A butterfly landed on my nose. I slowly opened my eyes and looked around. I realized I was in the city park, a place where people gathered and played. Kids looked so happy on the swings and slides. Even the street vendors on the sidewalk looked like they were having a good time, laughing together as they chatted.
I woke up from my nap under a tree in the park. I'd been exhausted from my morning workout. I'd only intended to rest for a bit, but I ended up falling asleep.
I checked my watch; it was 10 AM, so I'd slept for about two hours. I stood up, stretched, and then started walking home after grabbing a drink and some bread from a stall near the park.
The quiet atmosphere of the city felt a bit strange. For some reason, I sensed something unusual here. I should have been happy that the city was peaceful, but deep down, I felt an unsettling sensation.
I stopped in front of the Colosseum in the center of the city. A German flag fluttered in the wind above it. There were several guards watching the Colosseum and a few visitors taking photos inside.
I averted my gaze and continued on my way.
Crash!
As I started walking again, I bumped into an older man, probably around 30. He was wearing a black robe and a hat like a maestro. His hair was white with age, and his shoes looked expensive.
"Oh, sorry…"
"It's alright, are you okay?"
I quickly noticed an ID badge clipped to his left pocket: "Yuki Teppei" was written on it.
"Are you a Maestro?" I asked.
I didn't know why, but I felt compelled to ask this.
The man chuckled slightly, then removed his hat and bowed. "Yes, that's right! It's nice to be recognized in this city."
"Your name sounds a bit different. Where are you from?"
"Japan," he stated firmly.
Oh… I guess this is my first time meeting someone from a different country.
"Ah, I'm sorry, I have to go," the man said, waving at me.
I responded with a slight nod, taking a gulp from my almost empty bottle. I tossed the bottle into the trash can, and it went in! At the same moment, my head started aching again, so I had to walk holding it.
"What's actually happening…?"
– –
"Finally done…"
I stretched my body again after spending three hours studying. Exams were approaching, so I had to work even harder.
I opened the window to enjoy the night breeze and look at the stars. I just wanted to see if that particular star would appear tonight or if it had moved.
"Nothing…"
I pulled my chair from my desk and sat near the window, enjoying the night breeze gently caressing my face.
I started observing the stars scattered across the night sky. In the southwest, I saw three small stars aligned—that was Orion. To the north, I saw a kite-shaped constellation—that was Crux. I don't know since when I started observing these stars; it felt a bit nostalgic.
"Andri!!! There's a package for you!" my mother shouted from downstairs.
"Oh, okay! I'm coming down."
I put the chair back in its place and tidied my study desk. As I was about to close my room window, a blinding light suddenly hit my eyes.
I looked up—towards the sky—my eyes wide with surprise as I saw that star reappear. A star shining brighter than all the others.
I reached out my hand towards the brightly shining star as if to grasp it. At the same time, the pain in my head returned, making me fall onto my bed.
I quickly closed my window and went downstairs to get my package, my head still aching slightly.
– –
The holiday was over, but exams were drawing near. I sat at my classroom desk, staring intently at the horizon. The wind blew a little stronger than usual—cool, but also feeling a bit warm. Ghoell and Keant approached me, carrying neatly packed lunch boxes.
"Hey, Andri! Let's eat together," Ghoell invited.
"How about we find a spot in the school canteen?" Keant replied.
"It's really crowded there, shouldn't we find somewhere quieter?"
"Then… how about the library?"
"Are you kidding? We'll get caught and punished by the librarian!"
Keant patted Ghoell's shoulder, then turned his face towards me and chuckled slightly before continuing, "Hehe… I'm just kidding. Andri, what about you?" Keant asked.
"The garden…" I answered spontaneously.
Keant and Ghoell were a bit surprised, but they suddenly agreed to my suggestion.
"Well… that's fine, but why the garden?" Keant asked.
Ah! Right, I didn't even know why I wanted to go there; I just answered spontaneously.
