1 Episode 1: It Won't be Long Like Last Time (1)

Cameras around flashed at me and I ignored them. The audience, which was cheering a moment ago, turned silent that I behave strangely.

I won the tournament, I had the trophy, and medals and soon fame and wealth would come.

What's the point if my precious memories were going to disappear anyways?

"What are you saying, Master? Isn't this what you wish for?" My shadow was akin to a two horns devil. He was enjoying it.

I said as I threw the trophy, "No! This isn't what I wanted. You should know it by now! We've been together for five months, we've been together through life and death! You... of all things!"

The audience gasped in disbelief when I threw it.

"Sorry, Master. I'm just your shadow, I can't think. I just do what you told me," it said with a playing tone.

"You are the one who suggested me make happy memories on that day! I did what you said, I followed everything you said. I met new people, and new friends and I made precious memories with them. You are the one who planned everything for me!"

"Now that you mention it, I guess I did. Haha! But don't blame me, Master. I warned you from the beginning so it's not my fault. Besides, you're the one who can't think for yourself, don't blame me for your foolishness."

"Scumbag! I will never wish anything from you again! I'll get everything I want with my hand!"

"Ahaha! I'd like to see a day when you didn't rely on me! Don't forget that not only I could erase precious memory, I could also erase memories of this day and fabricate them."

I paused for a moment before my expression twisted in anger, "SCUMBAG!"

"AHAHA! While at it! Why don't I erase everyone's memories of this day!"

Then, my vision went blank as I feel something precious slowly disappearing. I feel a small hole in my heart.

It hurts, I want it back, please, don't take it away from me.

These were my last thoughts before my consciousness dimmed.

I woke up as I opened my eyes abruptly, like a kid that just had a nightmare.

My heart was racing crazily right now, I didn't know why. Ah, that's right. The nightmare was so real that I did not know if it was real or not. I hope it wasn't.

I raised my torso and looked around absentmindedly before questions popped up one by one. Why I'm in a hospital? Why does every inch of my body hurt like hell?

Just by raising my torso, I gotta endure what a person with a hundred needles on their body went through. I hurriedly put my torso on the bed and the pain subsided.

Then, without warning, memories I never know of flowed in like streams.

I was watching a tournament when all of the sudden, a terrorist group attacked. I flee in a hurry but fell as I stumbled upon something. In that position, the crowds stomped on me as they were running for their lives. It was a miracle I'm still alive.

"Morning, Master." My shadow greeted me with a smile. When I hear its voice, inexplicable rage and hatred gushed out of the bottom of my heart. I wanted to punch my shadow as powerful as possible.

What is going on? I clenched my fist to endure the intense rage and the urge to change my expression to anger.

"Hey, good morning, Shed." I smiled as I forced myself to calm down. The negative emotions I felt earlier were unreasonable.

"Are you okay, Master?" It observed my expression and noticed something was missing.

I'm not panicked it saw me through, "What are you talking about, Shed? I'm alright."

Shed grunted in acknowledgment, "Humm... I see." It didn't sound very convincing.

After which, I asked myself, Why I felt angry all of the sudden? And this strong distrust toward Shed. Shed... What did you do to me? No, rather, did I do something? Did I wish for something at the cost of my precious memories, and I regret it? Hence why I vent my anger to him. But there's something odd; all my life, I didn't have a single precious memory. My memories of my childhood to my teens are... blurry. How did Shed make my wish come true if I don't have a single precious memory?

"Master, why don't you wish to be healthy?"

"I don't have a single precious memory, you should know that by now."

"You could just create it."

Create it... I see so that's what happened, my eyes agape as I realized it.

"What's wrong, Master?" Shed looked curious when it saw me.

"I'm fine. I just need some rest." I lay down and closed my eyes. I didn't fall asleep immediately, my mind was thinking about what my life was before my memories were erased.

.

.

.

"Has he been found?" A woman asked. She wore a white coat and she was tall. Her straight black hair reached to her shoulders. Her eyes were sharp like a sword, her facial features would make it hard for anyone to take their eyes off of her. She had a slim figure and the perfect body shape a woman could ask for. Add that to her beauty and leadership vibe, she was easily categorized as a strong and perfect woman.

She was sitting on a black chair. Below her were rows of long tables with people and computers and about thirty meters away from her was a giant display screen. It was showing the geography of a city.

"Yes, we've found him. The person who erased the memory of every human being on this planet, Cell, his real name is Saibou Hei." A woman in her twenties read the report on her hand. She was standing next to the black-haired woman.

"The information is correct from the Grand Elder, right?"

"Yeah, Grand Elder also reported this to Interpol."

"Why? Our force alone is enough to take care of him. Does the Grand Elder underestimate Heiwa Institute?"

"It is said in the report that she does believe in us, but getting extra help would also be beneficial."

"Beneficial? The west would always do something for their benefit. Getting them involved in this country's problem is a disgrace."

"Commander, please calm down. The Grand Elder mentioned our target is not ordinary for he gained such an extraordinary Tsukumogami."

"... Yeah, you're right, but no matter how extraordinary it is. He's only one person, can he face an entire organization as big as us? Send the most elite squadron we have."

Heiwa Institute was a secret military organization created by the government to protect the peace silently. They deal with terrorist attacks, smuggling guns, illegal import of Tsukumogami, important drugs case, catching a dangerous criminal, and a lot more.

Most of its members were women, and a squadron consisted of young girls from orphans. They were trained ever since they were little. One cannot underestimate them from gender alone, for they are akin to killing machines. They won't hesitate to kill even a pregnant woman who knew their existence by accident.

That was right, anyone who knew their existence would face death.

Right now, they received a mission from the Tsuki Council. A council of twelve powerful Tsukumogami users. The strongest member, Grand Elder noticed the memories of the entire world were erased.

As this could become a bigger threat, she immediately told the Heiwa Institute to move without delay.

"But still, can we believe in her? An ordinary looking youth is in truth a terrifying existence that can erase humanity's memories." The black-haired woman scrunched her brows in doubt.

"I think we should believe in her, Commander, she did recover everyone's memory in this organization."

"That's true, but what if what she showed is a lie? She's a master in the memory domain. Her Tsukumogami ability allowed her to enter someone's mind freely and edit one's mind as she like akin to a video editor.

"Furthermore, the day where humanity lost their memories are also the day when we are about to catch a dangerous person. Thanks to that, we failed to catch him and all of our data about him is gone."

"Commander, please be careful about what you're saying. The Grand Elder can't possibly work with a criminal."

"Oh...? Did I ever say she is working with a criminal?"

"No..."

"Yae, I want you to find the person we've been looking for."

"How? All of our data about him is gone, We don't even know if he exists. The person we've been looking for is like imagination. Yes, all the events like the mass murder of 33 orphanages, 15 churches, 13 libraries, 2 banks, 10 schools, 3 towns and 1 hospital linked to him, but we never see any evidence connected to him."

"Even so... We still have to try. That person orchestrated chaos in the dark. In total, he had killed more than 4.000 people. What is his purpose?"