THE Fall
The music was deafening.
Colored lights swept across the rooftop, painting dozens of laughing faces in shades of blue, purple, and crimson. Empty bottles rolled across the polished floor as students celebrated the end of another school year.
Shadow leaned against the railing with a soft smile.
He had never liked crowds.
While everyone else shouted over the music, he stared at the city below. Thousands of lights stretched toward the horizon like stars scattered across the earth.
Beautiful.
Peaceful.
He closed his eyes and let the cool night breeze brush against his face.
"Shadow!"
A voice interrupted his thoughts.
His friend waved a bottle in the air.
"Come on! Stop acting like an old man and join us!"
Shadow laughed.
"I'm coming."
He took one last glance at the skyline before walking toward the group.
For the first time in a long while...
He felt happy.
...
Hours passed.
The party slowly quieted as people became exhausted.
Shadow walked back toward the edge of the rooftop to enjoy the silence.
The city looked different now.
Calmer.
The stars above seemed brighter.
"I wonder..."
He rested his arms on the railing.
"What my future will look like."
A single laugh escaped him.
"I've still got so much to do."
University.
Travel.
Finding something worth dedicating his life to.
There were countless possibilities.
Then—
A loud crack echoed beneath him.
"...Huh?"
The metal railing bent outward.
His eyes widened.
The world tilted.
For one impossible second, he floated.
Then gravity took him.
His body dropped into empty space.
The rooftop rushed away.
The cold wind roared past his ears.
His heartbeat exploded.
"No..."
His voice disappeared beneath the sound of rushing air.
He stretched out his hand instinctively.
Nothing.
No one could reach him.
The city lights blurred together.
Time slowed.
"So..."
"This is how it ends."
Oddly enough...
He wasn't angry.
He wasn't terrified anymore.
Only one thought remained.
I didn't even get the chance...
His vision faded.
Darkness swallowed everything.
...
Silence.
No pain.
No sound.
No light.
Shadow opened his eyes.
"..."
He wasn't falling anymore.
He stood inside an endless black space.
There was no sky.
No ground.
Yet somehow...
He was standing.
"What..."
His own voice echoed endlessly.
A faint silver glow appeared in the distance.
It slowly drifted closer.
Not a person.
Not an animal.
Just light.
It stopped before him.
A voice, neither male nor female, echoed through the darkness.
"A misplaced soul."
Shadow looked around.
"Who are you?"
No answer.
Instead...
The voice continued.
"The thread of your fate has been severed before its destined end."
"I don't understand."
"You died through accident."
Shadow lowered his head.
"So..."
"I'm dead."
Silence.
Then—
"A world has called for another possibility."
The silver light expanded.
Countless unfamiliar stars appeared around him.
Mountains.
Oceans.
Castles.
Wars.
Creatures unlike anything he had ever imagined.
A completely different world.
"What is this...?"
"A new beginning."
The light became blinding.
Shadow instinctively raised his arm.
"Wait!"
"I don't even know what's happening!"
The voice spoke one final sentence.
"Live."
Everything shattered.
...
Warmth.
A heartbeat.
The scent of wood.
Shadow's eyelids trembled.
His lungs filled with air.
He gasped violently.
"Hah...!"
His vision slowly focused.
A wooden ceiling.
Stone walls.
Morning sunlight poured through a nearby window.
Birds chirped outside.
"..."
He sat upright too quickly, causing dizziness to strike him.
"My..."
"My head..."
He looked down.
Small hands.
A much younger body.
"...What?"
He touched his face.
His hair.
His arms.
Everything felt real.
"This isn't..."
He pinched himself.
Pain.
Real pain.
The wooden door suddenly opened.
An elderly woman stepped inside carrying a bowl.
When she saw him awake, tears filled her eyes.
"You're finally awake!"
Before Shadow could react, she hugged him tightly.
"Thank goodness..."
"We thought we'd lost you."
Shadow froze.
His mind struggled to process the situation.
Lost?
Who was this woman?
Where was he?
He opened his mouth.
"I..."
"...Who are you?"
The woman's expression turned pale.
She slowly stepped back.
"...You don't remember me?"
Shadow stared at her in silence.
His heart beat faster.
Outside the window...
Towering stone walls surrounded an unfamiliar town.
In the distance, banners bearing a silver moon fluttered above castle towers.
This wasn't Earth.
Not even close.
His fingers trembled.
One impossible thought echoed through his mind.
I've... been reincarnated?
Shadow's breathing became uneven.
No...
This had to be a dream.
He forced himself to stay calm.
There had to be a logical explanation.
Maybe he was in a hospital.
