Between Past and Sin

{ THE DAY AFTER... }

The morning light gently filtered through the castle windows, while the coolness of the new day seemed to whip the air with a serene calm.

After a delightful breakfast of fragrant bread, sweet strawberry jam, and fresh milk, Mirac made his way to the classroom.

His step was determined, but his mind was far from peaceful.

The silence of the corridors only amplified the turmoil he felt within himself.

Almost involuntarily, he kept thinking back to the previous day, especially to that mysterious "Instant Counting" which, although inexplicable, seemed to have become inextricably tied to him, like a shadow that he couldn't shake off.

Yet, Mirac had never asked for or desired any of this. Neither the mysterious power he now found himself possessing, nor being haunted by Math.

"Why won't you leave me alone?" Mirac wondered, his fists clenched in anger, as his footsteps echoed nervously along the corridors.

Anger rose within him, mixed with a sense of helplessness that he couldn't dispel.

Thinking about his "Instant Counting" ability—which, while walking through the halls, was continuously providing him with information on the number of objects around him—why did it have to be him, of all people, to receive it?!

"Why me, Math?" he thought bitterly, feeling the unbearable weight of that question. "Couldn't you have just chosen someone else?"

Despite his turmoil, Mirac couldn't allow himself to face the day with that inner frenzy tearing him apart. When he reached the second floor of the castle, he forced himself to calm down.

It wouldn't be wise to bring that bad mood into the classroom.

He stopped for a moment, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath, letting the cool morning air caress his face and calm his restless thoughts.

Then, step by step, as he approached his classroom, he felt the weight of frustration gradually lighten, as if the mere thought of diving into books helped him regain a bit of peace.

Moreover, he was really looking forward to his first two lessons of the day: History and Geography!

A thrill of anticipation ran through his body, and the excitement coursing through his veins made him ignore both the lingering tiredness and the disturbance still swirling inside him.

'Finally! I can't wait!' he thought, as a smile spread across his face and he tightly clutched the notebooks he had brought for the lessons.

Up to that moment, Mirac only knew his kingdom—the Kingdom of Ardorya—and a few superficial facts about the other kingdoms that made up the continent of Harmony.

But his knowledge stopped there.

Beyond these superficial facts, he had no idea how the kingdoms were connected, what their histories were, or the origins and characteristics of each kingdom.

The mental maps he had constructed were full of gaps: he didn't know the distances, the exact locations, or even the appearance of places he had only heard about.

The constellations, which Mirac could recognize in the starry skies, along with the four annual seasons, seemed to match those of the southern hemisphere, leading him to assume that at least the Kingdom of Ardorya was located there.

But after seven years, the young Prince would finally obtain the answers he had long been seeking.

His questions would find answers, and the world that had so intrigued him would soon be revealed to him. Map after map.

Chapter after chapter.

* * *

Standing before the intricately carved door of the classroom, Mirac felt his heart pounding with a mix of excitement and curiosity.

'Calm down, Mirac! For now, at least, try to clear your mind!' he told himself, trying to push away the thoughts of Math that still tormented him.

Right now, it definitely wasn't the right time to think about it.

Taking a deep breath, he raised his eyes toward the classroom door.

'Let's go in!' he thought, turning the handle decisively.

Once inside, he immediately noticed Vincent behind the desk, busy arranging some papers and clumsily managing a stack of books that was on the verge of toppling over.

Watching the scene, the numbers of the papers and books flooded Mirac's mind, but this time, he didn't seem to grow anxious. Not only to avoid appearing unsettled—as had happened the day before with Carmen, when he had let himself be overwhelmed by unease—but also because, deep down, he felt he was already getting used to his skill "Instant Counting."

'He's not late today, huh? Well, thank goodness!' thought Mirac, distracting himself with a touch of irony.

Despite his obvious clumsiness, Vincent wore an expression of seriousness and concentration.

When he looked up and saw Mirac, a light but determined smile appeared on his face.

