Endless darkness enveloped everything.
There was no scent to smell, no touch to feel, and no clear sight to see.
The darkness, which represented absolute nothingness, lasted for an immeasurable amount of time.
After an unknown span of time, a single point of light appeared within the endless darkness.
Then another point of light appeared.
Then another.
And another.
The tiny points of light gradually became a natural pattern within the darkness.
Those lights finally restored Van’s vision.
Van’s gray eyes widened.
His feet could once again feel something beneath them, and he could smell his own scent again.
Van raised his head and saw millions of points of light scattered irregularly like stars.
That star-filled sky slowly began to move as if days were passing.
Its movement, which had started slowly, became faster.
The star-filled sky spun within the reflection of Van’s eyes.
Gradually, the world around him continued to change.
At first, there was only black earth.
Eventually, a mountain appeared.
Then a massive crack formed, swallowing the mountain.
Water began covering the land beneath the endlessly rotating starry sky.
Van sank beneath it, yet he wasn’t affected.
The water eventually receded and was replaced by wet green land, which was soon covered by falling snow.
The ground beneath Van’s feet continued changing, just like the black sky filled with endlessly spinning stars.
Van had no idea how many changes had passed before him.
He simply stood there motionless, without a sound, without a single thought that could be heard.
After the world around Van had changed millions of times, everything finally began to settle.
The sky turned white.
The sun began shining upon the land, but a thin layer of mist told a different story.
The mist blocked the sunlight that tried to reach Van.
A cold breeze brushed against Van’s smooth golden hair.
His skin could finally feel a wind that seemed truly real.
His gray eyes blinked several times.
His stiff body slowly began to move.
He looked to his left and right.
He was standing on wet green grass.
Around him, enormous moss-covered boulders rose from the ground, embraced by the mist that blocked the sunlight.
Van took a deep breath.
Fresh air unlike anything he had ever experienced filled his lungs, making every alveolus seem to smile.
Van slowly exhaled with a rough breath, as though savoring the freshest air he had ever inhaled.
He remained standing there, simply breathing for a while.
Eventually, his legs gave out beneath him, and he sat down on the wet green grass among the towering moss-covered rocks.
Van opened his mouth.
His first words in an age he did not know finally escaped his lips.
"So... this is two million years ago?"
Van looked around once more before finally lying down.
His black robe became damp and cold as it pressed against more of the wet grass.
Van stared at the sky, where the mist tried to block the sun.
He blinked several times, trying to remember the thing that had disturbed him earlier.
"His crying sounded strange... or was it because it was the first time I’d ever heard the old man cry?"
Van swallowed.
His fingers gently brushed through the wet grass.
"He sacrificed himself to send me here and awaken my potential? Good grief... he bet so much on me. And why me?"
The surroundings were peaceful while his thoughts continued to wage war.
’Was it really just because I’m a "canvas that always returns to being blank no matter how many times it’s painted"? Or was there another reason...?’
Van clicked his tongue.
"You crazy old man. We knew each other for three years. You should’ve explained everything in detail."
Van shrugged while still lying on the green grass.
"I mean, we had plenty of time... why did you only train my body without teaching me the theory?"
Van finally got up from the grass.
"I’ll remember you today, old man..."
Van raised his right hand, where the sunset tattoo was engraved on the back of it.
He pinched the air while imagining a certain object.
Out of nothing, a black rectangular shoulder bag gradually took shape.
"...but I’m also going to do what I want to do."
He opened the black bag, revealing a digital camera inside.
Van inserted a memory card into the camera.
He then looked to his left and right.
Standing up, he raised the camera, pointed the lens toward himself with the moss-covered rocks in the background.
Van smiled broadly while giving a thumbs-up with his other hand.
The sound of the first camera shutter in history finally echoed as it captured Van’s photograph.
He let out an amazed shout when he saw the result.
Then he burst into laughter and began photographing the scenery around him.
He found a snail that he thought was the biggest one he’d ever seen.
He tried talking to the snail, but it didn’t respond.
Eventually, he wandered through the lonely mist.
Sometimes he flew to take pictures of the landscape and many other interesting things.
He kept doing that until he exhausted himself.
Now he sat at the edge of the dense forest, greedily gulping down a bottle of mineral water.
