The Guardian

Chapter 1: Neglect

The taxicab moved through the middle of the car-crowded road, and inside it, a young woman looked up at the tall, modern buildings with a bored expression.

“So, the Hero Academy?” the cab driver asked with a pleasant expression, trying to make conversation.

“Yes, the hero academy...” replied the young woman, looking up at the tall buildings as they drove by.

“That’s great. Our academy has been getting everyone’s attention, and it’s nice to have visitors coming to become heroes.” Commented the cab driver with a smile.

“And more work?” the young woman asked with a joking tone, and the cab driver smiled as if she had caught him.

“Well, it’s difficult for a cab driver to live in a city in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean... Before the ‘Great Cataclysm’ I would never have thought that a city could be created in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean with magic,” said the cab driver with a sigh, and shaking his head, he commented. “The world changes too fast.”

“Changes for the better or worse?” Aurora asked in her mind with an exhausted expression.

Twenty years have passed since the ‘Great Cataclysm,’ the catastrophe of global magnitudes that changed the world.

No one would have thought the world would be so transformed when the magical energy known as mana entered this world through its slightly weakened dimensional barriers.

The gods who always protected the earth by maintaining those barriers could not bear the burden of that great work and asked for help from another god from a distant world, and now...

“Twenty years have passed since ‘Terra nova,’ and I think humanity is progressing. An academy of heroes for the new generation. A safe city for its inhabitants. A peaceful world, without wars and a quiet life without fear for our lives.” commented the cab driver as he reminisced.

Aurora looked at the cab driver, who appeared to be a man in his forties, and said nothing.

He surely would have gone through a lot after that ‘God’ warned about the ‘Great Cataclysm,’ the monsters, the magical energy... And the thousands of lunatics who were known as the ‘players’ within the ‘Terra nova’ game ended up connecting to another world.

“Don’t give that look, girl. Life would have been worse without the God of Time and Space. True, creating a virtual machine that allowed you to connect to another world as ‘players,’ in which no one knew it was real, was a bad idea after ten years of freedom believing you were inside a ‘game,’ but that allowed us to survive the first monster appearances after the ‘Great Cataclysm.’” Commented the cab driver, noticing Aurora’s expression quivering.

“And it created thousands of power greedy lunatics...” added Aurora.

“And thousands of heroes to counter them...” refuted the cab driver, causing silence to fill the cab.

Aurora let out a light laugh and nodded at his optimism.

“That’s true,” Aurora replied, without being able to deny it.

“Your address is...” asked the cab driver, changing the subject but not finishing his words to let Aurora lead him directly.

“Two blocks from here, in a mansion downtown,” Aurora informed, pointing to the place comfortably.

“Oh, you’re going sightseeing? The ‘First Mansion’ is well known around here. Although it’s not official, it’s a well-traveled tourist site.” Reported the cab driver in a cheerful tone, surely thinking of the passengers he had brought along.

“‘First Mansion’?” Aurora felt an awful premonition.

“Yes. Although they call it ‘First Mansion,’ it is said to be the first building in all of Atlantis.” Reported the cab driver as he drove slowly.

Aurora’s bad premonition became more evident when suddenly the tall buildings disappeared, leaving in sight a long, high wall that did not let one see inside.

However, one could notice the trees growing on the other side, so tall that they overtopped the wall.

A strange sight for a modern city full of large, tall buildings.

“Where do I drop you off? I recommend the back. There is a restaurant, and from its balcony, you can see inside the mansion.” Commented the cab driver and, as if remembering, added. “You were coming from the airport, so... If we go one block from the restaurant, there is a decent, and safe hotel.”

Aurora’s expression trembled as she looked at the tourists of different nationalities taking pictures of the wall and the mansion’s entrance as if it was a tourist spot.

Fixing her expression and muttered. “Drop me at the door.”

Unperturbed by the rejection of his recommendations, the cab driver nodded and took advantage of the parking lot at the entrance to the mansion, parking comfortably.

