Em’s Forest

☆.𓋼𓍊 𓆏 𓍊𓋼𓍊.☆ Rules! ☆.𓋼𓍊 𓆏 𓍊𓋼𓍊.☆ Masterlist ☆.𓋼𓍊 𓆏 𓍊𓋼𓍊.☆

✧˖° Welcome, welcome! I go by Em and/or Mireili! ✧˖° I'm 18 years old ✧˖° My pronouns are She/Her ✧˖° Read the rules before requesting please! Very important things are stated :) ✧˖° I'm free to talk about anything! Please don't hesitate to talk to me!

<- Index

You stood before the General among the many other recruits. Though it wasn't particularly… your element, you found it to be interesting enough. Glancing around, you noticed how… trained and professional everyone looked. You attempted to mimic their posture and actions, however, it wasn't something you were used to, therefore, it was safe to say you most likely stood out the most. Probably, not for the better, either.

You noticed the General kept eyeing you, causing you to sweat somewhat. Nevertheless, you attempted to pay attention to him, though looking at him was also proving difficult as you kept making eye contact, which in turn, caused you to avert your gaze time and time again. You were sure he knew of your identity by this point, you weren't exactly hiding it too well.

You woke up to the sun shining in your eyes, which you attempted to shield with the back of your hand. Rolling over in your bed, you glanced at the clock, not particularly surprised by how early it was. It was essentially routine for you to awaken early in the morning.

Sighing, you sat up in bed and stretched your muscles, hoping nothing went wrong on such a seemingly calm day. After a few minutes of contemplation and… reminiscing, you finally managed to get yourself out of bed to prepare for the upcoming day. However, halfway through your preparations, you felt the urge to venture out into the forest yet again, just like last night.

Your thoughts drifted back to that flicker of white you saw, though you still had no clue what it could've been. Realistically, it was most likely an animal. A bird, perhaps? Although, you didn't recall any species of bird that were white and currently inhabiting the forest nearby.

Once you'd finished your morning preparations, you went to the downstairs dining hall where your parents usually held breakfast. Surprisingly, they were there, eating breakfast and discussing plans. You supposed some time had indeed passed since you awoke, though it was still quite early.

You refrained from any questions as to not distract them. Sitting at the opposite end of the table, you grabbed some food for yourself, when you overheard some of your parents' conversation.

"Oh please, that one? His reputation is terrible. We can't possibly be associated with such… scandal!" Your mother exclaimed, seemingly turning down a… request? You weren't too sure.

"But he is one of the best in the country." Your father replied to her.

Both seemed dead-set on their own decisions.

"I refuse to allow [User] to wear anything crafted by that… deviant! I will tailor something myself if I must."

"…Fine. We'll find someone different." Your father gave an exasperated sigh, finishing his breakfast and walking off in the direction of his office.

"Unbelievable." Your mother muttered to herself, clearly vexed. Once she finished her own food, she sighed and glanced in your direction, seemingly only just noticing your presence.

"Ah, good morning! How fare you, my dear?" She asked, sitting up properly. It seemed her mood had flipped, almost like a switch. She certainly was an odd woman sometimes, still your mother, in spite of everything.

"Just fine, thank you. May I know what you and father were discussing?" You inquired, unable to help your curiosity.

"Hm, just plans for that masquerade. It's nothing, really."

You nodded in understanding, she probably wouldn't tell you if you asked for more details anyway, though considering she mentioned tailoring you clothes, it was most likely about hiring a tailor to make you a dress for the party. You probably could’ve done it yourself, although, even if you knew how to make an outfit, you never really dabbled much in making dresses, as it was usually Sunday requesting new suits.

“Very well then, mother. I suppose I’ll wait until the day arrives to find out.”

“Wait you shall!” She exclaimed, almost too happily for your liking, as she got up and waved at you before heading off in the direction of your fathers office.

