I found Yuri standing outside of Theta's massive library, in a section of the magic academy I had never personally ventured to before. The journey there truly reminded me as to the true scale and size of this Magic Academy. It took cutting across the school's massive meadow and park that led to the training ground to reach the library. There, I found Yuri seated on a bench, staring at his shaking hands.
I stopped right in front of where he was seated, standing in silence. He didn't look up from his hands, but he responded to me anyways. "Just leave. I don't feel like talking to anybody." His voice was hoarse, and most of all it sounded hurt.
"You remembered something." I didn't ask. I simply stated. Yuri didn't react in any meaningful way. He slowly began to open and close his hands.
"What does it matter to you?"
"Well, for one, you ran out of the student council room in the middle of a meeting. Maybe I'm here to bring you back so we can all congregate and decide on what your punishment should be. I heard some people throw around the term 'public execution'." I responded to Yuri's question with a horrible joke. However, that got a dry laugh out of him.
"There's no need. Just by living, it feels like I'm on the verge of being publicly executed." His gaze turned towards the window of the library. The inside couldn't be seen due to the blinds being pulled down. He stared at his reflection in the glass, as if he was truly looking at himself for the first time.
Taking this as a sign he would at least listen to me speak, I walked over and leaned against the wall next to the bench. "I'm not going to sit here and lie to you, telling you 'I know how you feel,' because the truth is nobody here can truly know how you feel right in this moment."
"Good. Because if you started off like that, I would have left and never looked back."
I patted myself on the back for my amazing conversational skills.
Ariel: Don't get ahead of yourself. This isn't some visual novel where your stats increase for picking the right dialogue option.
I decided to ignore Ariel's comment, and I suppressed the urge to ask her where she'd been this whole entire time. Instead I concentrated my focus on getting the message I wanted to get to Yuri.
"What I can say is I understand why you feel the way you do. Everything that's happened to you since you've awoken is utterly insane. I mean, you wake up with no memories, surrounded by a bunch of people you supposedly knew, in a world full of things you don't truly understand. The pressure of that is unimaginable."
Yuri was silent. He was still staring at his reflection in the window.
"You don't know who you are yet. And you don't know who Yuri Hamanai is either. Those two figures are mysterious in your mind. You feel like you aren't any of them. You're just an imposter who doesn't belong anywhere." I didn't sugarcoat any of my words. There was no room for that. If I wanted my point to get across, I needed to be as truthful as I could.
"And isn't that true? I am an impostor. I am not Yuri Hamani, and I never will be. Even if I do regain every last memory that I have, the old Yuri that everyone else is searching for won't just come back." The defensive tone in his voice told me I had hit the mark right on the head. And in a way, he was right. I remembered when I was experiencing a similar tragedy.
Ariel had just shown me my memories. I had seen the truth. I knew everything. And in that moment I was faced with a choice. If I accepted everything and tried to become the old Raiden, what would happen to the me who was created after my memories had been sealed away? Would he be killed, left to die like the imposter he was? I didn't want to accept that. I didn't want to die.
However, in truth, that Raiden never left. He was simply merged with the new one to form a new me. A rebirth of sorts. Like the words the headmaster told me before, "A man must truly die before they can be truly reborn. In order to experience that rebirth, I had to resolve to kill the old Raiden in order to merge the old with the new and come out as a new person.
And in front of me, Yuri was going through a similar crisis. He felt like an impostor. Someone who didn't belong.
"You're right. He won't return." I validated his statement. That made Yuri snap his head around to look at me.
"Then why does everyone look like they expect something from me? Why do they all think that I can solve problems that only the real Yuri could? I'm not him, and no matter how many memories I regain, I never will be him. You know what I saw, Raiden?" His voice was rising louder and louder as he spoke.
I stood in silence, staring at him.
"I saw a memory of me standing over the dead body of a girl with a gun in hand! The memory felt like it took place when I was a child, but I don't know much more than that. Do you know what that made me feel? How the hell am I supposed to react when I see the memory of myself, and it's of something as horrifying as that! And then there's all of these people looking at me to help with Suijin, and I've seen it myself, okay? I know she needs help, and I know she's hurt, but I also know that it's all my fault that she is hurt"!
Yuri's grip tightened around the armrest of the bench. "Right now all of her worries revolve around you'." He repeated Genji's words. "That was just a not-so-direct way of saying I'm responsible! They want me to fix a problem that I created, but I can't! How can I believe anyone's words that I'm the only one who can fix a problem like this when in the end I've seen with my own eyes what kind of person I am? I can't meet anybody's expectations; in fact, I'll just end up falling way below them! So how can I look all of these people in the eyes and try to help them, to be the person they're expecting me to be, when I don't even fully know myself?"
Yuri took a deep breath after that long rant. Everything that he said at that moment wasn't ridiculous, nor could I blame him for it at all. All of the frustrations that he expressed and all of the emotions and anger he was experiencing were all valid, without a doubt. There were some things that even surprised me. That tidbit from his past was not something I expected. And despite the fact that he had a right to say everything he was saying, there was one reason why I could argue against his concerns.
"Have you ever given anyone a chance to understand that?"
