Way Home

Since the major incident that shook Archtier, things at SURVIVE have never been the same. When Neya took Drey to the hospital, he passed away. At that point, Drey was recognized by an agent on an ongoing undercover mission, who made the decision to take him to the Notus District.

Drey's funeral was held formally, attended by hundreds of agents who appeared devastated by his passing. The agents' memories return as Madame Ouden died. When they heard Neya's recap of what had happened that day, they pondered, felt regret, and wished they could go back in time. Meanwhile Fayrl, the only one who dared to face Madame Ouden, had been lying in the headquarters hospital bed for three days. Debora was the first person the doctor informed about her consciousness on the third day.

"Hey!" Debora snapped, pushing Fayrl's shoulder lightly with tears in her eyes. "How dare you make me feel alone?! You must haven't felt anything while you were 'sleeping', right?!" she continued irritably, wiping the tears that ran down her cheeks.

"How about Harris and Brissia?"

Debora shook her head vigorously at Fayrl's question, slumped into a chair beside the hospital bed, and rested her face in her arms. "One hasn't come back, and the other has simply disappeared."

Fayrl's eyes went vacant. She didn't need to inquire as to Hansen and her father's wellbeing as she had seen it with her own eyes. She did not even speak or cry when she heard that her cousin had passed away.

The absence of those two, though, troubled her. She would rather hear bad news about them than have to put her hope in fate, which wasn't hesitate to take her dearest one from her life.

Meanwhile, in the main lobby, Davina approached Neya who was sitting on a light gray sofa. That color made her think of the man who had battled alongside her for ten years since she was just an ordinary agent, who had inspired her to join Veron and Alessia on a mission in the distant past, and who had eventually helped her escape the curse of memory loss.

Her loss came with the loss of her most cherished colleagues. She understood from Gabriel's statement that Alessia and Veron were not leaving SURVIVE for leisure. They kept an eye on Harris through each letter Gabriel wrote to Alessia while keeping their distance. That made Davina regret the obedience she had given to both of them by keeping Harris in the dark about Veron's involvement with SURVIVE.

"Sis?"

Neya's call made Davina blink her eyes. She gave a small nod when her sister motioned for her to follow her out of the base.

"Where are we going?" Davina asked.

Neya remained silent. She did not speak until they were standing in front of a big stone with names carved on it.

"Half of Harris's power has belonged to the right person."

Davina glanced at her. "Did Drey tell you that?"

Neya's nod straightened Davina's gaze. "Thanks. I'll make sure it's on everyone's mind."

"Honestly, Miss Savior does save people."

Davina turned to Neya, blinked when she saw the dim look in her sister's eyes.

"She not only assisted me in escaping the dimensional prison that Madame Ouden had built, but she also asked me to help the others."

"You mean," Davina immediately said, "those who went missing..."

Before Davina could finish her words, Neya nodded and smiled slightly. A gentle gust of wind that embraced the two of them left them in a peaceful silence, as Brissia felt elsewhere.

Behind the soundproof windows showing the clear blue sky, she was writing on her medium-sized book. Several people passing by beside the tall bookshelves occasionally glanced at her as if they remembered her being somewhere. However, that memory has become mere déjà vu for them.

"Hey! Are you done?! We have only ten minutes left!" hissed Gierra, who had just arrived behind the shoulder-length haired girl.

"Yeah! I know you hate this course, but stop sulking and finish your long writing," said Nicholas, who followed Gierra.

Brissia closed her medium sized book and rose from her seat. "Here," she said as she handed her book to Gierra with a deadpan look.

Gierra smiled contentedly at that. "Finally, the last book to collect. If you have to take this course again, consider serving as class president. You'll be able to stick with the course, I can assure you of that."

Still with her flat expression, Brissia looked at Gierra and Nicholas who giggled softly.

"Oh? Is that a bracelet?"

Nicholas pushed Gierra in another direction while saying, "Come on, you have to quickly hand in all of these."

"But Brissia isn't the type to wear bracelets! Wait, Nicho!"

Seeing Nicho helping Gierra carry half the books in her hands as they walked together out of the library, Brissia smiled slightly. Then her gaze fell on the brown macrame bracelet on her left wrist.

"I don't even know when I started wearing it," she muttered under her breath, absently passing by someone who had brown hair that glistened under the sunlight. The person glanced at her briefly before walking away.

The Financial Accounting class began with all students taking their seats. Brissia tried to maintain her consciousness until the end of class. However, her head slammed against the table.

"Brissia Niverte, forty."

Brissia immediately raised her head, glanced at the clock on the wall on her right before turning to her classmates.

The view of the old town and its crowds of people hanging out vanished from her sight before she could recognize it. Time has showed that the class reached its last minute, while all she felt was a minute of sleep.

"HUUH?!"

Her classmates walked toward the exit, while Brissia was still sitting and digesting the reality she had heard. She leaned back in her chair limply as Gierra and Nicholas coaxed her out of the classroom with them.

