THE REALITY OF AZALIA
***
ARDELIAN PAID THEMSELVES a private room on the second floor of the tavern. Exclusive meetings and other personal businesses can actually be held in the private rooms in most taverns in Gladiar Town where they are currently at. Astier was left in awe at the astonishing sight of his new image. Even his own eyes were not spared by the enchanted bracelet on his wrist.
His dark blue hair changed into silver that grew down until his middle back, but his messy bangs remained. Meanwhile, Ardelian's glowing-like ginger hair never ceases to make heads turn to him. He quite appeared attractive now that he was wearing the normal clothing styles of Azalia. Despite him wearing only casual clothes that most human beings wear in Azalia, there is something about Ardelian's entire existence that sprouts nobility. Or, perhaps it is because of the way he takes himself on a daily basis.
"Just let me know when you're done admiring yourself," Ardelian tells him.
Astier heaves out a sigh before sitting on the sofa opposite him. A grave expression registered on his face.
"Tell me everything now," he immediately demanded before bombarding him with a series of questions, "what is happening to me? How did I get here? And what did you mean when you told me that you were born and raised here? I know we haven't known each other for so long back in our original world but saying something like that really threw me off guard, mate. I need to know what is happening. How can I return to our world?"
Ardelian's face was far graver than his. He like to first stare at the person before him before he initially began to disclose the necessary information they needed. Astier noticed that annoying habit of his, creating an air of tension and suspense which don't really aid the person asking the questions.
But the situation now has turned around. Ardelian didn't need to create an air of suspense for Astier has been agitated since the moment he woke up to find Ardelian. Seeing him there brought him back a little memory back in their world from ten years ago.
Astier raised his good friend an eyebrow.
"Well?" he prompted.
Ardelian finally lets out a loud sigh and began to speak, "Life is not always what one would expect as it was. Some say it is beautiful but others say otherwise. Meanwhile, several people would want to escape the reality of what was given rather than go through the obstacles laid before their path. While others wish to travel to a distant world and escape their miserable reality, some would argue that sometimes--- maybe reality is far better than a fantasy life.
"Astier, this reality you're living now, this world you're seeing right now, nothing of this came from black ink on blank papers and bundled together and create what we know now as "books". I've told you this earlier and I'll tell you again, all of this is REAL. But no, not the kind of reality your mind wants to acknowledge, no. This reality you are experiencing now is the 'existence' of another world, Astier. A world filled with wonder and magic, a world also full of monsters, beasts, and enemies."
Astier strived to untangle his crossed thoughts and began processing his good friend's explanation. Nothing of them made sense to him. His creased forehead further encouraged Ardelian to continue, "The book you've borrowed from the library which you also neglected to return was not just any ordinary book. It was a magical portal that the Seven Queens created to travel through different realms."
"What did you just say?"
"That book you always kept beside you was actually one of the portals that the Seven Queens created. And it wasn't the book's fault that you got yourself whisked away in this world. That was your own doing."
Astier rose from his seat. His mind is once more shrouded by a dark cloud of confusion. Magical object? Portal?
"There is still one thing you need to know," Ardelian added.
Astier was unsure if he wants to hear another word because he knows it would only further tangle his thoughts. He still hasn't fully processed everything yet. He still has a lot of questions to ask to at least clarify a few things.
Ardelian also rose from his seat, his light brown eyes seemed to be gleaming amidst the dim-lit room. "You must have realised this already by now."
The beginning of his words made his heart thump, raging so wildly it deafens his ears. Suddenly, he was catching his breath, his fingers are cold and shaking.
"Since the book was just a portal, you didn't actually get whisked inside the story and became one of the characters. No. Because you didn't have to be someone else's character."
"W-what do you mean?"
"You didn't become the villain of the story because you 'are' the villain of this world. You and Destroyer are of the same person, Astier."
He swallowed hard before exiting the room in haste.
His thoughts are colliding, crushing onto one another. The dark clouds hovering around his mind are growing thicker and darker. He dashes into the open street and strolls down the pavement. His present thoughts drifted away from him a minute ago. He recalled his first ten years in the City of Nix. From the day he was found in the middle of the street and the first time he met Ardelian.
