Two days had passed. Alice hadn’t stopped training since then, pushing her body and magic to the limit, relentlessly hunting the toughest monsters in the forest. She knew every corner of the woods, every hidden path soaked in mist, every ruin engulfed by moss.

That morning, Alice had left the hut before dawn, her tension bow strapped to her back, barely contained. Her training was reaching its limits. She felt a new, burning impatience. Every moment spent away from the voice, away from answers, weighed on her like an invisible burden.

“You shouldn’t go into that area,” Golly had told her the day before. “There’s a powerful monster there.”

She’d said nothing. Just smiled. That was precisely why she intended to go there.

The forest grew denser as she ventured deeper. The trees, gnarled and twisted, leaned toward her like silent guardians. The air was heavy with dampness. Fallen leaves clung to her boots. Thick mist slithered along the ground. Every sound, every crack, seemed amplified.

She had been walking for an hour when she sensed a presence.

Not a threat, but a calling.

She followed her instinct, as if guided by an invisible thread, until she came upon a rocky wall hidden under vines. There she discovered a narrow, damp passage: a cave.

Inside, light was scarce. Only a few phosphorescent stones embedded in the walls gave off a bluish glow. The echo of her footsteps was muffled. She heard snarls. Struggling sounds. She quickened her pace.

The sight that met her around a bend froze her.

In the center of a damp cavern, a giant wolf fought to protect a small puppy crouched behind her. Surrounding them was a pack of clawed creatures, half jackals, half boars, harassing them. Five creatures, all level 40 according to the interface.

But it was the wolf who truly caught Alice’s attention.

The central beast, covered in wounds, stood with supernatural dignity despite the blood coursing down its flank. Its black coat looked like liquid shadow, streaked here and there with crackling arcs of lightning along its muscles. Its violet eyes gleamed with strange wisdom. It was wounded. Severely.

A name appeared.

[Fenrir — Legendary Beast — Level 70]
Element: Shadow/Lightning
Status: Weakened — critically injured — defensively alert.
Skills: Thunderous Leap — Shadow Claws — Perfect Stealth — Paralysis Howl

Alice didn’t hesitate. She drew her weapon.

The fight was short but brutal. The creatures, focused on their original prey, couldn't react in time. Alice struck with surgical precision, using the surroundings to isolate them. Lightning-fast strikes, instinctive parries, feints, lethal blows. One by one they fell. The last tried to flee, but a well-placed dagger pinned it to the cave wall.

Silence.

Fenrir lay panting. Its body shook. It slowly turned its head toward Alice.

And spoke. Not out loud, but inside her mind.

You are… human. And yet… something else.

Alice froze, breathing heavily, hand still gripping her weapon.

“You… you speak?”

Through the mind, yes. Your soul is… different. Too young for the burden it carries. Yet older than your appearance suggests. You protected me. I owe you gratitude.

The puppy whimpered and ran to its mother, curling up beside her. She licked it once, tenderly.

He is all I have left.

Alice knelt, arms open, weapon lowered.

“What happened to you?”

Fenrir lifted her eyes to her.

A creature of mist and rage. A being… born of abomination. It smelled like one of mine. Like my mate. But it was twisted, its mind clouded. It hunted me. And defeated me.

Alice felt a cold shiver run through her.

“The Guardian of the Mists…”

A fitting name. It left me for dead. My breath fades. But my blood… must not die with me.

She closed her eyes for a moment. A halo of dark light enveloped her, almost imperceptibly.

You who carry destiny… would you accept my legacy? Protect him. He is young. Proud. But pure of heart.

The system responded.

[Pact request received: Adopt Fenrir’s offspring?]
It will be added as a companion to your team.
Type: Fenrir
Rank: Legendary
Level: 10 — Element: Lightning/Shadow.
Skills: None (awakening pending).
Do you accept?
[Yes] — [No]

Alice confirmed, and a soft chime resonated in her mind.

Ding

[Congratulations]
You have a loyal companion. Protect him, and he shall protect you!
Please give him a name.

She looked at the pup. His large, moist eyes reflected pain and curiosity. She extended her hand.

