"Wisdom is to comprehend, not understand”

Leonard woke up in a fright. His forehead was sweating cold.

"This again? Damn it... looks like I can't run away anymore." He thought as he got out of bed.

He walked to a sink in the corner of the room. While wiping the sweat from his face, he caught his reflection in the shard of a mirror leaning against the sink's edge, losing himself in disjointed thoughts for a brief moment.

Afterwards, Leo made his way to the bedroom window, where the moonlight cast a warm glow.

"This just won't stop haunting me." He whispered to himself.

Leo felt he couldn't keep running from these recurring mental flashes. He decided to make a concerted effort to make it clear that night.

He stood by the window, gazing up at the four moons. He touched the ELEV on his nape, the faint numbness a constant reminder of his Neumond status—all he knew of his origins. He held a golden pendant, which hid a portrait within—a silent promise of a past he couldn't recall.

Leo sat down in front of the window and absorbed himself in meditation, trying to relieve his stress, when he unknowingly activated his ELEV. A surge of energy coursed through him, unlocking doors in his mind he thought were sealed forever.

***

Fifteen years ago, Leo and his family were living in the small village of Besen, north of Gothia. 

Besen was unique, built atop Lake Zafir on a massive pillar-supported platform. Two bridges connected the village to the mainland: one to the west and another to the north. 

All village gatherings and events took place on this platform. Its guard was made up of ordinary soldiers, as they had not awakened any Neumond for the village's defense.

Besen was a remote village that lived on fishing and agriculture. Small caravans occasionally passed through. There was little to no monster presence, and most were killed off by traps.

As Leo's memories of the village surfaced, a terrible headache pressed upon him, forcing more memories to the forefront of his mind.

It was a sunny day with a refreshing breeze in the village, something quite rare and valuable for the residents. It commonly rained and had hot weather in the region.

Everyone knew each other in the village, and disagreements were rare.

Leo was always with Mia, his best friend. He also harbored feelings for her, though he never dared to confess them.

Mia had long, straight red hair at the roots that curled at the ends. Her green eyes looked like tiny jade stones under the fluorescent light, and her skin was pale white with small freckles dusting her delicate nose.

Mia's enchanting smile, graced with delicate dimples, held the power to mesmerize all who beheld her beauty. Despite only being ten years old, she possessed a beauty that many said belonged to the little goddess of Dunkel. 

Leo was always fixing the bangs that fell over Mia's face, which hid one of her eyes, making her look timid. Mia always smiled shyly, called him annoying, and messed up his hair as punishment

Today, however, Mia was acting quite differently than usual and invited Leo to walk in the chaff fields outside the village. Guards yelled after them while they were leaving. Leo and Mia laughed a lot as they got distant from the village.

Mia sat down on a pile of straw, and as the breeze blew, her hair danced in the wind. She gently tucked it behind her ear, her gaze meeting Leo's. It was the most perfect vision he had ever had of her.

His heart raced, a shiver ran down his spine, and his palms broke a sweat. Leo gently approached and sat beside her, offering her sandwiches he pulled out of his backpack.

"Mi... Mimi, would you like one?" Leo asked hesitantly, offering her the sandwiches.

"Looks good!" she replied energetically.

Leo occasionally got carried away and addressed Mia as "Mimi." She thought it was cute. To thank him, she nicknamed him "Kori" after the color of his eyes, which meant ice in the ancestor language.

"I wanted to thank you, Kori." Mia said thoughtfully.

"Uh... Err... you don't have to..." he replied, embarrassed.

"It's not about the sandwiches, silly!" Mia smiled.

"Huh? What is going on?" Leo said, confused.

"You know, Kori, when you came to me, I was so lonely. Everyone in the village was always afraid and respectful because of my family's status. I always lived in complete isolation." Mia's face was pale with a sad expression.

Unsure of what to say, Leo simply smiled and remained silent. He didn't understand why the other children avoided her. To him, it was a sin to wrong such a sweet and kind girl.

But the fact is, Mia was the chief's daughter, and her mother had been banished from the nobility of a big city to take over the place.

"I have never known what it is like to have a true friend or companion, but you saved me from a life of sadness and isolation." Mia stated.

A heavy silence fell between them. Mia felt a big lump in her throat.

"And?" Leo asked, his gaze fixed on his feet.

"I will be eternally grateful! Because of you, I can finally laugh without feeling guilty about the past. You've colored my life." Mia concluded with a huge smile on her face and eyes full of tears.

"Mimi... sometimes you feel so old," Leo said, perplexed.

He looked at Mia, at her bright smile. He reached out and fixed her bangs, like he always did. "I'll take care of you!" The words were out before he could stop them, a promise made

A peculiar, somewhat unsettling silence enveloped the space as Mia gazed at Leo, her heart fluttering with a mix of surprise and unspoken feelings. After all, she was always the one who took care of him.

"And this... is... for you!" He handed her a poorly made brown paper bag with a decorated straw ribbon sealing the opening.

"Uhm!! I hope what you said is a promise!" she retorted to his first comment.

Leo nodded, smiling at her.

"What is it, Kori?" Mia said, looking at him clumsily offering the package.

"It wasn't supposed to be for now, but you're so..." Once more, a heavy silence fell between them.

"Oh! A plushie! How cute...! " Tears welled up in Mia's eyes. "I'll call him Lenny! And hey, don't forget! A promise is a debt!" she said in an affirmative tone as she wiped her face.

"Uh-huh!" He nodded in agreement.

That afternoon passed quickly. Leo and Mia returned to the village knowing they would be scolded. However, the time they spent together was so unique that neither of them cared about the punishments. 

Mia was so happy with her gift that she didn't even care about her safety.

Upon arriving home, Leo endured a resounding lecture from his mother about the dangers outside the village, but his mind was elsewhere. His mind always returned to Mia's smile, and he wondered if she was being scolded too.

After the long talk, his mother simply hugged him, saying that he needed to be more careful and that he was her reason for living.

His mother said a phrase that he would never forget for the rest of his life: Wisdom is to comprehend, not understand.

"Isn't it the same, Mom?" Leo sounded confused.

"To understand is to know, to read, to hear, to acquire knowledge. To comprehend is to know more than that knowledge, but also the circumstances to which they are applied, and more yet, to better judge when to apply them. So I beg you, son, be a comprehensive person," she replied while caressing his face.

As night fell, Leo was preparing his bath when a deafening boom echoed from the north, shaking the entire village. The sound reverberated through the floor, rattling the windows. It was so loud that people thought the platform was falling.

Whistles began to blow in every direction, and the great bell used as an invasion alarm clanged loudly in the watchtower, but it was too late. All records indicate that the invasion that day was completely unprecedented.

From the tower, a horrifying sight unfolded: Beyond the bridge, a sea of werewolf leirions encircled the entire village. They were a mass of fur and teeth, a terrifying wave crashing against the village. An almost inaudible voice left the lungs of the tower guard after ringing the bell, uttering a hopeless cry.

"May the Gods of Humbra have mercy on us."

Seconds later, a one-ton rock smashed through the tower, obliterating the guard and shattering everything in its path.