Chapter 1: The Village of Old Font
"FATHEEEEER!?"
"AAAHH!!" Elric gasped for air as he clutched his chest with bullets of sweat dripping down his forehead.
His grandfather abruptly busted through the door with worry plastered on his face.
"Is everything alright, Elric?" He said. Slowly letting go of the knob as he walked towards his grandchild.
"I'm okay, grandfather! I just had a strange nightmare. It was something about father." Elric explained while wiping the sweat off his forehead.
"Well, it's almost time for work. Did you forget that it's your first day? Come on, get up. We'll talk about it through breakfast." The elder man announced. He left the room excited by the thought of going to work with his beloved grandson.
Elric composed himself and to collect his thoughts to try and remember the dream he just had. He got up from his bed and planted his feet on the old wooden floors.
He stood up and walked outside of his room and into the living area.
The outhouse was at the back area of their residence. Furthermore, the layout of their house was designed in a way that he needed to pass through the dining area, and into the small corridor that separated his room from his grandparents.
As he walked past the dining area, his grandfather was already seated and was waiting for breakfast that his grandmother was preparing.
He quickly stepped outside and into the lavatory to get himself ready for the day.
He washed his face with the cold water and turned to the mirror that was fogged up by his breath.
He wiped it off with his hand and revealed his face that was as pale as snow, matching his white hair. His eyes colored silver as dull as the rest of his features, such as his hair.
Comparatively to his grandparents and the rest of the Classless who had pure white snow hair, he'd always wondered why the roots of his hair always stayed black, but when it reached a certain length, the ends of each strand turned tint-less.
He then turned his gaze to the strange mark located on the right side of his neck. It looked too much of a symbol to dismiss as a simple birthmark. Elric had always thought that it could mean something. He got lost in a trance while he stared at the mark like it was trying to tell him something until a voice snapped him out of his daze.
"Elric! Are you going to be any longer? We're going to be late, my boy!" His grandfather shouted.
"I'm coming!" He quickly wiped his face with a towel and went back inside the house. His grandmother placed the hot soup and a few small loaves of bread on the table and called him over.
"Are you ready for your first day Elric?" Rose Greyreid, his grandmother that looked to be in her early 60's asked as she walked towards him to cup his face with her hands.
"Oh! You're all grown up. I'm so proud of you." She added.
"Come on, sit. Let's talk about that dream of yours." Edward Greyreid, his grandfather, chimed in while breaking the loaf of bread he was holding. "What happened?"
Elric sat facing his grandparents and started to eat as well. He began, "I dreamt about Father telling me a story. He told me about the peaceful paradise that the humans lived in and that we got along with other races. It sounded like fairy tales. Do you know anything about this story, Grandfather?"
"Well, I don't know much about the story, but your father was a remarkably curious man. He loved to travel and search for answers that can satisfy the countless questions he had. He used to tell you stories of adventure that you loved as a boy." He answered.
"Was that the reason he left me? Us? Is that why we're called traitors?" His voice slightly raised as he got up and kicked back his seat from his abrupt movement.
"Oh my," His grandmother gasped as the chair fell to the floor.
"Calm yourself, boy. Your grandmother will start to cry. Why do you always get so worked up when it comes to your father? Finish your food. You'll need all the energy you can get for today."
Elric picked up the chair and kissed his grandmother on the forehead to apologize.
He sat back down and finished his food in silence while his grandfather continued.
"Your father was a good man. He loved his family, especially you, Elric. He was not the traitor the people accused him of. He was neither delusional nor a madman. My son he…" His voice trailed off as the first bell rang to signal the start of the day.
"Oh dear, you both better get up and get ready to leave. Here are your lunches." Rose got up and handed them metal containers.
"Oh wait! You mustn't forget your scarf, Elric." Rose quickly grabbed a red scarf and wrapped it around Elric's neck, covering the mark as well as keeping him warm.
"Thank you, grandmother, don't overwork yourself today, alright? I'll see you at supper." Elric said as he planted another kiss on her forehead to say goodbye.
Elric and his grandfather walked out the door to reveal the sunrise that warmed the cold breeze the harvest season has brought.
The Village of Old Font was a small village comprised of the Transmuter Class and the Classless, which were both treated as commoners and low-class workers.
The village was located at the southeastern edge of the Oxford region in the Kingdom of Byzantium. They were a village of mainly farmers and miners.
Some of the men were tasked to patrol and protect the borders from wild animals that inhabited the infamous Teal Forest near the village.
"Alright! Gather round!" The Head Miner shouted to get everyone's attention.
"We have quite a few young'uns with us today so for your sake listen carefully. Stick close with your guides and don't stray from the path to the mountain or you'll get eaten by monsters." He said as he chuckled at the last part.
"Let's go, Elric. This is a good time to review about the job and your studies. We have a long walk ahead of us so brace yourself, my boy." His grandfather said as he patted him on the back. And then they started to walk towards the Mountains.
"Alright, first one. Name the four regions of the Kingdom of Byzantium." He began to quiz Elric as they started to move out.
"The Oxford Region in the South and Saffron in the South Central part just above Oxford. Heliotrope in the North and Reseda Region in the North Central under Heliotrope."
"Very Good!" His grandfather exclaimed with a laugh.
"Okay, now what do Transmuters use to mine inside the mountains?"
"They use their hands coated with stone." He answered.
"Then what do us, the Classless, use?"
"We use normal pickaxes. Grandfather, I know all of this already." Elric grumbled.
"Alright, we'll continue later. I see some of your friends are eager to talk to you." His grandfather resigned as he moved towards the older men to talk about the plans for mining that day.
He watched his grandfather try to engage in simple conversation as he heard footsteps coming towards him.
"Hey, Elric!"
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