'Where…am I?'
I was in an unfamiliar room, staring at an unfamiliar ceiling, lying on a bed with an unfamiliar feeling—if not for the rapid influx of memories overwhelming my senses and images flashing before my eyes sending me into a frenzy; I would have assumed that I had been kidnapped, but beyond all reason, reality was something very different.
'No…way…'
I pinched my skin, and I pinched it harder after that: it wasn't a dream. Of course, there was no way a dream would be this detailed. This was my reality, and the sooner I could accept it, the better it would be. But accepting a reality this unreal was a tall order. I was now Zoras Embers, a fallen noble and a student of the School of History at the University of Viellenne. I was a little taller than before, with features much more attractive; whether my eyes that were the shade of emeralds, or my dense wavy hair: a shade of almond, or even my clean, sharp jawline! I had siblings, a younger sister, Lune, and an older brother named Fjorcroft.
I didn't, I corrected myself. Zoras did.
I was not Zoras. No, I was Kim Gyeoul, and no matter how truly wonderful this world might have been, it was not and would never be my home. This place would never be the small apartment I lived in back in New York with my parents and my wife, and very soon, our son. I had to go back to them.
I had to figure out how to return, but for that, I needed to also first figure out how I got here in the first place! My memories of yesterday had no discrepancies in them; it was a normal Tuesday, like any other. If it wasn't something that I did, perhaps it was something that Zoras did, and I was an unfortunate victim in this. It was then that I realised that my memories were incomplete.
'Wait a moment…'
I had Zoras' memories, an almost endless library for me to browse, but there was a giant gap in these memories, and an entire shelf missing.
I did not have a single memory of what happened yesterday, or the day before, or the entirety of the last month.
It was a realisation that hit me like a truck, and almost immediately I dropped to my knees.
What if Zoras had gotten himself into something dangerous?
There were too many uncertainties. Zoras wasn't the kind to get himself accidentally involved in something. If I had to describe him, he was a stubborn child who excelled in academics, and when I say stubborn, I do not mean it as a compliment. He was an annoying piece of—I probably should not continue that train of thought, but you get the picture. Because of that though, I was certain that he wouldn't willingly involve himself in something that he shouldn't.
But then, what could have happened?
…
There was a possibility that came to my mind.
The world that I had transmigrated into was similar to our old world, but it was also much different in several ways. For starters, the City of Viellenne. At first glance, it looked like Victorian London with its arched roof and tinted glass, or the attire of the people. There was a clear distinction between the rich and the poor as well, or rather, the noble and the common folk. The city was more or less split in two, and it was extremely clear that a civil war could break out at any moment. But there were also differences. Viellenne was more of a steampunk setting, with some houses having these giant gas cylinders clearly visible, while others had it hidden. In Zoras' apartment, for example, there were pipes climbing the walls, with knobs to control the flow of gas inside them, and if I were to turn this one knob here, on the wall right next to the door leading into the room, it would turn on the lamb next to it.
Another difference between this world and our own was the existence of artefacts. Artefacts, in this world, were things, anything—it could be a book, a piano, a random urn—but oftentimes they were in the form of little instruments of sorts, which made them very easy to differentiate. Of course, that was only because of a law that was passed down five hundred years ago which added and amended the rules for artefact creation. What made an artefact and artefact was the presence of magic in them, engraved in a certain way that made them perform a certain task.
There are very few humans left in this world capable of creating an artefact; in a few years, it would become a lost art. A pity, really, but perhaps it was for the best.
There was an artefact shop near the city square, a shop that Zoras would visit often. He couldn't buy an artefact, he was too broke for that, but he could rent one. What if, and this was only a speculation, an artefact caused this mess? If that was the case, then if only I could find that artefact, I could find a way to return home.
Perhaps I wouldn't even need to find that artefact: just the name might be enough!
Generally, the older an artefact was, the stronger it was. It didn't really have anything to do with the age of the artefact itself; simply the fact that people in the past were much better at making extremely strong instruments that really, really should not have seen the light of day.
Though I suppose that is true for every fantasy story out there.
Yeah, this was a fantasy story now, one where perhaps I was the main character. It was just a fleeting thought: I wasn't a narcissist, and I didn't have the time to be the main character either. I had to find a way to return home. Whatever trouble was brewing in this world, if there was any in the first place, none of that was my concern.
The moon illuminated the room with her crimson gaze, entering through the giant window next to the bed and making itself home. They called her Noctrya. It was an ominous sight: the entire room bathing in her crimson hue. If something like this happened in my world, I would definitely be losing my marbles, panicking and shivering as I wondered if I would even live long enough to see a tomorrow, but in this world, the moon had been like this since the very beginning.
I will definitely return.
And as I too bathed in her hue, I made a promise.