He looked over the vast field of moss-covered rocks he had crossed before turning toward the forest trees.
"What’s this? I thought the trees would look strange..."
Van reached out and touched the damp tree trunk.
"Everything feels normal..."
Van pulled a book out of thin air.
He opened it while speaking.
"Hmm... rainforest animals from two million years ago...?"
One of Van’s eyebrows rose.
"Ancient orangutans? Then... giant apes that are three meters tall? Good grief..."
Van remained at the forest’s edge for quite a while without entering it.
"There are saber-toothed tigers? Woah... there are elephants too, and ancient rhinos..."
Van finally closed the book before standing up to face the dark, damp forest.
He took out the cellphone the old man had given him. A voice echoed from it, trying to compete with the natural sounds of the forest animals.
"Go straight for 30 kilometers...."
Van tilted his head and looked at the sky.
"Should I just fly...? But I’m curious about the ancient animals."
After struggling with his indecision for a while, he finally stepped into the rainforest with his camera in hand.
His footsteps whispered through the dark forest.
Van photographed countless things he had never seen before.
He photographed a centipede as large as his hand crawling across the ground.
He photographed a bird with colorful feathers and a tail longer than its own body.
The deeper he ventured into the forest, the busier his ears became as they processed the countless sounds made by the animals.
At several points, Van shivered.
He heard their intentions to hunt one another.
He heard himself becoming the subject of their gossip.
Van shook his head before looking left and right.
"Good grief...!! Talk one at a time, everyone!!"
The animals paid no attention to Van.
Some approached out of curiosity.
Others approached because they wanted to devour him.
A tiger with saber-like fangs leaped from one fallen tree to another.
It ran circles around Van, while Van paid it no attention.
He simply kept walking, occasionally taking pictures of it.
He even photographed the tiger as it leaped toward him with its jaws wide open.
Van captured a beautiful shot just as the tiger slammed into something invisible before it could sink its teeth into his flesh.
.
Van burst into laughter as the tiger held its aching nose.
.
"Hahaha... if you act cute, I’ll give you some meat."
The tiger stared at Van in disbelief, while Van’s invisible space was repeatedly struck by a snake coiled around a tree.
Van let out a sigh.
He looked around the forest, which had become as lively as a city street.
.
The only difference was that the animals didn’t hide their intentions.
They said exactly what they were thinking.
Van’s forehead throbbed.
He had finally reached his limit.
He tossed the camera away before making it disappear.
He ultimately decided to fly into the sky instead of walking thirty kilometers through a forest filled with animals.
He flew freely while digging at his ear.
"Good grief... I’ll go deaf if I stay down there for another hour..."
Van shrugged as he continued flying.
His gray eyes gradually adapted to the increasingly powerful wind and thick mist.
"I mean... good grief, the animals have absolutely no filter... they want this, they want to eat that one, they want to eat me..."
Van took out his cellphone, which was pointing him toward his first piece of Artium.
"Isn’t there any animal that likes being alone... I think I’d get along better with a loner."
Van hummed and whistled as the fresh breeze gradually turned into an increasingly cold wind.
He finally created an invisible barrier to keep his black robe from being blown away.
.
He had now been flying longer than his previous record back at the beach of the endless sunset.
Eventually, he flew past a cliff that marked the end of the land.
The roaring sound of violent waves filled Van’s ears, making him glance at his phone, which instructed him to continue several more kilometers.
"Good grief... the sea again? I’m already sick of it. Why does my first target have to be in the ocean?"
One of Van’s eyebrows rose.
"Target?"
Van looked down at the dark blue sea roaring beneath him.
"Can I go fishing?"
Van pondered while looking at the ocean.
He continued flying straight for a while until the voice from his phone made him stop.
According to the display, he had reached the location where the Artium was supposed to be.
Van let out a sigh.
He looked down.
The ocean was still the only thing he could see.
Van slipped the phone back into the pocket of his black robe before creating an invisible barrier around his body.
The barrier gradually shrank until it perfectly matched the shape of his body.
Van moved.
The invisible barrier adapted to every movement he made.
He then released his flying ability and allowed himself to plunge into the sea.
...
"Let’s take a look at the sea animals first... then maybe I’ll go fishing."