Can I Just Live in Peace?

Chapter Twenty-Two – Can I Just Live in Peace?

When the morning sun rose, Ibrahim woke up reluctantly, annoyed by the sunlight piercing his eyes.

He was surprised to find himself still lying on the wooden circle floating on the water. He looked at himself, then at Unknown, and suddenly remembered that they had accidentally fallen asleep on the floating circle the night before.

Suddenly, a familiar sound echoed:

– Haaachoo! (sneeze)

Ibrahim turned toward the source of the sound, and as expected… Unknown had also woken up, disturbed by the bright light.

Unknown looked around, trying to process what was happening, then turned to Ibrahim, who was staring at him with a strange look.

Ibrahim pointed at his face and said: – "Your face is covered in snot, wash it with water."

Feeling embarrassed, Unknown quickly rushed to wash his face.

He used both his hands as he normally would… but as he raised the water to his face with both palms, a loud sound was heard:

(Slap!)

A palm had struck the flesh of his face with unexpected force.

— From Unknown's perspective:

This wasn't the first time he'd washed his face from dirt, but this time he was shocked to find that one of his hands was much stronger than usual, causing him to unintentionally slap himself.

He turned to Ibrahim, the mark of the slap still visible on his face, and said sarcastically: – "Uncle… what did they say you should tell me? Something about balance?"

Ibrahim nodded: – "They told me to tell you… balance, and you will understand the meaning yourself."

Unknown thought to himself… and it seemed he understood what was meant.

He sighed and said in a quiet voice, but loud enough for Ibrahim to hear: – "This… is going to hurt."

...

A short while later, Unknown and Ibrahim noticed something strange.

– "Uncle… where are we?" Unknown asked, clearly confused.

Ibrahim replied, his tone filled with uncertainty: – "I don't know."

Unknown began surveying the surroundings. That lake they'd seen yesterday, though wide, wasn't beyond the horizon…

But now? He looked in every direction and saw only water. No shore, no forest, no landmarks… just endless water.

Ibrahim looked up at the sky and sighed: – "This… again…"

Unknown looked at him in confusion and asked: – "What do you mean? What is 'again'?"

Ibrahim grabbed his hair and said with a broken tone: – "A cosmic conspiracy… again!" Then he shouted: – "Can't I just live a peaceful life?!!"