In less than two hours since Seris had saved the four sorcerers, word began to spread like wildfire.
Social media slowly ignited with poorly captured videos showcasing a strange woman with white hair slaughtering a large hoard of demons. What was more impressive was that she did it alone.
'Did you guys see this footage?'
'She's a total bad ass!'
'Legend in the making!'
'Why aren't there more sorcerers like her?'
'It's just A.I. everyone, calm down.'
Orion Caldas usually didn't pay attention to social media trends. Most of his free time was spent training new sorcerers. The rest of his time was spent on the battlefield, attempting to stop demonic incursions that seemed to never end.
The fact that so many people were whispering in the street about this strange woman caught his attention. Despite his better judgement, he opened up his social media page to see what the fuss was about.
He watched the blurry videos, looked at the hastily taken photographs, and read a lot of comments before closing his app.
Orion stared at the black shiny screen of his cellphone. His military style buzzcut and serious hazel eyes stared back at him.
He was having trouble processing what he had just seen. Was it even possible for a sorcerer to have done all that?
Orion was no pushover, he was skilled in combat applications of magic but even he felt intimidated by the strange woman.
He took a sip of his coffee while thinking hard. An internal debate warred within him, should he report this to his superiors or simply wait to see what would happen?
Orion was loyal to the order. The sorcerers had formed a global order that had lasted for over a millenia now. Their main purpose was to study magic and its applications, more specifically though, it was how to use those to safeguard humanity. It was a duty that Orion took very seriously.
He reached a decision as he quickly dialed a phone number.
"Orion, good to hear from you. Is everything alright?"
"Yeah Thomas, everything is fine. Listen, have you seen the buzz on social media today?"
"You mean the White Haired Witch?"
Orion blinked slowly for a few seconds.
"That's a dumb ass nickname, who came up with that?"
"People online, I would have gone with something more cool like, Snow Witch or Sorcerer of the White Mark. Nothing too dramatic you know?"
Orion rolled his eyes, thankfully Thomas couldn't see that reaction.
"Have our superiors said anything about this woman?"
"Not yet. I'm not entirely sure they even pay attention to social media to be honest. You know how they are, so traditional and boring."
"Right, well keep me informed if something comes down from up top."
"You think this woman is legit?"
"I don't know. She may not even be real, this could all be a giant hoax."
"And if it's not?"
"Then we have to find out if she is human and whose side she is on."
***
Erin Densetsu was eagerly trying to make his case. Practically pleading with the powerful woman walking in front of him.
"C'mon, I'm not asking for much. Just let me tell the world your story. I'll stay back and record everything, then write factual articles on what really happened. It will all be honest, no exaggerating or making stuff up for tabloids."
Seris Ardentis stopped walking, giving an exasperated sigh as she turned to address Erin.
"Okay, let's say I pretend to know what you just said, why should I do any of that?"
"Because the world needs a hero, now more than ever. It's getting bad out here. We all pretend that everything is normal but deep down, we all know the truth."
"What truth is that?"
"That a war is coming. The increase in demonic incursions and raids has only gotten worse over the last ten years. It's still getting worse."
Seris frowned as she carefully thought about what he had said. From what little she had seen so far and from what she had managed to learn it seemed that he brought up valid points.
"I'm not interested in being some kind of larger than life hero. I'm just trying to figure out where the hell I am and what year it is."
"What?"
Erin scratched his head. He was usually pretty good at reading people but nothing about Seris told him that she was insane.
"Did you hit your head?"
"No, it's complicated though."
"Memory problems?"
"I'm not from this time period."
Erin rubbed his chin, thinking for a few moments before slowly smiling at her.
"That's a pretty good one, you almost had me there."
Seris shook her head before resuming her walking.
Erin quickly followed her.
"Okay, hang on! Let's make a deal then. Let's say you really are from a different time period. That would mean you know nothing about this modern world right?"
"Pretty much, that's kind of my current issue."
"Alright, then if you let me follow you and document your battles as well as your story, I'll help you learn more about this time period."
Seris gave a small smile. She had to admit, this guy was persistent but he seemed harmless. He definitely had no mana to speak of so she wasn't worried about anything bad happening from trusting him.
"Alright, deal then."
Erin punched the air in excitement, hollering out as he did. It drew some stares from people passing by but they quickly averted their gaze.
"Ok, let's start with dinner. You have to be hungry right? Do you eat food?"
"No, I eat the flesh of men who annoy me."
Erin laughed at the sarcasm before taking the lead. Seris didn't see a point in arguing, besides she was actually hungry now that he had mentioned food.
