The Magician’s Memorial - Chapter 1



Only Krnovel

prolog

I had trouble sleeping again today.

I want to sleep well, but I can’t.

Why can’t I fall into a deep sleep?

Actually, there is nothing to worry about.

Because I know the answer.

If I kill that woman, I will fall into a deep, deep sleep.

*

Kill?

That woman?

What was it?

Things that I couldn’t tell if they were memories or someone’s whispers were floating around in my head.

It was a time when I was absentmindedly walking, my mind lost in indistinguishable words.

The ground beneath my feet sank. I gasped for breath and struggled, then suddenly this thought occurred to me.

What am I doing here?

More importantly, who am I?

“Kid, no, Professor Min.”

My eyes opened to the voice that flew in like a slap on the back. Strength returned to my wobbly legs.

Yes, Professor Min.

Min Kralde.

That’s my name.

“Go back now. Don’t lose everything and wander around like a ghost.”

It was another voice.

I looked to the right.

The gray-white fur and the pointed ears caught the eye. The shiny black nose twitched.

Who is it?

“I think you forgot about this kid again? Quill, it would be easier if you just leave him behind.”

A big rabbit that walks on two legs said.

“Ma’am, don’t do that to someone in a similar situation. Both you and I are useless because we’ve lost our memories.”

I looked to the left.

I could see the black robe. I couldn’t see the face. A young voice. No, it was a voice with a lot of experience.

It was difficult to discern.

Who the hell are these two?

Min looked around.

Golden sand. It was a sand field that stretched all the way to where the sky and the earth met.

What did they call this place?

Ah! The desert, yes, it’s called a desert.

One by one, things started to come to mind. However, they were fragmentary and not enough information to understand the whole picture.

“excuse me.”

Min opened his mouth with difficulty. The inside of his throat cracked. The taste of thick blood rose.

“Why am I here? Who are you?”

The robed man stopped walking at that question.

“Professor Min.”

The man pulled back his black hood. His hair was either white, silver, or light gray.

Hair of a color that is difficult to define in one word. Hair blowing in the sandstorm.

Min looked into the eyes of the man called ‘Quil’.

… … I know this guy.

“Don’t hold on to ‘memories’. They will continue to fade away until you adapt.”

It was when I heard Quill’s voice.

Another scene came to mind.

There were trees. There were people crowded between the densely growing trees.

No, it wasn’t a ‘person’.

What should I call that?

“……goblin.”

The words came out without my awareness.

The ‘goblins’ were suppressing humans.

The humans were dancing and smiling brightly, even though they were running away screaming.

It was a bizarre sight.

Whose memory is this anyway?

There was a little boy among the dancing people. He was a boy, and he laughed and danced harder than anyone else.

Min looked at the boy.

The boy who was dancing stopped and looked at Min.

Min stuttered as he spoke.

“Quilbian?”

The vibrant forest suddenly disappeared, and a desert full of golden sand appeared again.

Quilbian was right in front of us.

How could I have forgotten this man?

Quilbian.

The wizard Quilbian.

“Is that a picture of Quill when he was younger?”

“Don’t ask and just walk. You’ll know everything anyway. But don’t try too hard to remember it. It’s a fucking boring story.”

Quilbian walked forward with his mouth shut and his hood pulled down tightly. A rabbit came up to him and clicked its tongue.

rabbit.

Special Forces Colonel Brine.

A recorder who lost his memory.

“Go back before you go crazy.”

Brine followed Quilbian again, sniffling.

I remembered everything.

It was a path to the sacred land to regain the memories of ‘Brain who lost his memory’.

Yeah, I followed along on that journey.

Min pushed the glasses he was wearing up onto his head and covered his entire face with both hands so that they clacked.

“Professor Min. If it’s hard, go back. Knowledge isn’t that big of a deal.”

“No! I’ll go now.”

It was when I was running and shouting towards Quilbian.

Memories come flooding back again.

The memories of the magician ‘Quilbian’, not the memories of ‘Min Khalde’.

Time flies back to the very distant past.

(Continued in next episode)

Episode 1

“Quil.”

I opened my eyes to a cheerful voice.

“wake up.”

Drich had finished making his bed and was putting on his shoes.

I tapped my cheek to wake up from my hazy mind. I think I saw a strange bug in my dream. Squeak? Squeak? Oink?

The sound was also strange… … .

“What about the other kids?”

Quilbian shook off his distracting thoughts and asked.

“You must be sleeping.”

Drich pointed to the window. It was still dark.

About 10 minutes left until sunrise.

Quill smiled, tidied up the bed, and put on his shoes.

Drich raised his index finger to his lips and quietly opened the door. The hallway, immersed in purple darkness, was quiet, unlike the noisy daytime.

“You have to leave on time and on time.”

