"… ther… Father…"
"?"
"Father, are you really going to give me this? It is pretty!" Karo heard a child-like voice.
Karo opened her eyes, a young boy with a big hazel eyes, smiling at Karo. Karo could see a hole of newly growth teeth from that boy's little mouth. It was interesting, said Karo to her own self as she watched the boy took her, the necklace, then wore it around his neck.
"It really is pretty…" He said while holding the necklace around his neck. He was in his room alone.
"Then, shall we be together?"
"Woah…! Who's that?" The young boy startled as he looked around, but found no one else.
"Fufu… say, little guy, would you honor me with your name? I am Karo~!" Karo cheerfully greeted.
That young boy seemed to realized that the voice came from the necklace. "Su-sure! I am Ferdinan de Buff, nice to meet you, Karo." He said as he looked at the crystal on the necklace closely.
"Yeay~ please, don't leave me alone in the near future… Master Ferdinan, could you see me?" Karo could sense that Ferdinan was looking at her, then she smiled.
Vaguely, Ferdinan's eyes captured an image of a smiling young woman. "Was that you, Karo?" said Ferdinan. He walked toward the wardrobe close to him and opened to take a small box out. The box seemed to be embedded with some sort of magic, Karo could feel it, but not sure what kind of magic was that.
"Yes. I think, only you who could see me… I mean, my figure. My past Master could only hear my voice and she said that she could not see anything when having a close-up look on the crystal. It is… some kind of making me feel happy."
Ferdinan heard Karo's chuckled voice. "Say, Karo, was it only me who could hear you?" asked Ferdinan as he put the small box on his lap and inserted a small key to open it.
"Yes, my voice could only reach the one who wear me or in other words, my Master. I mean, you see, my outside form is a necklace and there is no helping that I could not emit any magic if I don't have Master." Karo sighed.
"Karo, have you seen something like this?" Ferdinan hold out a small leaf. It colored by green and a little bit yellowish, it didn't seem like anything special though.
"Do you mean the seal on it?" Karo could see it, the complicated shape that seemed to be crafted by a light magic.
Ferdinan nodded, "My mother gave it to me before she disappeared. My mother said that I will find someone who could explain what was this leaf."
Ferdinan smiled a little, "So, could you do that, Karo?"
"Ie, I could not. The only thing I know was that seal almost worn out, it seems like protecting something and a key of some way." Karo said as she only could feel that way about the leaf.
(Note : 'Ie' means 'no' in Japanese, it was a formal way to say 'no', though I always use it as if in an informal way)
Ferdinan chuckled, "Haha… I know, right? But, your explanation quite long for someone who said 'don't know', Karo."
"That's… well, I could not appraise the name of the seal, but I know the usage once I looked at the seal. But then, Master… what do you need this for?" Karo asked while Ferdinan putting the box way in the drawer of the wardrobe after locked it.
"I said it was a key of something, but I don't think that this going to be good." Karo was right, whatever that was, it shall be a threat if you didn't know it well.
"Well, we should find the door first, right? If there is a key, then there must be a door somewhere."
"But…" Karo knew how this would end and could not help but opposed.
"I promise I will not leave you alone, Karo."
Karo's face brightened a bit, "A promise is a promise!"
…
"Why did you scare of that guy?" asked Karo after the big guy passed. That big guy was so loud, rude, and… well, Karo didn't like him even a bit.
"It is not I fear, but I respect him. He is a great soldier." Ferdinan smiled as he saw the big guy walked to the tower post where the soldier passed for work.
"You want to be like him, Master?"
"No, I would never became like him. I just want to be able to support someone like him." Ferdinan was a good guy, Karo admitted it. However, he was such an air-head guy, easy to sacrifice himself, always put others first, then how about himself?
…
"Fer! Look out!"
Ferdinan ordered the other soldier to ran away when a high-level monster attacked. While Ferdinan left alone in the dungeon, fighting until the worst one. Karo shouted as a big rock with a lot of thorn on it, fell right to Ferdinan. Crushed him, stabbed him.
Karo wanted to help Ferdinan, but she could not get out from the crystal and form her solid human body. Karo could only give a healing magic around Ferdinan. But, it was not enough! "Why did you do that?! It is dangerous! Now, look… you're the one who hurt… ugh…"
"I… Karo… there are no vain in sacrificing yourself for others… the Kami-sama God you… talked about… must be seeing this and He would never… left our sacrificial in vain…"
"…"
"You remember… the promise you made eleven years ago, when you were five?" Karo asked slowly.
Ferdinan seemed hard to breathe, but he slowly talked, "Yes, I promise… I will not leave you… alone…"
"And now you will break it, no?" Karo seemed frustrated, but remained silence.
"I am sorry… I broke our promise… Karo…" Karo clenched her hand. "I want to… rest… Karo… may… I…?" Ferdinan's voice getting low and vague as he close his eyes slowly.
"… again… I'm alone… why…"
…
"Nice to meet you, I'm Belina!"
.
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"Benedict here!"
.
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"Liame Rufum, remember, 'kay, I'm a lady!"
.
.
"I am Diane, daughter of Liame Rufum."
.
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"… why… why…!"
"Why am I being left alone?! Again, again, again, and again!"
"… I don't want to save anyone anymore, I'm always the one being left. It's unfair… why me…? I only want to be with someone… I don't want to be alone… just why…"
"… it is a pity, isn't it?"
"…"
"Don't worry, after this one, you could rest well, I will be the one who replace you…"
"Ah… you… will be alone with 'him'… you, no, we know it all, right from the start until the very end… and you still want to…?"
"… fate shall be changed if we wanted. There are no 'impossible' in changing fate… you agree, right, my ancestor, Karo?"
"…"
Why… were we the one who suffered? Why were we the one being left while we caring so much about others? Why were we the one who know all of it while we didn't even wanted it?
… just… why am I… being this… selfish…