His left wrist grew warm with a gentle throb. Opening his eyes, he saw cracks in the ceiling. Mira lay still for a while. With her drowsy morning mind, she traced the shape of the crack absently. That triangular-shaped one. It hadn't changed since the day she moved in. Outside the window, the white light of the Lumen lamps was slowly fading. The Lumen lamps extinguish when the sun rises. That faint magical light dissolves into the brightening sky at dawn. It was a sight she saw every morning, yet somehow she always found herself following it with her eyes. Mira sat up from her bed and ran her fingers through her hair. Short, deep green hair slipped through her fingers. She caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror—a slender frame in white and pale green magical robes, brown boots still lying off to the side. Golden eyes gazed back at her sleepily. On her left wrist, a small pattern glowed faintly. As always, it disappeared immediately. What the pattern meant, even Mira didn't know. She'd first noticed it two years ago, and investigating had yielded nothing. It simply grew warm sometimes. That was all. *There's no point worrying about it,* she thought, biting into a piece of bread. --- Stepping out onto the street, Harmonia's morning was already in full swing. A vendor was shouting loudly, "Fresh-baked Pan Halim! This morning's batch!" Two Troupers with farming tools strapped to their backs walked slowly across the stone pavement. The rhythm of their six legs moving was somehow calming to watch. It was an ordinary sight in Harmonia, but newcomers were usually startled. A town of twelve thousand people. A quiet place at the southern edge of the Lumen Plain. Eighty kilometers north lay the capital, Soleil. But for Mira, this was enough. Or rather, it was more accurate to say she knew nowhere else. "Mira, dear, all alone again today?" The voice belonged to Patti. The owner of the general store "The Sparrow's Nest," forty-two years old, always wearing something like a kitchen apron. She smiled warmly while organizing the shelves outside her shop. "[gentle]Thank you for the offer. But I have school today" Mira answered with a smile. A natural smile, she thought. A fleeting thought crossed her mind—there had never been a day when she wasn't alone. It had always been that way, and she didn't bother worrying about it now. But Patti's "again today" sometimes pricked her small and sharp. Even though she understood the woman meant nothing by it. Mira began walking. The texture of the stone pavement transmitted through her shoe soles. --- Harmonia Comprehensive School was located slightly outside the town center. A fairly large school with about four hundred students. Second period today was Basic Magical Theory. The teacher's name was Professor Cross, a lanky man in his fifties. He wrote "Fundamentals of Lumen Magic" in large letters on the blackboard and cleared his throat. "The source of magic is the light of the Eternum Core." The professor tapped the blackboard. "The light energy that fills this world—the power to manipulate Lumen, that is Lumen magic. Attack, healing, defense. You know there are three systems. About one in fifteen of the population can learn it. Those without aptitude cannot use it." The classroom fell silent. Mira had opened her notebook, at least. "However," the professor lowered his voice slightly. "Using it excessively comes with a price." "[surprised]A price?" Someone spoke up. "The caster's memories fade. Memories accompanied by emotion—the more precious the memory, the more it becomes hazy. That's why some magic users can't remember their family's faces from long ago." The classroom stirred. "[scared]Wait, memories disappear?" "[serious]That's why magic is a tool. You must not rely on it too heavily" The professor answered quietly. Mira was looking out the window. She tried to recall her parents' faces. ...They only came to mind vaguely. That wasn't the price of magic. Mira couldn't use magic at all. It was simply that she'd been too young; her memories were naturally faint. On that night when the aftershocks of the Great Rift reached Harmonia, Mira was only four years old. She barely remembered where her parents had gone or why they'd been separated. All she remembered was the color of the light. An unnaturally white, overwhelmingly bright light. That was all that remained in her memory. *(If magic makes memories disappear, that would be pretty painful...)* Thinking vaguely along those lines, she drew circles in her notebook. Meaningless. Just doodling. The girl in the next seat glanced over at her, so Mira closed her notebook. --- The sky after school was tinted a pale orange. Mira walked home alone. The same route as always, the same scenery. The corner general store, the stone wall, the tall tree—she'd seen it all a thousand times. Suddenly, something caught her eye to the west. Light was flickering. In the direction of the Celestial Grove. The mysterious forest that spread northwest of Harmonia. It was said to be vast, and space distorted the deeper you went. She'd always been told never to enter that forest. All the town elders said the same thing: "It's forbidden." "That's no place for people." But what was that light? It flickered irregularly. Not like a lantern. Without pattern, like someone sending an SOS. Mira's feet turned toward the forest without her realizing it. *(Just a quick look at the edge. Just to confirm the edge.)