You waved back with your free hand and ate your own food, now mostly alone except for the few maids cleaning up the left over dishes. You certainly did wonder who your mother was so adamant about not hiring though. You never have seen her quite so passionate about something. It felt odd, but… you didn’t mind it.

A tailor… you wondered if you’d ever run into your ex-coworker again… the two of you did happen to be rather fond of each other in just the previous life.

“Oh dear… you aren’t hurt, are you?” She carefully treaded over to you, holding her mannequins' hand as per usual.

“I’m just fine, you needn’t worry.” You replied back, watching as she slightly swayed in her step, seemingly unable to keep her balance this once. It was quite a rare occurrence, even if she was 'blind', she still managed to carry herself with such poise and grace.

You sort of wondered how she still managed to create such wonderful clothes nonetheless, just a bit envious of her talent. Although, you were somewhat convinced it was the work of her garmentmaker, however, due to her mysterious nature, it was quite hard to find out.

“If you’re sure” She nodded in your direction before kneeling down to carefully collect the knocked over jar of sewing pins.

"Let me help. I don't want you to injure yourself too." You kneeled down beside her to help collect the spilled pins in your uninjured hand and deposit them back into the jar.

After a short while, you too left the table, though you felt rather suffocated staying at home so much, therefore, you momentarily returned to your room. You glanced at the flowers you'd picked last night, finding more of a reason to venture out.

When you'd gotten home, you put them in a small vase with water and unexpectedly, they were holding up pretty well. It made you quite happy to see them thriving, as short lived as it may be. Within that moment, you officially decided you'd return to the forest for a while, perhaps you could find larger flowers to have displayed to liven up your room a bit more.

You left your home in the direction of the town, though turned onto the pathway leading into the forest once you arrived at that point.

Most of your walk was rather uneventful, you saw a few squirrels, birds, even a fox at one point, though it quickly retreated into it's den when it sensed you. Quite unfortunate, you thought.

Though, just a few minutes later, you could hear faint chattering coming from somewhere nearby. You couldn't make out any words, but you could tell the voices were masculine. You couldn't quite tell where they were coming from, however, the farther you went the nearer they sounded, so you simply assumed the two people talking were somewhere further along the path.

As you looked ahead, you couldn't see anyone, except for when you arrived at the crossroad. The path to the left was somewhat covered by trees and other foliage, however, amidst them, you could make out the corner of a tent and two figures sitting by an extinguished firepit.

The first thing to catch your eye? White hair. It certainly stood out amongst all the greenery. Alas, you suddenly recognised both the people!

The General paced in front of the recruits, you included, with his hands behind his back and explaining the rules that came with sword fighting. Further behind him stood Blade, his right hand man, watching over everyone and everything, silently ensuring order and eventually stepping forth to show a quick demonstration of the proper form.

"I do hope everyone got that." The general, Jing Yuan, soon spoke, looking at a few recruits who seemed specifically spaced out. He seemed almost amused. Though you figured he'd probably re-explain everything if need be. Soon enough, some of the other workers brought out wooden swords for everyone.

"Alright then, pick your partners, you'll be practicing." Jing Yuan remarked, wandering over to where Blade had stood beforehand to watch over the trainees, who were now partnering up with each other. Apart from you. In the 5 minutes everyone took to team up, not a single person had asked you to practice with them.

You glanced around, holding the wooden sword unnecessarily tight as you looked around at the ongoing sparring matches. You kept your hands by your side, deciding to quietly walk off to a corner to practice alone, not wanting to bother the general.

Standing alone in the back, you swung the sword around in an attempt to practice. It was certainly… a sight. All of a sudden, you were glad you were alone and not with someone, your form was absolutely tragic in comparison to the rest who were all wielding the wooden sword with, at least, some prior knowledge.

You quietly groaned to yourself, taking a step back from what you were doing to survey the area. It was rather clear the general was judging at least some of the recruits, to which he eventually redirected Blade in order to fix minor issues like posture or their footwork.