He approached slowly. Sniffed. Then, as if in ceremony, rested his head on her palm. His coat black with shadows, violet eyes like his mother’s. Legends of old came to her: the Norse wolves—Sköll, son of Fenrir who chased the sun, and Hati, the moon-chaser.

“Then it is decided: I will call you Hati.”

Fenrir watched them, a final warm breath escaping her nostrils.

Thank you.

Her body stiffened. A final spark ran through her mane. Then she vanished, dissolving into a shimmering mist that faded into the cave’s darkness.

Alice remained motionless, her hand still stretched out.

The puppy looked up and whimpered softly. Then, silently, curled up at her leg.

She stroked his head.

“Hati… let’s go.”

They left the cave together, the little wolf trotting behind her through the puddles. The rain continued, soft and steady. The world hadn’t changed. But Alice did.

Later that afternoon, Alice had returned to hunting orcs when suddenly.

A ripple in the air.

Ding!

[Congratulations, you have reached Level 60!]
Attribute points gained: +5
New quest available: “Extermination” — Kill 50 Wild Orcs

Alice froze. Her hands were still smeared with black ogre blood, her hair dripping, plastered to her cheeks. She blinked.

Nothing else? No follow-up on the main quest? No mention of the sanctuary? No revelation?

A dull disappointment rose within her, like a stone dropped into a bottomless well. She prided herself on being pragmatic, but hoping had become a comforting habit. An illusion.

“What if I never get answers?” she murmured.

She leaned against a trunk, arms wrapped around her knees, gaze lost in the mist. Her mind drifted away, seized by memories from another life:

Coffee break laughter, a colleague tossing her a USB with a wink, a morphic cat poster in the office. Nights out at bars with friends, John’s raunchy jokes, Lily and Jean dancing around confessing feelings, Dwayne’s longing gaze. Perhaps she should have accepted him.

Then solitude: video games, series, the emptiness of a tidy apartment. Unsent messages.

An accident.

And now… this world.

The puppy licked her cheek as if to say it was okay, that he was here now. She smiled as she stroked his head.

“I’m done waiting.”

Her voice was resolute.

On that day, she chose not to be passive. If the system refused to give her the answers, she would go seek them herself. The sanctuary had called too long. The voice too.

It was time.

She stood up. The air was cold, but she felt at peace.

She spent the rest of the day preparing her departure. In silence.

She chose a discreet satchel. Packed dried rations, a flask, two healing potions from the mage’s emergency supplies, a rope, a hand-sketched map. Her sword was sharpened, armor polished, quietly.

She hid everything in a corner behind the hut, inside an old wooden chest she had cleaned. She didn’t want Golly to worry.

He must not follow her. It would be too dangerous for his level. But deep down, she felt herself repeating her old habit: leaving loved ones before they leave her.

Alice introduced her new friend to Golly without revealing the risks she’d taken. The golem watched quietly before saying:

“What a curious little animal. I hope he likes tubers. I’ll make him strong so he can protect you!”

That evening, they ate together, as usual.

Golly had prepared a large tuber stuffed with rabbit meat and some mushrooms.

After the meal, they sat by the fire, enjoying its warm glow. Hati, curled near the fire until then, quietly approached Golly. He extended a cautious paw toward him, sniffing his mineral scent. The golem watched without moving, then raised his stone finger almost ceremoniously.

The puppy jumped back in surprise, then came closer again, more confident.

“Oh, you’re fearless, aren’t you?” murmured Golly, extending his stone hand.

Hati gently nibbled his fingers. Golly emitted a low rumble, perhaps laughter. Then he placed a tuber on the ground and nudged it gently with his palm. Hati immediately scurried after it, barking, pawing at it excitedly. The tuber rolled across the packed earth floor, and the pup batted it with his snout before pouncing.

Alice watched quietly, her heart tight. Golly, with his imposing form, playing tenderly with a baby wolf whose eyes still carried traces of sorrow. It was absurd and beautiful.

“He learns quickly”, said the golem, never taking his eyes off the pup. “He’ll give you work, that one.”

