Creak.
The door at the end of the hallway opened with a faint creaking sound. Inside was a dark room with six figures seated behind na tags.
With a bow, I greeted, "Good day, I am Adrian Arandel."
I knew it was a bit awkward greeting people who probably knew my whole life, but at this point, that was the best I could do to sell my whole "no mory" act.
After I finished greeting them, no one said a word. Just complete silence. After a long mont, as if they had finally decided who would speak first, the man at the end of the table opposite spoke. "Nice to et you too, son. I heard you lost your mories."
’So that’s Adrian’s father.’ The Duke of the East and head of the villains, Joshua Arandel.
He was soone Uriel had given a lot of information about, his likes, dislikes, and everything a good son like Adrian would know. I didn’t need it now, but it was still good to know.
Joshua, who sat across from , continued, "Adrian, do you know why I called you here?"
’To execute ?’ I shook my head. "No, I have no idea."
Joshua nodded. "Your mother, the elders, and I have been discussing what we should do next regarding your situation. Your mother wanted to lock you inside, cutting off your interaction with the outside world to keep you safe. However, the elders and I disagreed."
"I don’t think there’s a problem with that," I imdiately replied, not giving him a second to state his or the elders’ decision.
Joshua and the remaining people seated looked at with wide eyes. Then a faint sound of sobbing echoed through the room, not from one, but from several of them.
"Even without your mories, you still put your mother above your happiness. I’m so proud," Joshua said, clearing his throat before continuing. "You don’t have to worry; we’ve convinced your mother."
’No, I don’t have any problem being locked up.’ That in itself was the perfect excuse to avoid working for the goddess.
Joshua leaned forward, his deanor turning serious. "Adrian, we are going to perform a ritual on you."
"A ritual?"
Was it sothing to check if I was truly Adrian or not? Would they kill if they found out otherwise?
I was too young to die, especially in this life, where I could live a thousand years.
The silhouette of a woman sitting closest to answered my earlier question. "The ritual will be to bring back your mories."
The woman’s voice lingered in the dim room for a mont; no one spoke. I could almost hear the sound of my own heartbeat echoing against the walls.
Joshua folded his arms, his eyes narrowing with the calm of soone used to command. "We’ve discussed it thoroughly," he said at last. "Your mother was against it at first, but in the end, even she agreed. This ritual, it’s our best chance to restore what’s been lost."
I forced a hesitant smile. "Yeah, but Father, isn’t this dangerous?"
Joshua’s eyes softened at the word "Father." It seed, just like my mother, he too feared losing his only child.
"Yeah, it might be," he admitted. "That’s why I’ll stay with you throughout the process."
’I doubt that will make much difference.’
Hopefully, nothing dramatic or life-threatening happens to , since I doubted regeneration worked on spiritual things too.
Joshua turned slightly, signaling an attendant. "We’ve already called for the one who will perform it."
"Actually, you know the girl in question. It’s unfortunate you can’t rember her."
’A girl I once knew?’ My mind imdiately began cycling through the list of potential disasters that could fit that description.
I hadn’t even gotten over my tragic engagent annulnt, and now I was apparently being reunited with so mysterious girl from my past.
Joshua continued, "Her na is Seraphina. She has a rare Order, one I nearly forgot existed. An ability that allows her to communicate directly with the world and gather mories tied to a person’s DNA. Though," he paused, "it’s a one-ti Order."
’A one-ti Order?’ Was there even such a thing? I couldn’t exactly think of her as an awakened being since after one use her Order would beco useless, leaving her mundane again, perhaps retaining only an enhanced physique and lifespan.
Joshua exhaled softly, his tone almost thoughtful. "It’s a good thing I rembered she had such an ability. Without her, we wouldn’t even be able to attempt this."
’Why is he saying it twice?’ I worried internally. ’How close are we talking here? A childhood friend? Ex? One-night stand? Or maybe a one-sided crush?’
Before I could overthink further, the heavy door at the far end of the room swung open and a figure stepped in.
She walked with a confident sway, a faint click echoing with each step of her boots. A candy stick, no, a sweet, rolled lazily between her lips as she scanned the room.
Her orange hair shimred under the dim lights, her matching eyes the kind of bright that looked like trouble. She wore only a black bra and tied a long scarf around her waist to cover her rear, leaving her stomach and much of her thighs bare.
