137 A Strange Landscape

In a foggy grassland where there was a single dead tree standing tall in the middle, the was no sign of life except for one man. He was sitting on the ground that was because of the morning dew and his back was leaning against the ashen grey tree. He was wearing a white shirt and a pair of blue denim pants that looked like they had seen a lot of fieldwork. His eyes were closed and the expression on his face was peaceful and tranquil.

Slowly, the man opened his eyes and his tranquil expression was replaced by that of confusion. The man slowly got up and wiped his now went denim pants and began to look around. He tried to touch the fog surrounding him but felt nothing; not even the usual cold sensation.

The man couldn't see far because of the fog, and there didn't seem to be anything in the distance either. There was no shadow hiding behind the thick layer of fog. The only thing he could see was grasses with water from condensation on them and a tall leafless tree standing mysteriously in the middle.

Looking at the tree, the man's expression showed a slight hint of nostalgia but was quickly replaced by the look of fear for a split second and then calm. The tree with numerous branches gave off an aura of mystery and gloom. It's ashen grey trunk looked to be a diameter of more than two meters and it was standing probably about twenty-five meters tall. There were a total of thirteen biggest branches that split into countless smaller ones. He concentrated on the tree but what he was expecting didn't happen.

"Huh?"

Suddenly, there was a voice coming from behind the wall of fog. The man looked at the shadow that was approaching and slowly, a figure of a man revealed itself. It was someone with amber-colored hair and green eyes. His chiseled face and his prominent features looked exactly like the man who had just woken up from under the tree. Even the white shirt he was wearing was the exact same as the man; only the pants were different. The man from the fog was wearing a pair of cotton pants instead of denim.

"Val, is that you?" said the man who walked from behind the fog. His voice was deep but there was a slight charm in it. It was the voice of someone who would often choose his words carefully.

The man who was standing under the dead tree became even more confused, but his expression didn't show any changes this time.

"G?" he said. His voice was deep and cold, but it showed familiarity nonetheless.

"Yes, it's me. Where are we?" asked the man from the fog who turned out to be Graham.

Valentine shrugged.

The two identical men were standing under the giant tree side by side. Except for their pants and eye color, everything about their physique was the exact same.

"This has never happened before. We've never met eye to eye like this," said Graham.

"We have... actually," replied Valentine, "But I don't remember when..."

"Yes! You are right!" Graham snapped his fingers in revelation, "How could I forget something so important!"

"Do you remember it?" asked Valentine. He only vaguely remembered meeting Graham directly but everything about the event eluded him.

"Yes, but strangely, only parts of it. It was when we were little-- I say, probably eight? It was at night when we first met and you were crying your eyeballs out for some reason. I think it was the last time I've seen you cry, in fact," replied Graham. He was stroking his chin gently.

"I cried? Why can't I remember?" said Valentine.

Suddenly, his expression became that of someone in pain. He pressed his right hand against his temple gruntled.

"Are you alright, Val?" asked Graham in concern. He had quickly come to Valentine's side to help him.

"*panting* I'm okay now..." he said while breathing heavily, "I... remember that I was very sad that night-- devastated. That's why I was crying. But I can't remember the reason... Why was I crying again?" he looked at Graham with expectation.

"I... don't know, Val. I can't remember anything else about it except the fact that it was our first meeting and you were crying. We've been inseparable since then, but that's all I know,"

Valentine's expression had returned to his cold and calm self. He looked at Graham with familiarity and gratitude.

"Why do you think we're here? This place feels nostalgic... and sad at the same time. I don't recognize it, though," said Valentine.

Graham stood up straight and put both hands behind his back. He observed the dead tree once more.

"Same here, to be honest. I don't know this place at all, but I know deep down it's related to us. This has never happened before. I think it might be related to the fact that I am a President rank now," concluded Graham.

"You're right. I think if I've become a President rank as well, we might learn something else about this place," said Valentine.

Graham then looked at Valentine's cold blue eyes.

"Do your abilities work, Val? I've been trying to use my Supersight but it won't activate," asked Graham curiously.

Valentine shook his head.

"No. I've also tried to use Reveal on this tree but nothing came up. This place seems to lock away our Contractbound abilities," replied Valentine.

"It indeed seems to be the case, Val," said Graham thoughtfully, "Anyway. it feels nice to be able to talk to you face to face like this. Normally, I cannot hear your replies, so I just have to assume what you would say. I cannot read your minds either," he added with a smile.

Valentine smiled a little.

"That is true," he replied shortly, but his tone was full of closeness.

"So what do you think about Luuk and Jacco, Val?" asked Graham. He put his hands inside the pockets of his pants and leaned back against the tree.

"They're alright. It's easy to work with them. They do what they're told without questions," replied Valentine.

Graham let out a chuckle.

"You sounded like a mafia boss," he said jokingly.

After that, his expression turned serious.

"Val, do you think it is alright involving them in all this? I know they became Contractbounds not because of us, but sometimes I feel bad making them kill others for their scroll," said Graham with a slight regret in his voice.

"G, we just do what we must. If they want to be stronger, that's what they must do," replied Valentine coldly.

"You're right... I guess," said Graham shortly.

