Only a few hours had passed since the Supreme Council of Humanity issued its decree when the entirety of Gandalia began to sense an unusual change.
It was not something that could be seen with the naked eye.
Nor was it some mysterious force that had appeared in the sky.
It was something else...
Movement.
A massive movement of humanity that began spreading across the continents, seas, cities, and kingdoms.
The news traveled from city to city, from kingdom to kingdom, until it reached every continent inhabited by humans.
And everywhere, the same words were being repeated:
"The Supreme Council of Humanity has issued a new decree."
"All humans outside Zeta must return."
"They have only one month."
The decree itself was clear and absolute:
By order of the Supreme Council of Humanity, all humans residing outside Zeta must return to Zeta within one month.
Anyone who exceeds the designated deadline will be treated as a traitor to humanity.
There was no explanation in the decree.
No reason.
No clarification.
Not a single word explaining why the Supreme Council had suddenly made such a decision.
There was only one command...
Return to Zeta.
At first, many people refused to believe what they had heard.
Even some local officials assumed it might be a mistake or merely a rumor spreading from city to city.
How could humanity possibly order all of its people to return to a single continent?
Humans were scattered across vast stretches of Gandalia.
Enormous commercial cities.
Independent kingdoms.
Agricultural regions.
Ports.
Mountainous territories.
And lands where human families had lived for generations.
Returning meant abandoning all of it.
But the doubts quickly disappeared when official copies of the decree, bearing the seal of the Supreme Council of Humanity, reached the major cities.
At that moment...
There was no longer any room for doubt.
The decree was real.
In one distant human city, a merchant stood in the middle of the main square, holding a copy of the decree while a large crowd gathered around him.
The square, once filled with the voices of merchants and customers, had transformed into a place of confusion and unrest.
People were talking.
Arguing.
Questioning one another.
Everyone was trying to understand what was happening.
One man raised his head and asked in disbelief:
"Return to Zeta?"
A man beside him answered:
"Yes."
He then pointed toward the decree.
"Did you read the entire thing? They have only one month."
An old man slowly stepped forward and examined the document with a frown.
The deep wrinkles on his face reflected the many years he had spent in this city.
He said:
"This makes no sense..."
Then he raised his head.
"Why would they want to gather all humans on a single continent?"
No one had an answer.
A young man standing among the crowd said:
"Perhaps a war is coming."
Another man quickly shook his head.
"If there were going to be a war, they would have announced a military mobilization."
He looked at the decree again.
"This decree is different..."
The people exchanged glances.
Everyone could feel that there was something they did not know.
Something hidden behind this decision.
But the Supreme Council had given them no answers.
After a few moments, the merchant asked:
"Then what are we supposed to do?"
The man simply answered:
"There is no choice."
He pointed toward the council's seal.
"It is an order from the Supreme Council."
Silence fell.
Those words were enough.
Even the most influential local rulers had no choice but to obey an order issued by the highest authority of humanity.
And from that moment onward...
The movement began.
Throughout the streets and alleys, families began gathering their belongings.
The children did not understand why they suddenly had to leave.
Their fathers tried to hide their anxiety behind composed expressions.
Mothers gathered clothes, food, and everything that could be carried.
Merchants closed their shops.
Some sold their goods at low prices rather than leave them behind.
As for the warriors, they began preparing their weapons and equipment.
They did not know what awaited them in Zeta.
But they knew one thing...
The order had come from the Supreme Council.
In the agricultural regions, farmers temporarily abandoned their fields.
Some stood silently, staring at the lands where they had spent their entire lives.
Land their fathers had worked.
Land where they themselves had been born.
Land where they had once believed they would eventually die.
And now...
They had to leave it behind.
In the ports, everything changed within only a few hours.
Ships began departing one after another.
Merchant vessels.
Transport ships.
Private ships.
All of them carried humans and their belongings toward Zeta.
As time passed, the main roads were no longer merely roads.
They became endless rivers of humanity.
Long caravans stretched across enormous distances.
Carts overflowed with belongings.
Vehicles carried families.
Warriors marched alongside the caravans.
Merchants desperately tried to organize their journeys as quickly as possible.
The scene resembled a massive migration unlike anything humanity had witnessed in thousands of years.
Millions of humans began their journey toward Zeta.
And those millions were only the beginning.
Zeta, which had become humanity's last remaining homeland, had once been the heart of human civilization.
It was there that the first human civilization had begun.
From there, humanity had spread across the rest of Gandalia.
Then came the war.
The lands fell.
The cities were lost.
And humanity's territory gradually shrank.
Until Zeta became the last place humanity still possessed.
That was why returning to Zeta carried a meaning far greater than simply moving from one place to another.
It was a return to their roots.
A return to their ancient homeland.
A return to the land where humanity's beginnings had taken place.
