Reminiscing

William, like every other adult, was in a bar drinking away his sorrows with a big glass full of beer.

The man is in his mid-twenties. By this age, people often had already settled in, gotten married, had kids and found a stable job to bring food on the table for the family... and then there was William, single and with nothing under his name.

William is a man who has yet to discover his ambition, what passions him. He tried many jobs, like being a merchant, waiter, even a monk at the monastery, but none of them lasted long.

—I think being a monk for a month was too much.

He gulped down the seventh beer in one shot.

It was an awful experience for him. He used to wake up early every day and was isolated from the world. He could only devote himself to the Holy Spirit, but never to his wellbeing. He could never pick spirituality over his freedom, so he left without looking back.

—It's too much work for my beliefs.

He has always had a side job, as a blacksmith. This job wasn't of much importance to him, even if that is what he's best at. He has been declared to be one of the best, but he feels it isn't something he should be proud of.

—It is in my bloodline. I can't escape it, dammit.

His family, the Jaegers, are known to be the best blacksmiths in the country. Every generation is taught how to perfectly do the craft from the handle to the tip of the blade.

He used to love blacksmithing when he was a kid and he could not wait to teach his children and generations to come, but now it's just not the same for him. He only tends very few customers and, depending on his mood that day, he decides if he'll take the job or not.

—Especially since— never mind, that is something I should reminisce about some other time.

The blacksmith focused on what was happening behind him in the bar.

"It's pretty lively today."

Today was a special day for the town of Aoba. They're celebrating the birthday of the master swordsman, Gellal, who vanquished the demons of this country. With his sword, Dyrnwyn, he set aflame the great demon, which had the strength of a thousand men, and turned it into ash, which evidently brought peace and prosperity.

—Well, I wouldn't call it peace.

The blacksmith was right. There are still unjustified killings, corruption and thievery in his country. Who's to say that the myth is real in the first place?

Most people took it as a fairy tale with its details changing over time. The few that believe in it would be the joke of the town, but in the end they would all unite in holidays like this as an excuse to get off early from their jobs.

When William was a kid, he used to believe it. He would play with the other children pretending to be the great knight who brought the demons to justice.

He felt a connection to the story. It was most likely due to him sharing the same birthday as the master swordsman, on the seventh of the frozen air. The same day as the historic event. At that time, he made an oath to himself. He wanted with all his heart and might to be the one to remake the legendary sword Dyrnwyn. The sword that ceased to exist with its wielder. The memories of his childhood brought a bitter smile on his face.

—Once you grow up, dreams begin to fade away. You forget them and doubt comes to the mind of it ever even existing. I was such a naive kid.

He heard the thud of another glass of beer put front of him on the counter,

"Well, what's this?"

"You looked rather sad. So, I poured another one for you."

A young lady was standing behind the bar counter. She had two braids styling her long silver hair. She was wearing an apron on top of her clothes, probably the dress code for the waitresses who worked.

The blacksmith raised an eyebrow in suspicion, as if she was baiting him into paying for another beer once he took a sip. The young lady noticed this and quickly shook her head.

"Don't worry, it's on me. Although, the boss is going to scold me later for this."

After hearing her approval of no payment needed, William gulped it down in one go. The young lady looked at him surprised by his drinking skills, but she decided not to give any comment on it.

She looked at him nervously, "It's been a while, hasn't it?"

—Does she know me? Then again, I'm a Jaeger after all.

"Do I... know you?" He questioned her as he straightened his glasses to take a good look at her.

The young lady was rather shocked at his question, "My... I can't believe you don't remember." she said with a wry smile.

"Well, I met a lot of people back when I worked as a merchant. I find it hard to remember anybody at this point of my life."

"Is that so..." The young lady, after a few seconds of being lost in thought, raised her index finger, "Well, think back to the times you visited this town. Clearly, there must be a memory of a young little girl who used to hang around with you."

William thought back to those days. Other than meeting the people from church and visiting a few bars, did he really interact with a little girl? Even at that time, if he were to be seen with such a girl, he would get cold stares from the town folk.

"Wait a second..." Now that he thinks about it, he does remember a girl like that. If his memory serves him right, the girl's name should be,

"Lucy?"

