How did this happen?
Everything looked so beautiful in this city, but now…Now it was chaos.
From one moment to the next, the people strolling through the streets of Regulus City, enjoying what at first had been a lovely day, were now running in desperation, begging for help.
THOOOM!
Another earthquake. It was the sixth one in the last few minutes. They were so strong and sudden that it was hard for me to keep running away from that monster. I guessed the same was happening to the rest of the citizens.
But despite how disoriented I was, I managed to keep up with the others thanks to the lady's help. She grabbed my hand and led me toward a safe place.
THOOOM!
For the seventh time, the ground shook as if it were made of jelly.
"Where is it coming from? Is it getting closer?"
Those questions kept repeating nonstop in my head.
I was scared—terrified. I felt like I could die at any moment, and at this point I could only imagine how we were all going to die here, without even getting close to fulfilling my dream.
"Beht…"
…?
Someone was talking to me… was it Miss Martha?
"Beth…"
What was she saying? I couldn't quite hear her. And on top of that, everything was moving so slowly, as if time itself had slowed down.
"Beth…"
Again…
What is she saying…?
"I… I can't hear you…"
I spoke, but I couldn't even hear my own words. They were carried off by the wind, their trail swallowed by the screams of the crowd.
"…Ma'am."
SLAP!!
"Huh!?"
Out of nowhere, I felt a… a hit? Or at least that's what it seemed like, but it was more like a weak breeze brushing against me; I barely felt it. But apparently…
"Goddammit, kid, move already!"
It was exactly what I needed to snap my mind back into focus.
"Move already!"
Miss Martha was screaming with all the strength in her lungs, so hard that her voice sounded broken.
But why? Why did she look so desperate?
"Huh…?"
Wait…Where is everyone else? I was sure we'd been running along with a lot of people.
"Mmp!"
That's when I realized—I wasn't running.
And when I looked down, I saw my feet planted into the pavement, as if I were deliberately refusing to move.
"Oh no…"
Fear had paralyzed me at the worst possible moment, and the lady had been forced to come back for me.
"Kid, we need to go now!!!"
Miss Martha was begging me. She wanted us to move immediately, and I absolutely would've agreed with that idea… but it was already too late.
Thooom!
I could clearly hear nearby buildings collapsing more and more often, and I could feel the ground shaking more violently with every passing second.
The monster was getting closer. And the final proof of that…
SSSKKKRRRAAAAAA!!!!!
…was that monstrous roar—loud enough to wipe out several city blocks and so intense it felt like it could shake mountains.It sounded so close I had to throw myself to the ground along with the lady just to avoid being blown away by the air.
"Shit…!"
Without even realizing it, I was falling into despair and started cursing myself in my mind.
If I hadn't frozen up, Miss Martha and I would already be somewhere safe.
Cough, cough.
When I got back up, I saw that the lady was hurt and also having trouble breathing. Maybe it was because of the dust storm that had just passed over our heads, or maybe it was from how hard she'd thrown herself to the ground. Whatever it was, she was injured.
BOOOOM!!!!
Once again, the streets were struck by violent tremors, loudly announcing our impending death.
We had to move now—that much was obvious—but even if we ran as fast as we could, sooner or later we'd be caught by the serpent, and there wouldn't be anything we could do to avoid our grim fate.
Unless… I tried something else.
An idea formed in my mind.
I have to use magic.
It was the best resource I had right now, and even though I didn't know any techniques, my parents had taught me the basics.
"…"
I closed my eyes and, in the middle of the chaos, focused only on myself. I had to relax my body and clear my mind. The goal of this process was to connect with something hidden deep inside me: my magic core, the source of the power I needed.
Fiiiuuush…
And soon enough, a breeze passed through my body, accompanied by a soft whistle whose sound made me feel a state of almost unreal, complete serenity.I could… I could stay like this forever.
...
…
..
.
No… I can't. I can't lose myself now. Focus… come on…
Using magic depended on channeling thoughts that would activate the magic core. That was the theory.But in practice, it was more complicated. I had to dive deep into my own mind, to the point where I could no longer tell reality from illusion. And when I did that, I found myself standing in the middle of a dark hallway.
Tap… tap.
I walked forward, slow but steady.
Here, moving carefully was vital. Strange things always happened in this place: sometimes when I walked straight ahead, I'd realize I was going backward; if I meant to turn right, I'd end up on the left. It was like space itself was warping with each step I took.
But I couldn't forget that all of this existed only inside my head.What was really happening was just my brain's interpretation as I wandered through my subconscious, searching for that spark that would ignite the power within me.
This process had its risks, too. If I got lost, it would be just like fainting in the real world. And if that happened now, I was done for.
That's why I had to be careful. And most importantly, I couldn't overthink things here. If I did, I'd never get anywhere.The only thing I could really use as a compass was my heart. It sounds corny, but that's just how things work here.
So I walked almost blindly, trusting that my heart would guide me.
Fiuuush…
That breeze again.