Maybe he had suffered brain damage after the fall.
Maybe...
His gaze drifted back toward the window.
Stone buildings.
Horse-drawn carriages.
People dressed in clothes that belonged in a medieval painting.
A knight in silver armor walked past the house carrying a spear nearly twice his height.
There were no cars.
No electric poles.
No sounds of engines.
Only distant conversations and the occasional ringing of a bell.
His heartbeat quickened.
This can't be real...
The elderly woman carefully placed the bowl on a wooden table.
"Stay here."
"I'll call your grandfather."
She hurried out before Shadow could stop her.
The room fell silent once again.
Shadow slowly climbed out of bed.
His legs felt weak.
He stumbled toward the window.
Outside, children laughed while chasing each other through a dirt road.
Merchants arranged colorful fruits beneath cloth-covered stalls.
A blacksmith hammered glowing metal inside an open workshop.
The entire town looked peaceful.
It was beautiful.
Too beautiful.
Shadow rested his forehead against the cool glass.
"So..."
"I really died."
A strange emptiness settled inside his chest.
He would never see his old home again.
His friends.
The city lights.
Everything was gone.
...
A few moments later...
Heavy footsteps echoed through the hallway.
The door swung open.
An elderly man entered.
He had silver hair tied behind his head and sharp blue eyes despite the wrinkles covering his face.
He walked directly toward Shadow.
For several seconds...
Neither of them spoke.
Then the old man sighed in relief.
"You scared us."
Shadow blinked.
"Who..."
"...are you?"
The man's expression stiffened.
"So your memories really are gone."
He looked toward the elderly woman.
"Leave us."
She silently nodded before closing the door behind her.
The old man pulled a chair closer.
"My name is Gareth."
"I am your grandfather."
"My..."
"Grandfather?"
Gareth nodded.
"And your name..."
He smiled faintly.
"...is Shadow."
Shadow lowered his eyes.
So even in this world...
His name was Shadow.
Coincidence?
Or something else?
He couldn't tell.
"You collapsed three days ago."
"The village healer believed your Aether Weave had been damaged."
Shadow frowned.
"Aether..."
"Weave?"
Gareth looked surprised.
"You don't remember even that?"
Shadow slowly shook his head.
"I remember..."
He lied.
"...almost nothing."
The old man rubbed his forehead.
"This will be difficult."
He stood and walked toward a bookshelf.
Taking out a thick leather-bound book, he placed it on the table.
"This world is called Elyndor."
"There are countless kingdoms."
"Monsters roam forests."
"Magic exists."
"Every living being possesses an Aether Weave."
Shadow listened quietly.
Magic.
Monsters.
Kingdoms.
His heart pounded.
It sounded exactly like every fantasy novel he had ever read.
"This really is..."
He whispered unconsciously.
"...another world."
"What?"
"Nothing."
Gareth continued.
"Tomorrow the village examiner will inspect your Aether Weave."
"If it has recovered..."
"You can resume your studies."
"My studies?"
"You attend the village academy."
"You've wanted to become a knight ever since you were a child."
Shadow smiled awkwardly.
"I did?"
"You've always admired those who protect others."
The words lingered in the room.
Protect others.
Shadow looked down at his hands.
For some reason...
That felt natural.
Maybe the previous owner of this body truly had dreamed of becoming a knight.
If so...
Shadow didn't dislike that dream.
Helping people wasn't a bad goal.
At least...
It would give him a reason to move forward.
Gareth stood.
"You should rest."
"We'll talk more tomorrow."
After he left...
Shadow sat alone in the quiet room.
His gaze wandered across every corner.
Simple furniture.
A wooden wardrobe.
A faded family portrait.
He picked it up.
A younger Gareth.
The elderly woman.
A smiling black-haired boy.
Him.
Or rather...
The boy whose body he now inhabited.
Shadow stared at the picture for a long time.
"...I'll take care of your family."
He spoke softly to someone who would never answer.
"If you're really gone..."
"I'll live this life properly."
A warm breeze drifted through the open window.
For the first time since waking up...
Shadow smiled.
Perhaps...
This world was giving him a second chance.
A chance to live without regrets.
A chance to become someone stronger.
Someone capable of protecting the people around him.
Outside...
The silver moon slowly rose above the distant mountains.
Its pale light spread across the quiet village.
For a brief moment...
The moon seemed brighter than every star surrounding it.
Shadow unknowingly stared at it.
His chest felt strangely warm.
Almost...
As if something hidden deep within him had responded to its light.
He frowned.
"...What was that?"
The sensation vanished as quickly as it appeared.
He dismissed it as imagination.