“I know.”

I was able to leave the dormitory 5 minutes before bedtime.

“10 points if you come in first.”

“Then does that mean the two of us share first place?”

“yes.”

The time has come.

I left the house with Drich. There was no light on the first and second floors, and only a few rooms on the third and fourth floors had lights on.

“At the Friendship House, only we woke up.”

Drich said forcefully.

“What about the kids at Sarangjip?”

“That place is full of idiots who don’t care about scores. They’ll come in last.”

“The kids at Gamsajib and Seongsiljib are good at managing their grades.”

Quilbian said, recalling several faces.

“But the genes are so kind that they can’t do such things. It’s because we can do it.”

Drich held out his fist. Quillbian said, “That’s true,” and bumped his fists together.

“If you hadn’t woken me up and gone alone, you would have been first place.”

“A cool guy like me wouldn’t do something like that. As the seer said, friendship is a noble thing.”

“Do you know what noble means?”

When Quillian asked again, Drih shrugged his shoulders.

“Is the exact meaning important? The feeling is important. Noble, isn’t it?”

“Not bad.”

I climbed the hill, giggling loudly.

“Quil, look here. It’s a bug I’ve never seen before.”

It was a brown horned insect. Its hard shell fluttered and it flew into the sky.

An insect that was flying in circles towards the sky hit the ‘sky wall’ and fell to the ground.

“They say bugs don’t have brains, and I guess that’s true. They’re sticking their heads in the sky.”

Drich said with pity.

“Hey hey, the sun will rise soon.”

It was not the time to act like a fool. I ran with Drich. After passing two small hills, I saw a place to heal my mind.

I quickly looked around. I couldn’t see any other kids.

“It’s number one.”

Haha, I laughed out loud. It was fun to collect points. If I keep collecting them, I might become a visionary someday.

Quilbian thought back to the seer he had encountered half a year ago. A mysterious and beautiful adult who seemed to know everything.

It was said that if you listen well and collect points, you will have the opportunity to become an ascetic and then a seer.

“It’s the sun!”

Drich shouted excitedly.

Quill opened his eyes slightly and looked at the place where the light was shining.

Five pairs of giant legs stretched out. The ‘sun’, soaring high as if it were touching the sky, spread bright light in all directions.

Ten legs supporting a brightly shining body. As the legs slowly moved and the sun moved, light came into the entire village.

I see it every day, but I feel awe every time I see it. How much learning must one do to become as big and beautiful as the sun?

Suddenly, I remembered something a child at Sarangjip said.

– Hey, isn’t it creepy because it looks like a spider?

I thought it was a terrible thing to say. The kids around me noticed it too. The kids with fiery tempers couldn’t stand it anymore and kicked the rude kid who compared the sun to a spider.

I thought it was cheap even if I got hit.

Of course. How can you compare the sun to a shabby insect? I wanted to check what was in his head.

Thump, thump, thump. People were coming out one by one to the sound of the sun moving.

“Can I also become as big as the sun?”

Drich said with a dreamy face.

“Wouldn’t it be hard? The sun is special.”

“It’s special. That’s why you should aim for it even more. A cool guy like me… … .”

Just before Drich’s cool guy theory was about to unfold, Quilbian reached out and covered Drich’s mouth.

Drich noticed this too and quickly fixed his disheveled clothes.

“There’s nothing crooked, right?”

“No. Me?”

“You are perfect too.”

We went to the main entrance of the Mind Healing Center and stood side by side. We bowed our heads and opened our ears.

The sound of footsteps is getting closer.

Soon, a long shadow slid across my field of vision.

“I can’t help but be impressed by the enthusiasm of the two cadets for coming so early.”

It was a sweet voice. A voice that I wanted to keep listening to from morning till night, even after falling asleep.

“Quilbian, and Drich. As always, you’re first today.”

I wanted to raise my head and answer, “Yes,” but I had to remain quiet because permission was not granted.

The shadow drew closer. A soft hand wrapped around his shoulder. Quill had to work hard to keep the corners of his lips from twitching.

“I am so proud of you all. Now, raise your heads.”

He raised his head as if competing with Drich.

Pure white hair. Eyes the same color as the hair. Skin without even a single blemish, unlike Driche who was full of freckles.

It was a face that I could look at all day without getting tired of it, and it just made me feel grateful.

It’s noble.

The words that Drich spoke should have been used for this person.

“It’s been half a year since we last had a conversation like this.”

The visionary smiled.

“You remember?” Quilbian said excitedly.

“I didn’t know you would remember that time.”

“I must remember. This conversation with such great cadets. Quilbian and Drich. I was actually looking forward to meeting you two today.”

I looked at Drich, who was secretly cheering at the words that I had been waiting for. Drich was looking at the seer with an expression that looked like he was about to cry.