"Huh?" His eyes widened.
"Have you made any attempts to understand it yourself?" I pressed further.
Yuri just stared at me in shock.
"Everything you said would be completely valid if you made that known to everyone beforehand. All of the pressure being put on you, it's not being done on purpose, nor is it being done for a malicious reason. These people are your friends; if you told them what you really felt, I'm sure they'd be able to understand. Same thing with your memoirs. If you talked to someone like Suijin about it, you'd be able to understand the truth behind your past, and it wouldn't be able to leave you so frustrated."
Yuri stared at me in a little bit of shock before he finally got his bearings and responded to my points.
"That's 10 times easier said than done, though! How can I approach anyone with these thoughts without completely letting them down?" He fired back.
"You don't have to do it all at once, and you don't have to talk about everything. All you need is one. Just approach one person and tell them one thing about the way you're feeling, and that would be enough for them to understand what they're putting you through. Everyone here wants to help you, but they can't if they don't know that they're hurting you."
Yuri descended into silence.
"You can start with Suijin. I can vouch for her. She is someone who can listen to others, and she'll be especially happy to hear you speak with her. She's the kind of person who gains joy from being there for others."
"There's no way I can approach her right now. Not until I'm ready."
I nodded. "This may seem odd, but look for a girl named Hikaru. Blonde hair, blue eyes, and a bright smile permanently plastered onto her face. Extremely cute. Just look for her and tell her you need help."
Yuri looked up to stare at me, shock and confusion on his face.
"I thought you said we had a bad relationship before. Why are you helping me now?" That was a good question.
"Well, you said it yourself, didn't you? You consider me a friend. And also, I owed you one." During the battle with Pride, Yuri had put his life on the line so I could finish charging up the magic sequence that ended up defeating him. It was because of that that he sustained the injuries that left him in this state.
Yuri stared at me for a moment longer before nodding his head. A small smile appeared on his face. "Well then, Raiden, how would you react if I were to ask you to be the one person to listen to me talk?"
It was my turn to be shocked. Why me? "W-well, I don't know. I wouldn't reject you, but I'm really not the best person to handle these kinds of things."
Yuri patted me on the back, laughing as he stood up. "Chill, dude." I sighed. "You have got to give yourself some more credit. You say you're not the best at these things, and yet you were the one to help me right now."
I stared at him in shock before nodding my head proudly. He was right. I did help him.
Just as we began to walk back towards the student council room—
"WATCH OUT!!" A high-pitched, shrill voice screamed. We turned in the direction the voice was coming from to see a ball flying straight at us at unreal speeds. The thing looked like a meteor as it flew, literally leaving a trail of fire in the air.
My first instinct was to dodge. However, realizing that the library was behind us and the damage this thing would cause would be unreal, at the same time, Yuri and I activated defense spells.
The ball clashed against the barrier with insane force, creating a shockwave of energy.
As it hit the barrier, it fell victim to the mana absorption spell I had layered into my barrier. The ball lost its momentum and fell harmlessly to the ground. Disabling the barrier, Yuri let out a breath he had been holding.
"That was a close one." He said, walking forward to pick up the ball.
"Indeed. Just where did this thing come from?" I looked up to see a girl running in our direction. For a second I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me, but I wasn't mistaken.
The girl running towards us was Minerva. And her right arm was robotic?
"I'm sorry! I'm really sorry!"
Well, this would be interesting.
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"I have to apologize again. I'm sorry!" Despite the fact that she had already apologized what felt like hundreds of times, Minerva still continued to apologize and bow her head to us.
"We already told you that isn't necessary." Yuri said, feeling a slight bit embarrassed.
Minerva shook her head profusely. "Not only did I endanger you, but I'm also indebted to you! If it weren't for you guys, that thing would have crashed straight into the library, and then I'd be in serious trouble! I'm sorry, and thank you! Especially you, Raiden! This is the second time one of my inventions has put you in danger! I'm sorry!"
Minerva continued to apologize and thank us, and there was clearly no end in sight. Thinking quickly, I decided to change the subject from the incident that had just happened.
"You said that this is one of your inventions, right?" I pointed to the mechanical arm she had. "What exactly were you testing out?"
Minerva adjusted her glasses before holding up her mechanical arm. "Well, as you know, the Seven Star Magic Tournament is approaching. The tournament events and challenges are kept secret before the event; however, the rules and magical technology usage are actually very lax. In fact, the judges there encourage students to bring in creative and interesting pieces of magical technology to aid them. They do this because magical engineering is just as important as strength, processing, spell creation, and battle IQ. Because of that fact, I've been staying after school to test out new inventions and things that could be useful."
I nodded my understanding at that. If they allowed for the use of magic items, with little to no restrictions, you could really create anything that could give you a major advantage and bring it with you. In fact, if you were skilled enough, you could develop something that was a cheat code in certain events. It allowed students to have more control over the outcome of their performances. It allowed them to prepare beforehand, even if they didn't know what events they'd be participating in.
"The Seven Star is still around two months away, right?' Yuri asked.
