That night I had a nightmare.
I dreamed that I was tied to a chair inside a pitch-black room.
No sound to be heard, nor anything to be seen.
The only way I knew this was happening was by the cold and rough texture of the chair pressing against my back.
With no idea what was going on, I tried to wriggle myself out of the chair.
The longer I sat there, the colder the air seemed to get.
Suddenly, I heard faint footsteps in the distance, heading my way.
I couldn't tell who it was, but over time the sound got louder and louder.
Until the sound abruptly stopped.
I became anxious, frightened, and I started to doubt my own senses.
Was there really someone there, or did I just imagine it?
As I thought about this, I felt something press against my right ear.
Then, a husky voice whispered to me:
"You poor soul."
While I didn't see who it was, his voice was so indistinguishable that I didn't need to see his face to know who it was.
Lucifer, whom I never hoped to see again, was standing right beside me.
He walked ahead of me when a beam of light hit his body from the black sky above.
His face and the smile he carried were as clear as day.
He looked delighted, as if the sight of me awoke some sort of arousal in him.
Setting a few steps backwards, he asked:
"Fancy seeing me again?"
Angrily, I replied:
"Let me go, you freak!"
Again I tried to free myself from the ropes tying my arms, yet as much as I struggled, I made no progress.
Lucifer stood there and giggled at seeing my failed attempt to escape.
"Try as you may, yet the outcome will stay the same."
After a few more seconds of useless struggling, I stopped moving my arms.
"Why are you here?"
Out of thin air, he grabbed a chair, put it behind him, and sat on it.
"Must one always have a reason for doing something?I am merely paying a visit to my favourite protagonist. I see a lot has happened since we last spoke. Who knew, that out of all people, it would be the Diablo family - a royal family, no less - that would grant you shelter in this foreign world. Talk about a coincidence."
He threw a big smile at me.
I had the real urge to smack that stupid grin right off of his face.
Were it not for me being tied down, I would've probably lunged myself right at him already.
"What are you getting at?"
He raised his hand and wiggled his index finger from right to left.
"Bad Shako. Just like a magician does not share their secrets, a director does not share their plot. If I were to tell you everything, I would spoil all the fun for you."
Again, those cryptic messages.
What did they all mean?
The more I tried to make sense of everything he said, the more pissed-off I started to get.
"Alas, I do not have all day. Even villains like myself have a busy schedule. Howbeit, I shall share one secret with you: War is coming! And there's nothing you can do to stop it. See ya!"
And with that he disappeared and the world around me got drowned in darkness once more.
I sat lethargic at the dining table when Mr. Luzel delivered me my breakfast.
A caramelised bun with a cream-filling and a glass of Ignis to go along with it.
Not feeling the most intent to eat, I still took a bite and washed it down with my drink.
While the taste was delightful as always, it didn't fix my bad mood.
Kia entered the dining room when I was almost done eating.
"I am surprised to see you up this early. Is everything alright, Shako?"
With the dust still covering my eyes, I looked her way.
"Yes. I just… I just had a nightmare."
She sat down next to me and was served her meal shortly after.
This gave me the perfect time to ask her about The Academy Reath had told me about yesterday.
"Say, Kia, do you know about The Academy?"
She took a sip of her drink and turned towards me.
"But of course. It is only one of the most prestigious institutes in all of Fira. How come you ask?"
"Oh, uhm… I just wondered if you could tell me a bit more about it."
"Let me think. The Academy is located in the Realm of Lightning, Prudentia. It has a long and rich history that spans hundreds of years, making it one of the most well-renowned and respected educational institutes in all of Fira. Only the most gifted of Wielders and members of highly-ranked families have a chance of attending there."
"And did you go?"
Kia shook her head.
"My father forced me to stay home. Around that time, Fira was plagued by a surge of criminal activity. Making it so that I had to follow lessons at home, that way, it would ensure him that nothing bad could happen to me. He might not look like it all the time, but my father does have a caring side to him. That said, I was not really the attentive type and would often do things on my own accord. It took him and my teachers a long time and a lot of effort before I started taking my education seriously."
"That does sound familiar." I commented.
Kia looked questioningly at me and asked what I meant.
"I also wasn't really the type to take my education seriously. Being a social outcast and having parents who fight all the time, it makes you question if it's even worth going to school."
I tried to lighten up the air a little by laughing at my own story, yet when I looked at Kia again, she looked at me with great pity in her eyes.
"Why?"
At first, I was a bit stumped, as her question came completely out of the blue.
I also didn't know what to make of it, so I asked her if she could clarify.
"Why do you want to go back there? Whenever you talk about your world, you always do it with so much pain in your voice."
Her answer left me speechless.
I could tell she was honestly confused as to why I wanted to go back to my former world.
And honestly, I didn't have a proper answer ready for her.
"To be honest with you, I don't know myself either. You're right in thinking that I'm not that fond of my former life. You won't have to dig deep to discover that fact. Saying that, something inside me keeps telling me that I do not belong in this world. And no matter how much I wish that I could stay here, this feeling urges me to return to Earth, like some form of homesickness. Does that sound weird to you?"
She shook her head once again.
"I think I understand, albeit with some difficulty."
Both of us didn't know where to go from here, so we silently continued finishing our breakfast and moved on.
After I was done, I stood up from my chair and made my way to the training grounds like usual, where Astress was waiting for me.
Fast-forward about two weeks, and it was now the day before King's Day.
King's day, in Elysium, is one of the most important holidays there is.
Not only is the birth of the kingdom celebrated, but its founder - king Salomon I - is also heavily revered during it.
All people are given a day off and stands are opened in every major town, offering free drinks and food.
Apparently, Azazel was going to give a speech to a group of Elysium's most powerful individuals.
And somehow, he had invited me to attend it too.
Or rather, he made Kia invite me in his stead.
I had just woken up and was still lying in bed when, out of nowhere, the door to my room flung open and four maids barged their way inside.
They were carrying scissors, measuring tapes, and pieces of fabric.
"What in God's name is all this about?"
One of the maids walked up to me and explained why they were here.
"Our dearest apology, Mister Ikitayashi! We were sent here by His Majesty Azazel Diablo III to make sure no further adjustments needed to be made."
"Adjustments to what?"
The maid looked me confused in the eyes and answered:
"Your suit, Sir. All guests attending His Majesty's speech must dress according to the proper etiquette. His Majesty requested us to prepare one specially for you, as you do not possess any…decent wear, or so he stated."
Well, he wasn't exactly wrong.
My clothes were limited to my school uniform and the outfit Astress gave me a few months back.
Even so, the way he phrased it annoyed me somewhat.
"To make sure the uniform fulfills your needs, we must measure your sizes."
Her words only just registered in my brain, or three of the four maids were already carrying me out of my bed.
They took me to the middle of the room, where I was forced to stand straight, spread my arms, and remain still while they measured my body parts.
Two of them were occupied with my arms, another was measuring my legs, and the last was doing my torso.
The tapes they used were cold, almost like they'd been put in the fridge for a week.
Also, knowing four women were moving their hands and eyes across my half-naked body, made this entire situation feel even more uncomfortable to me.
When they were finally done, the head-maid wrote down the measurements she and the others had found.
She promised me that the suit would be ready before Azazel's speech.
After that, the head-maid wished me a happy day and left the room with her colleagues.
"What was all that about?" I whispered to myself.