Chapter 21, Part 1:

The Star Sanctuary

Flores opened his eyes, shooting up from his bed, or more accurately, his horse. He rode on the back of Hollowtrix as the mare followed behind two other equines. Slowly reaching for his flag, Atorie appeared right next to him in a flash of light, pushing his hand back down.

"Good afternoon, successor. Glad to see you're awake."

"Jesus." Flores stumbled back, falling on his butt as Atorie chuckled. Getting back up, he drew his flag and pointed it at the pegasus. Hollowtrix, however, lowered the weapon with her hoof.

"Calm down, master; they're not trying to kill us. Well, maybe Azriel, but Atorie is better anyway."

"I'm standing right here!" Azriel grumbled.

"What the hell is going on? Where are we-, Did you just speak!?" Flores exclaimed. Hundreds of thoughts ran through his mind as he went through a mental checklist.

First, he located Tommy being carried by Atorie. He was sleeping, but looked fine. The next thing he checked was Hollowtrix, taking note of the singed hair on her coat. Aside from that, she was also fine. Now all that was left was himself. Flores lifted his shirt, only to find that the stab wound he had was gone.

Combined with Hollowtrix telling him to calm down, along with the fact that they were still alive, Flores let himself relax, though he didn't leave himself completely off guard; He had his Dragon hourglass banner equipped so he could escape at a moments notice.

"Is he okay?"

"Yeah, he's just having a mini panic attack out of shock or something. He'll be okay in about 3, 2, and."

"I swear, this place is insanity."

"There we go."

"Huh?"

"Oh, nothing." Hollowtrix chuckled. Flores looked on confused as the two horses laughed at him.

"Whatever. So, now that we're not trying to murder each other-"

"You want feathers and dust, correct? Hollow gave us the details already."

"So we have a deal then?"

"After a sidequest."

Flores looked at the pegasus, his head tilted sideways.

"...come again?"

"Our master was a sucker for these types of things. To keep his body and information hidden, he made a special tomb for himself that his successor could only open. The next keeper of Morale."

"Shit, that sounds cool. I want that title now." Flores grumbled.

"Master, shut up. Not the time."

"You know. I think Cinder was right in calling you a serene asshole."

"Why yo-"

"Both of you shut it." Atorie flew over, punching both of them in the head. Flores rubbed his head in pain while Hollowtrix watched a knot form at the top of her head.

"As I was saying, our master's journal was left inside, along with a few of his other trinkets. If we can retrieve that journal, then we'll happily give you the materials. You can also keep everything else inside."

"So if everything else is expendable, why is the journal so important?" Flores asked.

"Do you know the tale of the four harbingers of destruction?" Azriel pipped up.

"Yeah. Two were killed, but he failed to kill the third and died shortly after building Ken'bitch."

"Half correct. History was lost, but we were there to see it firsthand. We weren't able to kill the soul peryton. Not because we were weak—far from it, actually. Instead, we were attacked by a man who inflicted wounds that couldn't be healed."

"Unhealable wounds? It sounds like a cheat power, or cheat skill since I'm basically in an isekai. I can see the title now. My Best Friend Rejected My Dying Love Confession, So I Reincarnated With The Power To Cause Incurable Wounds… shit is that what the hydra is? Bad isekai protags."

Flores grumbled. He could smack his head right now for not realizing the obvious staring him in the face. If only he could have figured it out sooner, maybe then he'd have more banter with Lee or Phantom.

"... ignoring that." Azriel grumbled. "The wounds slowly killed him. After the Peryton finished ravaging, Miguel went on a journey to find a cure. But he stopped prematurely and decided to seal himself instead. The last thing he told us was that he actually found the origin of these powers and even the counter to them. All we had to do was bring the next Morale hero, so they might learn the truth. We tried stopping him, but the door was sealed after that. That was the last we saw of our master."

"In all honesty, he's an ass for not telling us. But I had a feeling this seal was for the better. In that journal, we can finally figure out what happened to him and the secrets of that bizarre power."

