It was a cold evening with heavy snowfall and long dark hours. After having dinner, Ishida offered Rhina his bed and slept on the couch.
But a few hours later, he was still awake. As it turned out, he had not entirely forgotten the discovery he made at the ammunition factory that afternoon.
I wonder what kind of people are operating the place and why they want to produce weapons, he thought.
Perhaps another war is coming...?
Ishida shook his head. No, it can’t be! The last war we had was over a thousand years ago! Still, what about those mosaic paintings?
What do they represent? That mountain looked a lot like Mount Lagoda. Maybe they were made long ago to tell the history of this place. But there were some missing paintings, too. This is like reading a classic mystery novel...
The young man tried to close his eyes, but he found himself staring at his guest, who was sound asleep.
Mount Lagoda hasn’t had visitors for over a century, he told himself. What is Rhina doing here, and more importantly, why did she come here?
Ishida continued to ponder through the night. Eventually, after getting a short period of rest, he found that it was already dawn.
Quietly, in an effort not to wake his visitor up, Ishida cooked some breakfast for Rhina and grabbed his banner. Before going, he took another glimpse at Rhina. She was the most charming human being he had ever seen, and yet she somehow resembled someone he knew… or used to know.
After placing a tray of food next to the bed, Ishida gently opened the door and stepped outside, neglecting to put his shoes on. After all, his parents were long gone, and there was no one to scold him for having dirty feet.
Suddenly, Ishida felt something utterly terrifying in contact with his foot. It was cold, crunchy, and powdery.
A chill went down his spine. He tried to look down and saw that the ground was covered in a grey substance— a form of precipitation. It was snow.
“No, NO!! Not you again!” Ishida wailed. “Get away from me!”
The young man rushed back inside and frantically dusted the tiny snowflakes off his foot. By then, it was too late.
The acidic chemicals in the snow had already devoured much of his toenail and were rapidly spreading to other parts of his foot, leaving bright red rashes on his skin.
Ishida closed his eyes in disgust and dipped his foot into a bucket of boiling water for a few seconds before quickly yanking it back out.
He then dried his foot with a towel and repeated the process multiple times.
The red rashes on his skin did not disappear. Ishida reached for some ice and poured it into a bucket before dropping herbs into the bucket of boiling water and stirring them together.
He proceeded by pouring some herbs into the ice bucket and plunging his foot into the mixture.
Green, orange, and purple smoke rose from the bucket and filled the room. Ishida pressed a button on the windowsill that opened all the windows in his house. He then pressed another button that turned on the air purifiers and the ventilation system.
Ishida proceeded to lift his foot from the bucket filled with ice and saw that the burns were starting to vanish. When he rubbed some more herbs on the burns, they finally disappeared. Ishida breathed out a sigh of relief.
My toenail isn’t going to grow back any time soon, though. Oh, well. At least the burns weren’t too severe.
Suddenly, an anguished voice cried out from inside Ishida’s house. “No, please don’t!”
Ishida turned around and saw that Rhina was violently shaking her head with her eyes still tightly closed.
“What’s the matter?” Ishida asked as he approached the bed.
“Don’t cut those flowers, please— Mother planted them! She would be terribly disappointed if she saw you do this,” she said in agony. “No, please don’t lock the door! I promised the butterflies that I would play with them all day today.”
“Rhina, wake up!”
“I’m begging you, don’t do it!”
“Calm down— it’s just a bad dream.”
“Let me out! Please!”
“Listen to me, you’re dreaming, and you need to wake up.” Ishida stroked her hair.
“Ishida?” Rhina slowly lifted her eyelids.
“Yes, it’s just me. Everything’s going to be alright,” Ishida said in a soothing voice.
Once Rhina had gone back to sleep, Ishida quietly stood up.
I wonder what happened in her dream. I’m glad that it’s over with, the young man said to himself. Now, my feet will need some protection against the acid snow if I am to go outside at all today.
He scanned the room with his eyes from left to right from bottom to top until he spotted a pair of boots sticking out a box on a wooden shelf next to the door.
Very well, those will do, he thought. He placed a stool next to the shelf and stepped onto it.
He stretched his hands as far as they would go, but the box was simply out of reach. Just a little bit more!
Ishida leaped up and clutched the box with both of his hands. But it was too early to celebrate this achievement, for he did not land back on the stool as smoothly as he had expected.