Soon, you refocused on practicing after watching Blade perform the proper movements for what felt like the 100th time. Perhaps this time would go better? …One day, that was for certain.

How ironic, you thought. Though one thing that confused you was the he was here and not where you'd originally met him, hundreds of miles away, in a whole different country.

You shook your head, realising that the longer you stared, the weirder you probably looked to… well, whomever might pass by, or even Blade and Jing Yuan themselves if they noticed you.

You considered walking by them, mostly out of curiosity for what they were doing, however, quickly remembered they certainly wouldn't remember you. Deciding it would be far too awkward, you turned back to the direction you'd come from to begin walking back.

Though, as luck would have it, a squirrel ran by you, stepping over a few fallen twigs and rustling the tree leaves on it's ascent up to, supposedly, it's nest. Although, you'd already retreated from the area.

Jing Yuan had glanced back, his curiosity piquing at the rustling. He always was an animal lover, any single noise outside catching his attention. In the distance, he saw you walking away, which he found odd as he hadn't heard anyone around beforehand… well, he was rather invested in the conversation topic with Blade.

He turned back to Blade, who'd gone silent, knowing his companion was far too distracted by whatever wildlife he'd seen to listen to what he was saying.

"Welcome back."

"You're acting as if I left you"

Blade only shrugged in response and returned to the previous conversation.

Meanwhile, on your walk back you wondered about the Masquerade. Sunday had most likely decided to host it as a way to commemorate the departure of the cold winter season. It seemed typical of him, always finding the smallest reasons to celebrate. Although he certainly was no party animal or anything of the sort, he merely enjoyed having fun with other people, so it seemed.

Balls hosted by him were always incredibly extravagant, although it did make sense considering his fame and wealth.

A few minutes more of walking and you were finally able to see your home in the distance, the sun higher up in the sky than before, though certainly nowhere near setting just yet.

Nothing interesting happened on the way back and, as per usual, you greeted whomever was by the entrance this afternoon. However, upon passing by your parents' office, your fathers voice could be heard inside alongside two female ones at one point, one being your mother.

You paused to listen, curiosity getting the better of you.

"Here, I present to ye, my finest piece." Spoke the… unfamiliar voice? Was it unfamiliar? There was a certain warmth to it. You had a hard time telling who's voice it could be due to the door muffling it. Even if you weren't too sure about the owner of the voice, just the sound of it placed an image in your mind: once your coworker, now a stranger due to this… curse?

Her beauty was rather hard to forget, after all. Unfortunately, your train of thought was broken by your mother's voice.

"That's wonderful! We must hire her! Are you capable of conjuring up something like… this for the upcoming Friday?" She'd asked, somewhere in between, you heard the rustling of paper.

"That's… quite the short timeframe…"

"Yes, our sincerest apologies, however, it's so last minute due to… a certain issue that occurred unexpectedly a few days ago." Your father's voice. They just won't let you live down that broken engagement, will they? The person they picked for it all those years ago wasn't even that great. He was far too snobby and arrogant. Albeit, the perfect actor, always acting like the most wonderful person in front of both your parents'.

How annoying, you thought, shaking your head.

"I understand. I will do my best to create the perfect dress for Friday. However, I don't believe I'd manage such a… difficult design in such a short time…"

You heard shuffling in the room, you were sure it was your mothers' footsteps walking around, as if in search of something.

"Ah, yes, that's understandable… How about this then?" You heard more paper, this time it was being unfolded. Perhaps a different sketch?

The room fell into silence for the first time since you arrived as the alleged tailor seemed to study the paper handed to her.

"It seems more doable, however, I believe I'll still have to simplify some of the more intricate patterns over here and… here" She spoke up soon enough, with which you once again heard the piece of paper being moved around.

"That's just fine, those were purely aesthetic choices anyway." Your mother spoke again. You glanced up from the floor upon hearing footsteps, where you saw a butler walking down the hall carrying an assortment of items. You decided it'd be best to not stand out so much, therefore making the choice to return to your room.