“I’m ready”, she replied softly.

Golly turned his head toward her, his eyes bright with warmth.

“This world seems to have changed you, little Alice.”

“How could it not”, she answered gently.

Silence fell. The pup curled up against Golly’s leg, half-asleep, his paw resting on the potato like a treasure.

For fear of startling him… or simply afraid of growing too attached, she had never dared ask about his past. But if she didn’t do it now, she probably never would. So she dared:

“You’ve never told me much about your past.”

“…It’s not very interesting”, he said.

“What was your master like? I know he died soon after you arrived here. But I couldn’t decipher his journal. He must’ve encrypted it…”

“Mandrak, that was his name. He was very busy. Always buried in his grimoires. And not very kind. He liked to hit me with his staff when I was too slow in my tasks.”

“That’s awful. How did you even stay with him? With your strength, you could’ve…”

“He was my master; he summoned me.”

He said it as if that answered everything. Alice sighed but didn’t press further.

“And… you’ve always lived here?”

“Since he died, yes. Before he was banished into this forest, we traveled. We visited the Seven Realms.”

“Wow! You must’ve seen amazing places!”

“Yes…” he murmured, eyes momentarily distant. “First the imperial palace in Eleryndrak, crafted of polished granite, standing like a rock at the heart of the city. Austere, immense, yet beautiful in its own way. Like a silent giant. Then the forges of Brassac, vast as underground cathedrals. The air burns there, metal rings. You leave with the echo of hammers etched into your bones. Next, Avalon’s mage tower. Its library seems infinite. Stone staircases lead to spiral galleries, filled with grimoires in forgotten tongues. The air smells of ink and ancient dust.”

He paused to place another dried branch into the fire.

“We also saw the ports of Linaria. Its streets filled with laughter, cries, merchandise from everywhere. During Iros festival, the god of commerce, everything becomes light, banners, dancing music. And the Faërian steppes… a sea of grass under the wind, as far as the eye can see. Out there, everything seems more alive: colors, scents, even silence. But nothing equals the cathedral of Diosens. Built from Luminarion, a living glass. It changes with the hours, the light, the moon. By day, a celestial kaleidoscope; by night, a forest of frozen stars.”

Alice listened, tears slipping down her cheeks. For a moment, she forgot where she was. Each word was poetry that sparked images, desires, dreams. She had never imagined Golly, once so rigid, could speak with such evocative eloquence. Almost… melancholic?

Her heart tightened.

“Do you regret being stuck here?”

He hesitated.

“I don’t know what regret is… but since you arrived, I understand better what I’ve lost.”

She smiled bittersweetly. Then she did something that surprised even herself: she hugged the golem. He froze, saying nothing.

“Golly…”

“Yes?”

“I love you, you know. Like a real family member.”

Silence fell.

He looked at her for a long moment.

“You should sleep. Tomorrow, you want to train again, right?”

She nodded.

“Yes. Tomorrow…”

Night fell over the clearing.

The hut lay in darkness; rain pattered softly on the leaf roof. Alice rose quietly. Dressed in dark clothes, she grabbed her satchel, slid her sword in place, fastened her cloak.

Hati got up and followed. She tried to make him stay but dropped the idea fearing to wake Golly.

She approached Golly, sleeping in a corner, his back leaning against a wall, in standby. She didn’t make a sound. From her pocket, she drew a small dried-flower crown she’d prepared earlier and placed it gently on his head.

“Forgive me as I want to go back home. But you too are my home…”

Then she left the hut. Outside, the rain was light but steady. The sky was dark, weighted with clouds. The trees stood silent, attentive.

Alice looked back one last time.

She remembered it all. Every moment. Every laugh. Every victory, every wound. Golly’s lessons. Shared meals. Battles. Silences. She had lived here six long years. She’d died once and been reborn.

Her eyes blurred.

“I’ll come back for you, Golly. If I’m still in this world. Whatever that means!”

She wiped her cheeks on her sleeve. Then stepped into the mist, unsure whether she was stepping toward or against her destiny.