fessions of the Historian are non-tinuous pseudo chapters that feature a timeframe far removed from the main story. They will not affect the main story’s update schedule, and will instead be uploaded at random intervals alongside them.

  Ep 153. fessions of the Historian: Bygone Days

  I’ve long lost t of your rebirth. You are the only human soul to have led so many lives.

  Only in this moment will you recall your true self. Once reborn, you will lose your memories again, and live out another meaningless few decades before returning to me.

  For what reason do you tihis foolish cycle?

  Your precious family has lo your side – there is nothing for you that remains on this star.

  Tell me. For what reason do you g to this empty new world?

  ? ? ?

  The fer trudged along the strange-colored forests.

  The rumors had promised him an endless expanse of the rarest of herbs. But so far, he’d found nothing but a single mandrake in his little adventure; besides that was a seemingly endless array of crimson-leaved trees and pink grass, both of which were strange, but unfortunately of little practical use.

  And, to make matters worse…

  “…I’m lost, aren’t I?”

  Wheurned his head, an endless expanse of pink grass id before him, decorated by the fallen blood-colored leaves. T above him were enormous trees that said leaves once beloo, blog out most light from above.

  In fact, he could hardly tell if it was day ht anymore. For all he khe little amount of light that was seeping in may very well be glimmers of distant stars, not sunlight.

  “I ’t go back empty-handed again…going a little deeper couldn’t hurt.”

  ‘If worse es to past, I’ll make camp somewhere and spend the night out. It doesn’t seem like any demons are in the area, anyways…I ’t have goHAT far.’

  The forest he’d ventured into was one of the few remaining regions that no demon tribe had cimed as their domain; not yet, anyways.

  And after just a few more mihe fer’s eyes narrowed at the sight of a peculiar glimmer.

  “Wait, is that…?”

  The further he went, the more he grew certain – in the distance was a rge clearing, with what seemed like a mountain of glittering objects.

  “Finally!”

  What else could it be but rarities and treasure?

  The fer dashed across the forest pathway, rag towards the distant lights. His heart raced in anticipatioed to relish in his new discovery.

  However, his steps gradually slowed down – very, VERY gradually, as he realized what the source of the glimmer was.

  And when he realized he shouldn’t have approached so hastily, it was far too te.

  “………”

  The mountain of glimmering objects was, in fact, a singur object.

  Actually, it wasn’t even an object. Objects don’t breathe.

  Within the small clearing was an enormous dragon, curled up in a peaceful slumber. Their brilliant white scales lightly shoh the night sky, each scale glimmering like a piece of jewelry.

  Of course, he couldn’t take any of it home.

  ‘Hells, I’d be lucky if I take my own life bae…what oh is a dragon doing here?! This isn’t their domain!’

  The fer slowly took a step back. He was already too close to the sleeping dragon – merely a handful of steps away – and waking it was the st thing he wao.

  Somehow, the g of leaves beh his feet seemed a thousand times louder than they had been on his way here.

  ‘Alright, this is fihey’re fast asleep. I just…sneak out quietly…and never e back.’

  The fer soon turned his back, walking away in as much silence as he could muster.

  …Until his trembliripped over an unremarkable piece of stone.

  “WH-“

  A loud thud followed as the fer fell face-first onto the ground, the tents of his leather satchel sprawling across the forest floors. He immediately rubbed his nose in pain, though the first thing he did was to check if the dragon had awoken.

  Thankfully, they were still sound asleep.

  ‘Thank the First…’

  He briefly sed the ground for the belongings he’d dropped – though they were hardly visible uhe night sky.

  Kig his tohe fer immediately abahe items, fog on making his way out of the clearing.

  ‘Nothing I ’t acquire again. Survival es first…’

  With the looming danger sleeping behind him, the fer’s mind pletely overlooked what his belongings even were. He simply had al capacity to worry about his items.

  That is, until he stepped on what felt like a soft clump of root.

  “…?”

  “K-“

  In the split seds that followed, a million thoughts passed the fer’s head.

  ‘…What did I just step on? Wait, what did I even have on me again?’

  A bottle of water.

  A handheld shovel.

  Patches of dried grass.

  Two small rolls of cloth.

  Some emergency medie.

  A few krahka leaves.

  Vernos oil.

  And a mandrake he’d found earlier today.

  Mandrake.

  Mandrake…

  ‘…Oh, for heaven’s sake.’

  As most would know, mandrakes had a tendency to ‘scream’ upon being uprooted – which was actually a misception.

  Being pnts, mandrakes felt no pain or misery to scream from; instead, their ‘screams’ were just a peculiar way of releasing mana. Upon being uprooted, the ge in enviro causes mandrakes to lose their mana-st qualities, causing a huge release of mana that appear as screams. Once exhausted of the mana they had stored within, the roots would then fall silent.

  But to preserve a mandrake’s medial qualities as well as to prevent their screams, fers would ofte to bathing the roots with various oils, then ing them in a yer of leather beforehand. This allowed the mandrakes to keep rger amounts of mana trapped within them, prolonging their shelf time and signifitly increasing their quality.

  …Of course, stepping on them would do away with aher ing.

