Wait, wait, wait…
Did I hear that correctly?
“…Hold on a second.”
Looking at the old man, I tried to see if he was wearing any disguise, but the more I looked the less likely this seemed to be. The wrinkles on his face felt real and his voice was also quite hoarse.
‘Maybe his disguise is very good?’
“Are you wearing a disguise?”
“Disguise?”
The old man looked at me strangely.
“What disguise?”
“Err…”
I didn’t really know what to say.
‘He’s definitely a lunatic.’
“Do you think I don’t look my age? How strange.”
Picking up a mirror, the old man massaged his beard.
“…And here I thought I was looking quite good.” Really?
Seriously?
“What’s with that face that you’re making?”
“Face? Am I making a face?”
I subconsciously started to touch my face. Realizing that I wasn’t making a face, I silently cursed to myself.
‘He really is a lunatic.’
No, but more importantly. How did he start looking like that? Since he said he hated liars, there was a high chance he wasn’t lying about his age.
If so, how did he end up looking so old?
‘Don’t tell me he’s been here for much longer than just a few months.’
My heart almost stopped at the thought.
However, soon enough, I shook my head. There was no way this was the case. If this situation persisted for such a long time then the world would’ve known for quite some time already.
Eventually, my eyes fell on the strings connected to the old man and my heart sank.
…. Could it be that the strings are sapping away at his life?’
The thought was even more horrifying than the first one.
If the strings truly drained one’s life, then it also meant that soon enough, I would end up like the old man.
‘Hell no.’
Da Dang~
Suddenly, a new melody filled the air and when I looked up, I saw the old man sitting beside the piano.
Pressing his index finger down, he tried copying the notes from the box.
Only that…
Deng~
“Urkh, that’s wrong.”
He scratched the back of his head.
“What was the note again?”
Dong~
“No, that’s not quite right.”
Ding~
“…That’s not it either.”
He was struggling.
Struggling to play a very simple song.
And that was when the realization truly hit me.
“You don’t have much time left, do you?”
|| ||
The old man’s finger came to an abrupt pause. The real tune played in the background while he turned his head to look at me.
“The more powerful one becomes the stronger their memory. Forgetting things becomes much harder for them. You’re strong. One of the strongest people I’ve ever met. How could someone like you forget something as simple as this? No, that’s not the only thing you forgot. You forgot a lot already, haven’t you?”
I thought back to our conversations and realized this wasn’t the only thing he forgot.
“
I raised my hand to show the strings attached to me.
“Ever since the strings appeared you’ve found yourself forgetting things. You’ve started to
age, and despite your best attempts at trying to get out, you can’t. Why? With your strength it
shouldn’t be-“
“Because they are my family.”
The old man replied.
“….I can’t leave them.”
His voice came out in a whisper, like the soft sound of a falling feather.
“How can one leave their family to rot?”
“Then can’t you just ask for help?”
“To who?”
“The Empires. I’m sure they-“
“Hwe, he.”
The old man started chuckling all of a sudden.
“Hahahahaha.”
His chuckle quickly turned into a full-on laugh, and the room shook under its intense
pressure.
He continued for a few seconds before finally stopping.
“The Empires? Help?”
The old man looked in my direction with a smile.
“Do you know what we calling the people of the Empire here in the Kasha?”
“…No.”
“Wall Rats.”
“Wall, what…?”
“All they do is hide behind those towering walls of theirs, keeping us out, separated from them. We’re the forgotten, the castaways of the Empires-the ones they deem unworthy of stepping foot within those big high walls that hoard all the fertile land and the warmth of the
sun.”
“Surely that’s a lie. If someone as skilled as you tries to-“
“To them, we’re nothing. Brutes. Savages they fear would bring chaos to their pristine walls. If we weren’t of some use to them, they’d have wiped us out long ago, without a second
thought.”
“That…”
“…I’ve witnessed it far too many times. They’d ruther watch us rotting than lift a finger to help. Asking for their aid would be like condemning this entire household to ruin-they’d
milk us of every resource.”
The old man’s voice was hoarse at this point.
“….”
Whatever words I had for him were long gone.
I just listened to him speak.
“The people of the Kasha are no better. They’d twake advantage of this situation to take me
family down. That’s why I can’t leave. I must find a way to help everyone. I have to. I must.”
“…..’
I considered telling him that I was from the very same Empires he despised, but I stopped
myself.
Who knew if he’d kill me like before?
….I didn’t want to risk it.
“But aren’t you scared?”
To have endured for so long, only to find himself aging and his memories beginning to fade.
Was he not scared?
“Scared?”
Looking at me, the old man blinked his eyes before smiling.
“Yes, I am scared.”
His eyes were clear.
“Of course, I am scared. Every day I feel my energy drop and my memories fade. I try to fight
it, but I can’t stop it. I can’t find the one responsible for all of this.”
They were clearer than ever before.
“But I am not scared of death.”
So clear that I could see my reflection in them.
