Kapitel 2: Their First Meeting - in this life

Ale tried his best to cope up with the pain as he slowly absorbed the broken shards of his future self.

It took him three years just to be able to lead a normal life without having panic attacks and sudden seizures.

Every time he managed to absorb a piece of the soul from his future self, memories flooded his brain like waves crashing on a hill. He could feel something inside him break and erode every time it happened. And at the end of these erosion and destruction, the new him was getting sculpted little by little.

It was uncomfortable. Painful. And a part of him always screamed that he didn't belong there. The self from the future always felt out of place as it tried to adjust to a different timeline. And Ale, at the center of these storms and waves, fought continuously day and night to try to find a little bit of stability and peace.

It took him three years and a huge number of changes before he finally managed to settle down and rest. But then, it was also time, time for the arrival of the hero. And this time, Ale wasn't just going to let him go. That guy was his only hope in this world full of danger and despair.

Three years later/A secluded beach in the duchy.

As the sun shone down, the mesmerizing blue of the Ocean captured his eyes. The crystal-clear blue water looked so alluring that he found himself running towards it without even realizing what he was doing.

One step. Two steps.

Splashing sound filled his ear as he ran deeper into the water.

"Whoa! So cold!!!"

Well, that was to be expected. It was winter. No matter which time of the day it was, the water was bound to be colder than the devil's soul right now. But that wasn't enough. Cold of that level wasn't enough to extinguish his flame.

One second, Ale was shivering due to the cold. Then the next second, he started playing with the water as if he was never cold to begin with. Only at times like these did Ale look like an 18-year-old.

He was wearing a plain white shirt and black pants. His red hair that was now slightly wet with sea water looked like the setting sun in contrast to the blue Ocean.

While Ale was busy taking an untimely bath in the cold ocean water, a few people could be seen walking along the beach from a little distance.

Among them was a man who stood out more than anybody else. His black hair and black outfit made him look stunning, like a night without a moon. it wouldn't take a genius to figure out that he was the leader of the pack.

As they were minding their own business and walking along the beach, they failed to ignore the splashing sound of water accompanied by the carefree yet not too loud laughter of a teenager. As they looked toward the sea in curiosity, all of their steps came to a halt simultaneously.

These people were adventurers. After travelling the world for years and visiting hundreds of unique locations, they had already seen their fair share of beautiful scenarios and people. But this was the first time, the first time that they saw someone who looked so pure and beautiful.

Hair that looked like the setting sun, as if it was declaring the doom of the mankind, smile that could take anyone's breath away, it was a beauty that signaled danger. From the tip of his hair to the end of his fingernail, everything about him screamed serenity and destruction.

It was the first time they felt such peace and chaos in their soul just by looking at someone. And the subject of their admiration, the carefree Ale was still jumping around in the water.

Ale, who just now realized that something was wrong and started feeling their presence behind him, finally turned around.

*Bluuushhh*

The moment they made eye contact, his face turned as red as his hair in shock and embarrassment.

Actually, Ale was someone known to be mature for his age among others since he rarely acted childish. As for Ale, ever since he started remembering things from the future, he found it hard to adjust and play around with kids his age.

You can't expect him to play hide and seek with kids while he dreams about the destruction of the world every single night. So being found out by other's while he was momentarily distracted and acted like a five-year-old, made him very embarrassed.

After a few moments of embarrassment, he finally managed to compose himself and remember his cause for visiting this place.

"Oh my, did he just blush?" asked a blonde woman as she kept staring at Ale.

"Seems like he wasn't expecting anyone to come here, whatcha gonna do now Rudy? You ruined the pretty boy's day cause you wanted to take a shortcut." said a bulky guy while grinning.

The black-haired guy, Rudy, was actually feeling guilty even though his friends were only teasing him. He was an honest guy. Ruining someone's day would definitely make him feel bad.

"Should I apologize?"

"What?"

"Hey! I was just joking with you! Why'd you apologize to someone you don't even know? And this isn't private property either so we're not at fault."

"I know but he looks so embarrassed that I feel bad.", Rudy replied with a straight face.

"..."

Everyone was silent for a moment before finally accepting Rudy's statement since they were used to him being like this.

"Alright, getting to know someone from this area isn't a bad idea either. We can ask him for directions and stuff. ", this time the reply came from a blue-haired guy with a slick figure and a pair of glasses above his nose, which made him look smart.

With that, they approached the red-haired guy.

On the other hand, Ale, who had finally calmed down began to panic once again but this time, internally.

'Why are they coming here? I was supposed to approach them first and make a good impression! That was my purpose for coming all this way!'

He looked around to check his surrounding and wondered if there was anyone else around.

Nope. He was the only one there.

After a moment of fluster, Ale finally calmed down and took a big breath.

Then he started to organize his thoughts.

'They really are coming for me. Well, it's fine either way. This will make things easier.'

The closer Rudy's group got, the more amazed they were at Ale's beauty.

Wet shirt, messy hair that resembled the setting sun and a pretty face, all of these combined made him look like an angel that descended upon earth.

And then, the angel spoke, "Umm, do you have any business with me?"

His voice was as soothing as his looks.

After a few seconds of admiration, Rudy finally managed to speak.

"I'm sorry. I wanted to apologize since it looked like we disturbed your private time. We also wanted to ask for directions since we're not from this area. "

"... I see."

"It's alright. I just wasn't expecting anyone since this is a secluded area."

"Oh! and you needed direction? I can definitely help out! I'm rather familiar with this area. "

Ale said while smiling.

"Thank you for your kindness. My name is Rudy. We're adventurers... and these are my companions. Ron, Alice, Stuart and Ash. "

According to Rudy's introduction, the bulky guy, the blonde girl, the smart guy and lastly a pale looking guy was introduced to him.

'I already know them.' thought Ale while greeting them.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Ale."

"Wow, you really are pretty, nice to meetcha."

"Hello and I apologize for surprising you earlier."

"Thank you for offering your help."

"Hey."