a life of bare survival and self-sufficiency, things became a bit more plentiful.
“Mercenaries? You mean there are jobs outside of farming?”
“Oh, come now! There’s more than just mercenaries! Artists, merchants, knights, mages… As long as you’ve got the skill, you can be anything you want!”
To the Red Clan who had lived shut-in lives, it was a chance to pursue new dreams.
“D-Dalan! Teach me how to use a sword!”
“Could you show me how merchants do business?”
“Puhaha, those gloomy folks—look how their eyes shine now! You really are a blessing!”
Everyone was happy.
Rose, the representative of the now-open Red Village.
And Dalan, the visitor who represented the outside world—
The two lived side by side in both public and private life, deepening their love.
“…Dalan. I’m so happy, but… I’m afraid of the prophecy I once told you coming to pass.”
And the happier they were, the more Rose’s anxiety grew.
“It’s okay, Rose. Defying fate and prophecy—that’s what I’m good at.”
“…Okay. I’m counting on you.”
“As much as you need, my love.”
They loved.
And Dalan was confident.
He had lived his whole life choosing freedom, so he wasn’t afraid of any fate that might come.
But Dalan had forgotten—
That all the happiness he enjoyed now—
—In a forest full of green, the woman of fate awaits, and you shall love her unbound by time!
Was only possible because, for the first time, he had chosen to accept and follow fate.
And then, a few days later—
“Please help us, Dalan!!”
“…? Chief? What’s going on in the middle of the night?”
“R-Ruby… Ruby is gone!!!”
“What?!!”
The price of fate was beginning to arrive.