Your parents' and the tailors' voices grew quieter and quieter as you walked away, fading into the background noise, though one thing you did hear before you were out of earshot was something about the price. Although you weren't quite able to make it out due to the butler's footsteps now being louder than the voices themselves.

Once back, you decided on reading a book until further notice. It was certainly one of your favourites and you hadn't even finished reading it! Soon enough, the sun had begun setting and you were soon expected at the dining hall for dinner. So you went to eat dinner with your parents.

Neither of them brought up the topic of the dress, and it seemed the tailor had already left. You just assumed they were attempting to keep the whole ordeal a secret, even though it was clear both of them were in a better mood now than in the morning.

Surprisingly, your parents started up some small talk with you at one point, mostly just asking you about your day. It was rather refreshing, getting to talk to them about things that weren't controversial or pure business for the first time in a while.

Luckily, the remainder of the day remained just as pleasant up until the time you got to return to your room to settle in for the night. You returned the displaced book from earlier back to it's place on your bookshelf with a bookmark to keep track of the page.

During your normal night time routine, you were suddenly reminded of that voice from earlier that day. The tailor. You wondered who your parents had finally decided upon hiring. Would they truly hire Aglaea? It wasn't that she was bad, quite the opposite. Aglaea was wonderful, however, you knew your mother. She'd most likely make a fuss of the smallest imperfection. Although, she did seem rather pleased post-meeting with the tailor.

And that tailor's voice may've seemed unfamiliar due to it being muffled, but it was the same accent as hers. You were sure of that, at least. Perhaps you'd ask the following day. For now, however, you got into bed the moment you finished your routine and gazed out the window in your room, watching as a few birds flew by. You turned off the lights and shut your eyes, attempting to keep your mind empty, merely wanting to finally rest. To Be Continued...

The clock struck midnight once more. You stood there in front of everyone at the ball where your fiancé had abandoned you for another woman. Having to relive such a thing 7 times beforehand though, you'd had enough.

"Alright, alright, I get it, keep him, I don't care" You interrupted Her monologue about why he'd chosen her over you. She watched, stunned in silence as you suddenly ran off in the direction of the exit.

Throughout your past 7 lives, you'd chosen a multitude of different paths for yourself, once even becoming a doctor, taught by the best of the best. Though, those stories could be saved for another time. You exited the castle and ran off into a direction you knew quite well. Your home. You'd noticed that each different direction led you to a completely different 'ending'. Though some of your lives were… cut short due to unfortunate circumstances.

Once you got far enough from the castle, you stopped running and instead walked carefully to avoid tripping. One wrong step and you'd most likely trip over a rock due to the rocky terrain. Even if you held up your dress and watched where you went, it was still a dangerous journey. You almost wished you'd taken a different route to get there.

All was well, however, once you finally arrived. Entering your home, you could tell the atmosphere was… different. Less welcoming. The maids and butlers looked at you with different expressions, some of disgust, others of hate. One thing you couldn't miss was the talking amongst everyone. Certainly because of the trouble stirred up by your ex-fiancés mistress. Even if the country was large, word spread easily so it was no wonder everyone had already found out.

You returned to your room, before which stood your parents, clearly disappointed.

"Mother, Father." You spoke up, greeting your parents politely, bowing before them.

"Ah, [Name]. You're here…" Your father replied, his eyes narrowing in your direction. Your parents turned to face you, your mother watching him with a disappointed look.

"Indeed, I am. Father, if I may-"

"That's enough now, dear. Listen to what we have to say." Your mother chimed in, cutting you off from speaking further. You sighed, glaring down at the ground. You never did like when they did this. At least it wasn't your fault they're this way this time.

"You're no longer engaged." He began, crossing his arms. "Quite disappointing… this will undoubtedly tarnish the family name. To make up for this… mishap… you will attend the masquerade next week, hosted by Prince Sunday."

It was him yet again. A name far too familiar to you.

——————

"Ah, you must be our new tailor! I humbly welcome you."