I grabbed my lunchbox and stood up. Keant and Ghoell were still puzzled by my behavior lately.
"What's wrong?"
"Andri, do you like flowers?" Ghoell asked, staring intently at me.
I just replied dismissively, "What?"
Keant rested his hand on his chin and started thinking. "It's true the garden is a good spot, but I didn't expect you to want to go there."
"Anywhere is fine, right? Besides, I just want to enjoy a new atmosphere… no matter where, I feel happy when you guys are with me."
Ghoell and Keant looked at each other and then suddenly smiled in relief.
"Then let's go!" Ghoell shouted, giving me a strong hug.
Under the scorching sun and accompanied by a gentle breeze, the three of us ate our lunch under a shady tree in the school garden. There were several flowers planted there, mostly tulips. There were also some foreign flowers like Edelweiss from Southeast Asian islands and small cacti from Pakistan.
"This place is so beautiful, isn't it?" Keant remarked.
Ghoell put down his lunchbox and pulled out a new edition bottled sweet tea, wrapped with a picture of his favorite anime character.
"Look at this!" he yelled.
Keant and I just stared at him in bewilderment. We barely understood what he was showing us. We both just spontaneously said, "Wow…"
"It's a limited edition collaboration of this drink with my favorite anime! How about it? You guys must be surprised, right?"
"That's cool… but how do you open it? Isn't it sealed?" I asked, just to warm up the conversation. Honestly, I didn't care much.
Ghoell cleared his throat—looking a bit smug—then opened the tea bottle cap by pressing a plate attached to the bottom of the bottle.
The tea bottle successfully opened. The method was quite unique, but also a bit troublesome.
Ghoell drank the tea with a proud expression, his eyes sparkling.
"All the hard work paid off…"
"How did you get it?" Keant asked curiously.
Ghoell chuckled smugly again, then explained the painstaking way he got the limited-edition drink. "It was so hard! I had to queue for almost three hours last night. There were about 50 people queuing for this limited edition. I was pushed, squeezed, and my body was trampled trying to get this drink; that's how I managed to get this drink with great difficulty."
He sacrificed himself just to get something like that? He even recounted the event as if he had received a Nobel Prize.
Keant responded with a slow clap, and Ghoell looked a bit arrogant because of it.
"What was the prize?"
"Prize? Oh, nothing."
"Huh? You queued for three hours and got no prize?"
"This is the prize!!!" Ghoell lifted the tea bottle high as if he were holding a trophy.
Keant and I just nodded resignedly, watching our slightly ridiculous friend's behavior.
"The bell will ring soon, we should go now," Keant said.
The three of us tidied up our lunch area and began to leave the garden. For a moment, I looked at the beautifully arranged flowers in the garden. There was a wheelbarrow used by the gardener to move soil, and tools were still scattered around the garden area.
As I started observing more closely, the pain in my head suddenly returned, this time worse than usual.
"What's wrong, Andri?"
"Hey, are you okay?"
"Is your head hurting again?"
"Hey, Andri!!!"
Slowly, their voices faded from my ears, and I collapsed weakly where we had eaten lunch.
– –
I slowly opened my eyes. The noisy whirring of a fan began to reach my ears, and the chirping of birds outside the window was also a bit louder. No one else was in the room but me. Keant and Ghoell must have taken me to the school's infirmary when I fainted earlier.
I woke up from my sleep and looked towards the window.
It was already late afternoon, around 5:00 PM. School would be closing soon.
The door to the room opened, and a teacher in charge of caring for sick students approached me. The teacher came closer and offered me a glass of water and some headache medicine.
"Feeling better?" she asked.
"Yes, thank you."
The teacher moved closer to me and placed the medicine and a glass of water right beside me. Then she continued, "They both brought you here and told me everything. How long have you been feeling this pain?"
"I'm not sure, but roughly four or five days ago."
"Could you have fallen somewhere?"
I shook my head firmly. "No."
"I see… Don't worry, leave this to me. I'll help you alleviate that pain in your head."
