"Fck!" William cursed as he found himself falling in what seemed to be a bottomless pit.
Just a few minutes ago, he and his comrades were traversing the path to the Peak of Enlightenment when a blizzard suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Then a gust of wind blew everyone away from each other.
William was about to look for his friends when the ground under his feet opened up and sucked him in, which brought him to his current predicament.
The boy did everything in his power to stop his fall, but it was all in vain. He couldn't communicate with his system and none of the artifacts in his possession was working. After struggling on what felt like hours, the boy finally gave up and ceased all activities.
Just when he thought that he would keep on free-falling for all eternity, a light appeared below him and then… he fell face first on solid ground.
"Pei! Pei!" William spat the grass, and dirt, from his mouth as he hurriedly propped himself off the ground.
He scanned his surroundings to see if there was any danger around him. The sun was about to set, leaving the sky with an orange glow. William frowned when he realized that he seemed to be in a flowerfield in the middle of nowhere.
He was about to look behind him when he heard an "Eh" sound coming from his back.
William turned his head to look at the owner of the voice. His body stiffened when his gaze landed on a lady who seemed to be in her late teens. She had long black hair and her eyes were the same pair of eyes that made his heart skip a beat a lifetime ago.
The young lady, who was as beautiful as a painting, looked back at the boy that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere in shock. She had come here to admire the sunset, like she usually did everyday, and had never experienced something like this before.
However, for some reason, the heart inside her chest started to beat wildly. It was as if it was seeing an old friend that it hadn't seen for years.
"B-Belle?" William stuttered.
He could hear his own heartbeat as the emotions that laid dormant inside his heart started to resurface uncontrollably.
"No. This must be a dream or an illusion," William muttered as his eyes focused on the girl in front of him. "That's right. This is just an illusion. How could this be real? I was on the Peak of Enlightenment when a blizzard happened..."
William did his best to calm his emotions. His brain was telling him that everything he was seeing was not real. However, his heart was telling him that this was reality.
While he was waging an inner battle with himself, the young lady stood up and looked at him in a guarded manner.
"Who are you? Why do you know my name?" Belle asked. "What are you doing on our property?"
William stopped his mumbling and stared at her. It was at that moment when he realized that he had missed her so much that even hearing her voice was making his heart ache.
A tear fell, followed by another. Soon, more tears streamed down on William's face as the floodgates in his heart burst open. He, who had hardened his heart from the darkness of humanity, wasn't able to stop the flood of emotions that had accumulated for many years.
William stared at Belle as if trying to burn her image in his soul. He didn't care anymore if this was a dream or an illusion. What was important was that she was here, right now.
Seeing that the younger boy was crying, the beautiful lady felt alarmed and hurriedly approached him.
"What's wrong? Are you hurt?" Belle asked. She then scanned William's body for injuries. "What's your name?"
William's lips trembled as he gave out his name. "My name is Will."
"Will? Your name is Will? What is your surname?"
"Ainsworth."
Belle pondered for a while before shaking her head.
"Sorry, but I don't recall anyone in this town with that name," Belle replied. "However, don't worry. I will ask my servants to help you find your family later."
William had no recollection of what happened next. He felt light-headed and he couldn't think straight. All he knew was that Belle held his hand and took him back to her Villa so he could change his clothes.
"Did you buy this from a cosplay shop?" Belle asked. "This is very well made. Unfortunately, there is some damage here and there. From the looks of it, it seems to have been scorched by fire."
'Not fire, but acid,' William said internally as he put on the clothes that were lent to him by Belle. He had just finished taking a bath and changed into a set of clothes that belonged to Belle's younger brother who was studying in the city.
"I'll ask the maid to have this washed," Belle stated with a determined expression. "I'll also ask them to patch this up. Don't worry, Will. I'll make sure that this will become as good as new."
William could only nod his head and thank the over enthusiastic girl. This was the first time he had seen Belle act this animated. Back then, she would always have that distant and aloof expression on her face when she was in the academy.
"Those ears of yours look so real." Belle's eyes sparkled as she stared at William's ears. "Who is the character that you're portraying? Is he an anime or game character?"
William unconsciously touched his Half-Elven ears. Although they were not as pointy as that of an elf, they were still pointer than that of a normal human's.
"Actually they are real," William said in a half teasing voice. "I am actually a Half-Elf."
"Yes, and I'm actually a fairy."
"But, you are a fairy."
"You're still young, but you sure know how to compliment the ladies." Belle smiled sweetly as she patted William's head.
She didn't know why, but she felt very close to him--as if she had known him for a very long time. The moment her eyes saw him, she felt as if something that had been missing in her life had finally reappeared and it made her feel complete.
"Can I touch them?" Belle asked.
William nodded. "Of course."
Belle's soft and delicate hands moved to touch William's ears. She kneaded them with her fingers while trying to find the hidden attachment that made the ears pointy. A minute later, she took back her hands and her expression became serious.
"No way…," Belle muttered. She then grabbed William's hands and looked straight in his eyes. "Are you really a Half-Elf? Like one of those characters in fantasy books? Can you use a bow? Can you use magic? Do you know Legolasse?"
Belle's barrage of questions made William chuckle. Since he couldn't access his system and artifacts, the Half-Elf thought that he was in some sort of dreamlike state. Because of this he was not afraid to hide that he was a real Half-Elf and answered all of Belle's questions.
The only thing he didn't reveal was his real identity. He was afraid that the moment he told Belle the truth, this dream of his would break into a thousand pieces.
-----
'Who is this girl?' Ella thought as she looked at the pool of water in front of her. 'Is this the world where William lived his past life?'
She was currently seated beside a spring, watching William and his trial. Ella was very curious because she had never seen this girl before. With a glance, she could tell that William "loved" the girl. Like a mother appraising her future daughter-in-law, Ella's eyes narrowed as she observed the two's interaction in the spring.
"Well, she's not half bad," Ella said with a smile. A plan was brewing inside her mind as she thought of her beloved. What she wanted was William's happiness. Since that was the case, she was willing to pull some strings in the background to make William's dreams come true.