The Chief raised her hand before Olian could finish.
The gesture was small, almost effortless, yet it silenced her immediately.
Her expression remained calm. There was no anger in the old woman's face, no visible frustration, but something in her gaze carried an authority that required neither shouting nor threats.
"That is enough."
Olian's lips closed.
The Chief slowly lowered her hand.
"This power is a sacred treasure of our village. To reveal too much of it to an outsider invites misfortune. Should such knowledge ever escape beyond these walls, the consequences would not be small."
Olian stiffened.
Whatever explanation had been sitting on the tip of her tongue disappeared.
For a moment, she looked as though she wanted to argue. Her lips parted slightly, but no words followed. Eventually, she lowered her head.
"...Understood."
Elifero watched her.
That alone unsettled him.
Over the short time he'd known Olian, he'd already learned one thing about her—she wasn't exactly the type to keep her thoughts to herself.
If she disagreed with something, she said it.
If someone irritated her, they knew.
Yet now she had fallen silent from nothing more than a raised hand and a few words.
Elifero looked toward the Chief again.
Is she really that afraid of her?
Perhaps it was simply because this woman was the village's Chief.
Still...
Something didn't sit right with him.
The Chief broke the silence.
"During my conversation with Olian, she informed me that you are suffering from memory loss."
Elifero's attention returned to her.
"She asked whether it would be possible for me to help restore what you have lost."
His eyes widened slightly.
"My memories?"
"Yes."
The room became still.
Elifero stared at the Chief.
His memories.
He had spent days wondering who he was.
Where he'd come from.
Whether someone somewhere was searching for him.
He'd tried forcing himself to remember, only to be met with headaches, scattered images, and an emptiness that frightened him whenever he thought about it for too long.
And now this woman was telling him she could fix it?
The Chief studied his expression before continuing.
"Through this ability, it is possible to restore memories..."
She paused.
"...and to alter them."
Elifero's expression changed.
"Alter...?"
He understood the word.
That wasn't the problem.
His mind simply couldn't grasp the idea behind it.
A wound disappearing from his palm had already shattered what he thought was possible.
Now she was talking about changing memories as though they were words written on paper.
Elifero said nothing.
The Chief waited.
When no response came, she gave a small nod.
"I will take your silence as agreement."
Elifero blinked.
"Wait—"
"There is something you should know before we begin."
Her voice remained calm.
"During the process, I will erase all memories of this conversation."
Elifero froze.
The Chief continued.
"As well as every memory you have formed during your stay in this village."
Silence.
Elifero stared at her.
For a moment, he thought he'd misunderstood.
Then—
"Wait!"
Olian stepped forward.
The Chief looked toward her.
"Can't you leave those memories alone?"
Olian's voice carried an urgency Elifero hadn't expected.
"He won't tell anyone."
The Chief remained silent.
"He's just a kid," Olian continued. "Even if he did tell someone, who would believe him?"
Elifero glanced at her.
She was defending him.
The Chief slowly exhaled.
"I understand your concern."
"Then—"
"But it is a risk I cannot afford to take."
Olian's expression tightened.
"As Chief, it is my duty to ensure this power remains hidden."
"But—"
"Olian."
The Chief's gaze sharpened.
"Allowing emotions to dictate our decisions leads only to chaos."
Olian fell silent.
"I should not be the one reminding you of that."
A pause followed.
Then the Chief said something that changed Olian's expression completely.
"Do you wish for what happened to your brother..."
Olian's eyes widened.
"...to happen again?"
Elifero immediately looked toward her.
Olian didn't move.
Her body had gone completely still.
The Chief's voice softened.
The severity behind it did not.
"Being Chief is not about satisfying personal desires. It is about doing what the village needs."
She rested her aged hands together.
"The village is my family."
Her eyes travelled briefly around the chamber before returning to Olian.
"Until the next Chief is chosen, every soul who lives here is my responsibility."
There was no cruelty in her tone.
No attempt to humiliate Olian.
If anything, she sounded almost gentle.
But that didn't make the words hurt any less.
Olian's hands trembled.
Slowly, she lowered her head.
"...I understand."
Elifero stared at her.
Something unpleasant twisted inside his chest.
He looked from Olian to the Chief.
Then back again.
That's it?
The Chief had just used her dead brother against her.
At least, that was how it sounded to him.
And Olian was simply supposed to accept it?
Elifero's face tightened.
He knew this woman was important.
He knew he didn't understand this village or its rules.
He knew speaking recklessly would probably cause trouble.
Unfortunately, knowing that didn't stop him.
"What kind of Chief says something like that to a kid?"
Olian's head snapped toward him.
The Chief remained motionless.
Elifero's heart hammered, but he continued.
"You keep saying you're protecting everyone, but—"
"Enough."
Elifero stopped.
It wasn't the Chief who had interrupted him.
It was Olian.
Her voice was firm, but unlike before, there was no anger directed at him.
"Olian..."
"I understand how you feel."
She looked at him.
"These past few days have been..."
Her eyes shifted away.
"...awkward."
Elifero almost smiled.
That was certainly one way of describing them.
"But..."
Olian hesitated.
"We were starting to get along."
Elifero's faint smile disappeared.
"I'll miss that."
