Chapter 1: 「Story Forgotten」

Didididing!

The afternoon bell sounded throughout the entire school. It was the signal most, if not all the students had been waiting for. The once quiet halls were filled with the sound of chairs rubbing against the hard tiles. The conversation of several students echoed right after.

In class 3-A, stood a girl no older than ten. Her hands clasped onto the straps of her bag as she shifted her grip now and again. Her body fidgeted in faint excitement with her shoulder-length hair following to match. Her emerald green eyes laced with excitement and equal curiosity followed every detail of the teacher at the front of the class.

As she noticed the teacher open her mouth, the girl's body stood at attention resembling the soldiers she had seen on her TV.

"Well…since today is Friday, have a lovely weekend but make sure to do all your homework because I am checking it on Monday. Class dismissed."

Before the teacher could even utter the last syllable, the green-eyed girl was already out of the classroom and halfway down the hall.

The teacher, seemingly used to the girl's antics, simply let out a sign while the girl's classmates chuckled at her actions.

The girl had already reached the school's gate, zipping right through but not without wishing the guard at his station a good day.

The guard smiled fondly at the girl's actions while simply offering a wave in return.

At the speed the girl was traveling at, it wasn't five minutes after she departed from her primary school until she reached home.

She flung off her shoes with practiced movements as the sound of socks on wood traveled down the corridor. Taking that as a signal, the mother in the kitchen at the end spoke in a raised tone.

"Afternoon sweety!"

"Afternoon mummy!"

The green-eyed girl replied as she made her way up the stairs and into her room.

The door swung open with just the right amount of force to leave space to enter while not slamming into the wall it was attached to.

As the girl entered her room, the school uniform she once wore was now in the air and into the wash basket while her book bag slid towards the side of her desk.

The girl slipped on a set of comfortable but slightly worn-out clothes in record-breaking time. Snatching up a backpack this time she proceeded to glide down the flight of stairs and swing into the kitchen.

The girl opened the fridge, this time with a little more ease in fear of her mother keeping her back to lecture her again.

She snatched two cold water bottles from the fridge before shutting the fridge and securing both bottles on each side of her backpack.

The green-eyed girl's attention was now on the two sandwiches wrapped in napkins and neatly placed in a secure zip-sealed bag.

She carefully placed the sealed bag into her backpack not wanting to ruin its uniformity. The zip hissed as she thought to herself about any forgotten items. The girl then nodded her head in satisfaction at nothing being forgotten.

With her hands on the straps, the girl strutted towards her mother before stopping next to her and setting her line of sight on the woman's face.

The mother let a small smile grace her face as she bent down with her cheek facing the young girl.

Chu!

A quick peck landed on the woman's cheek before she turned towards her daughter and placed a kiss of her own on the young girl's cheek.

Mwah!

The green-eyed girl rubbed her cheek which was wet from being kissed as her mother began to speak.

"Remember to be back before the sun sets, okay Alice?"

"Yes, mummy!"

The young girl, Alice, answered with enthusiasm as she made her way out of the kitchen.

"And make sure not to trouble anyone too much!"

Alice's mother reminded her.

"Alright~!"

Alice acknowledged as she stretched her answer until she reached the front door.

With a click as a sign of the door fully closing Alice made her way to the forested area at the edge of the town. It was the area where parents usually told their children not to go because if they traveled too far they might end up falling off the cliff and into the sea beneath where sharks were waiting to eat them up.

Alice, ever curious, wanted to know if it was true about there being sharks at the bottom of the cliff. Alice knew that it might be dangerous but she had explored most of the town by now so she should be able to handle something small like a shark.

Plus she was already ten years old which she believed qualified her as a big girl.

Alice now stood at the entrance to the forest, a dirt track with little vegetation covering it. The wind rustled the leaves as it carried a hint of sea salt with it.

Alice confidently moved deeper into the path with her hands holding the backpack straps and her head moving every which way that her neck could be mistaken for a swivel.

The scent of sea salt became stronger as she made her way down the dirt road.

Suddenly a strong gust of wind flew towards Alice carrying a handful of sand right behind it. She instinctively turned her head to the right as the sand crashed into her body and the hand she had put up to protect her face.

As Alice felt the wind subside she began to turn back to the earth-colored road but stopped when she spotted a part of a stone path hidden off the side.

With her curiosity piqued, Alice left the main trail to explore the dilapidated one.

The stones were no longer in perfect symmetrical order as they looked to have been like before.

Weathered with grass growing in between and vines snaking over each other Alice hopped from stone to stone humming a tune she had heard somewhere.

Her constant observation of her surroundings slowly lessened until it stopped altogether with her humming dying down soon after.

The further she followed the stone path the clearer the smell of the sea carried in the wind became. She soon began to hear the faint sounds of waves slapping on rock.

