The Immortals' Truth

As we were heading to the shrine.

Rachel spoke softly, as if voicing their shared thoughts. “It doesn’t make sense... why are people so afraid of this place?”

Just as the words left her lips—

Whoosh.

A single arrow tore through the air, fast as lightning. It came out of nowhere, aimed straight for Rachel’s head.

“Rachel!” Ren’s instincts kicked in instantly.

Without thinking, he grabbed Rachel by the arm and pulled her into his chest. At the same moment, his free hand snapped upward—and caught the arrow in mid-air, his grip clenching around the shaft with frightening precision.

The group froze in shock.

Ren’s grip was firm, the arrow trembling in his hand. Rachel, pressed tightly against him, stared up at his face—blushing furiously. Her heart pounded against his chest, and for a second, Ren could hear it clearly. But he didn’t react to that. His focus was on their surroundings. His body remained alert—tense. Something wasn’t right.

Another volley of arrows followed—four, maybe five.

“Down!” Alex shouted.

He slammed both hands to the ground, and a thick wall of earth erupted from the path, shielding the group just in time. The arrows embedded into the wall with dull thunks.

It was Alex’s earth magic—strong and precise. A quick defense, but enough to tell them this wasn’t a random attack.

“Someone here isn’t happy we came,” Melissa muttered.

“They must’ve been the ones who were observing us since we arrived,” Kazuma said grimly.

Whoever it was, one thing was clear—they weren’t happy the group was here.

Still, they pressed forward cautiously, eyes scanning every tree and rooftop. Whoever attacked didn’t follow up, but the warning had been clear: Leave. Or else.

Eventually, they reached the shrine.

It was a small, traditional structure built in the Japanese style, with red beams and paper charms fluttering in the breeze. A stone path led through a wooden torii gate. A natural hot spring steamed quietly off to the side.

Ren looked around carefully. On a flat stone near the shrine, an elderly man sat cross-legged, lost in deep meditation.

They approached slowly.

Sensing their presence, the old man opened his eyes and looked up at them.

“You… who are you?” he asked calmly, voice steady despite his age.

Rachel stepped forward. “We came from the southern continent. Your son, Tatsumi, said you might be able to answer our questions. We rescued your granddaughter, Hiyori, from a group of kidnappers. She’s safe now.”

“Hiyori...” The elder’s face softened with concern. “She’s alright? They didn’t harm her?”

“She’s perfectly fine,” Rachel assured him. “But we were attacked just now. Someone doesn’t want us here.”

“Hmm... there are still those who hold grudges against this village,” the elder said with a quiet sigh. “It seems not all old enemies have forgotten us.”

He gestured for them to follow. “Come inside. You may ask your questions.”

The interior of the shrine was simple but elegant—tatami floors, scrolls on the walls, and incense burning faintly in the corner. The group sat respectfully around a low table.

The old man took his seat across from them, then looked up.

“I am Raizo, the elder of this village.”

His eyes moved over each of them before stopping on Rachel.

“You... are you George’s daughter?”

Rachel blinked in surprise. “Yes. But... how do you know my father?”

The elder smiled gently. “He once told me, ‘One day, my daughter will come looking for me.’”

Rachel’s throat tightened. “Do you know where he is? I haven’t heard from him in six months.”

The elder gave a slow nod. “He is alive. And still searching. Your father is a man of strong will—perhaps too strong for his own good.”

He reached for a small wooden box and opened it carefully.

“He left this for you. A letter. It holds the answers he couldn’t give in time.”

Rachel held the letter delicately, like it might crumble if she blinked too hard.

Meanwhile, Kazuma leaned forward.

“Why are people so afraid of this place?” he asked. “They speak of the ‘Immortals’ like monsters, but this village is... normal. Peaceful, even.”

The elder looked at him with a knowing smile.

“People often fear what they cannot understand.”

“So the name ‘Immortals’ doesn’t mean anything, then?” Alex asked.

“Oh, it means something,” the elder said. “Just not in the way you think.”

He pointed out the window toward the steaming hot spring beside the shrine.

“You see that spring? That is the source of our so-called immortality.”

“What do you mean?” Ren asked.

The old man smiled mysteriously. “How old do you think I am?”

Melissa tilted her head. “Maybe... eighty?”

The elder let out a soft chuckle. “I’ll be four hundred and eighty-nine this year.”

“What?!” Kazuma leaned back. “You’re joking, old man!”

But the elder’s expression didn’t change. “It’s no joke. That spring is real. And so is the legend.”

He took a breath, folding his hands in front of him.

“My son may have told you—it’s a long story. But one worth hearing.”

The elder took a quiet breath, his expression distant as if looking through time itself.

“This story goes back many centuries… to the first elder of our village. He was a kind man, but also a mage of extraordinary power—so gifted that people feared him simply for existing. His magic was unlike anything the world had seen.”

The group listened intently, though Kazuma raised an eyebrow. The old man sounded more like he was telling a myth than history. Still, none of them interrupted.

“He wasn’t feared because he was cruel—but because he advanced magic far beyond its limits. And in that pursuit… he created something unthinkable.”

The elder gestured toward the hot spring outside.

“The Elixir of Life.”

Silence fell.

“The legends you’ve heard… the rumors whispered in towns and taverns… they all started here. That spring, right outside this shrine, is not just warm water. It was born from the first elder’s greatest spell—an enchanted source that slows the passage of time within the body.”

He glanced toward the steam rising in the distance.

“As long as we keep drinking from it regularly, our aging slows. Not stops—slows. That’s all there is to it.”

He smiled faintly.

“No one becomes immortal in the true sense. If we were to leave, to stop drinking from it for too long… the years would catch up with us. Our bodies would continue aging as they should. Maybe faster. That’s why we remain here.”

The group exchanged glances. It sounded insane. Like a fantasy within a fantasy. But they’d already seen enough in this world to hesitate before calling anything impossible.

“Why hide it?” Ren asked. “Why not share it with the world?”

The elder gave a bitter smile. “Because the world does not ask for miracles—it seizes them.”

He looked toward the mountains that surrounded the valley.

“After creating the Elixir, the first elder realized the danger it posed. If the wrong hands found it, they would use it to rule… to wage war… to break the balance of life itself. So he sealed this place from the world. The valley was hidden with magic. A maze of tunnels and traps was built to guard the path. And our village was entrusted with a single purpose—”

He placed a hand gently over his chest.

“To protect the spring. Even if it costs us our lives.”

The air grew still.

“Generations have come and gone, but our duty remains. Some of us occasionally venture beyond the valley—for trade, for alliances, or personal reasons. And when people see us again—five, ten, even twenty years later—they’re shocked. To them, we look exactly the same. Not a wrinkle more. That’s how the rumors began.”

He looked up, his eyes serious now.

“Immortals. Cursed demons. Monsters in human skin. The outside world created names for what they couldn’t explain. But in truth… we are just guardians. We bleed like any other. We can die—by blade, by sickness, or by age if we ever stop drinking from the spring. We only live longer… not forever.”

Melissa folded her arms, eyes narrowing. “So to the outside world… people who never age must seem like something unnatural. Something to fear.”

Kazuma exhaled. “And that’s why someone just tried to kill us.”

“They want the spring,” Ren said quietly.

The elder nodded.

“They always do.”

To be continued...