The young lady's eyes widened. She was hopeful he would remember her. Hearing the blacksmith recall her name brought her joy.

"Yes, that's right." She said, smiling.

"What? but you're grown up. Last time I checked, Lucy was a little girl."

"You know puberty is a thing, right? I'm sixteen now."

"It's been, what? four years? Time flies. Even so..."

William was astonished, to think that in only a few years this girl would turn out to be such a lady.

A beautiful lady, in fact. As each generation passes, girls must mature faster or that's what William concluded. Her body was what people would call an "hourglass" figure. Her cute dimples stood out from her white cheeks every time she smiled. Her crystal blue eyes could catch the attention of anyone who met her gaze. These qualities easily made her the center of attention.

William gave her a smile and said, "It's good to see you."

"Wow, I've never in my life been given such a low enthusiasm from a man. Well, neither from any kind of person."

"Give me a break! It's been a rough day."

William did not have any money this month. He ended up giving a sword to a very greedy and obnoxious noble person.

"He kept ordering me around as if I didn't know what I was doing. That scum." He murmured.

Nothing but painful thoughts would come from thinking back on that job.

"I see... Since when have you been in town? I heard you decided to quit being a merchant. Did you move here or are you just visiting?"

"It's been two weeks since I moved back here. Only now was I able to come to the town. Surprisingly, I had a lot to unpack."

"I see, well, it's good to have you back."

"Thank you. I wanted to see what this town had in store for me."

For some reason, the town of Aoba always brought him inspiration about what his next destination might be. From this town he got the idea of being a merchant after a nice man took him in a few years back. It didn't work out as he had hoped, considering where he is now. Many job inspirations came from this town, except working in the church, which was clearly his fault.

"Geez, you never change."

Lucy couldn't help but chuckle at William. She knew him more than enough to know this situation was the norm for him. She did not need to worry, since he always found something to occupy himself with in the end.

"But you sure did. Look at you, you're all grown up, kid."

The young lady pouted, "Would you please not refer to me as a kid anymore? I'm a young lady now."

William couldn't help but laugh, "Well, does the fine lady already have any men in her life? She is at the age for marriage, you know."

The young lady rested her arms on the bar counter as she looked at the people dancing around the bar. They were in pairs, mostly a man and a woman with one of their arms crossed with each other holding a beer.

"Maybe, but I'm keeping my options open. So, if a certain guy were to come up to me and take my hand in marriage, I wouldn't mind."

"I'll be sure to tell him if I see one."

That comment left a bitter taste in the young lady's mouth, but she brushed it off with a chuckle. She sighed and rested her chin on the palm of her hands, "I wish things could stay like this just for a little while... Oh, that reminds me," the young lady stood straight with her hands behind her back. With a big smile she said, "Happy birthday William."

The man was surprised, no one tends to remember his birthday. Out of all the people there, he didn't expect it would be Lucy considering it's been years since they've spoken, "Thank you for remembering."

"Of course I would! How about you coming tomorrow during the day? I can make you a cake in the kitchen. We can properly celebrate it then."

"Sure, that would be nice."

The young lady smiled after forming their promise, but something felt off to William.

The blacksmith recalled a moment in time when he saw a little girl alone in Lost Forest. She was in tears, lost with no sense of direction. He caught a glimpse of that same expression again from Lucy.

"Hey, do you remember--"

"Lucy! We need you here!" Yelled the manager, who appeared to be drunk.

"I'm coming!" She responded. "I'm sorry, what were you saying?"

The man shook his head, "Never mind, it's nothing. It's not the place and time for it anyway."

William, knowing it was his cue to leave, stood up and left money for the beer that was supposedly on the house.

"Wait, I said it was on--"

"--As if I'd let a sweet girl get scolded by her manager for giving me a free drink."

Lucy's white face suddenly turned red, "You dummy. Come back tomorrow. Besides the cake, I might have a job for you."

"Alright then. I'll see you tomorrow, Lucy."

Lucy, her face still bright red, pouted. Looking at the back of the walking William, Lucy murmured under her breath "I'm not a girl anymore. When will you notice?"

To this day, it's still uncertain of the answer to her question.