1 Prologue

"Kid, get off my case and scram!" The food stall manager yelled with his butcher knife swung over his shoulder.

The young boy of no more than 7 years laid on the ground with barren feet, disordered long hair, and a oily ragged clothing struggled to crawl away as he held onto the piece of raw loin meat stolen from the food stall. The food stall manager had just kicked him in the ribs as he was about to escape. Everyone passing by could tell he was one of many LOST, left to fend for themselves in the slum parts of Grascia.

Grascia was one of many kingdoms in the Tinof continent, which resided in the world of Ignas. Ignas was a world where alchemy opened up impossible routes for mankind. Everything from the strongest barrel gun to the smallest clock gadget required the workings of alchemy.

In the world of Ignas, it could be said that those born without an affinity to alchemy would be despised and treated like utter scraps. They are known as LOST. Even a slave that works under a master using alchemy would be in better standings than the LOST. It is rare to see the LOST survive until adulthood as the world of Ignas has a natural toxin in the air called Umbras, which can be fatal to those that do not possess an affinity to alchemy.

The young boy knew that the life he held onto had no substantial value, as he would perish from exposure to Umbras eventually as LOST. The juicy, raw meat only let him grovel in the world for a moment longer.

"Kkkdddfff, kfffddfff!!!" The boy coughed as he got up from the ground, his eyes somehow burning with the passion to live, to breathe every bit of air as if his existence was being questioned.

Trudging away from the market plaza, he slipped into an alley, and sat down. Munching down on the meat, he let the bloody juices seep into his teeth, but just as he was about to take another bite, the meat was ripped out of his hand, and he felt a sharp thrust bash into his face.

"Fucking twerp, you think you deserve to eat this meat? Leave it for your seniors eh?" A skinny tall kid in long rags and spiky rooster hair snickered as the meat danced in his hands.

Being one of the older kids as a LOST, the strong preying on the weak was the absolute rule. As he walked away, the young boy's vision flickered, and everything went black.

...

"Aaaaahhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!" A scream could be heard in the distance. The young boy woke up suddenly to see a sea of flames in the alley. The Order had come on a monthly cleaning. As a group of alchemists that brought justice to the public, it was mandatory to burn the alleyways monthly to rid of the growing number of LOST that gathered every once in a while.

Indeed, to the public, the existence of LOST was so unforgivable that a purge was required as if they were pests of some sort. Seeing the flames grow higher, the young boy tried to run from the incoming flames, but to no avail did he reach a dead end in the alleyway.

Right as the flames almost hit the young boy, his eyes closed for a moment, bracing himself for death finally but his body did not feel the heat of the flames. Instead, a large black jacket appeared in front of him, an old man with a tall stature and curly white hair and dangling beard had blocked the flames with a metal, glowing umbrella.

The young boy stared in awe. What was this magical moment that had transpired before him? And what was the mysterious umbrella that the old man held in his hands?

"Boy, what's your name?" The old man asked.

Seeing no response from the boy, the old man shook his head.

"No one taught you how to speak eh?"

Now folding the metal umbrella up, he reached his hand out and and said as if he had chanted it,

"From this day forward, Cheval will embrace 'Umbras' as one in sight."