Rain fell when Andi reached the edge of the village. It wasn't heavy, but it was enough to turn the dirt road into mud that swallowed part of his shoes. The sky had lost its color. To the east, the mountains stood like gray shadows, while to the west, the forest stretched like an endless black wall. The locals called it Repo Hutan. No one really knew where the name came from. Since childhood, Andi had known the forest only through stories that sounded like fairy tales. Some people had gotten lost inside and returned days later without remembering anything. There were also hunters who claimed to have seen a fire-like light moving between the trees. Andi had never believed them, because he had never seen it with his own eyes. To him, it was just the villagers' way of scaring children so they wouldn't play too far from home. Now, after years of living in the city, caught up in work that seemed to have no end, he had decided to return to the place he had once called home. Uncle Wirya's house stood farthest from the settlement. The building was nothing grand, made only of old wood with a corrugated metal roof rusted by age. Moss covered parts of the walls. Behind the house was a small garden, where a little life managed to grow. Beyond the garden, Repo Hutan began. His uncle had been waiting on the front porch for quite some time. The old man's body looked even thinner than Andi remembered. His hair had turned almost completely white. His face was lined with age, but his eyes remained sharp, reflecting every journey he had endured throughout his life. "You've grown up now. I can't believe how quickly time has passed," he said. Andi smiled. "Sorry for keeping you waiting, Uncle." Uncle Wirya said nothing. He simply took Andi's bag and carried it inside. Andi followed, looking around the house. Nothing had changed in the slightest since he had left it. The first night passed normally, without anything overtly strange. The two of them ate boiled cassava and salted fish at a small wooden table. They didn't talk much. Uncle Wirya spent more time staring out the window than speaking. Andi finally asked, "Do you still live here alone, Uncle?" "For a long time." "Why don't you move to the village?" Uncle Wirya stopped eating. "It's safer here." Andi gave a small laugh. "Safe from what?" His uncle looked at him. "The forest." Andi's laughter stopped. "You still believe those stories?" Uncle Wirya didn't smile. "Once night falls, don't go into the forest." "I won't." "Don't even go near it." Andi nodded reluctantly. Uncle Wirya went back to eating. A few moments later, he said quietly, "And if you see a fire-like light inside the forest..." He stopped. Andi waited. "Don't follow it." The night grew later. When Andi went into his room, the rain had softened to a drizzle. He lay there, staring at the wooden ceiling. Footsteps came from behind the wall—Uncle Wirya's. Then they stopped. Andi closed his eyes. For the first time in years, he felt as though he had returned to a place he should have forgotten long ago. Outside the house, something moved among the trees. And deep inside Repo Hutan, a small light flickered to life, casting a glow that wasn't very bright. It floated like a piece of foam drifting on water, then vanished just like that without leaving a trace. Fortunately, Andi was already asleep by then, exhausted from the journey.