"What do you say we go exploring a little bit?" suggested Valentine.

Graham nodded.

"Sure. Let's go," he replied eagerly.

The two identical men then walked away from the tree in a random direction. They couldn't really tell which way was which since everything was covered in thick fog. Even the sun wasn't visible in that place. They could only see the sunlight but not the burning star itself.

"Let's go this way," said Valentine.

Graham nodded and followed him close behind. They walked slowly and carefully in case the terrain changed. So far, they had been walking on wet grass that had fresh morning dew on it. The gentle crunching sound was the only sound they heard. Although they were only wearing thin shirts, they didn't feel cold, being surrounded by fog like that.

"Where do you think we'd end up in if we could even go anywhere in this foggy place?"

"I have no idea, honestly, Val, but if this place is really connected to us, probably somewhere we know?" replied Graham.

They kept walking and walking until they saw a shadow of something hidden behind the thick layer of white fog.

"That looks like a house, Val," said Graham.

"It does," replied Valentine.

The two men increased their pace and slowly, the house in the distance came into their view. It was a two-story house in the middle of a field with trimmed grass. The surrounding area looked like it was farmland, but there were no crops planted. The house itself was made of bricks and was painted white with a black roof. The house in front of them was big in comparison with houses in the city. It seemed that a family of seven could live there comfortably without fighting for space.

Graham was observing the house and also Valentine's expression.

"Doesn't this house look familiar, Val?" he asked.

Valentine was standing there motionlessly. The sight of the house seemed to have evoked something within him, but looking at his expression, it appeared that he couldn't really figure out what it was.

"It does look familiar. I cannot remember why, though. Could this be our childhood house, G?" said Valentine in doubt.

"It might be, but judging from your expression, you seem to be more familiar with this house than me. I only vaguely feel familiarity coming from this building and nothing else," replied Graham.

"That is odd..." replied Valentine.

"Let's try entering the house then. I'm sure we'll remember more things if we see the inside," said Graham.

Valentine nodded slowly and the two of them started walking towards the house. They walked across the big field of grass quickly.

"Huh?"

No matter how quickly they walked, the house didn't get any closer. It stayed the same size and distance. They couldn't get near it even after walking for several minutes.

"This is weird, G," said Valentine.

He began running as quickly as he could, but the house stayed far. He didn't get anywhere near it despite his effort. It didn't feel like he wasn't moving, but it felt like the house just stayed the same distance away from him the whole time.

Graham quickly caught up to Valentine after a while once the latter had stopped running.

"It seems we cannot enter this house right now," concluded Graham.

"Do we have to get more powerful first for us to proceed?" said Valentine. He was now standing and watching the house from the same distance as when they first came.

"It appears to be the case," replied Graham.

"Then let's go somewhere else. There is nothing we can do here," said Valentine decisively.

Graham nodded and the two of them continued their journey. They went to the right from the house and kept walking through the thick fog covering the whole area. Slowly, a shadow of a tall tree appeared in front of them and they recognized the tree right away. They kept walking until they could see the tree behind the fog.

"We're back here. How peculiar," said Graham as he was observing the massive dead tree in front of them. He was positive that it was the very same tree with thirteen big branches.

"Maybe we should have walked to the left," said Valentine.

They walked in the same direction where the house was and arrived there not long after. The big white house was still there and they still couldn't get near it. This time, they walked towards the left side of the house.

"Do you think we'll end up near the tree again this time?" asked Graham.

"I don't know, but we can only try," replied Valentine.

They kept walking and walking and then disappointment came upon them. The shadow of the tall tree had once again made its appearance before them. They walked farther and ended up under the ashen grey tree one more time.

"That concludes it, Val. We can only access the tree and the house for now. Although, we can't actually enter the house," said Graham.

"That indeed seems to be the case," replied Valentine shortly. He was now leaning back against the tree.

Graham took a spot beside Valentine and sat on the ground with his back against the tree as well.

"I wonder what kind of places we'll find here if we've gotten stronger," he said.

Valentine crossed his arms.

"What kind of place is even this? How did we end up here in the first place?" asked Valentine.

Suddenly, the fog around them became much thicker and began to move. It blocked their vision completely and now they felt lost in the sea of fog.

"Val! Where are you?!" shouted Graham.

His voice was swallowed by the white fog and disappeared. There was no reply either from the other person. He felt alone for the first time and he felt suffocated. His body couldn't feel any sensation either from the fog surrounding him, and the absolute silence was nerve-racking.

"!!!"

Suddenly, Graham felt like falling and opened his eyes. He got up from the bed and sat there while breathing heavily. After calming down, he looked around and found that he was in his bedroom and the sun had risen; the clock on the wall showed nine o'clock in the morning. The street below was busy as usual with the sounds of vehicles driving by and people chattering.

Graham looked at himself curiously. He was still wearing the same clothes that he had put on the night before; a simple brown t-shirt and his pajama pants instead of a white shirt and cotton pants like before. There were drops of sweat on his forehead, so he wiped them with the back of his hand.

"So, Val, that world takes place in our dream," he muttered, but there was no answer. He had come back to the real world.

"I wonder how we can enter that foggy world again," he said.