  And scrape the oil away.

  “KEEEEAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!”

  “…”

  When the fer turned his head, a new glimmer greeted his gaze.

  A giant sapphire eye was now wide-open, staring at the cause of their peaceful slumber’s interruption.

  “…I could not possibly be more screwed.”

  ? ? ?

  “…”

  “…”

  “…”

  “…”

  The fer only exged silent blinks with the awoken dragon.

  But ohe unfortable blinks tinued from seds to minutes, he pyfully poiowards the clearing’s exit, letting out a nervous ughter.

  “Um…haha…good…evening?”

  “…”

  “My apologies. I was…just on my way to leave, you see.”

  “…”

  “…If you wouldn’t mind, I’ll…be on my way now…”

  The fer turned away from the dragon, briskly making his way towards the clearing’s exit. For a split sed, he actually thought that the dragon would not care enough to bother with a single human.

  …Until a wall of glimmering scales snaked around in front of him, blog his exit.

  “Where do you think yoing, human?”

  “…Home?”

  Sn, the dragon pulled their arm inwards, scraping the helpless fer towards them. The dragon zily yawned as they lifted the fer above their head, positioning to drop them into their open maw.

  “W, wait, wait, wait, wait! Are you sure about eating me, dragon?! I, I uh, I dig dirt for a living, you see! I, I won’t taste that good!”

  “…I’ve no mind to eat you myself, but I ’t afford to have you go bbbing about my sanctuary to other humans.”

  “I swear I’ll ell anyone!”

  “Of course you won’t. You’ll be dead.”

  “…Fair point.”

  g to the dragon’s rather undisputable logic, the fer sealed their eyes, internally resigning to their fate. They’d hastily chased after a false rumor, so perhaps they deserved no less.

  But just as the dragon was about to drop him between his jaws, they let out a loud grunt, twisting their backs in pain.

  “…Ugh. This again…”

  “…?”

  The fer’s mind once again began to process a million thoughts, bolstered by the panic before their immi death. Their eyes hurriedly sed the dragon’s fidgeting body part, as well as their posture and the clear disfort in their eyes.

  Then, in a desperate attempt, shouted into the clearing once more.

  “I, if you put me down, I fix it!”

  “…? You? A human?”

  “Indeed! I uh, I may not look it, but I’m quite the promising healer! It’s your back, is it not?”

  “…”

  The dragourned no ao the fer’s frantich.

  However, the dragon’s eyes betrayed a hint of truth – and that was all he needed.

  “Wasn’t like that before, was it? Feels rigid, like frail wood that’s on the verge of snapping…that’s why you’re cautious about moving it much, yes?”

  “…Hm.”

  After an arduous minute of p, the dragohe human down unto the ground beside them. They then lowered their head, sapphire gaze staring into the fer’s tiny gold eyes.

  “And you fix it, you say?”

  “O, of course!”

  The dragon rolled their eyes. They snorted in a mix of hope and derision, though soon they looked away, returning to their slumbering position. Even their eyes soon closed back.

  Then, in a rumbling voice, made their final say.

  “…Very well. Should you truly succeed, I will spare your life.”

  ? ? ?

  “…And that’s how I met your mother, Eden. Fun, huh?”

  “Wham?”

  “Your mother was a horrible patient at first. She was trying to be all scary and menag…it took us weeks to get her to even listen to me properly. I remember she refused to eve up and stretch for five minutes. Now you both do every m!”

  Eden listeo her father’s story with a puzzled gaze, sitting in the fort of her mother’s embrace. The tiny girl ig up some words here and there, but she was still much too young to uand the story in full.

  Meanwhile, Serenis was gring at her partner with pursed lips, squeezing the baby tight in her arms.

  “Do not listen to him, Eden. No such event ever took pce.”

  “Wha…you don’t remember? Not even when you apanied me to the vilge?”

  “…”

  “I remember it like yesterday! You were so cute back then, clueless and all. I remember you thinking the pte art of the food, and-“

  Before her husband could tinue regaling their daughter in her shameful past, Serenis grabbed Adam by the back of his head, pulling his head towards her.

  His words were quickly silenced when the dragonlord’s lips csped above his.

  And by the time they parted, Adam’s thoughts had lo him.

  “You were saying?”

  “…Nothing. Never mind.”

  “Mama! Me too! Me too!”

  As Serenis doted on her baby daughter, a f warmth soon spread across Adam’s dazed expression. The days he’d spent as a lone fer seemed so distant now.

  This was his family; this was where he belonged, and he’d never choose to be anywhere else but by their side.

  With what little time he had as a human man, he’d happily use it all on treasuring his dear family.

  ‘Even if time does us apart…’

  Adam beamed a warm smile at his doting partner.

  Even if time did them apart, he’d heless be near her.

  As long as the star wished so, he’d remain at her side.

  And he’d nurture her to the best of his abilities, just as he always have.

  ? ? ?

  A vow, you say.

  A blind faith that the dead will once again require your presence…a vow that binds you to this empty world…

  Then, if you were able, would you go ge the past?

  …

  …

  …No? How e?

  Because there’s nothing to ge?

  …

  I see.