* Making that excuse in her mind, she took a step forward. *(Just the edge. Really just the edge, then I'll come right back. No problem at all.)* The moment her feet touched the ground between the trees, she let out a wry laugh at herself. *I really am an idiot.* Branches caught her face, and the soil's texture transmitted through her shoe soles. What kind of person enters a forbidden forest for a reason like this? Well, one kind. The kind currently entering it. --- Inside the forest, it was much quieter than outside. The leaves of the trees shimmered in gold. Not the normal green of a forest. Particles of light drifted through the air, catching on the leaves and glowing gold. She thought it was beautiful. So this was what this place was like. After walking a short distance, she realized something. She couldn't find the way back. Turning around, there were only trees. She couldn't tell which direction she'd come from. Her sense of direction felt warped. Even walking in a circle, she only saw the same scenery. *(This is bad. Really bad.)* A hint of panic crept in. But shouting felt embarrassing, and she didn't know if anyone would hear her. Mira took a deep breath and walked toward where the light seemed strongest. Getting closer to the light source might reveal something. The trees became sparser. An open space appeared. A circular clearing about thirty meters in diameter. Ancient stone pavement was laid out, covered in moss. A place surrounded by trees, cut off from the outside world. The sky appeared as a perfect circle above. The faint light of evening filtered through, making the stone pavement shimmer faintly. Mira stepped into that space as if drawn in. *Beautiful,* she thought. But it was too quiet. No bird calls. No insect sounds. Even the wind seemed to have stopped. In that silence, the grass rustled. A large shadow rose up slowly. A beast. A large one—but that wasn't all. Black mist swirled around its body. Its eyes glowed. Black-purple. An unnatural color, as if luminescent. Mira's entire body froze. *(A Crepsula...!)* She'd only heard the name in class. A creature corrupted by the Void. It loses its reason and becomes aggressive, she'd been taught. She never expected to see one this close. *I have to run.* Her mind understood. But her feet wouldn't move. Fear had seized her body. The Crepsula slowly lowered its body into a crouch. The posture before a pounce, Mira thought. Somehow, she understood that much. The next instant, a shadow flew toward her. --- It was just before the claws touched her shoulder. A sensation came from deep within her body. *Thud.* Light. White light poured from Mira's entire body. It spread in an instant, like an explosion. The Crepsula was sent flying by the light, letting out a pained cry. Then the black mist unraveled and faded, and the beast's outline vanished. Silence returned. Mira stood frozen in place, staring at her own hands. Her palms glowed faintly. The glow was already weakening, but it had definitely been there moments before. *(What...?)* Her mind went blank. She was told she couldn't use magic. Professor Cross had examined her half a year ago. He'd said clearly: "No aptitude." So she'd thought Lumen magic was something unrelated to her. Yet what just happened... what was that? Her knees trembled. Whether from fear or confusion, she couldn't tell. Something caught the corner of her vision. In the center of the sacred space, a person lay collapsed. --- She approached slowly. It was a young man. He looked to be in his twenties. Silver-white hair spread across the stone pavement. His clothes were white or nearly so, with almost no dirt or damage. But he was unconscious. She checked his breathing. Faint, but steady. He was alive. Mira knelt beside him. The trembling hadn't stopped, but she couldn't leave him. "[gentle]Are you alright?" The moment she spoke, the man's eyes opened slightly. Deep blue eyes. The color of the night sea. Those eyes looked directly at Mira. A hoarse voice reached her ears. "[whispers]...I've been waiting" Mira couldn't move. Waiting? For whom? For me? Why? Questions swirled in her head, but no words came out. The man's eyes closed again. His consciousness didn't return. But his words wouldn't leave her ears. "...I've been waiting." Mira reached out with trembling hands and gently touched the man's shoulder. The cold sensation of stone pavement. The smell of the air. Trees glowing gold. The light that came from her own hands. This person saying he'd been waiting. The Crepsula appearing. The mystery of the pattern on her wrist. Three mysteries spun in her mind. She had no answers yet. But Mira didn't pull her hand away.