Flores clutched his chin and began to ponder. He had a feeling that this wasn't going to turn out well for him. Ancient ruins with previous enemies are two things that always end up in a disaster. But then again, free shit. More importantly, information on the paid interns. No matter how much he thought about it, the pros outweighed the cons.

"I have a feeling this is going to go very wrong."

"Probably."

/~/

After some travel, Flores comes across a familiar sight. The previous orc encampment. The walls and tents were still up, currently being taken down by members of the sanctuary. There were also teams working on restoring the lush grass that once covered the now-dirt field.

As they entered, everyone backed away as the grand unicorn made his entrance. Many of the females there were distraught after seeing his charred hair, but they were giddy nonetheless. Even Hollowtrix got her fair share of cheers from the males in the crowd, and she happily took in all the praise.

The same couldn't be said for Atorie, however. She made everyone fear her just by walking by. It was an even bigger punch to the face when she looked over at a child who immediately began crying.

"I hate people, I hate people, I hate people."

Atorie continued to mutter this phrase as she held her head down. Flores could only feel bad for the mare as they reached the entrance.

"Halt. Only authorized- the supreme pegasus!?"

"Move." Atoria pushed the animal guard aside and trotted up to the door.

"It's been awhile since we last came here."

Atorie unfurled her wings, sticking both of them into a hole that matched the size. The hole glowed blue as a line charted itself to an orb above the door.

"That's because you insist on continuing this turf war."

Azriel scoffed and stuck his horn in another hole. The hole glowed red and mixed with the blue aura at the top of the door.

"That's because you renovated my stable. Now I can't sleep because of the damn lights!"

"Shut up about these turf wars already." Flores grumbled.

Stepping forward, a purple light shot out from the door and hit his gem. The ground rumbled, and mouths were agape as the door began to rise. Darkness filled the ever-expanding tunnel, making Hollowtrix flinch as she looked inside. She was not the only one shocked by the tomb. Others stood around in amusement. It was the first time in many years that this door had opened. Now they were able to witness it with their very own eyes. Not to mention, the Morale hero was there as well. Truly a once-in-a lifetime experience.

"We have to stay out here to keep the door open. You all have to go on without us."

"I'm starting to hate this supposed seal. Hollow, let's move."

"Actually. I like mobility, so I'll stay outside." Hollowtrix shuddered under the thought of entering an enclosed space.

"Seriously? So I'm going in alone."

"You're not alone. You've got Tommy."

"..." Flores sighed. "Better than nothing."

Flores picked up Tommy and threw him over his shoulder. Checking everything within his satchel, Flores entered the temple, walking further and further inside as he slowly disappeared from sight.

"Five Laura says he fails to get it." Azriel chuckled.

"Ten, but the kid gets it instead."

"Twenty, but Master comes out even more traumatized."

"Deal!" All of them exclaimed as they tossed a few silver coins on the ground.

/~/

Flores had been trekking for what seemed to be hours. No matter how long he proceeded forward, he'd just be making another useless step into nothingness. During this time, his mind began to wander, even giving him slight head aches from time to time for no real reason.

Flores didn't know how long the tunnel was or even if it had an end. But he just had a feeling that if he kept walking, he'd reach somewhere eventually. And soon enough, he did. After another hour of walking, Flores looked up, seeing a familiar sight.

It was a culdesac with a long field that several kids played on. He immediately recognized this place and rubbed his eyes to see if he wasn't acting crazy. Once he finished, however, the culdesac was still there, and, by extension, the whole neighborhood as well. More importantly, however, there was a blue house right in the middle of the street.

Outfront was a big oak tree, with an open driveway that housed a single black car. The backyard was closed off via a wooden gate, but he could see the pool through the screen door, along with the firepit that currently held piles of burning paper. There was no way he could mistake it. It was the place that had brought him the most grief—his family's old home.

