Chapter 2: THE ONE HIDDEN IN THE SAND
The desert wind still howled, but this time, it carried something different.
The wanderer walked on, leaving footprints in the sun-scorched sand. Behind him, the four colossal corpses of the Sandworms still reeked of their thick, green blood. Normally, in the Augria Dunes, smaller creatures would have already begun picking the remains apart within minutes.
But this time, nothing came.
No vultures. No insects. No sounds beyond the wind.
Something was wrong.
The wanderer halted, his hand resting lightly on the hilt of his sword.
He could feel it—a pair of unseen eyes watching him from afar.
SWISH.
He spun around swiftly, but there was no one there.
Yet his instincts screamed: The watcher was still here.
He closed his eyes. He didn't look, didn't listen—he only felt.
…
BELOW!
BOOM!
The sand exploded beneath his feet!
A pitch-black armored hand shot up from the ground, lunging for his throat like a striking serpent.
The wanderer twisted his body, bringing his blade down in a precise arc.
SLASH!
The hand was severed before it could touch him.
But—
IT VANISHED.
No blood. No severed limb. It simply dissolved into sand the moment his blade struck it.
The wanderer narrowed his eyes.
An illusion? No… this was—
"You're quick."
A hoarse voice echoed from a distance.
The wanderer turned sharply.
Standing atop a large rock about ten meters away was a figure, gazing down at him with glowing red eyes.
He had long silver hair that cascaded past his scarred, angular face. His tanned skin and solid frame spoke of a warrior forged through countless battles. But the most striking feature was the gleaming black armor covering his body, adorned with intricate serpent-like patterns.
A warrior. But not a human.
The wanderer took a step forward, his sword still at the ready.
"Who are you?"
The warrior smirked, then leapt off the rock, landing soundlessly on the sand.
"I am—"
He vanished.
WHOOSH!
The wind screamed.
The wanderer instantly leaned to the side, swinging his blade to intercept the incoming strike from behind.
CLANG!
A shockwave of killing intent erupted.
The warrior had moved—teleported—reappearing right behind the wanderer, a curved blade in his hand, mere millimeters from his throat.
"You're fast."
The wanderer chuckled, but his eyes were razor-sharp.
"But I'm faster."
SWISH!
His sword flickered like lightning.
The warrior jumped back, but not fast enough—his chest plate split open, revealing the skin beneath.
No blood spilled.
Instead, from the wound… sand poured out.
The wanderer frowned.
"You… are not human?"
The warrior grinned, placing a hand on his wound. The armor sealed itself, pulling the scattered sand back into his body.
"I am… the offspring of sand and shadow."
"My name is Amon."
"And you—will die by my hand."
The desert wind howled.
Two figures stood facing each other, just meters apart, yet the killing intent between them was so dense that the very air seemed to distort.
The wanderer tightened his grip on his sword, lowering his stance in preparation for an attack. His silver eyes gleamed, locked onto the enemy before him.
Amon—the dark warrior whose body was made of sand—only smirked. He waved his hand, and from the ground, a curved sword of black sand emerged, as if forged from the very soul of the desert.
BOOM!
The ground erupted as both warriors lunged at each other.
BLADE CLASHED AGAINST BLADE.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Sparks flew through the desert, merging with the raging sandstorm.
The wanderer swung a slicing arc through the air, his sword aura igniting like a streak of silver light. But Amon vanished the moment the attack reached him.
"Behind!"
His instincts roared.
The wanderer spun instantly, raising his sword to block a downward strike.
CLANG!
The force of the impact shattered the ground beneath him.
Amon grinned, twirling his sword before launching a relentless flurry of attacks at blinding speed.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The wanderer stepped back, but his defense remained flawless. Each time Amon's black sand blade descended, his own razor-sharp steel met it with absolute precision.
But…
Amon wasn't fighting alone.
BOOM!
A sudden sandstorm exploded beneath the wanderer's feet. The swirling dust engulfed him, completely obscuring his vision.
"You're too slow."
WHOOSH!
A black blade sliced through the storm, aiming straight for his throat.
"Not at all."
SLASH!
A silver aura cut through the sandstorm, splitting Amon's blade in half.
BOOM!
The sandstorm was cleaved in two, revealing the wanderer standing firm, his eyes gleaming like tempered steel.
His sword shone brightly, releasing an aura so powerful that it completely dispelled the raging sands.
Amon hesitated.