You were stood before him, happier than ever to have been hired by his family. It was quite the achievement for you, considering you were still fairly new to the profession.

"Please do follow me this way, towards your new workspace." He spoke, beckoning you to follow him further. He seemed harmless really, you didn't feel unease around him. He made you feel… comfortable. So, you followed him towards the location.

It was far larger than you anticipated, though that was to be expected of a royal families' budget for their workers. They wanted to ensure you could provide them with the highest quality clothes, of course.

The two of you spoke for some time before he left you alone to get acquainted with the new space.

——————

It was certainly a… time to remember. You sighed, shaking your head slightly.

"Very well then… I will attend the masquerade." You knew your parents were sending you there to have you find another suitable candidate for marriage. Truth be told, you'd already found plenty, however, they wouldn't know you just yet.

"Very good." Your father replied, somewhat monotonously.

"We must be off now, there's a meeting we must attend in the morning to sort out… the issue." You watched as your parents left, muttering things to each other, and though you couldn't quite hear anything, you simply assumed it was about the broken off engagement.

Soon enough, you finally retired to your room for the night and changed into your sleepwear. All those memories lingered in the back of your mind as you prepared yourself for sleep. It's not like most were bad, of course not. All apart from a few moments, everything was fine, really. Perhaps a bit sombre though.

You shook your head and sighed, though not feeling too tired yet, you made your way to your balcony and stepped outside. It overlooked a part of the city, allowing you to see people who remained awake at this hour, however little that was. Off to your right was the mansion you'd run off from.

You didn't really think about it anymore, it wasn't such a big deal. You turned your head to look in front of you, where in the distance stood Sunday's castle.

——————

"Your Highness, I'd appreciate if you would stop moving-" You spoke to him, attempting to get his measurements as he'd ordered a suit for an upcoming special occasion. However, he wasn't making your first official job for him easy.

"Please, no need for formalities. Just 'Sunday' will suffice." He cut you off, completely ignoring your request and instead moving yet again.

"Alright then… Sunday-"

"Ah! But the measuring tape is so cold!" He exclaimed, however, you knew better. The tape couldn't have possibly been cold considering you'd already finished measuring most of him, now attempting to get his waist measurement.

You weren't quite sure why he was suddenly acting childish, you simply chalked it up to his somewhat dramatic personality at times. Though, in truth, he wanted to prolong the procedure, enjoying all the attention you were giving him, even if it was only because you had to. He didn't mind.

——————

You hummed in thought, stepping away from the balcony and returned to your room. It wasn't particularly cold outside with the night air gradually growing warmer as the colder spring season faded into summer.

Finally, after a tiring day, you returned back inside and got in bed, soon after succumbing to slumber.

The next morning as you were happily preparing for an uneventful day, however, your mother had entered your room and quickly your plans to sit at home were discarded.

"[User], you'll be going to the town centre with one of our staff. She needs to buy a couple things for the chefs and I'm sure she'd appreciate some help." She stated, not giving you a choice this time. You assumed she still wasn't too happy about last nights' events.

"I understand." You replied to her demand, knowing there wouldn't be a way for you to change her mind once it was set. You watched as she smiled at you and left the room, leaving you to finish getting ready.

"Well… At least I won't be bored…" You muttered to yourself, not entirely displeased by the circumstances.

And so, there you were, wandering behind the employee at a leisurely pace and simply looking around the town. It hadn't really changed much since the last time you were there but at least you were having fun. You and the maid you were with arrived to a vegetable stall where she gave you a list of items to buy whilst she scavenged for the remainder of the ingredients.

She walked off, leaving you with an amount of money that she deemed enough to be able to purchase everything you needed to.

You grabbed the carrots, cabbage, cucumbers and other things listed on the piece of paper. Finally, you only had one more thing to buy: onions. You searched the entire stall, though you weren't able to find any so you asked the vendor, who redirected your gaze to the correct location.