"No… it can't be. I'm still in the other world ri-"

Flores reached for his back, only to realize that his flag was missing. It wasn't just his flag, however. Tommy was also gone and nowhere to be found. He had no idea he even lost Tommy; he could have sworn the kid was still on his back about five minutes ago. This only caused the hero to panic even more. He reached his bag, hoping to grab a cigarette, but that was gone too. He also noticed that his arms, and in turn, the rest of his body, were smaller than before.

Flores took everything, inspecting every part of his body to see if he was crazy or not. Instead of panic, however, all that gave the hero was a sigh of annoyance. That actually helped him calm down a bit as he focused his brain on the situation at hand.

"Okay okay. No weapon; Tommy is missing, and I'm back home. Possible theories. The room is a simulation; I've been dragged back in time, or this is a dream. And if this is a dream, if I think of an exit!" Flores pointed his hand behind him, only for an exit to not appear. He tried thinking again, this time long and hard, only to come to the same result.

"Okay, not a dream. Maybe the time thing is correct. We did cut this tree down awhile back." Tilting his head in curiosity. He stood there for awhile, trying to remember back to any anime or book he read with this exact scenario.

"Sylvie. Sylvie!" A young girl appeared in his field of view, constantly waving her hand in his face. Flores, however, was unmoved and brushed off the disturbance as he continued to think.

"Darn, he's lost in thought. Alright, time for plan B." The little girl ran off, only to come back around, leaping towards Flores. The hero instinctively reacted, moving quickly to catch the girl before she could hit the ground.

"Dang it, Shelby, what did I tell you about jumping… into… Shelby?"

Flores looked down, focusing intently on the girl below him. Black hair, brown eyes. And that iconic pink dress. He'd never forget that look she gave him, not even for a second. Tears began forming in his eyes, but he stopped them, wiping them away quickly.

"Sylvester… Are you doing good?"

"No… I-I mean, yeah. It's just been a bit. Would you believe me if I said this is a memory?" Flores chuckled.

"Memory? Are you talking light novel nonsense again?"

"I wish." Flores scoffed, getting a confused glare from his sister.

The way she talks and acts. It's like a one-to-one re-creation. So this is a very loose recreation of my memories.

"Also… brother? Were you able to find us a new home?"

Flores flinched at the question as old memories rushed into the forefront of his brain.

"No, it can't be."

"Sylvie?"

"Tell me, Shelby! What grade did you get on today's test?" Flores exclaimed, shaking his sister until he got an answer.

"2/10. It was another math test." Shelby lowered her head.

That confirms it. It is today… not again, I won't let her die.

/~/

"Master Tommy. Master Tommy. It's time to wake up." A woman with blond hair gently shook Tommy as he slowly woke up from his slumber.

"Miss Emily." Tommy yawned. "But wasn't I just with Mister Flores? How did I get back home?" Tommy inspected his surroundings, looking at this room for the first time in weeks. It was shocking. He knew he would return, but not so abruptly, and most certainly not unconscious. He still had so many goodbyes to say.

"Hmm. But you were always home. Now let's get you up; your breakfast is going to get cold." The girl smiled. "Besides. You don't want to miss making your first charme!"

"My… first?" Tommy reached for his bag but noticed two things. The first was that his arms were shorter—way shorter. He even had a hard time reaching his back. Speaking of backs, his bag wasn't there, nor anywhere else in the room.

"I could have sworn I had it with me. Did I drop it fighting against the unicorns? "

"Unicorns?"

"Uh. Never mind,,Misss Emily. I'm still a bit groggy." Tommy replied.

"Oooh, learned another word. Keep that up, and we can get you started on some advanced language classes." The maid chuckled. Leaving Tommy's side, the maid opened Tommy's wardrobe. Inside were much smaller clothes than in his usual wardrobe. So small, in fact, that he doubted he could even fit his head through the shirt. That was until he got up.

"But I already passed advanced lang-." Tommy stumbled out of bed, the fall to the ground being much higher than he realized. He also noticed that his nightstand, bed, and even his favorite blanket were bigger than he was. There was no excuse or explanation for this. He indeed got smaller. And he had no idea why.

"Miss Emily! Why am I small!?" Tommy exclaimed. The maid, however, only turned around and tilted her head.