The words hit him harder than he expected.
Olian looked directly into his eyes.
"But I won't let you speak that way about the Chief."
Elifero frowned.
"She's trying to help you."
"But she's going to make me forget you."
Olian's expression faltered.
Neither of them spoke.
Elifero lowered his eyes.
Forget her.
Forget Julie.
Forget waking in their home.
Forget their arguments.
Their awkward dinner.
The porch.
Olian telling him about JJ.
Their apology.
Walking through the village together.
All of it.
Gone.
And somehow, knowing beforehand made it feel worse.
Then Elifero remembered something.
Julie's request.
Try to befriend her.
He raised his head.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"I promised myself something."
Olian stared at him.
"And I promised Miss Julie..."
He paused.
"...that I'd be your friend."
Olian's eyes widened slightly.
Elifero's smile grew.
"So I'll promise something else."
He looked directly at her.
"I'll find you again."
Olian didn't speak.
"And when I do..."
His expression hardened with the kind of determination only a thirteen-year-old could carry without questioning whether the impossible was actually impossible.
"I'll keep that promise."
Olian stared at him.
Something about his eyes caught her.
That stubbornness.
That certainty.
That ridiculous confidence that somehow made his words sound believable.
For just a moment, another face occupied his place.
JJ.
Olian's chest tightened.
She quickly pushed the thought away.
Then she smirked.
"You'd better."
Elifero blinked.
Olian folded her arms.
"I'll be waiting."
For some reason, that made him smile properly.
Elifero turned toward the Chief.
The old woman had watched the exchange without interruption.
He swallowed.
Then nodded.
"I'm ready."
He stepped closer.
The Chief raised one hand.
Elifero instinctively tensed when her finger approached his forehead.
He glanced toward Olian one last time.
She was still there.
Still watching him.
Elifero gave her a small smile.
Then—
Tap.
The Chief's finger touched his forehead.
Warmth spread through his skull.
Elifero's eyes widened.
The room blurred.
"Olian...?"
Her face became unclear.
The paintings disappeared first.
Then the walls.
Then the Chief.
Olian's silhouette remained for only a little longer.
Elifero tried desperately to hold onto it.
Don't forget.
The thought appeared instinctively.
Don't forget.
But even those words began slipping away.
Julie.
The house.
The dinner table.
The porch.
JJ.
Olian.
Names became feelings.
Feelings became fragments.
Fragments became nothing.
And the small world Elifero had only just begun to know...
faded away.
A day later.
Something warm pressed against Elifero's face.
He didn't move.
The warmth shifted.
Then became heavier.
Elifero's nose flattened.
His brow twitched.
A few seconds passed.
His eyes snapped open.
Blue sky.
White clouds drifted lazily overhead.
For one peaceful second, he simply stared at them.
Then he realized something.
He couldn't breathe.
What the—?!
Elifero's body jolted.
Something was covering his mouth and nose.
He shoved against it.
The weight moved.
Elifero gasped violently and shot upright.
"HAAAH!"
He dragged air into his lungs.
"What—?!"
His eyes darted around wildly.
Wooden crates surrounded him.
He was lying on top of a stack of them in some narrow passage between two buildings.
Elifero touched his face.
"What was—"
Woof!
He froze.
Slowly, he looked beside him.
A dog stood on the crates.
Its tail wagged.
Elifero stared at it.
The dog stared back.
A few seconds passed.
"...You?"
Woof!
Elifero narrowed his eyes.
"So you're the one who was blocking my breathing."
The dog tilted its head.
Elifero continued staring.
Then his expression changed.
"...Why am I talking to a dog?"
The dog wagged its tail harder.
"Never mind."
Elifero carefully climbed down from the crates.
His feet touched the ground.
He dusted himself off before finally taking in his surroundings.
Two walls rose on either side of him.
The passage was dark and narrow, with several crates and old containers stacked along its edges.
Elifero slowly turned around.
Nothing looked familiar.
His smile disappeared.
"Where the heck am I...?"
No answer.
He tried remembering how he'd gotten there.
Nothing.
His eyebrows drew together.
Was I sleeping here the whole time?
That made no sense.
Voices drifted from somewhere ahead.
Laughter.
Footsteps.
People talking.
Elifero turned toward the sound.
Bright daylight spilled into the end of the passage.
He hesitated.
The dog walked past him.
Elifero looked down.
"Wait."
The dog kept going.
"Do you know where we are?"
It didn't answer.
Obviously.
Elifero sighed and followed.
As he stepped out of the passage, sunlight struck his eyes.
"Ah—!"
He raised one arm, shielding his face.
His eyes slowly adjusted.
Then he lowered it.
People.
Dozens of them.
Men and women passed through the street carrying baskets, tools and bags. Children ran between adults. Conversations overlapped from every direction.
Everyone moved with the confidence of people who knew exactly where they were going.
Elifero was the only one standing still.
He looked left.
Then right.
Nothing.
Not a single face was familiar.
Not one building sparked recognition.
His heartbeat quickened.
Where am I?
He searched his mind.
Nothing answered.
His breathing grew shallow.
Elifero slowly stepped backward.
Where am I?
Again.
The question echoed through his thoughts.
And this time, there was nobody beside him to answer it.