Aurora paid the cab driver and quickly left the cab with a strange expression. She watched the tourists still taking pictures and the tour guide, who was explaining.

“It is said that Atlantis Island was created around ‘The First Mansion’ and taking it as the center of the island. It is unknown who it belongs to; some say it was from the great mage who created the island, others say a billionaire was lucky that the island was created around him. But no matter the theory, this is the first building on the island and the only one that, for over twenty years, has remained intact.”

Noticing how the tourists applauded at the tour guide, Aurora put on an even stranger expression.

She pulled out a key and... She hurriedly entered the mansion.

“...”

Before closing the door, she could notice how the cab driver looked at her in disbelief and how some tourists took pictures in surprise.

With a half-angry expression, she entered the mansion.

Not caring that the furniture was clean and very well maintained, she pulled out her phone and dialed a number.

“Honey? How are you? Are you here yet? How was the flight? Calm? Did you get home safely?”

A grown woman’s questions were heard on the other end of the phone, and Aurora took a deep breath.

“I’m fine. I made it. The flight went well, no problems. And I’ve already arrived home, but I ran into a tour group outside the mansion, and the news that this mansion was the first big city building in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean!”

“Hahahahaha...”

Aurora heard her mother laugh dryly on the other end.

“So, mother, are you the grand wizard or the billionaire?” Aurora asked with a sarcastic tone.

“Neither... Actually, this mansion belongs to your brother. Hadn’t you asked about him before?” Her mother asked and let out an amused laugh. “How about it? Do you feel closer to your brother?”

Before Aurora could say anything, her mother continued.

“Come on. You can’t stay all your life in a ‘no-man’s-land.’ You must rest and make friends. When you were a child, didn’t you want to be a heroine? The Hero Academy is world-renowned, and I’ve already enrolled you... Ah, Alice is also going to attend, so you won’t be so lonely when you start.” Said her mother in a serious tone.

“... It’s not man’s land, it’s Africa... And aren’t you afraid that your dear, weak daughter will be left alone in an unknown city?” Aurora asked in a depressed and ‘scared’ tone.

Her tone would normally have captivated any listener, unfortunately, the person on the other end was her mother and...

“You’re so funny, honey.” Her mother said without a tone of concern, knowing she would continue to insist, she quickly added. “Your father is calling me. I must go. Bye, take care and say hi to Alice...”

“Love, you were calling me?”

The last thing she heard was her father’s voice on the other end of the phone...

“...”

Aurora stared at the phone in disbelief, and after a few minutes, she finally sighed in exhaustion.

She had asked about her brother, who she had never met nor had seen any photos of, despite being named for as long as she could remember. As an unspoken and undisclosed topic, she used it with her mother to get her to end the conversation about her life and not force her to leave ‘no-man’s-land’, but...

The next day she found out that she had a ticket to travel to the city in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and that she was already enrolled to enter the ‘Hero Academy’ that was starting only the next day and now...

She was at her unknown brother’s mansion, enrolled as a future heroine in a city she basically didn’t know, and with an academic future ahead of her as a hero, even though she already had twenty years, a job, and a good life.

She had wanted to be a heroine... 8 years ago.

Despite that wild occurrence in her life, Aurora just shook her head, undisturbed.

Ever since she was little, she had been surrounded by these kinds of situations... Strange situations or sudden events, which a girl normally wouldn’t have.

Like suddenly moving to a distant place due to her mother’s decision, or like a system that gave her a sword when she first wished she had one... After watching an animated series on television.

—That was my only mistake.

A text appeared in Aurora’s mind coming from her ‘system,’ but she asked with an unperturbed expression. “So when I was eight and lost mother’s favorite knife, that magic knife that mimicked knives from my memory and could cut metal like tofu, it wasn’t your fault?”

—That was an oversight.

Aurora didn’t know how to respond to such a shameless answer.