Her hands on her straps unconsciously tightened with her steps slowing down but not stopping. Her head glued in the direction of the stone path as she could make out a clearing at the end.

Alice unknowingly gulped as her once excited mood vanished.

Tam…Tam…Tam…

Her footsteps lost their sound as she was now meters away from the clearing.

As she reached the clearing the Sun attacked her eyes due to there being no trees to defend her. Alice raised her hand while squinting, allowing her eyes to adjust to the sunlight.

Once they did she had a perfect view of what the clearing consisted of but her attention was stolen by something else entirely.

Raven black hair that seemed to absorb the light around with a face resembling those celebrities Alice had seen on her TV. A boy no older than what looked to be fifteen. He sat there on a dilapidated bench dressed in a plain black T-shirt under a cyan-colored sweater with grey sweatpants ending it off with plain black slippers.

He had the overall look of a handsome, if slightly unfashionable, young man.

But to Alice nothing could be better.

The boy realizing that someone else was here turned from viewing the sea to where Alice stood rigid as a statue.

A dazed look replaced the previous calm when the boy laid eyes on Alice.

Both their eyes meet.

The smell of the sea, the slight breeze coming from the ocean, the sound of the waves at the bottom.

They all seemed to vanish.

Alice's emerald green eyes meet the boy's hazel brown eyes as time stilled.

Alice was entranced by the emotions held in the boy's eyes as he gazed at her. His eyes resembled a calm lake that reflected the sky but as he saw Alice, overwhelming affection spilled out before vanishing the next second back into the perfectly calm lake.

"Kuhum!"

With that sound, everything returned as Alice realized that it was the boy who let out that fake cough.

A smile that threatened to send Alice into a daze once again adorned the boy's face. Alice tried her hardest to pay attention to the boy without having her thinking halt as the boy began.

"Nice to meet you, My name is Red."

He introduced. Alice then realized that her heart pounded in her chest so hard that she could hear it in her ears. Her face felt unnaturally hot as well.

"M-my name is Alice Carran. N-nice to meet you."

Alice stuttered out as her eyes darted from tree to bush back to tree and feet fidgeting as she still stood at the entrance of the clearing.

She took a glance at Red only to find a warm smile directed toward her. Alice felt her face heat up once again as her eyes instantly dropped to the ground.

"Why don't you come take a seat instead of standing there?"

Red suggested breaking Alice out of her embarrassment.

Alice took a second to scan the surroundings now that she wasn't taken by Red.

The cliff's edge was lined with rusted railings. Pieces broken in between each section made it look as if it would fly off the cliff with just enough force. Although if one looked closer they would notice that the railing stood sturdily despite the wind blowing against it.

The aged stone path lessened before disappearing completely at the entrance of the clearing, being replaced by earth, with stubs of weeds growing haphazardly.

The vegetation around the clearing was thick enough to block out any sunlight while also giving an obstructed view into the forest. The main source of light was the ocean view beyond the railings.

Halfway the distance to the cliff was where the bench Red sat on was situated, placed more to the right of the clearing. Opposite the bench was a couch-shaped stump littered with markings on it that indicated it was hand-carved.

Alice waddled towards the wooden-shaped couch before swinging her backpack to the front of her as she plopped herself into the seat. Hugging the backpack and burying her face into it so it only allowed Red to see her eyes.

Red on the other hand had a look on his face as if he had just witnessed the cutest thing in the world. Calming himself, Red decided to make conversation with the ten-year-old girl.

"So, what's a little girl like you doing all the way out in the forest here?"

The question removed Alice's embarrassment as she corrected Red.

"I'm not a little girl! I'm already 10 years old! Make sure to remember that!"

Red held in a chuckle at the adorable display before correcting himself.

"…Sorry, sorry. What's a big girl like you doing all the way out here?"

Alice satisfied that Red corrected himself, began to explain her reasoning for why she had wandered out here.

"Well…mummy told me a story about how children my age wandered off into this forest and ended up lost before falling off the cliff and getting eaten by sharks!"

Alice narrated with a dramatic tone along with the help of some gestures with her hands.

"If you know about that then why did you still come here?"

Red questioned with curiosity.

"I know that mummy made up that story so I wouldn't wander into the forest because I would know if someone my age died here. Everyone in town would be talking about it and I happen to know everyone!"

Alice spoke like a teacher giving students a lesson before ending off in a proud tone.

"Hmhmhm…so you came even when your mother didn't want you to?"

Red hummed amusingly as he questioned Alice.

"A-Ah…Well, I know that mummy made up the dead child thing but I'm not sure about the shark part. It sounds fake enough to be real. A-and curiosity kinda won over caution."

A red tint of shame crept onto Alice's cheek as she answered Red. She jumped out of the wooden seat before Red could speak and made her way to the rusted railing to get rid of her shame.

"Well! Time to see if the sharks were real or not!"