I smiled warmly at her and thanked her, then got ready to leave.
"Thank you for taking care of me."
The teacher waved her hand slowly. "It's alright. Come back if you're still feeling that pain in your head."
"Okay."
I took my leave and walked down the school corridor, then out to the school gate.
I pulled out my phone and messaged them both to let them know I was fine now and could go home.
I walked home through the city center. There were many places where people were busy passing by. I stopped for a moment to buy some snacks at the convenience store, then continued my journey.
Crash!
As I was about to leave the convenience store, I suddenly bumped into a foreign woman wearing shabby clothes. She had white hair, but it was a bit dirty. There were several scars on her face and body. Her eyes stared blankly at me, and I could only tilt my head.
"Sorry… are you okay?"
The woman just nodded slowly and then looked at a loaf of bread I had just bought from the convenience store.
"Do you want some?"
When I said that, she suddenly turned her face away and held her stomach; it started to rumble. I opened the bread wrapper and gave the bread to her.
"Here, eat this."
She took the bread and slowly put it into her small mouth. The bread instantly disappeared from my sight as she had eaten it all.
As I was about to leave her, she gently pulled my shirt. A single word came out of the woman's mouth.
"Wait…"
"What is it?"
"What's your name?"
"Andri…"
The woman slowly released my shirt and began to smile warmly at me.
"I'm Sylvia… Thank you, Andri!"
"Huh? Sylvia…"
My vision suddenly went blank when I heard her name. Everything seemed to fall silent—just me and the woman. My head suddenly spun and started to ache again. The star that always showed itself suddenly appeared right in front of me and shone brighter.
The star seemed to show something strange: my body pierced by a spear made of shadows, myself suddenly turning into a different person, fighting in a Colosseum with a beautiful woman in a lavish costume, and also eating together on a school rooftop, laughing with people I didn't know.
Wait… they are…
The person who bumped into me first, wearing a neat suit, seemed to be laughing loudly while eating his huge lunchbox. The woman I just bumped into also looked very beautiful and charming, laughing softly and chatting with me.
I guess… who are they?
"ANDRI!!!!"
A shout called from an unknown direction.
The voice was like a woman's, very similar to the voice of the woman I had just bumped into.
"Who?"
"ANDRI!!"
Now the voice was a bit deeper, like the voice of a man I bumped into a few days ago.
"Andri…"
"Huh? Who are you?"
An ideally muscular man, wearing only pants made of turban cloth, was looking at me warmly. There was also a gold star-shaped mark in the center of his chest.
I was a bit confused by what was happening. Suddenly, I was in an empty space filled only with sky and a clump of clouds.
"W-where is this?" I asked the man, "and who are you?"
The man smiled for a moment. "So you're here…"
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"Andri, this is not your world. You are in another version of yourself's dream."
"What? Wait! I don't understand. Does this have anything to do with the pain I always feel in my head?"
The man nodded. "And also the star that always appears in the sky in the daytime, night, and evening?"
Once again, he nodded. "What's actually happening now?"
The man extended his index finger and touched my forehead, then said, "I'll tell you everything now."
As he touched my forehead, I felt myself carried away in the current of space and time. I saw everything clearly: myself meeting Sylvia and becoming a Saint, fighting Elizabeth and Cleopatra, forming an alliance of Servants, and what was most imprinted in my mind was fighting another Servant alliance in the middle of the city—Empedocles, Leonidas, and Mona Lisa ambushed us in the city while stopping time and bringing us both into their dream world.
As I remembered all that, I suddenly collapsed weakly to the ground, my whole body sweating, my breath heavy, and my ears ringing as if my life was about to end now.
"Your task isn't finished. There's still something we need to do to save the people we love. Isn't that what you said?"
"The people I love?"
"Exactly! Wake up, Andri! Wake up from this nightmare!"
Ah, right! I remember everything now. Sylvia, Nico, I'm sorry. I'm sorry for running away and getting lost in this nightmare!