"Sooo, is she your Phoenix? She has grown quite a lot from the last ti I saw her."
"Crieek~"
As we walked, Alia gently patted Sera and ruffled her soft, silky feathers under her neck.
"Wait, how do you know she's a she?!" I couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
It took weeks to understand that Sera was a girl. How did she know it in one eting?!
Alia gave a worried look, concern clearly visible in her eyes. As my frown deepened, she waited for a few seconds before hesitantly speaking:
"Lucas, is your mory getting worse, or is it re exhaustion?"
".....?" I raised an eyebrow, a confused look forming on my face. "What do you an?"
"...Lucas, you were the one who told about her gender, rember?" Alia said, her tone tinged with concern.
"I… I did?"
I don't rember…
Conversations aren't sothing I forget easily. After all, it's very essential to keep track of what I say and what others say to .
Not only does it give insight into their character, but it also helps gauge how much I can reveal about myself in front of soone.
No matter how minor the detail, I rember absolutely everything I reveal to others and what they reveal to .
So then… How did I forget about this?
"Are you sure you aren't gaslighting like Kent?" I narrowed my eyes at her, but Alia wasn't in the mood to amuse my humor.
"Lucas, you know you will have to get to the bottom of this, right?" she said, giving a concerned look.
I guess she won't drop this topic, huh?
The thing is, talking about my mory – or Lucas' mories, actually – is a little unnerving to for so reason. That had especially been the case after reading those journals.
And now, after going through all those prophecies and whatnot, I'm not sure what to make of Lucas.
There was definitely more to him than ets the eye. Everything is a ss. I think I've said this before, but I'll say it again– I hate mysteries.
Letting out a soft sigh, I glanced at Alia and said, "I guess you are right. I have been having trouble rembering things recently."
I keep forgetting mundane tasks like whether I had eaten breakfast, taken a bath, answered texts, and other such things.
Rembering complex things like what I said to people, the face of the person who bumped into earlier, or even a simple math equation has beco a challenge.
I can still recall events from Lucas' mories, but it feels like the cracks that were there before are getting bigger and bigger by the day.
Even mories from my previous life are fading. My parents' faces have blurred in my head, and I can't even recall how many siblings I had.
I didn't want to admit it until now, foolishly believing that if I didn't say it out loud, it wouldn't beco real.
But it is already the reality.
I began to confess with shaky breaths, "I–It's worsening. I keep forgetting things. I fear soon I'll forget everything and just be a shadow–"
Before I could continue, Alia interjected, "It won't happen. Return to Wolfshire as soon as your sester break starts and investigate there. I'm sure you'll find so clues."
"That's the plan," I shrugged and replied with a somber expression.
In the next second, Alia spoke up again, "Besides, I would be damned if sothing happens to you before you give an apology gift."
"...Sorry, what?"
"Hmm?"
"You want an apology gift?"
"Yes, at least a Legendary or Divine rank relic would suffice."
After blankly staring at her for a couple of seconds as she put forward her shaless demand, I burst out.
"You do know there's a chance that I was mind-controlled, right?!" I retorted. "So why would I give an apology gift when I was also the victim?"
"Haaah!"
Alia dramatically gasped, as if I had asked her for her kidneys, and widened her eyes.
She then proceeded to wipe non-existent tears off her face and said:I think you should take a look at
"Wow, you not only hurt , but you refuse to compensate for hurting my feelings? Do they teach these ethics in the Morningstar household?"
"..."
Faking snobs and sniffs, she put on a show that would put even the greatest actors to sha.
Before I could speak up, however, bright lights suddenly flashed on us. Squinting my eyes, I looked around and saw crowds of dia reporters swarming towards us.
Ahh, fuck.
Today's match was a significant event, attracting not only cadets of our academy but also many people who were permitted to attend this event from outside the City.
Among the attendees were top dia associates, including influencers and reporters from all over the world.
They were granted complete access to roam freely within the Academy grounds, given the magnitude of today's event.
As we continued chatting and walking, we failed to notice that so reporters had started following us.
To make matters worse, Alia was crying, albeit only in acting.
And on top of that, the cadets were explicitly asked to avoid any controversies.
It wouldn't take a genius to figure out that we had ssed up, right?
Given our history, we shouldn't even be seen a ter close to each other!
As I gave a sidelong glance to the girl walking beside , she returned the look and muttered, "...Well, damn."
†
After choosing to remain silent in the face of a flood of questions thrown at us and not escalate any controversies that we might have given birth to any further, we decided to quickly part ways with each other.
Yet, I couldn't shake the feeling that I would soon be receiving an earful from a certain soone again.
Haaaa.
Anyway, right now I was casually strolling through the Academy, taking in the festive decorations in the stadium as if it were a grand festival day.
The stadium was adorned with vibrant banners and colorful strears.
Flags of all four Ruling Houses fluttered in the breeze, and the air was filled with the buzz of chatter and laughter.
I could even see the Morningstar family flag. It had a sigil of a wolf howling with the backdrop of the rising sun at dawn.
The podium at the far end was decked with dazzling lights, making it a focal point of attention.
anwhile, tall spotlights stood around the circular, concrete ground at the center of the stadium, where our matches would take place.
Reporters were already present, busy capturing the mont, as influencers took selfies or made videos, and the audience in the stands grew increasingly impatient.
They wanted to start the match as soon as possible.
As I casually walked through the crowd of cadets rushing to the pavilion building where I myself was headed, a strange feeling settled in my heart.
It reminded of the sa sensation I experienced in Silveserine.
These people… will die.
It felt like I was in a graveyard, surrounded by the graves of the people walking beside .
So many lives will be lost today and so much blood will be spilled, despite my efforts to prevent it.
Dammit, Lucas, focus!
Slapping my cheeks, I shook my head and dismissed such dark thoughts. I had already done what I could.
Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted soone I instantly recognized without even turning my head.
It was Nero Dekrauf.
Yes, whatever will happen today, he is to bla for all of it.
Today is the day he'll realize he's not as unstoppable as he thinks he is. I'll make sure of that.
Reviews
All reviews (0)