"Whatever do you mean? You're the same size as yesterday."

"But yesterday…" Tommy looked down at himself, barely recognizing his young self.

What is going on?"

Changing from his pajamas into his day clothes, Tommy slid his feet into his royal slippers and left the room with his maid. The breakfast was uneventful; there was nothing to pay attention too aside from the usual clumsy maids tripping on the high carpet. His mother had always wanted to change things since tripping was very common.

Now that he thought about it, that rug was replaced years ago. He remembered that day vividly.

Since it was the day of his first magic lesson, the most important day of his life. The day Emility claims is today.

"Miss… Emily."

"Tommy. What did we say about chewing with your mouth open?" Emily reprimanded.

"S-sorry." Tommy swallowed his food and then rubbed his mouth with his hankerchief.

"Miss Emily, might I ask? How old am I exactly?"

"You turned four a few days ago. What, did you forget already, master Tommy?"

Tommy choked on his food, coughing up a storm before drowning the meal down with his glass of water.

But that's impossible; I'm nine, not four. Something is seriously wrong. Everything looks the same but feels so different for some reason. Mom and Dad aren't at the table, and Miss Emily is being a bit too peppy about everything I do. And this isn't even my favorite breakfast. Why am I eating dinner for breakfast?

"Master Tommy, are you okay!?" Emily checked on Tommy, cleaning his robe with a nearby towel.

That too. She never calls me master unless we're at a formal event. Only Tommy, or little lord if she wants to tease me... Something is wrong with this place.

"No worry, I'm fine." Tommy lied. Obviously, he wasn't fine, and he was panicking as he scoured his mind for answers.

Okay, so I'm somewhere in the past. Time travel? Possibly, but that doesn't get rid of all the inconsistencies. Everyday at 7:45. Ma and Pa sit at the table and eat. I join them 15 minutes later, and we all depart. Yet it's 8 o'clock today. Originally, I remember waking up at 7 because I was so excited. I didn't do anything to change the timeline yet, so why is it off… no, can't be time travel. It has to be something else.

Tommy got up from the table. Placing his napkin over his plate, he began walking away, in the direction of the training room.

"Little lord, wait up!" Emily called out.

"Little lord?"

"Miss Emily." Tommy's face flushed with embarrassment as everyone in the dining hall heard the name.

"W-what?"

In front of everyone!? Impossible, Emily would never.

"Oh god. Sorry, master Tommy I didn't mean it." Emily panicked. The castle beneath them began to rumble, but no one besides Tommy seemed to notice.

"It's fine. Now come on, we gotta meet up with Father!" Tommy ran off, with Emily following behind.

Everything is not fine. Are they reading my mind or something? And what was that quake just now? It occurred right after I called Miss Emily out… I wonder.

"Miss Emily. Did we ever fix the wall Miss Riala crashed into?"

"Not that I'm aware of. Would you like to check Tommy?"

"No, I'm just checking something."

Yeah, five years too early for that. And here comes the question of who Miss Riala is in 3, 2, and.

Tommy waited for a reaction, but nothing came. When he turned around to look at Emily, the maid was visibly nervous, sweating bullets as the boy looked her way.

Huh, no reaction. But my observation still stands, I guess. Maybe they didn't react because I had said they would.

"Tommy?"

"Take the day off, Miss Emily. I'll meet up with Dad on my own."

"B-but master Tommy?"

"Emily" reached out her hand, but the boy had already run off.

Weaving through the servants that filled the halls, Tommy lost sight of Emily and did a few more laps around the castle just to be sure. He made sure to only think of the location of his room as he let his muscle memory direct him towards the training hall. If whatever is chasing him is currently using his memories to get an edge, then all he had to do was make it into a liability instead. It may not work forever, but it worked out for the boy in the long run, as he finally reached his desired location.

"Father! Father!" Tommy yelled.

"Woah, where's the fire?"

"Something is wrong with Miss Emily. Actually, something's wrong with everything. I woke up at eight today; Miss Emily is acting more ditzy than usual, and all my stuff is missing!" Tommy exclaimed, his voice echoing throughout the entire room.