"Oh! Good morning, young Prince!" he exclaimed, trying to give his voice an energetic tone but managing only to convey a mixture of enthusiasm and awkwardness.

Then, with a wink—although he barely managed to coordinate his eyelids—he added in a joking tone:

"I hope you have done your homework."

Mirac stood motionless for a second in the doorway, staring at him with a bored expression.

'If I ever saw someone wink at me like that, I'd probably call the authorities...' he thought, obviously without voicing his thoughts aloud.

Then, with a sigh, Mirac lifted the notebook he was holding, drawing Vincent's attention to it, and replied in an almost indifferent tone:

"Yes, Professor. I did the homework."

As the student took his seat at the only desk in the room, Vincent let out a brief, embarrassed chuckle.

"W-Well, excellent work then!" he stammered, almost as if apologizing for his overly enthusiastic remark.

Then he rummaged insistently through his bag, pulling out a large book with a thick light blue cover adorned with intricate golden patterns that shimmered in the room's light. The book looked heavy, both physically and conceptually, and Vincent placed it on the desk with a solemn movement.

"Ahem! Anyway..." he began after clearing his throat. "Today, young Prince, we'll start with an hour of History."

"Alright!" replied Mirac.

* * *

For most of the lesson, Vincent focused on providing a lengthy introduction to the subject, as was appropriate for a seven-year-old. 

His explanations were simple but essential for laying the foundation of concepts fundamental to understanding time and history.

In the first few minutes, he quickly explained what a "millennium," a "century," and a "decade" were, to prevent future confusion with temporal and chronological placements.

Mirac, sitting with a stiff posture and a bored expression, couldn't hide his impatience.

His eyelids would occasionally close in nervous spasms, clearly revealing his growing frustration.

'Hurry up and get to the point!' he thought, his mind already elsewhere, eager to move on to something more useful and interesting.

In addition to explaining the terms, Vincent read some excerpts from historians who spoke about the importance of history and why studying it was crucial.

For example, he quoted a text that emphasized how history helps understand the past and build a better future, and another that highlighted the role of historical memory in preserving culture.

With his typical clumsy demeanor, Vincent tried to be as clear as possible.

When the introduction finally came to an end, and unfortunately only a few minutes were left of the History lesson, Vincent approached the blackboard with a white chalk in his hands.

With a decisive gesture, he wrote a four-digit number sequence.

"Young Prince, you know what year it is, don't you?" Vincent asked, as the white chalk dusted his fingers.

"Yes, Professor. If I'm not mistaken, it's 1414."

Mirac knew this well, since, not yet knowing how to count in the previous years, he had decided to keep track of time by asking Carmen every year what the current year was.

"Correct!" Vincent exclaimed with enthusiasm, leaving the chalk on the edge of the blackboard and turning to Mirac with a smile of approval.

The number "1414" dominated the blackboard, written large in the center.

"You must know, young Prince, that our planet is the Supreme Creation of the Seven Deities," Vincent explained solemnly.

"Supreme Creation? Seven Deities?" Mirac raised an eyebrow, visibly intrigued.

Finally, the lesson seemed to be getting more interesting.

"Exactly! But we'll talk about them in more detail tomorrow, during the religion lesson."

"Alright," Mirac confirmed, shrugging in a gesture of understanding.

Vincent continued, not wasting any more time.

"As I was saying, our beloved planet was created thanks to the power of the Seven Deities. In chronological order, they created the Day, the Night, the Seas, the Winds, the Earth, Nature, and finally, Fire. Together, they created a world where we can still live peacefully today."

Mirac, fascinated by those words, let out an exclamation of astonishment:

"I-Incredible!"

"Exactly!" Vincent confirmed, his smile lighting up his face. "The Deities represent the pure essence of Magic. But we'll talk more about that tomorrow in the 'Introduction to Magic' lesson."

After slowly flipping through the book in his hands, Vincent moved closer to the desk and continued:

"The creation of the world happened 1500 years ago. But then, why does our calendar mark the current year as 1414?"