“Please wait a moment as I need to prepare food.”

“yes!”

The seer opened the door to the place of healing and entered. As soon as the door closed, Quilbian let out a breath that was half joy and half tension.

“I didn’t know he was coming!”

“me too.”

“I thought my heart was going to burst.”

“I’m half-exploded.”

Drich said, putting his hand on his chest.

“You remember us.”

“therefore.”

“You did well to accumulate points and get first place. You did well to wake up early today.”

“You know this is all thanks to me, right?”

Drich said with a smirk. Normally, I would have laughed it off, but not today.

I saw the visionary right in front of me, not someone else. We even had a conversation like we did half a year ago. I wouldn’t mind giving him all the delicious food that was going to be served for lunch.

“Yes, there is no one but you.”

It was when our clenched fists clashed.

The door to the healing center opened again. I quickly corrected my posture and expression so as not to appear frivolous.

“Ready. Both of you, come inside.”

It was a glorious day. To be able to hold a ceremony with the visionary.

If I go back and tell the kids, what will they say? They’ll probably tease me and tell me not to lie, but then they’ll open their eyes wide and beg me to tell them more.

I put my hands together before entering the meditation hall. I entered the hall with a devout heart.

The sunlight was streaming in through the ceiling. I stared at the sparkling glass ceiling for a while, then came to my senses and took a step forward.

“I’ll come from over there.”

Drich ran to the right wall with a broom. Quill calmly swept from the left.

The floor was clean, without a speck of dust, but I swept it thoroughly just in case something dirty was on it.

Cleaning is important. Besides, the seer was watching today.

After finishing the vigil, I stood next to a blue pillar called Pillar Number 1.

A moment of silence.

I glanced at the seer praying towards the sky.

It was beautiful. The sparkling sunlight poured down as if embracing the seer. What is the seer praying for now?

It got noisy outside.

It looks like a student has arrived to eat.

Who could it be? I wanted to go out and take a quick look at his face, but I decided to hold back. I thought unnecessary actions could lower my score.

“The preparations are complete.”

The lover of the house entered the house and said.

Quill looked at the love house ascetic. A cadet who was only two years old but had already become an ascetic. Will I also be able to become an ascetic in two years?

“in.”

The seer said.

The meal will begin. Quill exchanged glances with Drich and then spread out a white cloth on the floor.

The seer smiled and said thank you.

The door opened and two children came in. Are they the children of Seongsiljip? I can’t remember them well because their impressions are vague, but I think I’ve seen them a few times as I passed by.

One boy and one girl.

Quilbian felt jealous of the children who looked a year or two younger than him.

They are younger than me and already… … .

“hey.”

Drich tapped his elbow.

Quilbian nodded and went back to pillar number one.

The meal will begin soon. It’s time not to open your mouth or move much.

Two children walked towards the seer. The seer smiled kindly and hugged the two children.

He was jealous. Quill couldn’t even imagine what it would feel like to be held in those arms.

“Now, it’s time to change.”

The seer said.

The ‘eating of change’ begins.

Quill looked at the seer and the two children with his hands clasped together.

The seer stretched out both arms toward the two children standing on the white cloth. The children quietly closed their eyes and clasped their hands together.

“We will meet again soon in beautiful form.”

“Yes, sir.”

The seer took two steps back.

and.

The light coming down through the ceiling grew stronger.

Quilbian forgot his jealousy and envy for a moment and stared at the light with a happy heart before closing his eyes.

Then came the sound of a bang.

Something warm was felt on my face.

“Those guys, they must have learned a lot.”

When I opened my eyes, Drich was wiping away the red crust that was stuck here and there on his body with his hand.

Quill roughly brushed the dirt off his face.

The inside of the room was dyed red. The white cloth spread on the floor also turned red.

It will take quite some time to clean up the shells that have been scattered everywhere. Those who have not learned much will melt away, but as Drich said, the two children seem to have learned deeply.

Suddenly, something fishy flowed into my mouth. It seemed like there was a shell stuck to my upper lip.

The shells left behind by those who have completed the change. Since they are now meaningless, all you have to do is chew and swallow what comes into your mouth… … .

– Do you guys really not think about the sun? That thing that looks like a disgusting spider?

Why do the words of the kid who got beaten up come to mind?

The moment those words came to mind, the shell flowing into my mouth felt disgusting.

“Quil?”

I looked at Drich. I shook my head at my friend who was making a blank expression, asking what was going on. No, nothing.

Drich chuckled and pulled the shell off his face. The shell between his fingers went towards his mouth.

Yeah, it’s nothing.

Quill looked at the reddened ground and collected his thoughts.

But I couldn’t swallow the fishy shell that had seeped into my mouth and had to spit it out without anyone knowing.

(Continued in next episode)