"Alright, deep breaths. Let's calm down so we can figure out what's going on." Matthias took a deep breath and let it out. Tommy did the saying, following the example of his father before letting out a big beath of his own.

"There we go. Feel better now?"

"Yeah. Apologies; I was just feeling a bit tense."

"Being a bit nervous is nothing to apologize for. How about this? I'll inform the guards to investigate your worries while we practice magic together. How's that sound?" Matthias asked as he smiled at his son.

"Okay father." Tommy sighed.

Why is everyone so adamant about this training? Is that what the monster wants—to show me my past?

"Father. What was that one important thing you lost?"

"My family's cloak was passed down from generation to generation." Matthias confidently answered. Only then did the heroes face turn from confident to annoyed.

"I just messed up, didn't I?"

"Well." Tommy began. "Since I never specified what I was talking about, along with the fact that the item didn't get blown up yet, yes, yes, you have."

"You pretentious brat."

The world around Tommy began to crumble, and the form of Matthias broke down as black smoke escaped from the heroes mouth.

Tommy felt his equipment and height return to him as he watched the smoke form into a massive snake. slowly

"I must say, you and your partner are impressive. You both were able to deduce my abilities so quickly. Yet you're the only one who caught me in the act." The snake began to move, using its massive size to cover all four corners of the room.

"Wh-what are you?" Tommy asked, slowly backing away from the monster. That was until he was stopped by the snake slowly coiling around him.

"I am the sleeping serpent who feasts on the memories of others. I have no name, so you can call me by my species. The Echo-Conda." The snake hissed, shaking the room around them.

"Your memories were quite bland. To think one could live such a happy life." The snake's eyes turned white as it stared into Tommy's eyes.

"I was just getting to the good part as well. I sense a wellspring of insecurity, and I want it."

"No!" The snake opened its mouth, but Tommy was quick on the draw, tossing a charme into its mouth.

Swallowing the wooden disc, the snake grasp on Tommy was weakened as it exploded, leaving the snake with a smoking mouth.

Darn. That was supposed to be a lightning charme. Tommy lamented.

"Lightning eh? Even if it was, it wouldn't be enough to beat me."

"Ma-maybe. But I have to go home, so no eating me." Tommy nervously declared.

"Aww, what's wrong? Scared that your life is about to come to an end."

"I may be scared." Tommy began. He pulled out several charmeyas from his bag and held them with each finger on his hand. "But father told me to punch whatever was causing me fear in the face. Well… I have to do it magically, but you get the point."

"Well, by all means. If you desire to test your mettle, then show me your best. Cuz believe me. I'll enjoy bringing you down to your worst."

The two scared each other down, one brimming with arrogance while the other cowered in a false persona of confidence. Tommy gripped each charme tight as he waited for the most opportune moment. That moment quickly came as the echo-conda pounced at the boy.

"Joint Activation, Eight Elements: Terra!"

Tossing all eight discs with excellent finesse, all of them reached the snake's head around the same time and activated. Similar to before, however, as the elements of the disc began to form themselves, they quickly disappeared, instead exploding in a white flash of light.

Tommy coughed as dust filled the room. Grabbing onto some more charme, the boy quietly moved to a new position while keeping track of the snake's original location. His sneaky plans were thwarted, however, as the snake's tail swept across the room. He tried to jump over it, but he was caught by the tail and slammed right into the wall.

"Well, that would have hurt, but you doubted yourself mid-throw. Delicious."

Tommy yelped in pain as the snake pushed him further into the wall. "Now I'm curious. You're dreading something about your… weird magic. Shall we check it out?" The snake asked, only getting pained and grunting as a response. But he smiled anyway as his eyes turned white.

"Great answer."

Staring into Tommy's eyes, the world around them began to shift, rebuilding the castle that previously surrounded them. Still pinned on the wall, Tommy watched as his father and another version of himself began making Charme.

"Now. Let's see what makes you tick."