Alice exclaimed as she carefully leaned on the railing while peering down at the bottom of the cliff with the hope of getting to at least catch a glimpse of a real shark.

Having no success, her brows furrowed together as Alice leaned more into the railing to get a better view of below.

Krrk!

With an audible creak, Alice felt the railing move along with the immediate motion of her body moving forward. Alice felt her heart in her throat before her hand was gripped. She was then pulled as she spun around and collided into Red's chest with a, 'Thump!'.

Alice looked up to see Red smiling gently at her causing her to once again feel a heat appear on her face.

"T-thank you."

She almost whispered before separating herself from Red.

"Hahh…That's dangerous y'know. Next time don't lean over the railing so much or your mother's story might come true."

Red warned with a sigh while Alice could only reply with a nod.

"…mhm."

They both went back to their seats as Red continued.

"Plus you can't find sharks near the cliff here. The closest known habitat for sharks is a couple of hundred kilometers that way."

Red clarified as he pointed behind him.

"How do you know that?"

Alice asked as her curiosity overwhelmed the rest of her emotions at the moment.

"I am not from town."

Red answered as he leaned back on the bench.

"You weren't born here?"

Alice questioned for clarification.

"That's right."

Red confirmed.

"That~ makes sense! I know everyone in town but I haven't seen you before. I would remember you if I had seen you because you're so hands-look unforgettable."

Alice thought to herself out loud before remembering that Red was in front of her. Alice then questioned Red with her innate curiosity finally showing itself.

"What else did you learn outside town?"

With both elbows on his knees, Red leaned forward with a slight grin on his face.

"There is a story that has always stuck with me since I learned it. Would you like to hear it?"

Alice's emerald green eyes glimmered with excitement at the mention of a story.

"A story? Yea, Mhm!"

With Alice agreeing, Red cleared his throat as he fixed his posture before he began.

"In a world far, far away…"

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A boy was born in a remote village. The remote village was located in the biggest Empire on the continent.

The boy from an early age helped his parents with their fieldwork.

Not too long after he began helping his parents, the boy was blessed with a younger sister. Because of this, the boy was halted from any farm work by his father to stay home and help his mother take care of his baby sister.

The boy however had no complaints because he enjoyed being able to spend time with his mother and baby sister.

Soon the boy's sister grew up enough that he wouldn't need to help her anymore and began his farm work once again.

Life was simple in the remote village but the boy was satisfied and happy with it.

That changed when a magician visited the remote village on a quest to exterminate the surrounding monsters.

The magician, who worked as an imperial magician, soon finished his task but before he could leave he found the boy had an innate talent for magic.

And so the imperial magician talked to the boy's parents to allow him to take the boy back to the capital where he could properly train him in the art of magic.

The boy's parents were all for it and encouraged the boy to follow the imperial magician. The boy however was worried for his family.

He worried for his father's health from constantly working in the fields every day. He was worried for his mother because she was once again pregnant with her third child. He was worried for his little sister because she had a habit of always following after him.

The boy confided his worries to the imperial magician and the magic-user explained to the boy that with magic he would be able to fix all his problems with a flick of his hand and he could always send them the money he earned while he worked towards that goal.

Convinced, the boy bid farewell to his home and family at the age of 10 and began on his path of magic.

And so the years went by with the boy getting better and better at magic while also sending a portion of the salary he earned from his job as an imperial magician back home.

One winter the boy received a letter from his mother that they weren't going to be able to make enough harvest for the whole village and if he would be able to send more money and food than normal just for this winter.

The boy, nearing the age of becoming a man, saw no problem with the little extra work. So he worked overtime and sent extra back to his village and family.

The spring after, the young man decided to visit his village to see if they were able to get through the winter without a problem.

But the young man was shocked beyond belief when he arrived at the village. The remote village that he had once grown up in had turned into a bandit's den.

The young man was in disbelief when he saw how they treated the men, people that he remembered from his time in the village, as slaves. The men looked like corpses walking. The young man even found that some of his siblings were being treated as slaves.

The young man was on the cusp of flying into a blind rage but he kept himself together as he hoped that nothing as bad happened to his mother or sister.

Oh, how wrong he was. The young man came across his mother and sister and the rest of the female population of the village left as mindless dolls with nothing but chains around their necks.

That was the breaking point for the young man. He lost all rationality to wrath. When the young man came to himself he was surrounded by the corps of bandits and villagers alike, the ground destroyed at places while houses, both new and old, burned.

The young man was already on his knees and wailing with sorrow. This lasted an unknown amount of time before the young man collected himself.

He then proceeded to find every villager's corpse and bury them.

With a feeling of emptiness, the young man returned to the capital and informed his teacher about what took place in his village before requesting to be placed in the military.

It took a while but the young man convinced his teacher to accept his request. Once he joined the military the young man made leaps in his path of magic fueled by the emotions he experienced back in his village.