“Death doesn’t frighten me. What terrifies me is everything I’m losing while still breathing.”
Raising his hand to show me his trembling hand, the old man slowly clenched it.
“I’m not going to stop.”
But you should stop.
“Because even though I’m scared, I want to preserve the few things that are meaningful to
me.”
Which were?
“My identity, and my family.”
These were the old man’s reasons for living.
Though strong enough to escape, the old man chose to stay and find a way to free everyone. As
his strength waned and his memories faded, he fought to preserve his mind and protect his
family.
As expected…
‘He’s a lunatic.’
A crazy lunatic that I couldn’t help but respect.
There were better strategies than just waiting here and letting his strength slowly diminish. If
he wanted to, then he probably could’ve found a way to help.
But perhaps…
He had long lost trust in humanity.
“I get it.”
Looking down at my pocket watch, I sat down on the ground.
“…I get it.”
Tik, tik-
It was 01:17 A.M.
Staring at the old man whose large back suddenly seemed frail, I closed my eyes and opened
them up again.
That was when my scenery changed.
Thu Thump!
The air resonated with the thunderous beat of drums, while my hands seemed to have a mind
of their own, applauding the spectacle unfolding before my eyes.
Cla Clap-
“I’m back.”
Realizing what had happened, I checked the pocketwatch and noted the time.
It was 12:17 A.M.
‘Exactly an hour has passed within the vision. That must be how long the skill lasts for.’
This was good news.
So long as I didn’t die, it meant that I had one hour to use the skill. Even so, I only had one
more vial left.
One more time.
That was the amount of times I could still use the skill.
‘I need to be very careful when using it.’
I couldn’t afford to waste it.
“In any case…”
I raised my head and looked up at Caius and Kaelion. I felt a little sorry looking at them
considering how I had used them as scapegoats in the ‘runs’, but now that I had a better
understanding of the situation, they no longer needed to be used as scapegoats. “Pebble.”
Calling out for Pebble, I spoke,
“Tell the two to rest for now and recuperate all their mana. We’ll be starting in a few hours.
I’ll give them the signal.”
“…Human, I’m not your servant.”
Seeing the annoyed look on Pebble’s face, I only thought it was cute.
Still, I didn’t show it and just pretended to understand its plight.
“I know, don’t worry. I’ll make for it later.”
“Will you…?”
“Yes, don’t worry.”
Pebble’s eyes narrowed but it soon left.
A bitter smile formed on my lips as I shook my head.
Eventually, I closed my eyes and started to rest.
I was going to meet the old man soon enough.
*
By the time I opened my eyes, a few hours had passed.
While my body was still not in top condition, my legs felt better and my mind was fresh. My mana had also mostly recovered.
As I turned my head, Pebble, seemingly in tune with my thoughts, leaped from my back and
darted toward Kaelion and Caius. They both glanced at me, and I gave a subtle nod in their direction. Caius then drew in a deep breath.
A heavy pressure bore down on the surroundings as his voice echoed in the air.
“Cease all movement.”
With a steely gaze and unyielding posture, Caius erupted with a formidable aura. His
indifferent eyes and cold voice bestowed upon him an imposing presence resembling that of
an Emperor.
The drums stopped playing.
The people stopped playing.
…And the world came to a sudden halt.
|| ||
As everything turned quiet, we started moving.
“Same direction as before.”
We all dashed to where we last went.
Clank-
I held my breath and pushed my way into the building while greeting the long flight of stairs
that led to the second floor.
‘Yes, I am scared.’
I could almost hear the old man’s words as I fought my way up.
Bang-!
“Ukh!”
The stairs groaned under the weight of my steps. Pressing my foot down, the puppets stopped
moving as the gravity changed.
‘But I am not scared of death.”
“Go! Go!”
I rushed past the puppets.
‘Death doesn’t frighten me. What terrifies me is everything I’m losing while still breathing.’
Moving past them, I saw their hollow and lifeless expressions.
The old man’s voice grew louder in my mind.
‘I’m not going to stop.’
He was powerful.
Amongst the strongest in the Kasha.
There weren’t many that could rival this man who despite looking old was young.
“We’re here! Open the trapdoor!”
“Get in, quick!” “Down! Go down…!”
“Oh, right.”
I stopped for a second and looked back.
“Whatever you do, make sure you never lie.”
“Uh?”
“If you lie, you die.”
“Eh…?”
“What?”
Ignoring the shocked looks on their faces, I hurried down the stairs.
‘Because even though I’m scared, I want to preserve the few things that are meaningful to me.’
“You’we made it quicker than I… expected.” Turning around, the old man appeared behind just like in the past.
I smiled at the sight of him and extended my hand.
“It’s nice to meet you. My name is Julien.”
……
The old man looked at my hand in surprise. Moving it closer to him, I eventually got him to shake it.
That was also when I pressed the second leaf.
‘What do you persist for?’
‘My identity, and my family.’
This was the answer a not-so-old man once told me.