When opening the book, he saw that many historians had left their mark in this book.
“At the end of the fifth era, with the approaching of the sixth era, the lands evolved, and people began healing from the scars of the past. Kingdoms arose on the lands, replacing the destruction they had lived in.
From the year 1600 in the fifth era to 1700 in the fifth era, the world fought a bloody battle for land and food supplies. This battle was known as the First World War, in which 8,000,000 souls were lost worldwide.
Despite the healing, there were still traces remaining in the world, until the churches of the Eight Gods intervened.
The Church of the Holy Light sent all its priests throughout the world to heal them.
As for the Church of Wisdom, it sent priests with guidance and continuous education to the villages far from the church's jurisdiction.
The Church of Eternal Ice sent food supplies and appropriate necessities.
The remaining five churches also sent supplies and did not fall behind in contributing for half a century because the war ended at the beginning of the year 1700 of the fifth era, a period then called [The Half-Century of Faith], due to the large number of non-believers converting to the religions followed by the churches.
Reforms continued for intersecting periods due to the need for food, supplies, money, and resources, until a young adventurer rose in 1751 after the end of the reforms led by priests from different churches.
He was an extremely ambitious young man, sometimes speaking in an unknown language, with lofty dreams. He was the consul of the [Dominic Republic] [First Consul Outred Kisoni]. He descended from the degenerate Kisoni lineage. Kison was the illegitimate son of the Great Virus Emperor, who was one of the participants in the First World War.
In his exploratory journey, he brought light, announcing the end of the age of wars and the beginning of the industrial age. Historians recorded it in 1769 after he returned from his journey. He established the current [Dominic Republic], with the current consul being the ninth [Outred II].
The industrial inventions and knowledge he brought were the torch that illuminated the people's path in the darkness.”
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Sherlock didn’t notice that daylight had arrived. He got up from the chair, stretching his numb body, then headed to the door to see the rest of the house.
He exited the room and found himself in an old, worn hallway. He saw that the floor was old, and some places needed proper renovation. He thought the creaking noise he heard when the young girl approached was due to the worn-out flooring.
Sherlock hurried along, fearing he might fall into one of the damaged planks.
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
While rushing down the hallway, he saw the young girl, Fen, coming out of a room only four meters away from his.
He automatically smiled and called out, "Good morning, little one."
Fen turned to see her brother calling her, but she immediately frowned, remembering the events of the previous night: "Oh, look who's here, the deceiver, trying to deceive again," she said sarcastically.
She continued after the sarcasm faded from her face: "I will tell my brothers about what happened last night, in case something happened to you."
Sherlock's face became serious: "What do you mean? That something happened to me?"
Fen’s face showed confusion, and then she said, "Did you forget? Your remaining expedition team is now dying one by one, the reasons are unknown. Only you and an apprentice healer from the noble class who was with you remain. I think her name was [Terisel Lonoris]."
His limbs froze when he heard this. Was he being pursued for something he didn’t do or remember? He had to survive this situation no matter the cost.
Sherlock thought deeply, and he had completely disconnected from the real world. What brought him back was his sister’s terrified scream. She was shaking his body on the floor: "Brother, wake up! Brother!"
Her voice was broken with sobs, and behind her, Sherlock saw two others. The first was a girl who resembled Fen in features but appeared more mature and feminine. The other seemed similar, but she appeared older and more mature.
The girl spoke: "Little Charles, why? Don't tell us you’re sick? Are we still not trustworthy?"
Her tone was clear with concern; she was worried about her little brother. He wanted to say something but was interrupted by the oldest person present.
"I understand your concern, Sai, but most of the fault lies with him. He doesn’t tell us anything when something happens to him. Since the appearance, most people came back wounded, and the rest didn’t return. But I think they lost something."
Sherlock wanted to tell them everything—that he had lost his memory—but something inside him told him not to talk about it.
He chose to follow the feeling inside him that urged him to remain silent, to not speak, and to keep deceiving everyone like a clown in a circus, like a magician performing his trick.
"What do you mean, brother? Are you saying it's my fault for being passionate about something?" he spat out those words randomly; he just wanted to say something.
"Huh? I didn’t say that. I just told you that your fault is not telling us when something bad happens to you."
Sai intervened at the right moment to resolve the unclear dispute: "Stop doing this, Gerald. Let’s go have breakfast."
Then Fen intervened to calm things down as well: "Come on, my brothers, my stomach is telling me I need to fill it with good food so I can go to school."
As the conversation calmed down, the siblings left towards the kitchen to have a proper meal, and a smile appeared on Sherlock’s face.
He was happy after a long day of hardship, finding himself not remembering anything about his life. He wondered how to live with a family he couldn’t remember, and now he knew there was something killing all the people who participated in the expedition.
Sherlock sat at the dining table, recognizing the dishes—roast duck meat, smoked potatoes with lamb bone broth, and a little fermented grape wine.
He immediately reached for the roast meat in front of him, but Sai quickly stopped him.
"What are you doing, Charles? You should thank the gods for this. Come on, pray."
Gods? Did Sherlock follow any religion? He didn’t know what to do now since he didn’t remember anything about his life as Sherlock. But fortunately, Fen began to gather her hands and interlace her fingers, then placed her face in her hands. Sai and Gerald did the same. He followed their lead but didn’t know which god this was for.
"I thank you, O Protector in the Darkness, Lady of the Great World, our protective Mother. We thank you for granting us this blessed grace."
It seemed like an ancient chant, and he thought he had heard it before, but didn’t understand how.
Sai interrupted his thoughts with the prayer's conclusion: "Amen," they all said in perfect harmony, "Amen."
The food was incredibly delicious, and even someone with weak energy could feel the power surging through them, breaking stone. The tender red duck meat melted in the mouth, with the fermented grape wine making the taste fantastic.
Sherlock noticed Fen drinking the fermented wine, and for that reason, it didn’t contain any intoxicating alcohol. He continued enjoying his wonderful meal, adding some smoked potatoes to his roast meat.
It was truly divine food, and this was the best thing he had ever tasted in his first day of life. He vowed to remember it forever.
After the Hall siblings finished eating, Sai said, "Praise to the Lady." The others followed in harmony, saying, "Praise to the Lady."
Sai and Fen went to wash the dishes, leaving only Gerald and Charles at the table, drinking the fermented wine.
Charles made up his mind and spoke to his brother Gerald: "Brother, I want to go out and get some fresh air, and I also need some money for a book I want to read."
Gerald spat the wine from his mouth, turning red as if he were bleeding: "What did you say?"
Sai and Fen were also shocked upon hearing Charles's words. The sink and dining table were not far, so they heard him clearly.
Charles was surprised and said again: "I want to go out, I need some money from you, brother."