Years passed and the young man, who had grown into a man, had surpassed his teacher and became one of the most powerful magicians in the country.

War then broke out allowing the man to vent his feelings that stayed with him from the village. This led to the man's name being known far and wide as a war hero. People spoke his name with both fear and awe.

The man however felt burnt out and dull, retiring soon after the war to become an instructor for young magicians. The man also started on the path of medicine finding nothing more to learn with magic.

Years passed once again but at the age of 35 was when the man fell in love for the first time. He fell for one of his students who also fell for him. They spent years together with the young woman healing the man's heart from all his burdens. They then married not long after with the young woman, now a woman, deciding to work with the man.

The man and woman spent their time in happiness but tragedy soon struck the man once again. His wife had contracted an unknown disease leaving her weak. Even all the man's knowledge about medicine was useless in front of this disease.

With the man's wife getting weaker and frailer as time passed the man used everything he had earned throughout his life to find a cure for his wife.

After a long and tireless search, the man came across an ancient record about an artifact that could heal anything.

The man set out to retrieve it and after a perilous journey, he returned to his wife with the artifact in hand. But it was too late as his wife had already succumbed to the disease.

In sorrow once more the man threw himself into studying medicine to the best of his ability and when he couldn't study any more the man traveled the continent using what he had learned.

The remainder of the man's life was spent wandering from village to village, kingdom to kingdom, country to country, continent to continent, and eventually the entire world as he made a name for himself as a saint who could heal anything.

The man on his final breath still held onto the regret of not being able to save his wife.

Once he died, the man came face to face with the god of his world. Due to the positive impact, the man had on the world the god decided to reward the man with anything he wanted.

The man remembering his regret wished to be with his wife once again. The god expected that answer but still explained to the man that to get his wish he would have to bear a curse because it was going against the laws of the universe.

The man agreed without hesitation before he felt his magic stripped from him and his body break down and rebuild itself. It was the worst pain he had ever felt but the man endured it if it meant getting to see his wife again.

Once the pain was over the man vanished from in front of the God as it sincerely hoped that fate would no longer be cruel to him and allow the man to meet his wife.

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"…to be continued."

Red finished with a smirk full of amusement as he decided to stop his story with a cliffhanger.

Alice, who paid full attention to the story immediately shouted in indignation.

"What!? No, you have to continue! Please continue! What happened to the man!? What about the man's wife!? Would he ever be able to meet her again!?…"

Alice fired question after question with enough speed and sound to put a machine gun to shame.

Red raised his palm towards Alice signaling for her to stop. Realizing that she lost herself to her burning curiosity Alice stopped and fell back into her seat with a slightly prominent ruby color on her cheeks as she apologized.

"Sorry."

"No problem. I don't blame you, I would react the same way if someone did that to me."

Red sympathized with Alice but there was also a hint of amusement in his tone. Red then explained why he stopped the story there.

"Anyway, I stopped because the Sun is starting to set. I believe that your mother wouldn't want you out after dark. Plus what better place to stop than at a cliffhanger."

Alice pouted at the teasing tone at the end which caused Red to nearly have a heart attack at the cuteness of such a scene.

"How do you know that mummy wants me back before the sun sets?"

Alice wondered.

"Don't all mothers want their children back before dark? It's just common sense."

Red replied with his face full of teasing. Alice had lost count of how many times she had blushed since her meeting with Red.

"…That makes sense."

Alice answered with red cheeks and her face tilted down to hide her embarrassment from Red. A second later she hopped off the tree stump couch with her backpack already strapped behind her.

Realizing that Red had told an entire story without a break Alice took one of the bottles from the side of her bag, it being covered in water due to absorbing the heat from the surroundings.

"Here you go."

"Thank you."

Red curtsied as he accepted the bottle before twisting open the cap and gulping down half of it.

"Well…um, I'm going home now. What about you?"

Alice asked as she walked backwards towards the entrance of the clearing.

"I don't have a curfew so I'll stay here a little bit longer."

Red answered as he wiped his lips with his free hand.

"Oh, lucky. Then I will see you later, Red."

Alice then turned before she started to jog down the stone path. Turning her body she waved back to Red.

"Bye-bye!"

"See you later!"

Red returned a wave and kept waving until Alice was out of sight.

Leaning back on the bench Red rested his head on the backrest as he gazed at the cloudless sky through the leaves.

"See you later, huh?…"

Red muttered to himself as smirk made its way on his face. The smirk grew until it became a grin and the grin grew until Red was now smiling so wide that each end of his mouth felt like it could touch his ears.

Meanwhile, Alice sprinted down the path and out of the forest as her heart thumped in her ears. Whether it was from running or from something else entirely she didn't know.

Alice made her way out of the forest and through the town on her way home not even realizing that a beautiful smile was plastered on her face the entire time.