Chapter 202: Echoes of an Ancient Cycle : Prologue for the New Saga ?

A century passed after the departure of Ard, Eva, and Pyria. Thanks to the book Pyria wrote during her life, combined with the findings of archaeologists and scientists, the mysteries of the era before the Liberta civilization—once dismissed as mere myths and fairy tales—were finally solved. Excavations across the globe revealed the truth; the ruins of the legendary Fredonia Kingdom were discovered beneath the very metropolitan city that stands there today. Films and books were produced to commemorate the journey from the dark ages of civilization to a golden era of world peace. The names recorded in Pyria’s book were officially recognized as real historical figures, no longer relegated to the realm of folklore.

However, behind this progress, the advanced nature of civilization and a soaring global population brought a new wave of darkness. While the world appeared peaceful on a global scale—since there were no wars between nations and only one world republic divided into provinces—crime began to fester. The gap between the rich and the poor, the scarcity of jobs, rising costs, dwindling resources, and a collapse of morality made the major cities in every province dangerous. Corrupt officials protected criminals from within the government, making it difficult for the state to eradicate the spreading lawlessness.

To combat this, the government established a specialized academy to instill knowledge of law, economics, history, military strategy, and, most importantly, ethics and morality into the younger generation. The island that was once the Soratopia Kingdom was transformed into the Soratopia Education City. Situated between three continents, it became the starting point for a new era of change.

***

Three hundred years after the founding of Soratopia Education City, a fifteen-year-old human boy with messy black hair and blue eyes, wearing a school uniform and carrying a bag, stood before the bronze statues of the founders of the Liberta Empire in a historical park. The monument depicted the emperor raising his sword alongside eight empresses who also held their blades high. He studied the emperor’s face and then looked at each of the eight empresses dressed in academy uniforms, especially the one standing directly beside the emperor. He felt a slight chill—a mix of fear and confusion, but also a deep sadness, without knowing why.

"I’ve only been in this city for a week... yet for some reason, I come to this statue every single day just to look at these faces. I feel comfortable here, and somehow... nostalgic," he murmured to himself.

His eyes drifted to the sword held by the emperor. He studied it intently, then stretched out his hand. A black void opened, and he pulled something from within it. His hand gripped a unique sword with a pitch-black blade. He held it up, comparing it to the emperor’s sword.

"This is what confuses me... what is this sword, really? Why have I been able to open that black hole and pull this out since I was a kid? Plus, this sword is identical to the emperor’s sword from the book about life three thousand years ago. I’m a freak... that’s why I’ve never told anyone about this ability," the boy thought, staring at the weapon in his hand.

"Thud."

Suddenly, the sound of something dropping echoed behind him. Startled, the boy spun around, only to become even more shocked when he saw a human girl his own age. She had silver hair, blue eyes, and was incredibly beautiful, standing frozen behind him. She had dropped her bag, and her eyes were fixed on the sword the boy was holding. Realizing the girl had seen his blade, the boy quickly turned back, opened a black hole, and stowed it away. Then he turned around again, but this time the girl was right in front of him, her face very close to his as he turned.

"Whoaaah!"

The boy leaped back. The girl said nothing. Her gaze was cold and her expression seemed stern, but she was scanning him from head to toe.

"Um... sorry, you were a little too close," the boy said, stepping back.

"Forgive me. That sword just now... what was it?" the girl asked.

"Oh, it was nothing. Don’t worry about it," the boy replied, waving it off.

Suddenly, the girl stretched out her hand and pulled a sword out of a black void of her own. The boy’s eyes widened; she held a sword identical to his, except her blade was pure white. The boy looked back at the statue above them, noticing that the empress standing right next to the emperor held a sword exactly like the one in this girl’s hand. He turned back to her.

"That sword... what is it?" the boy asked.

"I don’t know... I’ve been able to do this since I was little. Are you new to this city?" the girl asked.

"Yeah, I’ve only been here a week. What about you?"

