It was snowing heavily at a certain mountain in Japan. A man stood, his black winter wear torn and bloodied, and a face of sorrow and torment, mouth covered by a crimson mask. His arms hung by his sides, weak and trembling. As if he had to lift them, but was slowly losing the strength to do so. Then, a fist flew to his face, sending him reeling.
This man was known to many as Yusuke Iriki.
His adversary, a shadowy man in white, was also marred in blood. His face was slightly hidden behind the snow and the bangs of his hair, his wicked smile ever-present. Whoever this man is, he was enjoying this, as Yusuke's fist hit him square on the jaw.
He may look human, but he was a monster. His name struck fear into those who knew him, but to Yusuke, it wasn't the main priority.
It was a slugfest -- a mortal combat -- in action. They traded punches, one after another. Yusuke's sobs, the other man's laughter, and the harsh winds of the snowy mountains were the soundtrack of this battle. The snow beneath them was stained pink and red, moved by the shuffling of their legs
Finally, they stood silent. Yusuke and the man in white reeled their arms for one final blow. Yusuke looked miserable, robbed of every joy he had. The man in white was manic, his toothy, bloody grin relishing the pain he gave and received.
Their fists crossed and struck true, spewing blood from their mouths. They fell to the ground, sprawled lifelessly, ending the brutal battle then and there.
Yusuke's consciousness faded, the cold embrace of the snow masking the coldness of impending death. The aching pain in his body, the frozen tears on his face, slowly faded in feeling.
His world faded to black, accepting that he would never wake up.
***
The first thing Yusuke felt in his eternal dream, after long moments of cold, silent darkness, was the warmth on his forehead. His eyes fluttered, now unsure if he was dreaming or not. He finally opened them, and what he first noticed was that he was indoors. On a hard, but sufficiently comfortable bed, enclosed inside a wooden room.
"Ngh..." he groaned, trying to sit up, but failed. He was too weak, too spent, but oddly, he felt alive, physically. He could feel his heart beating, his lungs filling with air, and his ears hearing the gusts of the blizzard beyond the window. He felt cold, but that was to be expected. Wait... he felt cold?
Before he could finish the thought, a young woman entered the room, pushing the door with her shoulder. Her orange hair reflected the dull light from outdoors, her hands holding a basin filled with warm water. When she met Yusuke's eyes, hers widened, as if she'd seen a ghost. In her shock, she dropped the basin to the floor and rushed out of the room.
"Father Wilhelm! He's awake!" she shouted.
'Father Wilhelm?' Yusuke thought to himself. There was a church near his lodgings back in Tokyo, but he was sure the priest was Japanese. In confusion, he put one hand on his forehead, noticing the cloth resting on it. He instinctively grabbed it, feeling the dampness in his hand.
"I'm... not dead?" he uttered to himself, bringing the cloth in his hand down to see it, to make sure he wasn't dreaming in the afterlife. The door opened again, and the woman returned with a man in tow. He looked older, with slicked blonde hair, a graying hairline, and a neatly trimmed mustache. Taking a glance at his priestly garb, Yusuke knew that this man was Father Wilhelm. And the woman beside him must be the nun.
"Thank God, you're finally awake," Wilhelm spoke, his tone warm and wise. "Joanna here spotted you lying in the snowstorm during our return trip from the city. Imagine the shock she and I had when we saw you, tattered, bloodied, and barely breathing. We had to load you into the carriage and bring you into this humble chapel."
Yusuke absentmindedly nodded, taking in the information. He still wasn't sure where he was, but he was certain that he wasn't in Nagano anymore.
"Father, I-" Yusuke winced, failing another attempt to sit up again and collapsing back into the bed. Joanna helped him up slowly, the blanket covering him falling to his lap. He realized that he wasn't wearing his black winter wear.
Only a loose brown tunic and black pants. The exposed skin showed no signs of bruising or injury.
"We had to dispose of your former clothes," Joanna spoke, her face sullen. "They were too far gone, not to mention the blood. Oh, so much blood..."
Joanna shivered at the memory. Yusuke frowned; his heart ached at her emotional ordeal.
"Sorry..." he said, feeling guilty.
"N-No! You don't have to a-apologize!" Joanna abruptly said, stumbling over her tongue. "I'm just squeamish, Mister..."
"Yusuke, Yusuke Iriki," he finished.
"Mister Yusuke..." Joanna repeated, getting a feel of the name on her tongue.
Wilhelm raised an eyebrow, for that was a name he was unfamiliar with. An outsider, he thought. He decided it was time to get to know the young man better.
"Yusuke, if I may call you that," he began, his tone polite and even. "Can you please tell us who you are?"
Yusuke nodded, complying with the request. "I'm Yusuke Iriki, adventurer, dream-chaser, and jack-of-all-trades," he began, feeling his lips curve into a smile. "I travel the world, seeking new views, new people, and new smiles. Here's my..." he reached into his pocket, but then realized that his possessions were lost to the snow, or disposed of. "Oh, right. I don't have my business cards anymore," he said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.
Wilhelm and Joanna stared at him. The priest wondered how this young man ended up on death's door. Was it a beast that got him? Or was it the savage orcs? He shuddered at the thought. And then there was the fact that Yusuke's visible wounds when they took him in, which consisted of severe bruises and bloody lesions, had healed after only a couple of days
The nun, however, had her mind occupied with another thing Yusuke said.
"Business cards? Are those something like an adventurer's license book?" she asked, curious. "We didn't find a license book on you when we brought you back."
"Uh... they're more like introduction items, to give to someone new," Yusuke explained briefly.
"So, you're an unlicensed adventurer..." Wilhelm concluded. That raised some red flags. Yusuke could be a bandit masquerading as an adventurer, swindling poor and unsuspecting people who hired him.
However, Wilhelm saw kindness in Yusuke's eyes; the kindness that was a genuine part of the young man. Those eyes told him enough that Yusuke was to be trusted.
"Unlicensed? Do I need a license to go about?" Yusuke asked, confused.
Joanna, seeing his confused face, couldn't help but giggle. "No, Mister Yusuke. Non-adventurers like us are free to go around the world if we want to. The license books are for professional adventurers to log quests and their completions."
So, being an adventurer was a job in itself around here. Yusuke surmised it wasn't too different from the odd jobs he did for travel money.
"I think I get the gist of it," Yusuke said.
Wilhelm smiled. "Very well. Joanna and I will leave you to rest for the day. We shall see you tomorrow."
Wilhelm and Joanna stood up, the latter giving Yusuke a bow, and left him to his devices.
The young man lay back on the bed, now alone with his thoughts. He stared at the wooden ceiling of his room, with many questions in mind. But two stood out.
'Why am I not dead? Where am I?'
Yusuke would find the answer to the second question soon enough.