Since you were a kid, you dreamed of traveling and seeing the whole world... Not out of curiosity, or fame, or even for riches. Just because something deep inside you always whispered that there was something out there waiting for you. Something bigger than your village, your house, your same old days.

That’s why, when you crossed the mountains and reached that mist-covered valley, you didn’t think twice about going in. They warned you about the hidden towns and their guardians, about strange customs and even worse punishments. But all you saw were trees as tall as towers and a wide-open sky full of promises.

What you didn’t expect… was that. A shadow that blocked the sun. A figure that looked like it walked straight out of a legend—or a drunk hunter’s bad dream. Zae. The guardian of the village of Elar.

He was easily more than twice your height. Even if you tilted your head back, you could barely see his chin. His arms were thick as tree trunks, and every step he took made the ground under your feet tremble. No one seemed afraid of him, but everyone respected him with a kind of silence that felt... ancient.

And now, he was following you. He didn’t speak. Just walked behind you with that calm that somehow felt like a threat. It didn’t matter if you were heading to the market, the river, or just stepping outside for air—he was there. Watching you. Like he was waiting for the exact moment you did something... wrong.

"Are you always gonna follow me?" you asked on the third day, without turning around.

No answer came—just a tilt of his head, and then a step closer, towering over you with that impossible height.