"The same. Since I just turned fifteen, I just moved here from Neo Ark," the girl answered.

"Oh... the capital on the central continent. I’m from the eastern continent, from Frelios City," the boy replied.

"Frelios City? The place everyone’s talking about because they found the ruins of a second kingdom under the city?" she asked.

"Yep, that’s the one... the Rellios Kingdom, I think. Near the mountains on the edge of town," the boy answered.

"Hmm... pull your sword out again. I want to see it," the girl said.

"Okay... hold on," the boy replied.

He summoned his sword once more, showing it to the girl as she compared it to her own. They both studied the blades, occasionally glancing up at the bronze statues behind them.

"Do you come here often?" the boy asked.

"Yeah... I only arrived three days ago, but the moment I set foot in this city, I ended up wandering here, as if something was guiding my feet," she answered.

"I see. I’m here almost every day," the boy replied.

The two fell silent again, but suddenly they both flinched. As they looked at each other, they realized tears were streaming down their faces. Both quickly turned away, standing back-to-back.

"Sorry... can I ask you something?" the boy asked, wiping his eyes while keeping his back to her.

"What?" she asked, doing the same.

"Have we ever met before? For some reason... I feel like I know you. Like I know you really well," the boy said.

The girl remained silent. she raised a hand to her chest, feeling her heart beat faster and faster.

"Have... you ever been to the capital, Neo Ark?" she asked.

"No... have you ever been to Frelios?" the boy asked in return.

"Um... never. I’ve never left Neo Ark; this is the first time I’ve been away from my city. But for some reason, I feel like I’ve met you before... and I feel like I know you very, very well," the girl answered, her cheeks flushing red.

The two fell silent again, and the air in front of the statue grew still as they both stood frozen, back to back, neither moving nor speaking. A breeze swept by, brushing their hair to the side, before they both stowed their swords back into their respective voids. But to their bewilderment, their tears wouldn’t stop; the droplets continued to fall, forcing them to remain turned away from one another out of embarrassment, keeping silent so the other wouldn’t realize they were crying.

The boy looked up once more, staring at the statue of the emperor dressed in his academy uniform, sword raised high. The emperor’s face wore a broad smile that somehow remained serious, just as the books described. The boy’s heart hammered in his chest, pounding rhythmically.

"What exactly am I feeling right now... I’ve never felt anything like this before," he murmured in his head.

Meanwhile, the girl, her back still turned to him, pressed both hands against her chest. She could feel her heart thumping violently while her tears continued to flow.

"What is this... I’ve never felt anything like this in my entire life. Is it because I’m caught up in the moment... because of that monument... or... because of this guy behind me? I don’t know, and I don’t understand," the girl said in her head.

After standing in silence for quite a while—standing so close that their backs were almost leaning against each other—they finally decided to turn around, and without realizing it, they both moved at the exact same time. They were both stunned, staring into each other’s faces with tears still streaming down, neither of them thinking to wipe them away.

After staring at one another for a few moments,

"Um... can I ask you something?" they both asked at once.

Immediately, they fell silent again and looked away to avoid each other’s gaze, but then their eyes met once more.

"Please, you go first," the boy said.

"No, you first," the girl replied.

"How about we go together?" the boy suggested.

"Alright," the girl agreed.

They both took a long, deep breath and exhaled. This time, their faces looked calm, and they both shared a faint smile.

"What is your name?" they asked at the same time.

Hearing that their questions were exactly the same, they both let out a small laugh. Then, they reached out their hands and shared a handshake while smiling.

"I’m Aaron...nice to meet you,"

"And I’m Ellie...nice to meet you too,"

After introducing themselves, their new story began as they walked away together, even though they wore different school uniforms and naturally kept a respectful distance from one another.

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*I apologize if anyone read until the end, I added this Chapter just to fulfill the calendar, not to promise to continue this story, thank you to those who have read until the end, best regards : author.*