You felt relieved to have finally found it, let alone when you discovered it was the last one for sale! Although it was unfortunate there weren't multiple, you were sure just one would be enough. For the time being. Just as you reached for it, your hand brushed against another persons'. You slightly jumped back, startled by the sudden encounter, though once you saw just who the person was, you paused.

You could feel your face heating up just a bit and your heart beating just a bit faster than usual.

——————

"Oh! Hello, I hear you recently got hired by the Royal Family to make clothes for them, is that right?" Jiaoqiu asked you curiously. You two didn't typically see each other considering you both worked in different parts of Sunday's castle, however, your inevitable meeting had certainly changed everything.

"Yes, that's right! You wouldn't happen to be one of the chefs, would you?" You asked jokingly, looking up at the chefs hat resting atop his head.

"I might be." He looked off to the side, almost attempting to look innocent. You couldn't deny, he had some kind of charm to him that made you want to spend more time with him. So you did.

After that meeting, most of your free time was spent in the kitchen with him or somewhere off to the side whenever both of you had some time off.

——————

"Oh! Uh… Hello…" You stammered, instinctually handing over the onion.

"Hello." He replied to your own greeting, watching you curiously before taking it, albeit hesitantly, before handing it right back.

"It's quite alright, you can have the onion." He seemed insistent, however, so were you. Nothing better than two stubborn people, after all!

You still remembered this side of him. Even if it's technically been 6 lifetimes, to you, it only felt like a day had passed… Which might not be entirely wrong as you still weren't sure just how this 'cycle' worked. All you knew is that you simply couldn't die as you'd be brought back to the moment you lost your fiancé. Perhaps the next death would be the end. You had no clue, which is why you decided you want this life to remain calm, without any unexpected adventures like before.

"No need, I can come back tomorrow." You rejected his offer, however, he certainly hadn't given up and instead placed the onion in your hand. You flushed at the sudden contact, watching as he happily walked away, picking out whatever else he needed from the stall before moving on.

After you'd nearly lost him in the crowd, you snapped out of your thoughts and paid for the onion before running over to him. Standing in front of him now, he looked at you somewhat surprised, clearly not expecting you to be this adamant about such a petty thing.

You held your hand out, offering him the onion yet again.

"Please, you can have it. I'm sure there's plenty in the kitchen at my house!" You put the onion in his basket. It certainly seemed rather ridiculous to fight over something as miniscule as this, although, it was incredibly reminiscent of old times. You knew he most likely wouldn't remember you or the past, but… you definitely hoped. You had hope he at least had the same feelings as you, as unlikely as that may be, especially due to how long it's been.

He took the onion out of his basket again and chuckled.

"But I insist!" He once again placed it in your hands, right as the maid you were with returned, having finally found you after you'd wandered off.

"Ah, there you are! I've been searching! You really shouldn't run off like that." She sighed, coming to stand next to you.

"Have you found everything? We really must get going now." The maid continued, finally glancing over at who you were speaking with. She simply nodded, not paying him much mind.

Glancing at your basket of vegetables, she seemed mostly satisfied, excluding the singular onion in your hands.

"I apologise for interrupting, however, I must be going now." Jiaoqiu spoke up, bowing slightly before he continued on his venture, you watching him go.

"Come now, let's go. I believe we have everything, yes?"

"Ah… yes, I believe so… I did do my best to get everything, at least. There was only one onion though." You hesitantly looked back at the maid, not particularly wanting to look away from Jiaoqiu.

"I see… that's rather unfortunate, but I suppose there's naught we can do." She hummed in thought before taking the vegetables from you.

"I'll merely return early tomorrow morn' to buy more." She began walking back towards your home, assuming you'd follow, which you did.

The walk back was peaceful. The two of you made small conversation, however, the maid didn't seem too keen on interacting, which you supposed didn't bother you much. You looked around the forest, enjoying the nature surrounding you, just as you had in each of your past lives.

Eventually, however, she notices you falling behind and urged you to walk faster.