"Good evening, Duke Joshua, Elders," she said smoothly, bowing with casual grace. Then her gaze landed on , and a slow smile tugged at her lips. "And hello~ Adrian. Long ti no see."
’Uriel, who is this, and why is she dressed so... ahem... provocatively?’
[She’s a friend of Adrian’s. She liked you when you were young. But when it ca ti to choose your fiancée, your family chose Veronica, the one you just broke up with.]
’Oh~ I don’t think I’d have had a problem with her being my fiancée.’
[I thought you hated relationships.]
’That doesn’t an I don’t appreciate beauty or recognize when a lady is hot.’
[Sigh n.]
I offered a small bow. "Yeah, hello."
Her smile widened as she licked the sweet deliberately. "I heard you lost your mories and broke your engagent with Veronica." She moved closer and looped her arm through mine. "Does that an you’ll be free once I’m done?"
Joshua cleared his throat loudly, cutting through the tension. "Enough gas, Seraphina. You two can reminisce later. For now, we’ll begin the ritual."
"Yes, Duke," she said, turning back to him with a respectful nod, though I caught the faint smirk lingering when she turned away.
The Duke rose from his seat, and the woman who had spoken earlier followed behind him as the two of them, along with two attendants, led us through a door behind the obsidian table.
Once we left the main chamber and stepped into a narrow corridor hidden behind the council wall, the temperature dropped and the air thickened with the faint scent of incense and dust.
Torches flickered along the path, their blue flas casting ghostly reflections on the stone.
When we reached the bottom, I froze.
An underground chamber stretched before . It looked like a mix between ancient architecture and a modern interrogation room.
The stone floor beneath my feet was engraved with glowing sigils that pulsed rhythmically. Narrow channels of water ran through the ground, reflecting the ceiling’s hanging lanterns.
Along the walls hung old scrolls and bamboo screens.
If I didn’t know better, I’d say we just walked into a hidden assassin temple straight out of a wuxia story.
’So this is what nobles use their underground space for,’ I thought. ’Feels ominous.’
The girl, Seraphina, walked ahead of , her steps light. "Wow, my in-laws are really strange people, huh?" she said without looking back.
I didn’t want to answer at first, but ignoring her would just be rude, plus she looked crazy enough to kill or leave spiritually disfigured if I ignored her.
"Yeah, it really is a strange chamber," I muttered.
She smiled. "Yeah, but my chamber is stranger. Want to co see it?"
I glanced at her, then looked away. "I don’t think it’s that strange, so I’ll pass."
Seraphina didn’t say another word, as if content just to have spoken.
Within a few minutes, we reached a large room with a thick glass window showing another chamber beyond it. By the side of the window was a door, which most likely led inside the room being observed.
The two attendants pointed toward the door, then opened it. As usual, they didn’t speak, as if they couldn’t.
Both Seraphina and I entered the room. The mont I stepped in, my eyes scanned the surroundings. The window was here too, but unlike before, I couldn’t see anything through it. I couldn’t hear anything either, not even the faint sound of water running outside.
"This is where we’ll perform the ritual," Seraphina muttered, also surveying the room. "Make sure you take care of after I beco Order-less."
I sat down, folding my legs beneath . "I’ll be in your care, then."
She laughed softly. "Not even giving a girl a promise when she’s sacrificing her worth for you?"
She knelt before , her hand rising until her palm rested lightly on my forehead. Then she leaned in and kissed my lips lightly.
"Was that necessary?"
She shook her head. "No, but it helped compose myself."
Pulling away, Seraphina closed her eyes, focusing all her attention on the palm resting on my forehead. I shut mine as well, doing my best to concentrate.
The mont my tense muscles eased and my mind cleared, Seraphina began muttering incantations under her breath. Her words grew louder with each passing mont until I felt the ground beneath tremble from the resonance, though it didn’t affect .
I felt the urge to open my eyes to see what she was doing, but I stayed still and guided my energy to align with hers.
In an instant, a brilliant light flashed behind my eyelids and my consciousness started to fade... no, I was sinking deeper into it.
The world quickly went still, swallowed by silence and darkness. Then...
The world flared to life again, glowing beautifully, and I found myself standing on an endless grass plain with nothing in sight except a massive red gate towering like a skyscraper.
"This is?"
"Your inner consciousness."
Hearing a voice behind , I turned my head.
"What?..." My eyes widened. "What are you doing here?"
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