Queen Kohra

Perhaps he noticed it too soon. How he healed quickly when he was hurt. How at the brink of death, he always recovered to peak condition. How his body was unnaturally healthy like he could never get sick or die. It was all too strange but it wasn't like he could do anything about it.

He lived in the village for quite a while, hoping to start a new life. He trained with Ilan and became a hunter too to support himself. He also found out he had a penchant for studying.

He collected the discarded parts of the animals they hunted, documented them, and studied them since his powers never seemed to work. No, it was almost as if they were disabled.

Ever since he left the mountain, he couldn't just identity everything by touch again. The only thing he was granted was the ability to read, speak, and write. He was more than grateful for that.

"You're still going off to buy more paper hun? You seem obsessed"

"Can't help it. I love what I love"

"I'm not judging you. It just seems weird. By the way, Sora was looking for you the other time. Where'd you run to?"

"I....uhn....was busy"

Ilan sighed and shook his head. This was another one of his pressing concerns. Almost all the females were attracted to him like a moth to a flame. He spent most of his time running from them. And if he ever thought of liking one back, he would get a deep pain in his chest like his heart was about to be ripped out. He hated it.

"Oh, I heard something interesting. I heard a foreign single woman moved into the vacant house next door. They say she's an absolute beauty. Let's go say hi"

"No thanks, I'll pass"

"Aw, well, don't regret it"

"I won't. I have to go now"

Lesker walked away from him and headed towards the only bookstore in the village. It was owned by a learned old man who was well respected by the whole village.

Lesker had become quite acquainted with this old man after some literary debates with him. In fact, the old man considered Lesker a son and regretted the fact that his daughter was married off.

"Lesker, you're here again today. The same as usual, I presume?"

"Yes. Yuli isn't here today?"

Yuli was the man's grandson. Due to his stubborn attitude, he was sent to live with his grandfather. Lesker quite liked the young man and looked after him a lot.

"Lesker, come in. I want to talk to you"

"I hope it's not too serious"

"Well, a bit"

"Alright, I'm coming in"

Lesker entered the small shop that smelled of old books and made himself comfortable. In a village like theirs, they didn't delude themselves with luxuries like offering visitors tea. They just served a homemade snack. It was seasoned meat wrapped with flour and seasoned with coconut sprinkles on the flour wrapping. It was delicious and easy to make.

"So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I'm getting old and I'll die soon. My daughter doesn't want this business of mine and Yuli is too old. I want you to take over and train Yuli to be your successor"

What Lesker was eating dropped from his mouth.

"Excuse me, what did you say?"

"I know what I said. Lesker, I know you're concerned about your memories but you don't need to worry too much. You can do this much to help, can't you?"

"I'll...think about it"

Lesker left the bookstore in a somber manner. The sun was setting on the horizon so he didn't need to openly avoid anyone. He trudged back to the house he shared with Ilan. He did think about owning a library of his own but a bookstore was a bit much. His feet brought him to the front door.

He raised his head to look at the house next door. All the lamps were lit up and he could smell a sweet fragrance coming from the house, making his mouth water. His stomach grumbled, reminding him he barely had a meal that day.

He pushed the door open and entered. As expected, the house was empty. He sighed and dropped what he had in his hands. He proceeded to the kitchen to prepare a meal for himself. Since coming there, Ilan and some of the other villagers had taught him how to prepare meals. He learned how to do so and could soon prepare all the meals efficiently and deliciously.

After preparing dinner, he went to throw out the trash. It was there he saw her, also coming out to dispose of some things. He was captivated by her at first sight. Her lush black hair that flowed to her waist, her hazel eyes that drew him in and his gentle, provocating figure that swayed his heart.

She caught his eyes and smiled at him. His heart skipped a beat. Then came the pain.