"Come now, I'm sure your parents are expecting you back soon."

"That's alright… you can go on ahead and… if they ask, just tell them I'll be back soon." You told her, slowing your pace further and instead, you decided to saunter off the path and into the nearby forest. You glanced back and saw her nodding at you.

You looked around, wanting to kill some time. After a while of walking around, you picked a few flowers you found scattered around the ground, they looked to be in good condition, perhaps they'd survive until you got home sometime later. Though, it was highly improbable… you'd simply have to see how they do later on.

During your venture, you stuck to the path in the forest, following it quite far in. This wasn't anything unusual for you though, you remembered passing through here a few times before in your life. Before the whole 'loop' you've been going through… recently? Technically, it had been multiple years.

You sighed at the thought, looking down at the bouquet of flowers in your hands. Abruptly, you noticed movement in the corner of your eye. It looked to be white… hair? You paused, surveying the direction you saw it in, though couldn't see anything akin to it.

It was odd, you thought, but it was a public forest, so it made sense for there to be people. Although… there was just something so familiar about that white hair. Not many people had such a hair colour, after all. It reminded you of someone else you deeply cherish.

You remembered him well, even if it had been such a long time. You shook the thoughts away, deciding to finally begin the trek home as the sun had begun setting on the horizon.

Really, not much had happened on the way back, apart from a couple of rustling noises coming from bushes and trees surrounding you created by the wind or animals.

Finally, you saw your home in the distance. You'd noticed the atmosphere was growing surprisingly colder with the setting sun, so you sped up your walking pace, soon enough arriving inside and returning to your room.

You had hope tomorrow would be uneventful, though your sudden reunion with Jiaoqiu certainly had you thinking about venturing out again, albeit alone this time. It was strange to you. You thought you'd put those past lives behind you after so long and so many newer memories and yet, they remain fresh in your mind, especially after seeing Jiaoqiu earlier.

Description: After a messy public break up with your fiancé, you were left disappointed and decided to venture out alone, however, with time you'd noticed an unusual anomaly after death, which caused you to wind up back at the venue you originally left.

Chapter I: Recommence thine Journey. Chapter II: Serenity Fore the Squall Chapter III: Coming Soon Chapter IV: Coming Soon Chapter V: Coming Soon Chapter VI: Coming Soon Chapter VII: Coming Soon Chapter VIII: Coming Soon Chapter IX: Coming Soon Chapter X: Coming Soon Chapter XI: Coming Soon

Chapter XII: Coming Soon Chapt XIII: Coming Soon Chapt XIV: Coming Soon Chapt XV: Coming Soon Chapt XVI: Coming Soon Chapt XVII: Coming Soon Chapt XVIII: Coming Soon

Cw: (Heavy?) Angst, Character Death, 1.1 spoilers

You watched the battle between Jinhsi, the magistrate, and Jue, the Sentinel, unfold before your very eyes. She could barely attack it, or so it seemed. Jinhsi was dodging it's attacks left, right and center, attacking whenever the Sentinel was on the ground. Her attacks barely grazed it though, only leaving her more exhausted and injured as time went by.

Suddenly, it seemed as though time had been paused on the battlefield with Jue high in the air and preparing an attack. You considered intervening, although before you could make up your mind, Jinhsi had broken free of the 'spell' and parried Jue's attack just barely in time, this leading the pair into yet another battle. Although… this one seemed far more complicated than before.

This extra layer of complexity certainly took it's toll on the young woman in battle… It was clear her resolve was breaking, however, you believed… no, you knew she wouldn't give up. She was strong, and she'd do anything to protect her city.

You had no idea what was going through Jinhsi's mind at the moment, but whatever it was, it was keeping her going, she even seemed a bit more confident in herself than before. Though, just a few minutes later, maybe around half-way through the battle, she was beginning to show signs of overclocking.