The idea of seeing how far food had evolved was simply too tempting for her to turn it down.
Erin led them to an Italian restaurant. The aroma of herbs and spices wafted through the area alongside the scent of warm, fresh baked bread. Seris's mouth began to water before they even stepped inside.
Once they had a table, Erin showed her how to use a menu. Seris was impressed by the sheer number of dishes available to purchase. In her time, the local taverns served only two or three dishes. Usually it was a stew, roasted meat, or some kind of grain with vegetables.
"What is 'spaghetti'"?
"Oh you'll love that, it comes with meatballs."
"Meatballs? Those aren't actual—"
"No!" Erin laughed quickly throwing up his hands to stop her mid sentence.
"It's ground beef or pork that is seasoned and rolled into a ball then cooked."
"What a genius idea!"
Seris took his advice and dug into a large plate of spaghetti. The flavor was overwhelming and she cleared her plate within minutes. If this was modern food then she wasn't sure she wanted to return to her timeline.
As Erin paid for their food with some type of card, Seris gave him a bewildered look. She leaned forward, inspecting the odd object that the waitress ran through an even stranger machine.
Erin noticed her intense staring and quickly explained, "this is a credit card. It's sort of a modern form of currency. You swipe it and it acts like money."
"What's it made of? Where does the money come from?"
"It's made from plastic, that's a material we invented to help us build a lot of things. The money for this type of card is sorta…" Erin screwed up his face, trying to think of an easy way to explain how the credit card process worked.
"It's sort of like an I.O.U. You can use the card to pay for things until you reach a certain limit. Over time, you pay it back."
"With another card?"
Erin chuckled, "kinda, yeah."
Erin took them next to an ice cream shop. This too was a new thing for Seris who had never heard of milk being frozen then flavored.
She ordered a combo of a few different flavors, enjoying the different fruity tastes as Erin set to work interviewing her.
"You mentioned you're not from this time period. Given your reaction so far to common food items, I'm starting to think you were telling the truth."
Seris continued to eat her ice cream, waiting for him to continue.
"So what time period are you from?"
"What year is it?"
"2025."
Seris stopped licking her ice cream as her eyes clouded over. Astonishment was clear on her face which was quickly followed by a look of sadness so intense that it made Erin uncomfortable.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah. I just didn't realize how much time had really passed."
Seris didn't seem okay though, something that didn't escape Erin's notice.
"I'm sorry, I didn't realize how much of a shock this would be."
"It's okay, I'll deal with it."
Erin nodded empathetically before clearing his throat softly. He wanted to distract her but he wasn't sure how to do that so he just continued with his interview. His phone sat near him on the table, recording everything they discussed so that he could transcribe it later into written form.
"What happened? How did you end up in this timeline?"
Seris resumed her consumption of the ice cream, trying to pretend that she wasn't mentally screaming inside.
"I went to explore a forgotten ruin left behind by a tribe of Sorcerers called the 'Mino'. I was looking for a spell, a special technique, that they had mastered."
"Did you find it?"
"Yes, unfortunately the technique was actually a trap. I sprang it on accident which caused me to become trapped in a sort of bubble."
"A bubble?" Erin's eyebrow raised critically. He was having a hard time picturing a bubble trapping someone like her.
"Well, it was actually a pocket dimension created to serve as a prison where time doesn't flow."
Erin nodded as understanding lit up his eager eyes. He knew nothing about mana or magic in general but basic science he could understand. Not to mention he was a huge fan of science fiction.
"I think I understand. This pocket dimension, this magical prison, sealed you away from the world. Since time couldn't pass through the prison, it flowed around it, continuing without you."
Seris nodded slowly, that sad look still present in her eyes.
"How did you break out?"
"It took me a long time. I had no way to track time obviously but I studied every single inch of the spell. I memorized the entire blueprint for how to cast it which allowed me to understand its operation."
"Studying something like that lets you learn how to use the technique?"
Seris nodded.
"Okay, so you learned how to cast the spell. Then what?"
"Well, after several failed attempts, I finally figured out the correct procedure. I unraveled the spell from the inside and landed back in the ruins where I was when the trap triggered."
"Then you came to this city?"
"Well actually, I killed a bunch of demons hiding in the ruins, then came to this city."
Erin shook his head. If anyone else had told him this story, he would have dismissed them as insane or drunk. He couldn't dismiss her though, he had seen firsthand the power she held. Everything about this woman confirmed his suspicion.
He really was getting the story of a lifetime. This was a mythical being in the making, the world needed her. He was absolutely certain of this.
Neither of them were aware that right now, forces were being sent out to find her.