Story Start
In the jungle, a mysterious girl is running, her breaths sharp and hurried. Behind her, a group of thugs is chasing her, shouting threats as they run. One of them calls out, "Give us the locket, and we'll let you go. Hand it over quietly."
The girl, her eyes sharp with fear and determination, ignores their words and keeps running, her footsteps echoing in the dense forest. As she continues her flight through the jungle, she realizes that it's no longer enough to just run away. She has no choice but to stop and face them.
She halts suddenly in the middle of the forest, causing the thugs to stop as well. They catch up, breathing heavily, and the leader demands, "Give us the golden locket, and we'll let you go. No harm will come to you."
The girl looks at them coldly and responds, "If you think you can take it, prove it."
Her words provoke the leader, and he motions for the others to attack. "Charge!" he orders.
The thugs rush towards her. The girl stands her ground, her fists clenched. She fights with all her might, moving swiftly, blocking their strikes, and countering with sharp, precise blows. But the thugs are numerous, and despite her skill, it's clear that the fight is difficult.
In the middle of the chaos, she leaps into the air, twisting her body, and lands on a branch of a nearby tree. As she steadies herself, the wind swirls around her, and she creates a sword out of the very air itself. The thugs, witnessing this, freeze in shock. They have never seen someone wield such power. Yet, despite their fear, they charge again.
The girl fights bravely, skillfully wielding the sword she created from the wind. But the number of thugs is overwhelming, and she is starting to tire. Seeing this, she decides to use her hidden power-metal manipulation. Her eyes glow briefly, and in an instant, she summons several large blades made of metal from the ground, sending them flying at the thugs. They try to dodge, but the blades are relentless, slicing through the air, leaving a trail of destruction.
The thugs are clearly struggling. Their weapons are no match for her powers. One by one, they are cut down, severely injured, but they don't retreat. The leader growls in frustration and calls for a retreat. "Get back! We need to regroup."
The thugs fall back, retreating to the leader. "What now, boss? She's too strong for us," one of them asks, panting.
The leader, wiping sweat from his brow, turns to them. "Stay calm. I've got this. I'll handle it. You all stay back."
He then steps forward, revealing his own power. "I am a Wanderer, just like her," he declares. "I have the power to defeat her. Stay back, and let me show you what I can do."
The leader now uses his power, free manipulation, and the ground around him begins to shake. He attacks the girl with enormous, shifting tree branches, hurling them at her with terrifying force. The girl, who was still recovering from the earlier battle, barely manages to leap out of the way in time, but the leader's attack is relentless. He continues to launch huge branches at her, one after another.
The girl, realizing she is in serious danger, evades, using her wind sword to cut through the incoming attacks. But then, the leader does something unexpected. He gathers the branches into a massive, twisted net of wood and throws it at her. The girl tries to cut through it, but it wraps around her, trapping her. Her powers seem to be drained by the leader's attack.
"Now, you can't escape," the leader laughs, stepping closer. "This is my domain. You won't survive."
The girl struggles against the trap, but it's no use. The wood seems to drain her strength, and she's caught. "I can't... get free," she thinks to herself, her breathing heavy as she tries to focus her energy. "What's happening to me?"
Just then, a voice breaks the tension. "Who's there?" the girl wonders aloud, straining to hear. From a distance, she can hear the faint sound of a conversation.
Meanwhile, two children, a brother and a sister, are walking through the jungle, unaware of the battle unfolding nearby. The younger sister asks, "Where can I find some good mushrooms?"
The older brother responds, "They're just ahead. The best mushrooms you'll find. Don't worry."
The girl, hearing their conversation, turns her head in confusion, wondering who they are. But she is quickly distracted as the leader continues his assault. The leader's attack draws her attention back to him, and she narrowly avoids being hit.
The brother and sister, still talking, walk into the area where the battle is taking place. The girl, seeing them approach, is immediately alarmed. "What are you two doing here? Don't you see the fight? It's too dangerous! Get out of here, now!"
The older brother, confused but calm, replies, "Don't worry, we're just picking mushrooms. We won't bother you. Go ahead with your fight. We're not here to interfere."
Both the girl and the leader are stunned. The leader thinks to himself, "These kids have no idea what's going on. They're walking right into danger."
Despite this, the leader refocuses on the girl. He launches another brutal attack, this time with more fury, sending a barrage of large branches at her. The girl, her energy drained, struggles to block them. She creates another wind sword and begins to cut through the massive branches, but the effort is too much. She's barely able to keep up.
In the chaos, one of the large branches from the leader's attack is sent flying toward the younger sister. The older brother reacts instantly, grabbing the branch out of the air and using his power to stop it. The girl watches in awe. "That was too close," she thinks, but she's too distracted to focus on it for long.
"Look," the older brother says, turning to the girl. "We told you we're just here for mushrooms. Stop worrying. We won't get in your way. You keep fighting, we'll be fine."
The leader is caught off guard by this. He can't believe that the children are so nonchalant in the middle of this battle. But he doesn't have time to think about it. He's too focused on defeating the girl.
With another powerful move, the leader summons several massive branches and hurls them at the girl. She cuts through them with her sword, but the branches keep coming, blocking her every move. Just as she's about to be overwhelmed, the younger sister, noticing the danger, steps forward. Using her power, she manipulates the branches in the air, stopping them mid-flight and throwing them back at the leader.
"You don't get it, do you?" the younger sister says, her voice calm but firm. "We're not here to fight you. We're here for mushrooms. You should really focus on that fight, because you're not winning."
The leader, frustrated by the interference, tries to attack again. But the older brother, now fully enraged, steps forward. He grabs a large tree by its roots and rips it out of the ground, tossing it toward the leader. The tree crashes into him, knocking him back several meters.
"You were warned," the older brother says. "We're here for mushrooms, not to fight. But you just wouldn't leave us alone."
The leader, now seething with rage, charges again, but the older brother is ready. He punches the leader with such force that the leader is sent flying backward, crashing into the ground.
The girl, still trapped by the leader's attack, watches the chaos unfold. She hears the older brother's voice once again. "We told you to leave us alone. Now, we're done."
The leader, realizing he can't win, orders his thugs to retreat. "Fall back! We'll come back for her later."
The older brother turns to the girl, concern in his voice. "Are you okay?"
The girl nods weakly. "I... I think I'm fine. Thank you."
The younger sister, noticing her wounds, says, "You're hurt. Should we help you?"
The older brother shakes his head. "No, we should go. She'll be fine. Let's just get those mushrooms."
As they walk away, the girl watches them go, amazed at how they handled the situation. She realizes that not everyone in this jungle is out to harm her