Completely unaware...
That the moon watching over him was far from ordinary.
Morning arrived with the sound of birds singing outside the window.
For a few seconds, Shadow forgot everything.
The wooden ceiling.
The unfamiliar room.
The cool breeze carrying the scent of fresh grass.
Then reality returned.
"...Right."
He was no longer on Earth.
A gentle knock echoed from the door.
"Shadow?"
His grandmother's voice.
"Breakfast is ready."
"I'm coming."
Even saying those words felt strange.
He had never called anyone else his family.
Yet somehow...
Looking at Gareth and the old woman didn't make him uncomfortable.
Instead...
He felt a warmth he couldn't explain.
Perhaps it belonged to the previous owner of this body.
Or perhaps...
It was simply because they had accepted him without question.
...
The dining table was small.
Fresh bread.
Soup.
A bowl of fruit.
Nothing extravagant.
Still...
It smelled wonderful.
His grandmother smiled brightly.
"You've barely eaten in days."
"You need your strength back."
Shadow nodded.
"Thank you."
Gareth looked at him over his cup.
"The examiner will arrive before noon."
"Don't be nervous."
"I won't."
Although...
He was.
If magic truly existed...
Today would be the first time he witnessed it.
...
Outside, the village bustled with life.
People greeted Gareth respectfully as they walked toward the village square.
"Morning, Old Gareth."
"So the boy recovered?"
"That's wonderful."
Shadow politely returned every greeting.
Everyone seemed kind.
Children chased each other between market stalls.
A baker handed free bread to an elderly beggar.
Merchants laughed while arranging their goods.
It was peaceful.
Much more peaceful than the world he had left behind.
Shadow couldn't help smiling.
"Maybe..."
"This world isn't so bad."
...
The village square stood at the center of town.
Dozens of children around Shadow's age had already gathered there.
Some wore excited expressions.
Others looked terrified.
At the front stood a middle-aged man dressed in a long white robe embroidered with silver patterns.
A crystal sphere floated above a stone pedestal beside him.
The man raised his hand.
"Silence."
The chatter immediately stopped.
"I am Examiner Roland."
"Today, we will inspect your Aether Weaves."
"As you know..."
"The stronger your affinity..."
"The greater your future."
Shadow quietly joined the line.
His heartbeat accelerated.
One by one...
The children stepped forward.
Each placed a hand on the crystal.
Soft lights bloomed inside it.
"F Grade."
"D Grade."
"C Grade."
"A remarkable B Grade."
Cheers erupted whenever someone received a high rank.
Some cried after receiving lower grades.
Shadow watched carefully.
So this determines talent...
Eventually...
Only he remained.
Roland glanced toward him.
"Shadow."
"Step forward."
Taking a deep breath, Shadow walked to the pedestal.
The crystal looked strangely beautiful.
It shimmered with countless colors beneath the sunlight.
"Place your hand upon it."
Shadow obeyed.
The instant his fingers touched the crystal...
A faint pulse spread through his body.
Warm.
Gentle.
Like flowing water.
The crystal remained silent.
One second.
Two.
Three.
The villagers exchanged confused looks.
Roland frowned.
"...Strange."
Suddenly—
The crystal trembled.
A dull silver glow appeared deep within its center.
Then...
Without warning—
Crack.
A tiny fracture spread across its surface.
Roland's eyes widened.
"What?"
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
More fractures appeared.
The light inside the crystal darkened.
Silver slowly transformed into an unnatural black.
The air became heavier.
Several children instinctively stepped backward.
"What is happening?"
"I've never seen this before..."
Shadow looked around nervously.
"I..."
"I didn't do anything."
The black light disappeared as suddenly as it had appeared.
The crystal returned to normal.
Except...
It was now covered in cracks.
Silence.
Roland slowly lowered his trembling hand.
"...The examination is over."
The villagers stared at one another in confusion.
One whispered,
"Did the crystal malfunction?"
Another shook his head.
"Those crystals are enchanted."
"They don't malfunction."
Roland forced a smile.
"Shadow's Aether Weave appears... unstable due to his recent illness."
"We will perform another examination another day."
No one questioned him.
But Shadow noticed something.
For just an instant...
Roland had looked afraid.
Not surprised.
Afraid.
Shadow frowned.
Why...?
He had done nothing.
Yet everyone suddenly seemed uneasy.
Even Gareth remained unusually quiet as they walked home.
High above the village...
Hidden behind drifting clouds...
The silver moon hung motionless in the daylight sky.
Watching.
Waiting.
As though it had recognized the arrival of someone it had been expecting for a very long time.