The force from the impact was so great that two of the stool’s four legs snapped in half, triggering it to collapse.
Following this, Ishida’s back slammed onto the ground.
BANG!
“Aghh,” he moaned as he tried to stand back up, only to collapse again from the pain.
Ishida let out a sigh of relief when he saw that his visitor was still asleep. He then gathered his strength and stood back up, strapped the boots on, and stepped outside.
Only after ten steps through the snow did he realize that they were a bit too big for him, as they were his father’s.
As he cautiously trudged through the snow, Ishida found that something was unusual. The usually quiet morning was filled with all sorts of noises.
When he reached the town center, he found that all the villagers were already awake, and they were in a panic.
There once was a saying in the land of Medietus: “What is neither possible nor impossible is neither achievable nor unachievable. All of it simply depends on the individual’s point of view.”That night, Ishida had a dream. It was nothing like any dream he had ever had.Ishida found himself standing on the balcony of a seaside house at dawn. He was staring out at the dark ocean, watching as wave after wave lapped on the shore.Seagulls flew by in the unlighted sky above him. A breeze gently shook the leaves of nearby palm trees. A bright yellow sphere was rising from the mountains, illuminating dark clouds and giving light to everything.Rays of light emerged from the calm waters, lighting up the area an
Something seemed off about the Ajenian king’s appearance. At first, Ishida and Rhina could not identify what it was.The king was in a luxurious robe…did he have a crown? Yes, he did. Was he holding a scepter? Almost— he was holding a staff. What was the problem, then?Ishida was the first to figure it out. When he did, he let out a cry of terror.“What is it, Ishida?” Rhina asked.“The king!” Ishida shrieked. “The king’s an old man!”When Rhina saw the king’s long white beard, wrinkly face, and messy white hair, she, too, let out a terrified cry.“What?” Kin
As the wooden door was slowly opened, a flash of golden light flooded out of the small opening in the door and engulfed the entire mountaintop.Finally, when the door had fully opened, Ishida and Rhina had the opportunity to gaze upon the grandeur and opulence of the reception hall.“Welcome to the Great King’s palace! Welcome to the Great King’s palace!” a multitude of voices chanted. These were the voices of King Rexius’ servants, who were all half-fish and half-beaver.The reception hall was brightly lit by crystal-like chandeliers that hung from the high ceiling and were covered by thick, red carpets with golden edges that extended up the stairs and onto the second and third floors as well.
“Bring it on!” Ishida and Rhina said in unison.The Guardian nodded. “As you wish— let’s get started. The question may sound simple, but it is far more complicated than you can imagine. The question is: what is the purpose of your search for Ajens?’ I repeat: this question is far more complicated than you think.”Ishida turned to Rhina. “I have the answer. You know it too, don’t you? Do you want to say it?”Rhina shook her head. “I know what the answer you’re thinking of is, but I think we should think very carefully before answering.”Ishida ignored Rhina’s advice and said to the giant, “The purpose of our journey was for us to have a talk wit
Lieutenant Monte’s agent was surprised to find his boss in Rexia Castellum shortly before sundown. It was at the least favorable moment that the lieutenant spotted his agent, clad in an all-black suit and relaxing in a cafe.The lieutenant was unsurprisingly furious. He ordered Sarem and Alamein to wait outside and stormed into the cafe. He trashed the place, turning tables over and smashing several chairs to oblivion.The owner of the cafe and the Del Cealans who had nothing to do with the matter took flight and rushed out the door in a stampede. With no one else around, Lieutenant Monte was free to let all of his rage explode onto his indolent agent.“Agent Lazy-Head!” Lieutenant Monte yelled in rage. “I did
Ishida and Rhina were journeying down the steadily declining slope of Mount Siwalai, walking hand in hand. They had journeyed past the meditating sage of Mount Siwalai, making as little sound as possible as they went. The sun was now about halfway between the uppermost part of the sky and the horizon. Below them was a valley in which a vast lake stood in between the feet of Mount Siwalai and Mount Nawarat. The lake’s water was clear blue, enriched by mineral deposits that came flowing down the slopes of the Holy Mountains every spring in the form of melted snow: water. The two travelers said nothing to each other. They simply smiled and continued down the grassy slope of the mountain. “Lake Azure,” as Ishida called it, was soon within an arm’s reach