There it was. After a long trek through hallways that kept turning into labyrinths, I had found it: my magic core. It appeared before me as a huge sphere shining with a beautiful green light. From it radiated countless green threads, floating through the space, spinning and intertwining with each other…It looked almost like a tiny sun.
The next step… was to form a connection.
"To become… a really cool hero."
That was the promise I'd made to the lady, and now I wanted to keep it—by saving both of us.
I sank my hands into the sphere, and it reacted by extending its power outward, wrapping my body in those threads.
"I… I will save her!"
...
....
….
FFFUUUOOOOSSSHH!!!!
After a long yet strangely short walk through my subconscious, I opened my eyes. That simple action brought me back to the real world.Once here, I quickly got to my feet and examined my surroundings. Just one glance was enough to confirm that the situation was exactly the same as before, as if I had been gone for less than a second.Though… maybe that really was all the time that had passed.
The ground was shaking like it was made of jelly, the screams of the citizens were being drowned out by the thunder of explosions.But my attention went straight to my companion: Miss Martha was still hurt, lying on the ground and coughing up blood.
Without a doubt, everything looked exactly the same. Except for one thing: me.Now my body was wrapped in some sort of greenish aura. It made me feel strange, lighter, as if gravity around me had disappeared.
"I did it…"
This was magic. Specifically, one of its foundational principles: the principle of reinforcement.It consisted of extending a layer of aura around your body, massively enhancing any movement you made. Just this ability alone was enough to put someone on a level far above that of an average superhuman.
BOOM..!
Another explosion. This one sounded extremely close to us, but now, thanks to the magic reinforcement, I reacted before the sound could even reach us.
"It's here."
I no longer had any doubts. The monster was headed straight for our position.
Without thinking twice, I ran over to the lady, who was still on the ground, barely breathing.
I hugged her, letting the aura spread over her as well.Magic reinforcement could also affect objects and living beings, boosting their physical attributes in the same way. That included their ability to heal.
Cough, cough.
After that, she started breathing normally again, but she was still in serious condition. This aura only sped up her natural healing; it wasn't a real healing technique. That's why we had to get out of there.
I held her tighter and lifted her up into my arms.
I planted my feet on the ground so hard that the pavement cracked beneath them.
"Please… let this work…"
BOOOOOOM!
Finally, driven by blind faith, I jumped. I did it with such force that I ended up destroying the entire street and shooting up above the rooftops, which were already on the verge of collapsing.
BOOOOOOOOM!!!!!
As I soared upwards, I heard an explosion even stronger than the one I had just caused. When I looked toward its source, I saw the monster.
It had the shape of an enormous serpent tearing through buildings like they were made of paper. It was slithering through the same spot where Miss Martha and I had been earlier.
We'd made it out… just barely.
That's what I thought, but then I remembered… everything that goes up has to come down.
"Oh no…"
We began to fall, from a height where we could see the entire city falling into chaos.In other words—we were screwed.
"Shit… AAAAAAAAAAGGHHH!!!"
I had a panic attack and started screaming like a lunatic. And as I did, my aura doubled in size. I was draining my magic reserves to increase the power of my reinforcement.
I just hoped it would be enough to survive the fall… but if it wasn't, then all I could do was pray for a painless death.
...…
...…..
….
..
.
BOOM!
***
Some time ago, on a lovely spring afternoon, my friends and I decided to skip class. We met up at a park and spent the whole morning visiting places around town, gossiping and chatting about nonsense. It was a lot of fun.
Later, I went back home, hoping my parents wouldn't notice I was there.
"They should be at work… right?"
Once upon a time, my parents had been heroes. They spent their entire youth fighting any threat that arose within Terran territory.But when they both reached their thirties, they decided to retire. They moved to a small town in the north, found modest jobs, started a family… and you could say they lived happily ever after.
So then… why did they sound like that?
"I'm sick of this…"
When I got home, nobody was there, and that put me at ease.With nothing to worry about, I headed straight to my room, planning to throw myself onto my bed and lie there for hours.
But just before I could flop onto the mattress, I heard the front door open. My parents had come in.
For a moment, I was afraid they'd find me and scold me harshly. But… they started arguing instead.
"What's wrong with you?" my mom asked.
"You know exactly what's wrong. We can't keep this up."
Dad's voice sounded really agitated.
"And what do you plan to do?"
"What we should have done from the beginning."
"You're crazy. We can't… she's just a child, and she's our daughter."
"I know. But we can't keep this from her forever. She deserves to know."
"She's only fifteen!"
"I know, but… then when are we going to do it!?"
…
Fifteen.
They… were talking about me.
Did I do something wrong?
"When she turns sixteen? Or when she's in her twenties? If that time even comes… we might not be there for her."
"…You don't know that."
Snif, snif.
Suddenly, my mom started crying.
"Dear…"
"You're right. I don't know. That's what scares me."
"…Something happened at work."
"Something…? What do you mean, 'something'?"
"I saw him."
"...!"
After that, my mom cried even harder, and my dad couldn't do anything but hug her and cry with her.
I didn't understand any of it. Who did Dad see? And why was he so upset?
"I don't want… I won't let them lay a finger on her."