And now...
Humanity was returning once again.
But this time, it was not a return of refugees fleeing an enemy.
Nor was it a terrified multitude searching for somewhere to hide.
It was the return of an entire people to their homeland.
Zeta
Zeta experienced an unprecedented level of activity.
Within the first few hours, caravans began arriving one after another.
One.
Then dozens.
Then hundreds.
Soon, the roads leading toward the cities became more crowded with humans than ever before.
The inhabitants of Zeta stood along the roads, watching the spectacle in astonishment.
The people arriving came from every walk of life.
Entire families.
Merchants.
Warriors.
Farmers.
Artisans.
Scholars.
Cultivators.
And people from every level of society.
There was no distinction between social classes.
Everyone was returning.
The cities received ever-growing numbers of people, and accommodations began filling rapidly.
The markets became crowded.
The ports became packed.
And the roads did not fall silent for even a moment.
Even the skies above Zeta were filled with various forms of transportation arriving from distant regions.
From atop the city walls, the inhabitants of Zeta silently watched the spectacle.
Never before had they witnessed such an enormous number of humans pouring into the continent at once.
This was something far greater than a migration.
It was something that resembled...
The return of an entire nation to its homeland.
Zeta seemed to be reclaiming something it had lost long ago.
Something everyone had believed would never return.
Something that was never supposed to return.
And with every caravan that arrived...
That feeling grew stronger.
At one of the ancient fortresses, Valor stood atop a towering watchtower.
The wind stirred his robes as his eyes followed the ever-growing number of humans arriving.
From that height, he could see the roads stretching all the way toward the horizon.
In every direction...
There were caravans.
The sight was far greater than he had expected.
Thorin approached and stood beside him.
For a few moments, the two remained silent.
Then Thorin said:
"They have begun returning."
Valor answered calmly:
"Yes..."
He then looked toward the horizon.
"And the numbers are greater than we expected."
Thorin smiled faintly.
"Good."
But Valor did not smile.
His eyes were filled with deep thought.
He said:
"Not yet."
Thorin looked at him.
Valor continued:
"Those who have returned are only the beginning."
He raised his eyes toward the distant horizon.
"There are still countless humans outside."
He paused for a moment.
Then said:
"And if the Monarch wants all humans gathered in Zeta... then he must have a reason."
Silence fell.
Both of them knew that this decision was far from ordinary.
Gathering all of humanity on a single continent was not something that could be done without a reason.
Then Thorin said quietly:
"The resurrection."
Valor nodded.
"I heard it from him myself."
His eyes narrowed.
"He ordered us to prepare for the resurrection of humanity."
Thorin did not answer.
The words alone were enough.
At the headquarters of the Supreme Council of Humanity, work did not stop for even a moment.
Maps covered the tables.
Hundreds of reports arrived one after another.
Messages traveled constantly between officials.
Every passing hour brought new information.
Another city had begun implementing the decree.
Another region was preparing to depart.
A massive caravan had left one of the kingdoms.
And in another region, its inhabitants were still refusing to leave.
One of the officials said:
"Most cities have already begun implementing the decree."
He hesitated for a moment before continuing:
"However, there are some regions whose rulers are refusing to leave."
Thorin raised his eyes toward him.
"Refusing?"
The official answered:
"They claim that returning to Zeta will destroy their trade, and they are unwilling to abandon their lands and possessions."
Silence filled the room.
Their reasoning was understandable.
Some of these rulers had spent hundreds of years building their influence.
They possessed cities, territories, markets, and enormous fortunes.
Returning meant abandoning all of it.
But that changed nothing.
Thorin raised his eyes and said coldly:
"Do they think the decree is merely a suggestion?"
The official remained silent.
Everyone understood the answer.
Valor said:
"Do not act recklessly."
He then looked at the official.
"Send them one final message."
The official nodded.
Valor continued:
"Remind them of the designated deadline."
He paused for a moment.
Then added in a firmer voice:
"And anyone who insists on refusing... shall be dealt with according to the decree."
The official bowed.
"Understood."
Then he hurried out.
The chamber fell silent once again.
Outside...
The caravans continued moving.
Endless waves of humans were making their way toward Zeta.
With every passing hour...
The continent grew more crowded.
The roads received more travelers.
The cities opened their gates to more people.
And ships continued arriving from across the seas.
Humanity...
Was returning.
Returning to the land where its civilization had begun.
To the continent that had become its final stronghold.
To Zeta.
But no one knew where this return would lead.
Nor why the Supreme Council had chosen this particular moment.
Nor what had compelled all the leaders to act with such speed and determination.
The only thing that was clear...
Was that something immense was moving within humanity.
Something that ordinary humans were incapable of understanding.
And the return to Zeta...
Was only the beginning.