The young woman pushed through it until the very end of the battle, where she dropped to her knees and sighed in relief, looking up at the Sentinel, the creature, whom she'd just won against, whom seemed far from exhausted. The three of you could tell, though, that Jinhsi's condition was only worsening, so when she finally began overclocking, Jue paused time. You jogged over to it, watching Jinhsi for a moment.

Jue eventually spoke, breaking whatever muddled train of thoughts you had.

"Arbiter… may this one transfer the Temporal Mandate to Jinhsi?" it asked, now floating right by you.

You two had entered this Sonoro Sphere together, with a promise to each other to save the City of Jinzhou, however, when it most mattered, you hesitated… "why?" You ask yourself over and over again "Why am I hesitating…? This is what we both want… so why?" though an answer never came to you. You glanced between Jue and the Magistrate with an uncertain look, laced with a hint of worry.

When your tacet mark began to glow and Jinhsi suddenly appeared right behind you, you thought your uncertainty had been broken through and you raised you hand towards the glowing ball of light, although, you paused midway… as though some magical force was stopping you. You wanted to tell the Sentinel that, yes, it can transfer the Temporal Mandate to Jinhsi, but you just couldn't.

You glanced around before looking back at your raised hand, which you soon retracted back to your side. Taking deeper breaths to calm yourself and your racing mind, you looked back at Jinhsi.

Although, she was now clutching at her head and hunching over, clearly in pain. You tried and tried, though to no avail, you just couldn't bring yourself to let this happen. But everything was fine and the plan was clear in your mind so what's changed? Perhaps subconsciously you'd decided this was a bad idea after all?

"Arbiter, is that your final decision?"

At the sound of Jue's voice a surge of panic went through you, causing you to pause for a moment.

"Well- no, but… I don't… I don't understand… I..-" you stuttered out, though you were soon cut off by a cry of pain coming from behind you. Immediately, you turned to look and, oh, did the sight terrify you…

Jinhsi had fallen to the ground once again, though her limbs were turning white and slowly crumbling away whilst you and the Sentinel could only observe her new fate.

"Jue… I permit… Jue, transfer the Temporal Mandate to her!" You exclaimed, finally able to break free of whatever restraints held you back from making this choice. Right after you spoke, you ran over to Jinhsi and held her up, holding one of her withering hands in your own.

"Unfortunately, that is no longer possible, Arbiter. Jinhsi is far too weak. Going through with the transfer now would only cause her more unnecessary pain."

Jue finally responded to your command, it appeared unfazed, however, it was like the two of you connected in that moment. As if you could feel what it was feeling. A truly unpleasant sensation coursed throughout your body, causing goosebumps to arise on your skin. It was a feeling of grief. The kind you feel only when you lose someone important… a loved one.

You could feel Jinhsi shuddering in your arms, quite a lot of her was withered away by now.

"Rover…" She whispered with whatever strength she may have had left, you could even see tears welling up in her eyes, though not from sadness and certainly not defeat.

"Rover…" she repeated.

"Please, promise me you'll find a way to restore Jinzhou… It can't remain frozen in time forever… It… it can't… please…"

"I promise… Jinhsi, I promise to find a way, no matter what… I'm… so sorry…"

Then all went silent. But only for a moment, as the young girl spoke again.

"Thank you…" Jinhsi mumbled once more. Her final words.

You watched as the life drained from her eyes, as the remnants of what was once your friend, now mere specks of dust, floated off into the air. Even though time was still paused, she still defied Jue, even in death. Perhaps as a final act of rebellion, a way to tell you that, even though she won't be around anymore, she still hasn't given up hope on Jinzhou.

You were left feeling saddened, despite everything, still determined to honor this last promise. You slowly looked back at Jue, who was still staring at you.

"One will now honor one's promise of freezing Jinzhou to preserve it…" Jue spoke quietly before flying up into the air and supposedly paused time in Jinzhou. You wondered what that would look like, although, you were afraid. Afraid of seeing all your companions forever(?) frozen in time.

Just then, the Sentinel spoke again.