Those were the last words I heard from my mother.A few hours later… she died in a work accident.
And I… I never had the courage to talk about that with my father. I didn't tell my siblings either. I thought that, if they really had been talking about me and if it was something that important, Dad would tell me himself… right?
***
"Hey…"
"Bethany…"
"Hey, kid!"
SLAP
"Ouch!"
"Finally awake."
"Wha… huh? Are you…?"
After waking up from a deep sleep, I couldn't help but smile when I saw the lady.
"MISS MARTHA!"
"DON'T CALL ME MISS!"
We had survived, and with barely any serious damage. It was almost unreal—so much so that I couldn't help laughing at the situation.
"Hahaha… ow."
"Are you okay?"
"My head hurts."
That was understandable. Apparently, as we fell, we went straight through a building and smashed it to pieces. In fact, we were now sitting on its rubble.
"And you? Are you all right?"
"I'll live."
"I see… But I'd like to ask you something."
There was still one thing I wanted to know, something that bothered me.
"Why were you in such bad shape? You were coughing up so much blood just a moment ago."
"Oh… that."
The lady simply smiled as she answered.
"I'm not that old… but I'm not that young either. My body just isn't what it used to be."
She said that with a bittersweet smile.
"Besides, you're the one who slammed me into the ground so hard."
"Ah… right. I did do that."
…
"So you're admitting you are an old lady?"
"You little shit."
We both laughed together for a while.
The ground wasn't shaking anymore. There were no explosions, no screams, and no roars.The threat to the city was still out there, but for the moment, we were safe—far from any immediate danger…At least, until—
"—!"
"Hey… Bethany, what's wrong?"
I froze, just like before.
"Beth…"
"Huh…?"
Worried, the lady came closer and tried to talk to me, but I couldn't hear her.
This… was much worse than before. Somehow, I felt like something terrible was happening, or… that something was getting closer.
"...aaah."
I couldn't even form a proper word.
"Hey! Bethy, what's wrong with you!?"
The lady panicked. She grabbed me by the shoulders and shouted at me. She also looked scared—but not because of some strange premonition. She was truly worried about me.
Of all the people I could have run into in this city, I had been incredibly lucky to meet her. That's why I was so worried. I didn't want someone like her to suffer while I did nothing.That's what empathy is, isn't it?
Tap… tap.
"…!"
Those… were footsteps.
Someone was coming.
I tried to find them with my eyes, and I did.But… I couldn't bring myself to look at them. I knew exactly where they were, but I just couldn't see them.I was scared. Something inside me kept telling me that if I looked at them… something awful would happen to me.
"Beth…"
Miss Martha stroked my head, but then she suddenly tensed up. She had seen him.
"Good afternoon, my esteemed ladies."
He spoke.
"Who are you…?"
"You know who I am."
…
"What do you want?"
the lady asked. There was caution in her voice. She knew how dangerous this person was. Worse yet, she knew him—or at least knew who he was.
"A pleasure, Miss Bethany Birch. Your father informed me of your arrival in Regulus City. He asked me to be your escort while you toured this beautiful city."
What?An escort?Dad never told me anything about that.But more importantly… how does he know my name?
"I wanted our first meeting to be in the city, but unfortunately I ran into a rather unpleasant fellow wearing a horrible suit made of corpses, haha. And then there was the whole business with that big serpent."
Tap… tap.
He kept talking, coming closer with every step.
"But anyway, I'd like to ask you to come with m—"
The lady stepped between us.
…
"Excuse me, Miss Martha. Would you be so kind as to move?"
he said. But the lady didn't move an inch.
…
"Oh? Are you really going to do this?"
…
"Tsk. You do know what she is, don't you…? Kal'Drekiz."
What… what is happening?
I couldn't understand any of what he was saying.Even so, the lady refused to move away from me.
"She's just a child."
"Oh? …Well, I suppose we're not getting anywhere by talking."
…
"So let me propose something… Here, you don't stand a chance against me. So…"
CLAP.
That sound… was that a clap?
"Makratiz."
...
….
…
..
.
"Huh?"
I looked up… and there was no one. That man and the lady were gone.My fear had vanished too. Everything had vanished.
"…!"
Or so I thought. In an instant, my instincts started screaming inside me again—only this time, the fear I felt was much, much worse.
I couldn't even stay on my knees. I threw myself to the ground, clutching my head, curling up in a fetal position and trembling in terror.
Tap… tap.
Someone was approaching. It was that man.
"All right, that actually hurt."
"…!"
I was so terrified that all I could see were his feet.He was wearing elegant shoes adorned with golden clasps.But what shocked me was… they were stained with blood.
"Gaaac… aaac…"
"I can't understand you like that. Words would be more helpful than groans."
"AAAAAAC!"
"Hm… I suppose you're so scared now that you can't speak. Don't worry, that's fairly common—for someone of your kind."
"Well then…"
He came closer and placed his hand on my head, and I couldn't do anything about it.
"It's time to take you to your new home. Your procedure is already long overdue."
Those were the last words I heard before I passed out.