Leave Me Alone, Big Brothers! [BL]-Chapter 173: Market in the Forest

That night, they built a bonfire again, sang, and played games together.

Alexander glanced at Zane and Nathan several times. Then at Nael and Hale.

Huan noticed. "Don’t ruin their happiness."

"They’re too clueless to have relationships. Kids," he muttered.

But he saw the twins were truly happy, especially Nael.

They were surprised when Nathan sang. The boy’s voice was incredibly melodious. Though similar to Nael’s, his tone was clearer.

Malvin had brought a guitar, and Nathan was quite surprised to see the man play it so skillfully.

Zane didn’t blink as he listened to Nathan sing. He was completely mesmerized.

"I’m your boyfriend, but this is the first time I’ve realized you can sing this beautifully," Zane said.

Nathan smiled. "I got used to singing to raise funds for the orphanage. I learned it from Sara."

Zane kissed Nathan, forgetting they were surrounded by people.

Cheers rang out immediately. "Zane! Go, Zane!" Nael shouted.

Alexander wasn’t impressed.

Zane felt his face flush. "Damn, stupid!" he muttered to himself, wanting to disappear.

Nathan also felt his face flush.

Malvin just smiled. He picked up his guitar again, and they began singing together.

On the third day, they decided to go for a long hike deep into the forest. They packed water and emergency food and started walking. They followed the trail markers that Antonio had shown them.

Antonio stayed in the cabin with Alfred and Albert, enjoying his time peacefully.

In the forest, the trees were very thick, and the ground was covered in soft moss. The air felt cool, damp, and strangely heavy, pressing quietly against their skin.

Many times, Nael complained of being tired. "Oh, I’m so tired."

Zane looked at Nael. "You’re a fencing champion. How can you have such poor stamina?" he asked, surprised.

Nathan turned his head and nodded. He remembered how exhausted Nael had been when chasing him before. It made no sense that a fencing champion would have such low stamina.

Nael groaned. "My bad. That was a year ago, and I really haven’t done anything since then. I didn’t practice or do any sports. And sometimes I feel so exhausted."

Hale held Nael’s arm. "He’s fine. Everyone’s tired. It’s normal," he said, defending him.

Zane clicked his tongue.

Nael smiled at Hale.

Alexander asked them to rest for a bit and eat something.

It had only been about 30 minutes when suddenly it grew dark around them.

The change was so sudden and strange. The air felt different. The scent of the forest vanished completely.

They looked around. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

"It’s already dark?" asked Roger, putting his water bottle back in his bag.

Not only had the atmosphere changed, but the surroundings had changed too. They could smell dusty streets, stale sweat, and cooked spices.

One moment they were in the woods, and the next they were standing on a cobblestone street in a crowded market.

It wasn’t a modern market. The buildings were made of old wood and looked as if they were leaning. The people wore very old, rough clothes made of gray and brown fabric. They were carrying baskets and pulling wooden carts.

The crowd walked past them as if they weren’t there. Even though they were wearing bright, modern hiking clothes and expensive boots, the people in the market didn’t look at them at all.

The sun disappeared instantly. The sky turned a dark purple color.

All around them, the stalls were filled with lit lanterns that smelled like burning oil.

"Where are we? I think we’re lost," Nael said. He was starting to panic. He grabbed Hale’s arm and wouldn’t let go.

Roger tried to stay calm. "It’s okay. We just took a wrong turn. Let’s turn around and go back the way we came."

They turned around, but the forest trail was gone. Behind them was only a narrow, dirty alleyway. They walked through it, but it just led to another square filled with more silent people. Nothing looked familiar.

Alexander looked around, his face dark with anger and confusion. This didn’t make sense. The clothes and the buildings looked like they were from hundreds of years ago.

A young boy wearing a dirty tunic walked past them. Alexander reached out and grabbed the boy’s arm firmly.

"Hey," Alexander growled. "We’re lost. Where are we? How do we get out of here?"

The boy stopped. He slowly turned his head to look at Alexander. The boy’s skin was very pale. But his eyes were the scariest part. They were bright yellow, and the pupils were vertical slits, like a cat’s eyes.

The boy didn’t say a word. He ripped his arm away and ran into the crowd.

Suddenly, the noisy market fell completely silent. Everyone stopped in their tracks. Hundreds of people turned their heads at the same time. Hundreds of pairs of glowing yellow eyes stared at them.

A wave of fear swept over the group. They backed away, huddling close together.

"Run!" Alexander shouted.

The crowd began moving toward them in a strange, jerky manner. They turned and bolted.

"What is happening?!" Roger yelled as he jumped over a wooden stall.

Malvin stayed at the back, pushing Nathan and Nael forward to make sure they weren’t left behind. They ran down narrow streets, passing strange trees that looked like banana trees but had scaly skin and weirdly colored fruit.

They finally reached an old, dilapidated house in a courtyard filled with tall, purple grass. Alexander shoved everyone inside.

"Get in!" he yelled.

He slammed the door shut and pushed a heavy wooden beam across it to lock it. The house was a ruin. The roof was collapsing, and there was dust everywhere. They were all breathing heavily, terrified of the things outside.

They were confused and scared.

As they tried to catch their breath, a woman appeared in the doorway of the next room. She was wearing a simple white dress. She looked very peaceful and had a sweet smile on her face. She was incredibly beautiful.

They were terrified. They backed up against the walls.

All of them, except Zane.

The boy stood in the middle of the room, staring at the woman. His eyes were wide, and he couldn’t speak for a moment.

Finally, Zane whispered a single word.

"Mom?"