Yes, he remembers it now. The doctor with the ginger hair who attended to him when he first woke up is none other than Ardelian. The latter quit being a doctor three months after they bonded. That was when they applied to work at a company run by an enigmatic woman.
Things are somehow beginning to become clear now. Destroyer went missing in Azalia for ten years and Astier couldn't remember a single event before his ten years living in Nix City.
'Could it really be? I-I am Destroyer? B-but how?'
His reflection came to a halt when he accidentally bumped into a large man. A tall beard reached down to his chest. He gently massages it while glaring at Astier who only levels up to large his jaw.
"Watch where you're going, little man." His voice was hoarse and very deep. His bulking muscle would really send someone to fly if he wields them against his opponent.
Astier couldn't find the words to apologize. He stood there, stupified at the sight of the large man. Fortunately, he didn't do anything to him as he passed by him but not without bumping him on the shoulder on purpose. He nearly fell off his balance. In the end, he proceeded on his way with no clear destination as though nothing had happened.
His feet have unknowingly taken him to a wishing fountain which was located at the centre of the town. A few kids are gathered around it, throwing a few coins after making a wish. A small but genuine smile made its way onto Astier's lips. Those innocent little faces never cease to bring warmth to his heart. Even back in the other world, Astier always fancied helping children from orphanages, he would bring them little toys to play with and sweets with the little money he has.
"Despite being branded as the Destroyer of Peace, you always fancied little children," Ardelian's voice behind nearly startled him.
"I know."
"You do?"
"I read it in the book, Ardelian."
The two of them seated on the tiles surrounding the fountain. "But I still don't understand. If that book was only just a portal, how come it had a story written in it? Is that how portals are in Azalia?"
Ardelian shook his head. "No. The book portals actually appear as empty books, containing only a bundle of blank pages. The reason that it gave you a story to tell is that it knows that you came from the place where it was made. The Seven Queens made them detect anyone who got lost in the Mortal World. But in Azalia, the world without magic is famously known as the Mortriason Realm."
"Let me clarify this. Are you saying that the inks just magically appeared the moment I touched it?" Ardelian nodded in confirmation. Astier continued, "But the story was mostly about Destroyer and the Queen of Ice."
"Exactly," his good friend affirmed. "Because it knows who you are. The story they magically tell depends on the person touching the book. Do you believe now?"
He looks away. It's actually hard to believe in everything. He's still unsure of what is really real. But the few days he spent in Azalia showed him a lot of things he never considered possible. He began to take a liking to living as the character of Destroyer upon seeing how the undead from Contella Town worshipped him. He loved the feeling of living a life where he didn't have to ask questions about who he really is.
Back in Nix, Astier couldn't deny the fact that there is a portion of him that he felt was missing. A part of his life that he's been searching for nearly five years, which he eventually gave up.
He woke up in a foreign city, not knowing where he came from or who he really is. All he remembers is his name, Astier Igreed. But if he really is Destroyer, the villain of Azalia, how did he end up in the world of Mortals? What really happened? The story told to him by the book was that he and the Queen of Ice had an intensifying fight where he lost. He was rescued by a mysterious person and after that event, Destroyer was never seen again for over ten years.
His reflection was interrupted when Ardelian pointed out something as though he read his mind. "Didn't you find the coincidence that Destroyer went missing in Azalia for ten years and then suddenly, from another world, in the middle of the road, a mysterious man appears who remembers nothing? He soon came to live in the City of Nix for ten years, searching for the answers of who he really is."
Maybe, just this once, he'll allow himself to acknowledge this fact. Maybe this might just be the answers he needed to find the missing pieces of his life, and maybe, finally know who he really is.
He clicked his tongue. "Alright. I'll believe you for now. Not just because you're my best friend but because I really want to know who I really am. But I can't remember anything aside from what I've known from the book. Any suggestions where we can get help and make me remember everything?"
It is like a heavy load was taken from Ardelian's chest when Astier finally released those words. His ten years of searching for that bloody book portal finally paid off. He rose with excitement, beaming at his good friend.
"I know just the person who can help us. Because, unlike the others, he's one of the most eager to hear of Destroyer's return."
"Really? Who?"
He smirked. "The man who calls himself the Grim Reaper."