Chapter 01

PART 1

Chapter 01 – The classic village boy who dreams big

“Daryl!!! Come back here you brat!” 

The thundering roar of the Baker Lady could be heard from afar in the village. A boy around seventeen with brown hair and green eyes was running among the villagers in the market trying to escape the source of the voice.

“Sorry Miss Jenny! I promised I’ll pay you back when I have the money!!” shouted the boy as he was running.

“You say you NEVER have the money! Pay me back right now!”

The middle-aged lady chasing the boy didn’t seem to slow down at all. The chase continued and they were almost at the village outskirts.

“If you don’t pay up I will tell your grandfather!”

The boy stopped so suddenly that the Baker Lady almost fell on him and tripped him over.

“Ok ok! I will pay! I will! Just don’t tell my grandpa!” said the boy while trying to stand up.

The Baker Lady opened up her hand waiting for her pay. The boy made a grunting sound and took out some money from his pouch to pay her.

“What I don’t get is… since you actually have money… why do you never pay and I have to chase you around?” asked the woman.

“It’s… training…” said the boy and became all red.

“Training? For what? Oh Daryl don’t tell me you’re going to enlist in the army?” 

“Army? What? No! Of course not! It’s my training to be an adventurer. A treasure hunter! And I need to be fast. And Miss Jenny, you’re the fastest runner in the village. So I have to get you to chase me somehow and…”

“What? Hahahahaha! Treasure hunter? Daryl you’re hilarious! You cannot be a treasure hunter. Give that dream up and become a shepherd. And don’t have me chase you again, you hear?” 

“WHY CAN’T I BECOME A TREASURE HUNTER? “ the boy, whose name was Daryl, shouted angrily.

“Ask yourself. Treasure hunters have brains boy. You lack that.” said the Baker Lady and left Daryl with his mouth hanging open.

“I have brains.” he murmured in disappointment. “Stupid Miss Jenny, I will become a famous treasure hunter and show you.”

He took a look around. The peaceful village of Rheen, in the middle of the Grasslands seemed so small to him. He was a wild spirit, someone not bound down by this tiny place.

“Besides…” he said to himself “if you want someone to blame for my desire to become a treasure hunter, that’s my grandpa.”

It was true. Daryl’s grandfather was a scholar who worked in the Great Library in Luminus when he was younger. He inherited his passion for reading books to his grandson. So Daryl grew up reading rare books from all over Fantasmagoria, including some books that were supposed to be forbidden.

Daryl went home really tired. He passed his days skipping school and training hard to become a treasure hunter. His grandfather was angry at him for that but he gave up hope of his grandson attaining a higher level of education a long time ago. Besides, the past couple of centuries the best higher education was Magic Studies and the best career one could pursue was one at the Army as a magician. And Daryl was not gifted in magic use.

“Daryl… Did you buy the stuff I sent you to?” the old man asked his grandson when he entered the house.

“Oops… I… I… totally forgot… Sorry gramps!” said Daryl and took a dive to the floor to avoid the incoming book tornado his grandfather hurled at him.

“You useless grandson! I ask you to bring me one thing and you forget to even do that? How are you going to become a treasure hunter like this?”

“Sorry sorry!!! I will go out to bring that right now!”

“Never mind. I’ll go buy it myself. I cannot trust you to do anything for me anymore.” Said the old man and went to get his coat. “You sit here and don’t do anything idiotic.”

“Yes grandpa.” said Daryl while picking up the books his grandfather threw at him from the floor. He glanced at the cover of one of them.

When his grandfather was gone he took the book he was glancing at to his room. He had read that before countless times. It was one of the Forbidden Books. One that chronicled the history of Phantasmagoria before the religion of Amosa came along. Before the whole continent became one solid Empire. It was the Story of the Unified World.

“At that time both Phantasmagoria and Technologica came together. Magic and Technology… In order to fight an Ancient Evil, people from both Continents came together and found the artifacts the Protectors had created to seal the Evil. In the end they managed to defeat it and split the artifacts again, hiding them around the world. These artifacts are the proof of their fight and proof of the friendship between Phantasmagoria and Technologica. “ Daryl read aloud. These words were handwritten on the book by his grandfather.

He dived on his bed looking at the ceiling. Whenever he read that book he kept thinking the same thing. The Baker Lady may believe that he is an idiot, yet Daryl is actually more than meets the eye.

“All these Forbidden Books are the books that chronicle the history of this Continent from before the Religion of Amosa took over. From before the Eternal War started. Why do they try to hide the history so much? Does it have to do with the fact that Phantasmagoria and Technologica were once getting along well? Does it have to do with the fact that there used to be a lot of countries here in the past? Or… is there a secret to… Anyway if need to become a treasure hunter fast and discover these artifacts.” 

While thinking all this Daryl looked at the book smiling. This book had a lot of clues pertaining to the artifacts current location. He had to decipher all this information and seek them out.

“I will find these artifacts… And uncover the truth behind this so-called Forbidden History.” said Daryl and got up from the bed. “Soon… I will be ready to leave this place.”