Mirac, as if some deep instinct had warned him, sensed that this question was the prelude to an important piece of information.

His interest grew, and the silence in the room seemed to amplify every word Vincent was about to say.

"Well, the answer is quite simple, young Prince," Vincent resumed, maintaining the mysterious tone that characterized his explanation. "The number 1414 marks the years that have passed since the defeat of absolute evil, the entity that threatened the very existence of everything we know today: the 'Sinner'!"

That exclamation immediately stiffened Mirac's spine, a shiver of curiosity and unease running through him.

"The Sinner? And who is that?" he asked, his voice uncertain but full of interest, as his gaze fixed on Vincent, seeking an explanation.

Vincent scratched his head, taking a brief pause as if the thought of what to say was causing him difficulty.

"Before we talk about her, we need to finish discussing the creation of our planet, young Prince," Vincent finally replied, his face suddenly serious and almost cautious, as if merely speaking about it could summon something evil.

Mirac sighed, rolling his eyes toward the ceiling.

Vincent resumed explaining, instantly renewing the smile on his face:

"As I was saying... When the Divine Work—the creation of our planet—was completed, the Deities moved on to creating Life, each using a different method. And from this, humans were born!"

Vincent paused, as if to allow his words to take shape in Mirac's mind.

"From the very beginning, all of them worshipped the Gods. As it was only right, of course, since humans immediately recognized in the Seven Deities the source of all things good: love, life, peace..."

But again, Vincent's smile faded, replaced by a more serious expression, almost thoughtful.

"But you know, young Prince... Where there is love, there is also hate... Where there is life, there is also death... Where there is peace, there is also chaos... And it is precisely from this that we reconnect to the Sinner!"

Vincent's words seemed to tremble in the room.

But this time, it was not the typical awkwardness of his character making his voice hesitant.

No! It was something different.

There was a palpable unease that slithered through his words.

"The Sinner..." Vincent continued, his voice betraying a certain apprehension. "Her origins are completely unknown. But without a shadow of a doubt, she was an incredibly powerful woman, with mysterious powers that no one knows anymore. Before committing her sin, she was known as the 'Blue-Haired Witch.'"

"Blue-haired?!" Mirac repeated, surprised.

"Exactly. This is how the 'Seven Sacred Gospels' describe her. And in these texts, her branded sin is also witnessed: an act of pure madness that no living being would even dare to think about doing!"

Vincent seemed almost intimidated by the weight of his own words.

Mirac, now completely absorbed in the story, anxiously asked:

"And what was her sin?"

Vincent nervously swallowed his saliva.

"Her Sin..." his voice trembling as he responded, "...was daring to challenge and attempt to kill the Gods!"

Mirac was left momentarily speechless.

Said like that, the statement gave him goosebumps, and the room suddenly seemed to grow colder.

"T-To kill the Gods? Really?!"

Mirac didn't even think such a thing was possible.

Not that the fact that someone—the Sinner—had attempted it was actually definitive proof that it was truly possible.

But the very idea still seemed unthinkable to him.

"But... why?!"

The answer to Mirac's question, as could be expected, was actually quite predictable.

"It's obvious, young Prince: to dominate and rule this world!" Vincent replied. "The Seven Deities were nothing but an obstacle to her goal. So, the Sinner decided to challenge them, attempting to kill and get rid of them. But fortunately, the Gods joined forces and were able to stop and defeat her, thus restoring peace. Since then, exactly 1414 years have passed."

Mirac nodded slowly, trying to absorb all of this new information.

"Oh... I see..." he murmured, still deep in thought.

Smiling, Vincent seemed pleased to have sparked so much interest, and as he glanced up at the clock, he realized they had gone over the allotted time.

"Oh, it's already 9:07! We've gone a little past the scheduled time. But it doesn't matter," he said with a smile. "I'd say we move on to Geography now. What do you think, young Prince?"

Mirac nodded, still lost in his thoughts.

"Alright..." he replied simply.