"Sword aura?" he muttered.
This man was no ordinary warrior.
The wanderer raised his blade, pointing it directly at Amon.
"If you like sandstorms…"
"Then let me show you what a real storm looks like."
He slammed his foot into the ground. A surge of sword aura erupted.
Sand flew wildly, but this time, it wasn't Amon's doing.
It was his.
WHOOSH!
A silver wave of sword energy tore through the air, carrying thousands of razor-sharp grains of sand, forming a true storm of sword aura.
Amon's eyes widened, sensing the overwhelming killing intent.
But it was too late.
SWOOSH!
The sword aura engulfed him.
BOOM!!!
Sand erupted violently. A monstrous roar of pain echoed through the storm.
The entire desert landscape was carved apart, leaving behind a massive crater.
As the storm settled, Amon was left kneeling on one knee, his body riddled with deep slashes. The black sand that formed him crumbled, no longer holding together as before.
He lifted his head, staring at the wanderer, who approached him slowly.
A man capable of unleashing such a devastating storm of sword aura…
Could not be human.
"Who… are you?"
The wanderer only gave a faint smirk, raising his sword once more.
"I'm just a passerby."
"But… if you still want to fight…"
His sword aura flared again—stronger, sharper.
"I'm ready."
The desert trembled.
Golden sands surged like furious waves, swirling around Amon, who was kneeling on one knee. But he was no longer in a state of defeat. Instead, a terrifying power was awakening within him.
The wanderer sensed it instantly.
He took a step back, his sharp eyes locked onto Amon, who had begun to dissolve—not in the manner of a vanquished foe, but as an entity merging with nature itself.
"You think… you have won?"
Amon lifted his head. His black-sand eyes glowed fiercely within the rising sandstorm.
BOOM!
A surge of energy erupted, and Amon's body completely merged with the desert.
The ground roared.
The Augria Dunes trembled violently. Towering columns of sand rose from the earth, twisting into colossal arms stretching out from the heart of the desert.
Amon was no longer a singular being.
He had become one with the Augria Dunes.
From above, a voice echoed—deep and godlike:
"This is my true form. Intruder, be gone."
BOOM!!!
From deep within the sand, a colossal eye opened, reflecting the image of the wanderer.
And then…
The desert moved.
Enormous tendrils of sand, hundreds of meters long, lashed out from all directions, consuming the space around them, crushing everything in their path.
WHOOSH!!!
The wanderer narrowly dodged a massive strike, flipping mid-air as the sword in his grasp erupted with energy. But then, he realized something—
Sand cannot be cut.
No matter how powerful his slashes were, the sand simply reformed itself, as if Amon was the desert itself.
"Damn it…"
This was no longer a simple duel.
Amon had become a living landmass.
"There's no other choice…"
The wanderer clenched his sword tightly.
His eyes darkened—deep, abyssal black.
An ancient power stirred within him.
The Blessing of Death.
It was not an attack. It was not a spell. It was an absolute force—a power that brought all things to an end.
BOOM!
Suddenly, silence.
The swirling sands slowed, then stopped completely.
Amon sensed the shift.
The Augria Dunes… were dying.
The once-immortal sands began to disintegrate, as if their very lifespan had been drained in an instant.
"What… is this?"
Amon's booming voice quivered with fear.
But it was too late.
The wanderer swung his blade down.
A black arc of sword aura shot forward, cutting through the desert, piercing everything, drowning the world in the darkness of finality.
BOOM!!!
The desert collapsed.
The sands crumbled into nothingness, as if they had never existed.
Amon—the ancient guardian of this land—was erased completely.
…
Silence.
Only the wanderer remained, standing in the now-empty wasteland.
He panted heavily, feeling his body slowly returning to normal after using the Blessing.
And then…
A flood of knowledge surged into his mind.
Amon was not a single entity.
That name belonged to all the guardians of the Augria Dunes.
And their purpose…
Was to protect the Pleiades Watchtower.
"The Pleiades Watchtower…"
The wanderer's breath quickened.
For the past three months, he had roamed the Augria Dunes, searching for any trace of the mysterious tower.
But only now—after defeating Amon—had he obtained the map leading to it.
He looked down at the ancient symbols appearing in his mind, revealing the path to the Watchtower.
A faint smirk crossed his lips.
"Finally… I found it."
He gripped his sword tightly, his eyes gleaming with newfound determination.
The true journey…
was only just beginning.