Lost.

Day 67, Year 3000.

"Boy, here are the books you wanted me to find."

The old librarian placed 23 books on the table. All of them were more than 300 pages, and he didn't break a sweat while carrying them with one hand.

"How are you so strong?"

Marveling at his feat of strength, Gawain couldn't keep his mouth shut.

"These are just books. Not that much of an accomplishment."

The librarian scoffed at that comment.

"I am pretty sure that I can't do it."

He looked at his palm.

"That isn't because I am strong. That is because you are weak."

The golden tag on his red uniform read his name.

'Rimu Link.'

He looked older than everyone else in the academy, and yet he was only a red knight.

"You should not be wasting your time on the Knight Guardians."

He admired the young lad's tenacity, but he was wasting his precious time on useless stuff.

"I know what I am doing. I sincerely appreciate your advice though."

Gawain opened up his first book.

Rimu looked at the boy with agony in his eyes.

'All of it is just a way to create strife between factions that want to create a sense of superiority over each other. I hope that you come to understand it before you get into trouble.'

He turned around and left with a heavy heart. He had a story that would be a proper lesson to others, but he would rather keep it hidden in the depths of his consciousness than share it with others and increase his grief.

Gawain read through the first book.

'Not this one.'

The contents were similar to the previous books.

The second book had the same outcome.

Third book: different data, but exaggerated to absurd levels.

He brushed off some dirt from the cover of the fourth book.

"Ballad of the Guardians."

Three poems are dedicated to each of the guardians, along with a proper explanation. He flipped through all the poems to reach the Perseus part.

Official Historian Notes from the Royal Council of Euphemia are the source.

Poem One.

Everlasting Shade.

Under the reflection of the mirror of life,

The everlasting shade of a warrior that took the brunt of the enemy's strike.

His eyes were calm while the blows arrived,

Even in death, he made a principled sacrifice.

With the gratitude of the goddess that created a new hope under his shade,

Long may his name last, his will resonating and refusing the notion to fade.

The loss of one inspires the hearts of the ones left behind.

The everlasting shade of the Guardian will protect us, facing all of our enemies with an answer in kind.

"Not this."

He did not read the explanation.

Poem Two.

Aegis.

A challenge accepted on her behalf,

He raised his heart to face the demon's red staff.

Aegis, a companion more than what a brother would be,

A shield is more than what a weapon would be.

With a vow to live and die for each other,

His heart was pierced through, pouring out his soul as it went further.

Despite that, a faint sense of relief made its arrival known with a smile,

I will see you soon, my friend. It will only be a while.

Both their lives were exhumed with a single strike,

But they were happy. This was what their end was supposed to be like.

Their lives were lost, but the war was won.

There is only one Aegis and there will only be one.

The poem was good, but it was not what he was looking for.

"The last one."

Poem Three.

Lost.

The warrior rests in the arms of his beloved.

His eyes were searching for her face, wishing to look through the crimson shade of blood.

Her hand in his hand, her soft breath on his face,

This must be his way to her. Without holding back, he prepared himself for haste.

Because he is her knight. And only as her knight does he have a path to follow.

Like the new moon, darkness encompassed all he knew.

He no longer feels her breath. He no longer hears her sorrow.

The tears that were the lights of his journey have become opaque rocks that are hollow.

The loss was not where his heart wanted to be.

He screamed. He ran. He used the very essence of his soul to go back to her.

Soon enough, her face had vanished from his memory,

He was colored in the hue of the void that confined him for eternity.

When not even the blur was left,

He finally understood what fate had planned for him and his forgotten dream.

Inside the comfort of unlimited frustration,

He admitted, that he was lost forever.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-

There he was. Inside the void.

Chains are made up of darkness, covering a lifeless body.

She walked up to him. Wherever she walked, the darkness seemed to dissipate.

He opened his eyes.

"Remember me?"

She came closer and placed her hand on his chest.

"I-"

He recognized her voice.

"You are still not ready."

She was forcing her smile. He could tell.

'Snap.'

Within a moment, she took her hand off his chest and snapped her fingers.

"I will always be here. Remember me, and I will release you from your chains."

A blinding flash of light that destroyed all of his chains.

"Until then, I cannot save you."

Darkness didn't lose. He fell onto the floor that was made out of a mirror, catching his reflection for a second.

"Perseus."

He was about to touch his face with his palm, but the chains latched on to all the different parts of his body, stretching him back to his original position.

He clenched his fists.

"Euphemia."

Two names. One was his, and the other was of someone he had known before.

"Wait for me."