Ha Yunseo stared at his reflection, inspecting his new self. He had given up trying to contact the mysterious entity, which he named as Words, that made the words appear earlier.
"Huh, I didn't know foreigners could be this good-looking." He muttered, rubbing his cheek. He was probably the palest person he had ever seen.
His crimson hair shone under the sunlight, and Ha Yunseo felt even more awed by his new appearance.
'I look like an anime character!' He thought, posing a little bit, his hazel eyes sparkling as he watched himself in the mirror.
He messed with himself for a bit before he cleared his throat, straightening his back like how his body remembered.
Lucien Ardent Elowen was the second son of Gabriel Juian Elowen, the current prime minister of the kingdom of Evaron. As the prime minister's son, he was strictly disciplined and was taught everything he would need to know before entering an academy.
Lucien was trained to conduct himself properly as a part of the Elowen household. He was known to be calm, elegant, and graceful.
If anything, Ha Yunseo was probably the exact opposite, but he was not worried. He had tested earlier and found out he had Lucien's reflexes. Basically, as long as he wanted to, he could drink elegantly like a hypocritical noble. This is due to Lucien's harsh training when he was young.
Ha Yunseo just felt lucky he didn't have to go through that again.
The only problem was Ha Yunseo's lack of err vocabulary. If he were to pretend to be like Lucien, his words should also be as refined as his. So he thought of a solution.
Just keep quiet.
Lucien was known to be quiet, so it should not be that hard.
Maybe.
Ha Yunseo hummed as he began to recall what he could remember from his sister's notebook, which contained some details, characters, and outlines of scenes.
"Nyssor is a place where magic exists!"
Her proud voice rang in his mind.
"Everything you can imagine—as long as it aligns with the world's logic—it can happen!"
However, from Lucien's memory, there are only seven elements that exist now. Blaze, Drift, Gale, Glow, Core, Gloom, and Void.
The common ones were Blaze and Core. If Lucien were to explain it using earthen tongue, it would be Fire and Earth.
Then come the uncommon ones: Gale and Drift, which are probably Water and Wind.
Then there are the rare elements which are Glow and Gloom—Light and Dark.
He sighed. He would definitely complain to Nari about this later on. It was a cliché system she just nicely wrapped under different names.
Lastly, the Void. It was something that is not just rare, it is super duper extremely rare. Only one currently had it, and she's also the first ever person to have it—the only princess of Evaron, Yllara Velisse Virelda. Lucien never saw her personally as he was too young to attend galas or parties organized by the aristocrats.
Ha Yunseo pondered. Her name rang a bell. She was mentioned several times in his sister's notebook. From what he knew, Nari was planning to turn her into an antagonist.
He remembered Nari telling him that Yllara's power manifested after her mother died and it was so powerful it is actually capable of blasting the whole world. Luckily, from Lucien's memory, the Queen is still alive and healthy.
Aside from the elements, the most important thing is the Tether. It was the thing that determined whether one could even use the element they bear.
Bearers—the ones who awakened elements in their body—are rare, but among them, Fractals are common.
Fractals are the rejects.
People who awaken elements, but their Tether is not even sufficient enough to activate a skill, much less retain them. And this is important because Tether cores are permanent. They do not evolve or change.
So if someone's core is small, no matter how much they push themselves, they cannot improve it.
"Isn't that a bit too harsh?" Ha Yunseo says as he flips through the notebook. Ha Nari just shrugged, lying next to her brother.
"It's how the world works. But I plan for the protagonist to defy all the odds." She says as she points at the character profile she made.
Whoever the protagonist was, Ha Yunseo was a little sympathetic. Nari's notebook was filled with the tragedies he'll have the experience in order to 'defy the odds' as she had said.
Ha Yunseo threw the matters at the back of his mind. He's just here to experience this world. Like what Words has branded him, he's just a passing traveler.
Suddenly, the door of his room opened. His body tensed. He straightened his posture, his hands on his lap as he waited for the intruder to speak.
There were only three people in this household who never needed to knock just to enter his room. First was his father, second, his mother, and lastly, his older brother.
And just his luck.
Through the reflection of the mirror, Ha Yunseo saw a tall guy standing a few feet behind him. His face resembles Lucien's, except for his hair, which was as dark as the night.
It was Lucien's older brother, Uriel Isaac Elowen. Uriel has just come back from the Mirehalen Academy. They were given time for vacation and just his luck that it was Uriel's last day today.
"I heard you fainted." Uriel spoke lightly.
"I did."
Ha Yunseo tried to keep his composure, his voice cool as he tried to imitate Lucien's tone from his memory. Somehow, it feels easy.
Maybe it's because he stayed up all night 'absorbing' Lucien's memories, his head replaying everything and letting him experience everything Lucien has gone through.
"Make sure to eat properly and hydrate yourself."
He was not surprised to hear Lucien's brother say so. Although it was common for brothers to turn against one another—especially within families of high status—Elowen Household deeply values loyalty to family.
It was engraved deep within their bones. It was their first-ever lesson, the first vow they were made to recite.
Thou shalt not turn your back on your own nor show your fangs to your kin. Thou art the children of Elowen, not the snakes from the grassroots, whereas pollens lies.
Ha Yunseo doesn't truly understand what everything means, but he knows his family would not harm him.
"Mhm." He only hummed, watching through the reflection as Uriel scanned him before nodding and leaving.
After his door closed, Ha Yunseo let out another sigh of relief. He stood up from his chair, stretching for a little bit before fixing his posture, walking straight out of his room.
Ha Yunseo would be gone temporarily.
Lucien Ardent Elowen shall take his spot.