Minerva nodded. "Mhm. But I decided I'd get a head start on production. Last year I was beat out by this kid from Faux. He was a literal genius, and the thing he brought with him was a full tech suit made out of nanobots that enhanced not only his strength and speed but also his spell processing. It allowed him to process and run multiple magic sequences with multiple layers all at once." There was determination behind Minerva's eyes.
"That kind of stuff is allowed?" My eyes widened as I considered the implications of such a thing. A suit like that would take any decent mage to a level beyond being competitive with. Being able to process multiple layered magic sequences all at once, as well as having a suit that strengthens your spell processing and physical attributes? That was beyond a cheat code. It was outright overpowered.
"Well, he was a special case; that's why it was allowed." She added.
What sort of special case warrants that? I wondered.
"And I'm guessing you were trying to recreate that with that arm?" Yuri asked.
"Yep." She tapped a button on the arm, and the nanotech technology faded away, returning her arm to normal. "Unfortunately, things backfired, and we ended up here. I really have to apologize again". Minerva thought about something for a split second before turning towards us. "If it's not too much to ask, I'd like you guys' help moving some things back into the storage room."
I and Yuri didn't really have any reason to decline, so we decided to help her.
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The things that Minerva needed our help moving turned out to be a whole laundry list of different mechanical components and targets that she had brought out into the training field in order to test out her nanobot arm. How a little girl like her had managed to bring all of this outside in the first place was a mystery to me.
Ariel: In the name of science, I guess?
I ignored her again.
Ariel: Stop narrating yourself like you're the main character of some crappy web novel.
I think a web novel with me as the main character would be great.
Ariel: Yeah, you go on and keep believing that.
I shut her out, or at least attempted to, but that was hard to do considering she was literally in my head. I should really make her pay some sort of rent.
Ariel: Are my good looks and the help I provide not good enough for you, Raiden? How greedy.
I decided to completely tune her out.
The storage room happened to be within the library. As we opened the door to the library, I prepared myself to be amazed once again.
And it did not disappoint.
The bookshelf reached to the height of the ceiling, and the whole thing was massive. The bookshelves weren't wood but instead made out of some golden material, lined with jewels and rubies. An uncountable number of books stood on each shelf, back to back. There were so many shelves that they couldn't even be ordered normally. They were structured in many different orientations, such as some shelves were parallel to others, while others were perpendicular and others adjacent. It made the whole place look like one massive labyrinth.
A labyrinth of knowledge.
As Minerva led us through, we were greeted with an odd sight.
Sitting at the reception desk of the library were two women. Both of them were exceptionally beautiful, but they both had two completely different aesthetics.
One of them was a tall woman with white skin. Her eyes were covered in deep black eyeliner. She had a gothic vibe to her, wearing spiked bracelets and necklaces. Her hair was black with blue and hot pink highlights in it. She was scantly dressed in dark colors, with her mile-long legs kicked up over the desk. She wore heels that were decorated in spikes and jewels, and she had a cigarette in her mouth.
The other was a petite woman with long black hair that reached down all the way to her waist. She wore jewelry on her wrists and neck that shined so brightly it threatened to blind me. She was dressed in a qipao; however, it clearly wasn't any sort of traditional outfit considering how much skin she was showing. The dress covered so little that I didn't know where to look. I couldn't look back at the Gothic girl, though, because her clothes weren't covering up much more.
Minerva gasped as she saw them and bowed her head slightly in the direction of the gothic women. "Good afternoon, Ms. Lia!"
Ms. Lia smiled at her. "Hey there, Minerva. Long time no see, huh?" She then directed her gaze to me and Yuri. "I recognize you, Yuri, but I don't know the fine young gentleman standing next to you." She stared at me, and I felt a blush rising in my cheeks. I couldn't even look her in her eyes for more than a few seconds.
"I- I'm Raiden. Raiden Chisaki!" She was so beautiful that I was literally struggling to breathe correctly.
Her eyes widened slightly. "So you're the Chisaki boy I've heard so much about from Ms. Elmer and Suijin. Nice to meet you. I'm the librarian of Theta Magic Academy. You're always welcome here." She turned to Yuri. "You too, Yuri. I've heard you lost your memories. I really am sorry. Don't worry, you're just as welcome here as you've always been."
"Nice to meet you two, ma'am!" I and Yuri said at the same time. I didn't really understand what kind of librarian would come to school dressed like that, but I wasn't complaining.
She then pointed to the woman sitting next to her. "This is Xiao Mei, a member of the mages association. She's here to meet with Suijin and the headmaster."
We all bowed our heads in greeting to her.
Her sharp black eyes darted between the three of us.
"It's nice to meet you all too." She had a mature voice. She then looked to Lia. "You talked real good about Minerva and that Yuri boy before they got here. Tell me, are they students you can put your word behind"?
She nodded immediately. "I can vouch for Minerva and Yuri personally. Excellent students. As for Raiden, I've heard so much praise for him from people I trust, so I'd even be willing to vouch for him as well."
Xiao Mei smiled, shifting her legs and leaning back. That small movement ended up revealing much more than I was comfortable seeing. "If that's the case, then I have a task for you three."
Something told me I was going to regret this.