1.

Bang!

“……!”

A deafening noise, a shock that felt like her body was breaking apart, and Lumiere suddenly opened her eyes. It felt like she had just woken up from a doze, her head was foggy. Before she could gather her wits, her vision spun once more.

And then, another bang.

“Ugh.”

As her floating body hit the chair, a stabbing pain surged near her ribs.

‘What on earth is happening right now?’

Her vision shook back and forth, and her body rolled around uncontrollably as if it had lost all will.

Her side and head, which had been rolling and hitting the ground, hurt terribly. But there was no time to leisurely complain about the pain.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

“Ah, ugh! Ugh!”

Every time her head hit something, a flash of light burst before her eyes. She had no idea how many times she was rolling; Lumiere was almost at the point where she wished she would just faint.

‘Someone, please, someone stop this…!’

Had someone heard her desperate prayer?

Her body, which had been shaking like a toy inside a box, finally stopped. It seemed the carriage had finally hit the ground.

Her limp body felt heavy like a soaked cotton ball. Amidst the pain that felt like her lungs were being cut with a knife, Lumiere managed to catch her breath. Through her deafened ears, she began to hear screams that seemed to tear through the air.

— Aaaaah!

— It’s an accident! A carriage accident!

— Report it, quickly! Call the guards!

Fortunately or unfortunately, it seemed that the carriage had fallen into a city street rather than a secluded mountain path.

‘…A carriage accident.’

A carriage accident… Where was I going…? When and where did I get on? How did the accident happen?

No matter how hard she tried to recall, her mind was blank as if covered in fog. Along with her jumbled thoughts, voices like tinnitus stabbed her brain like broken glass.

— Really…?

— At most a year, at least…

— Be careful…

— I will always…

Lumiere furrowed her brow deeply.

Familiar voices buzzed in her ears like hallucinations. As the door of the crumpled carriage was torn off with a bang, policemen in uniform poked their heads in.

“There’s someone here…!”

“Hey, stay conscious…!”

The voices of people came closer and then faded away repeatedly. Lumiere felt her consciousness drifting away.

Was she going to faint like this?

‘…Lumiere.’

A soft and sweet voice, like butter spreading on warm bread, held onto her consciousness.

‘Lumiere Lashantia.’

A sensuous and heavy bass voice seeped sweetly into her ears.

‘…What would I do if you suddenly died one day?’

When did we have that conversation?

‘That’s the most foolish question you’ve ever asked. It’s not even worth answering.’

He had lain down with his eyes tightly shut as if he didn’t even want to think about it. It was amusing to see him, who never avoided answering, act that way, so she had pressed him for an answer.

Reluctantly, he had finally answered.

‘I’ll find a way to keep your body from rotting. So I can keep you as you were when you left, until I die.’

‘And then, when I die…’

‘…I’ll ask to be buried with you.’

That voice, which had muttered so nonchalantly, vividly echoed in her ears. The obsession that filled those golden eyes that glanced at her. It was a gaze she loved very much.

That beautiful and selfish gaze, filled with a will as strong as his obsession and persistence.

‘…Fool, you said you wouldn’t make me wait too long.’

She tried to recall the owner of the voice.

‘It’s too late now.’

But her head hurt too much, and fatigue overwhelmed her, making it impossible to remember anything.
I don’t know.

Let’s think about it after a little sleep…

“Hey, stay conscious…!”

Lumiere felt someone roughly lifting her, and she let go of the thread of consciousness she had been desperately holding onto.

* * *

“Next patient…!!”

“Move aside!”

“Aaaah! It hurts! It hurts! It hurts!”

Amidst the noise that resembled a war zone, Lumiere suddenly woke up.

‘…My throat hurts.’

As she regained consciousness, it felt like something sharp was tearing through her throat. Realizing that it was a severe thirst, Lumiere struggled to lift her heavy eyelids.

‘…Where am I?’

The groans of pain, the shouts to move the patients quickly, and the sharp commands of the doctors. As her foggy mind gradually cleared, she naturally realized that she was in the National Medical Center.

‘Why am I in a medical center…?’

Pressing her throbbing forehead, she tried to lift her heavy body. A nurse nearby was startled and ran over to Lumiere.

“You’re awake! We had such a hard time since we couldn’t identify you. You don’t seem to be seriously injured, but are you alright? Could you nod your head once? We need to check if there’s any damage to your spine or neck.”

