They say there's a door that leads to another world somewhere in this world.
A door that only appears to those who are lucky.
Shion Kurogane was anything but lucky.
At the age of sixteen, he dropped out of school to care for his sickly mother, who died two years later.
At the age of twenty, he found himself in prison for a murder he didn't commit. But no matter how much he denied it, all evidence pointed toward him. The murder weapon carried his fingerprints, and his shoe size perfectly matched the prints found at the crime scene. Not to mention the security cameras that showed him entering and leaving the victim's home.
According to Shion, he was only delivering a pizza.
And surprisingly, he was telling the truth— but once again, the evidence stacked against him was simply too overwhelming to ignore. And so, he spent five years in prison before breaking out.
That was the only crime he had ever committed.
***
Somewhere in a dense forest…
The night was cold. The only visible light came from the moon and the bright flashlights carried by two police officers following a dog in search of inmate number 708—Shion Kurogane.
"Inmate 708! Don't make this harder for us!" one officer yelled, sweeping his flashlight across the bushes.
"Stop hiding!" the other shouted, tugging on the leash of the police dog as it sniffed around, circling a bush near a massive tree.
Unbeknownst to the officers, Shion was crouched atop a thick tree branch directly above their heads, his breathing calm and controlled.
Normally, it wouldn't take the dogs this long to track him down. But thanks to meticulous planning and keen observation over the past five years, Shion had learned much about the prison's layout.
Shion winced as the pain in his hand intensified. He glanced down at his palm, wrapped in a white cloth stained red.
He had cut off a large piece of his own flesh to distract the police dogs.
'I hope it doesn't get infected…'
Just then, one of the officers shouted, "We found something over here!"
The dog sat in front of a white T-shirt, signaling that it had found something. Usually, the dog would only stop if it had located the person it was tracking, or an item belonging to them. Naturally, the officer assumed the shirt belonged to inmate 708. What puzzled him was that the dog remained seated even after being ordered to resume the search.
"Hey, what's wrong with you?" he asked, gently patting the dog's head before crouching to inspect the item.
A dirty, ordinary T-shirt.
He lifted it from the ground, and the dog began barking a split second later.
His eyes widened.
Human skin. A large chunk of it. The dog's strange behavior suddenly made sense.
"Captain! Come take a look at this!" he yelled over his shoulder.
The man addressed as captain moved toward him, stepping away from the space beneath the tree where Shion lay hidden.
'Perfect timing,' Shion thought as he began his descent, moving from branch to branch. But the moment his feet touched the ground, the dog erupted into barking, alerting the officers to his position.
"Hey! Stop right there!"
Shion ran.
He ran as fast as his legs could carry him. Adrenaline surged through his body. Fear of the dogs tearing into him, and fear of being caught—sharpened his senses, pushing him forward as he sprinted through trees and vaulted over bushes until he burst out of the forest.
The dock came into view.
A single police boat stood under the pole lights. No guards, as usual.
He pushed on, legs screaming, chest burning, blood dripping from his palm onto the concrete.
Stepping onto the dock, he glanced over his shoulder. His pursuers had just emerged from the forest. He needed to move faster, but instead, his body began to slow.
His legs felt weak. His vision blurred and dimmed. He was so close, yet the blood he had lost threatened to undo everything.
The world tilted.
No, he was falling.
The barking and shouts faded, replaced by the muffled rush of water flooding his ears.
He had fallen from the dock into the ocean.
His vision darkened.
His strength slipping away as water filled his lungs.
He had miscalculated. He had taken too long, or maybe none of that mattered. Maybe he was simply unlucky.
'How beautiful…' he thought, gazing at the moonlight shimmering above him.
He was afraid of dying.
But what reason did he have to live?
If he got out of prison, no one would be waiting for him. He would be alone, just like the moon among flickering lights.
That was why he smiled. At least he shared something in common with something so beautiful.
Shion closed his eyes.
If there was one thing he wished for, it was to rid himself of his cursed luck, if only he were given a second chance.
His consciousness faded.
But his wish was heard.
And the form it took was a door.
A simple doorframe, lacking a door, appeared beneath Shion's sinking body. Its light shone brighter than the moon itself. His body passed through the frame, vanishing into the glow, before the door crumbled into white dust that drifted through the sea.
Shion vanished.
And so did the moonlight, as dark clouds drifted across the sky.
***
Ice Glacier Plains...
The dark sky glittered with thousands of flickering stars. The moon was no longer alone, two companions hovered beside it, each half its size.
Bands of radiant light stretched across the sky, forming a celestial aurora that blanketed the night.
Below lay a frozen wasteland. The land was encased in translucent ice, reflecting the splendor above, and the white rectangle that appeared in a burst of radiance.
The white door hovered just above the ground as a figure gently fell through it, drifting like a feather until they landed safely upon the ice.
The door vanished.
Shion lay unconscious, until he suddenly began coughing violently, water spilling from his mouth as broken gasps of air tore from his lungs.
He was alive.
He survived.
Even if Lady Luck had been against him… he had escaped.
Shion let out a weak chuckle before collapsing onto his back.
But the faint smile slowly vanished when he noticed the sky.
Surprise colored his face as he jolted upright.
'Is this a dream? No… did I really die?'
Three moons. Something naturally impossible.
But the most important question was, how had he survived?
A quick glance around confirmed it.
This wasn't Earth.
Everything felt surreal, like stepping into the pages of a fantasy novel. A land of ice that gleamed more like glass.
If this was the afterlife… then where was his mother?
Then, from the corner of his eye, he noticed a strand of blond hair resting over his shoulder.
"Hair…?" he muttered, tugging at it, and wincing as sharp pain shot through his scalp.
It was his hair.
But hadn't his hair been short and dark?
He looked down, catching his reflection in the ice.
A handsome young man stared back, eyes red as a rose, skin smooth and pale, almost feminine.
He blinked.
"What am I looking at? Is this really me?"
Shion rubbed his head in confusion, his movements growing frantic, mirroring his pounding heart.
A dream. It had to be. Perhaps he was in a coma after nearly drowning. That would explain his healed hand, and why everything felt so real.
"Yes! This is a dream! It has to be!" he shouted...
...and a small light flickered into existence, expanding into a translucent window.
—✧—
Memoir:
This is not a dream.
Do not run from reality.
—✧—
Shion's laughter died instantly, replaced by a scowl twisted with anger.
"If this isn't a dream…" he growled, clenching his fists, "…then where the hell am I?!"
—✧—
Memoir:
~Fake giggles~
Welcome to the world of the unknown.
Eldratonia.
—✧—
Shion punched the screen, but his fist passed through it as it vanished like mist, only to reappear beside him.
—✧—
Memoir:
~Fearful expression~
Please do not resort to violence, master.
—✧—
Shion glared before running a hand through his hair, brushing it from his face.
"Don't call me master."
If what the window claimed was true, then how had he even arrived here?
Nothing made sense.
Why did his appearance changed?
How did his wound healed?
And what exactly was this game-like window?
He exhaled deeply.
'… Calm down.'
As he steadied himself, the anger drained away. Rage wouldn't bring answers. And frightening the only thing that might explain his situation wouldn't help either.
He glanced at it.
—✧—
Memoir:
~Blushing~
—✧—
Shion sighed again, rubbing his temples.
Could THAT really hold the answers he needed?
He was doubtful, but he felt a strange connection to it.
To the thing called Memoir.
And perhaps, for once, Shion truly was lucky.
Lucky to be chosen by the door.
Because Eldratonia was a world meant for the strongest, the wisest—and yes…
The luckiest.