"Ah, whatever! Ji, let's go first! I don't want to miss the subway like last week!" said Nicholas as he pulled Gierra, who was waving her palm in front of Brissia's face.

When only herself and the teaching assistant were left in the room, only then did Brissia rise from her seat. The man stared flatly at Brissia who was approaching him with a blank look.

"May I request a remedial assignment?" Brissia pleaded to him as soon as she stopped in front of the lecturer's desk.

"Have you never attended an in-depth class so far?" he taunted. "I told everyone there would be no remedial."

Brissia opened her mouth, paused for a moment, then pressed her lips together while looking away.

"But if you're that persistent, there's another way to improve your grade."

The teaching assistant's words turned Brissia's head to him.

"How?" she asked him with a skeptical look.

He had a thoughtful expression on his face and appeared to be thinking about something before turning to look directly at Brissia.

"Study with me."

Reluctance painted the girl's face. She had heard how he made it simple for one of her classmates to complete a remedial assignment. But was there anything she could do besides put up with her parents's criticism and lectures?

After chuckling lightly, Brissia answered half-heartedly, "How long? One hour? Or until the sun sets?"

"As long as you can keep up with my intelligence, you're welcome to even spend the night alone in the cafe."

Brissia suddenly snorted with a wry smile when she heard that. Just as she was about to take out the electronic card in her trousers pocket, she froze instantly. She blinked before turned on the screen of her cellphone, only to see a brand logo appear before the screen went completely black. There was no charger in her shoulder bag when she reached inside.

"Shall we go now?"

The girl turned a little nervously toward him, but all she found was his calm expression. Just as she opened her mouth, the man suddenly said...

"Come. I'll give you a ride."

Brissia felt a mixture of surprise, annoyance, and embarrassment. But as time passed, she sensed that he was unwilling to linger with her. She eventually followed him to a café next to a crossroads.

"Try completing this one by first calculating the equity."

The two sat side by side at a long table overlooking the city sparkling in golden light. Brissia nodded as she typed some numbers on her high-tech tablet.

"After that, confirm that the equity percentage is the lesser of 100% and the percentage of liabilities. For the taxes

…."

She followed the teaching assistant's instructions and answered questions piece by piece. She typed deftly, as if she had never felt resentment toward her task. She also didn't feel the slightest bit tired until the sky turned dark and she let go of her electronic pen.

At first, she suspected it was because of the permeating aroma of coffee and the low temperature in the room. However, up until the final afternoon before the final semester exam, she believed it was thanks to his simple, easy to remember words.

On a sunny day, Brissia checked her email right away after seeing an announcement there. She was reading her email when her phone vibrated with an incoming call, prompting her to pick it up.

"Hello... Yes! It's a satisfying outcome," she grinned broadly.

It was the first time she had a wide smile while being coerced by one or two people into learning a lesson she didn't want to. The chain that was choking her for a long time eventually became as light as thread, allowing her to breathe. And since it was the biggest occasion of her life, she chose to share it with someone.

Clink!

Behind the window that slightly reflected the lights of vehicles and the streetlights, two people sat next to each other and toasted with their ceramic mugs.

"I got a perfect score!" the girl said excitedly as she lowered her mug of chocolate. "Can't believe I made it through."

She sat next to a guy with brown hair and a dark green sweater. He gave her a smile as he looked at her.

"Congrats. Now, pay me for my hard work in making it easy for you."

His gaze was accidentally drawn to the brown macrame bracelet on Brissia's wrist. It plunged him into a brief reverie. But then, he heard the girl chuckle confidently.

"Tell me the price!" she said a little ambitiously, "I know you've never been one to willingly spare anything for me."

Seeing the girl's challenging gaze, he blinked slowly. But then, he touched the glass in Brissia's grasp and asked her softly, "How does it taste, Brissie?"

Following the question he asked with a gentle smile, Brissia looked at him in disbelief.

"That's it?"

"Hm."

A nod from him turned Brissia's gaze to her mug of chocolate as she seemed to be thinking about it. However, she then looked back at him mischievously.

"How about you tell me the origin of that nickname first?"

He chuckled slightly, turning Brissia confused. But then, he offered to walk with her out of the cafe. Since they no longer had anything to do there, Brissia followed him.

"It's from an old town that existed long ago before everything is digitalized. Scholars sharpened their knowledge to help society, while the police risked their lives to eliminate the witches."

His explanation made Brissia open the front passenger door with a thoughtful look.

"So..."

Brissia sat down as he sat in the driver's seat.

"...Is that a place called Archtier? I found it in the library in a form similar to a diary."

While starting the car engine, he turned his head briefly to her with a knowingly smile and said nothing.

Until the threads that connected their story at a specific point in time were reconnected, the answer to Brissia's question would remain a mystery. They once belonged to a story that remained in some memories. However, it is God's will that will tell one of them when to reminisce.