Responding to the nurse’s continuous words, Lumiere slowly nodded her head. The nurse with lovely freckles and bright brown hair smiled brightly.

“Oh, thank goodness! It seems you’re not seriously injured.”

She quickly added with a sigh of relief. Despite the cries of the incoming patients that seemed to trouble her, she tried hard to smile.

“If you’re alright, would you like to see the doctor? Dr. Sigmund’s office is right next door.”

“…I’m sorry, but could I have some water?”

“Oh! Are you thirsty? Please wait a moment.”

Barely managing to ask with her sore throat, the nurse quickly brought her a glass of water. Lumiere drank it all in one go as if it were the elixir of life. Even after finishing one glass, her thirst did not subside. Noticing this, the nurse kindly brought her another glass and said,

“If you go out into the hallway, a nurse in a blue uniform will guide you. Please follow them.”

Nodding her head, Lumiere slowly moved her body. Fortunately, with each step she took, her burning thirst subsided, and her foggy mind gradually cleared.

‘Right, an accident. There was an accident.’

But what kind of accident was it?

The remnants of the accident flashed before her eyes. Inside the carriage, her body bumping around. The screams that tore through her ears…

As she was trying to find answers with her aching head, someone called her name.

“…Lumiere Lashantia?”

Startled, Lumiere looked up.

She found herself in a completely different place from the hallway she had been walking in a moment ago. In front of her stood a doctor in a white coat, looking at her with a puzzled expression.

‘What, what is this? When did I enter the consultation room?’

She looked around in confusion. With the situation changing so rapidly, it felt like she was dreaming.

The doctor, who had been watching her with a strange expression, cautiously asked,

“Did you hear what I said?”

“…Yes, yes? What did you just say?”

Startled by her question, the doctor’s eyes widened. She caught a glimpse of the name embroidered on his lapel.

‘Dr. Nikol Sigmund.’

Dr. Sigmund quickly scribbled something on the chart and then, in a tone that could be perceived as somewhat cheerful, he bluntly stated,

“Amnesia. I said you have amnesia.”

Lumiere’s eyes widened in shock.

Amnesia all of a sudden, what does that mean? Perhaps reading her confused expression, Dr. Sigmund kindly added another explanation.

“Amnesia. In other words, you’ve lost your memory.”

Lumiere’s long eyelashes, long enough to cast a shadow, fluttered rapidly like butterfly wings.

Only then did the conversation she had just had with the doctor come back to her like a bolt of lightning.

‘What is your name?’

‘Lumiere Lashantia.’

‘How did you get into the accident? Do you remember why the carriage overturned?’

‘Pardon? A carriage accident? You’re saying I was in a carriage accident?’

‘So you don’t remember anything at all right now?’

‘No. But doctor, it’s very hot inside for winter. Maybe that’s why I’m so thirsty. My throat feels like it’s burning.’

‘What do you mean, winter? It’s spring now. Look at the clothes you’re wearing.’

‘Ah…….’

‘……How old are you right now? Do you remember where you live? If you remember what you ate yesterday, could you tell me?’

From that point, the doctor bombarded her with questions, and unfortunately, Lumiere couldn’t answer more than half of them.

“Fortunately, you haven’t lost all your memories. It seems there’s an issue with your recent memories from the past few years. I recall reading a paper on such cases. This can happen if there’s a strong shock to the head or mind.”

Without even looking at Lumiere’s shocked face, the doctor continued scribbling something on the chart.

There was a faint excitement in his tone.

“You remember who you are, where you live, and your age, but you don’t remember the process. And when you try to recall those memories, you get a headache.”

“Yes…….”

Even though it was exactly as she had said, hearing it from the doctor made it sound like a significant condition.

‘Amnesia, is that really a disease that exists?’

She had once read a novel about a noble lady who lost her memory and fell in love with the crown prince of a neighboring country, but that was just a story.

However, as if to dismiss Lumiere’s doubts, the doctor spoke quickly with great interest.

“But this is the first time I’ve seen symptoms like yours. Memory loss over a certain period is possible, but for memories to disappear so sporadically! Fascinating. Yes, very fascinating.”

The doctor, who described her symptoms as ‘fascinating,’ looked at Lumiere with gleaming eyes.

“I happened to study the brain recently. There are some fairly credible treatments in the academic world. First, we open the head and apply electrical stimulation inside….”

……Wait a minute. What did you say?