I planned to visit the artefact shop the next morning while on my way to the University. Zoras had an exam that day, the final exam before he graduated. If things go well, I might end up returning this body to him. In that case, I was going to try and not ruin his life. Thankfully, I was already well prepared for the exam. Zoras was a studious fellow, and even if I would find someone like him extremely annoying, I was instead grateful at that very moment. I could focus on returning home without having to worry about exams and studies.
I should rest for now.
It was already pretty late, and there wasn't much for me to do at that very moment. I was used to going to sleep extremely late and waking up earlier than most, but not Zoras. If I didn't go to sleep right now, I would probably have a very difficult time waking up in the morning. Of course, I did have his sister to rely on; she would wake me up in case I overslept, but I found that thought mildly embarrassing.
I once again laid on the unfamiliar bed, trying to fall asleep through the jumbled mess that was my thoughts.
I was anxious, but then again, who wouldn't be?
After all, I was lost in another world.
It wasn't the kind of panic from earlier anymore. I wasn't losing my mind because of a rapid influx of memories. No, this was fear, fear that perhaps…I couldn't return home…
No.
I wouldn't let my thoughts stray in that path.
There definitely was a way to return home.
Definitely.
And I would find it.
My eyes closed on their own as I pulled the sheets over me, the window wide open, letting in the gentle breeze.
This is nice…I thought, my hands crossed behind my head as I let it kiss my face.
I rolled around a bit, trying to fall asleep, but alas, sleep eluded me. If this was any other day, in any other location, I'm sure I would be enjoying a peaceful night, but my mind was filled with fears as I anxiously thought about the future.
I tried to remember the past month, thinking deep and hard. I swam into the sea of memories, but no matter how deep I went, there was no end to it. It was a never-ending pit, and I'd sooner drown than know what happened.
It was then I thought to change what I was doing.
If trying to remember would get me nowhere, perhaps I should look around my room: I was certain that I would find some clues that way. I scoured every inch of the room in hopes of finding something of use. I didn't know what I was searching for, which was a problem. I kept my eyes out for anything that raised the slightest suspicion. Every torn piece of paper, every little broken piece of wood or metal, even the smallest of debris—I took a note of.
I moved the table and the bed, in hopes that I missed something, but no matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find anything. There was nothing anywhere, not even hidden in the pages of the books that were stacked neatly on the table, or in the pockets of my clothes arranged properly in the wardrobe.
I let out a sigh of defeat, before putting everything back in their place. I pushed the bed back against the window, and the table to the opposite wall. On the wall adjacent, opposite to the entrance, I pushed the wardrobe back.
I did even check by going into the wardrobe: if perhaps, by some miracle, there was an entire world on the other side, perhaps with talking animals and a Lion God, but to my disappointment, it was just wood.
'No matter, I'll just head to the artefact shop tomorrow.'
There was a small concern though, a thought creeping in which I desperately tried to shrug away, push to some corner of my mind and not think about—what if I don't find anything in the artefact shop? What do I do then?
No.
I will return.
I will definitely return.
I kept repeating those words in my head.
That was the only way I could keep myself calm.
It might not be obvious, but I was this close to completely breaking down. I tried my best to remain rational, reassuring myself that everything will be fine, acting as if I was normal, but somewhere, deep down, I was hanging by a loose thread, a thread that may snap at any moment, and once it did…no, now is not the time to think about that. It won't go that far. I wouldn't let it.
It was then that a gentle warmth touched my skin, pulling me out of my depressing thoughts. I looked out the window, at the gold that shadowed the crimson as the sun rose over yonder, announcing the start of a new day. The golden streaks of light entered my room, much brighter than the crimson from last night, the finest of dust particles visible as they danced in that light. I could hear the faint, melodious chirps of birds, singing in the distance as the cool morning breeze entered the room.
It's morning already, I thought as I leaned through the window, my arms crossed as it rested on the sill. It was definitely a lovely breeze, much more welcoming than the summers of Arizona that I was used to for most of my life, and though it was definitely much better in New York, it wouldn't compare to that over here.
It was gentle, almost like autumn, which made sense considering the geography of Viellenne, but that also meant that when winter arrived, it was much, much colder here.
I should get going, I thought.
It was about time.
The artefact shop should open in about an hour, and after that, I would have only two hours to reach the University. It was, though, enough time to walk there. Of course, Zoras wasn't the kind to walk, but I wanted to enjoy the cityscape a bit.
I packed my things into my bag, which was more of a suitcase than an actual school bag, but that was the norm here. I wore my uniform, which was a white shirt and black trousers, and an overcoat on top of that. It didn't look anything fancy, but the fabric was quite expensive. It was only recently we became a fallen noble, thanks to our father, so we were still pretty well off.
Still, there was this feeling I had, something that Zoras wouldn't, that I was wearing someone else's clothes.
Well, I suppose I can't complain.
Again, I was not Zoras; this feeling was not going to leave me anytime soon.