"Where am I?" I thought. I was in a faintly dark place all alone. My eyesight was blurred due to the heavy mist hovering over the entire area. I didn't know where I was or how I had ended up here. Just then, I heard a sound that sounded like a splash. I heard it again, this time from behind. That meant that I must have been standing on some plain island surrounded by water. I tried to look for anything in the thick mist, but I couldn't see anything. Then I saw a shadowy figure in front of me. Maybe I'm not alone in this place. "Help, is anyone there?" I cried, but I didn't get any response. Maybe I'm hallucinating. Then the shadowy figure moved a bit.

I think both the figure and I were standing on separate islands. What the hell! Is this some kind of dream?

"Y..ou." I heard something; it was like some male voice. Maybe the figure was trying to say something, but I didn't hear anything from the figure again for a while until "you can ... I know you can do it." It stopped for a while and leaned towards me. "Don't ... give up."

Ruffle!

Suddenly, the ground started shaking, and I slipped and was about to fall into the water. It was for a moment, but I saw the figure try to help me and give me a hand. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to hold his hand and fell into the water, which now seemed like a river or maybe even an ocean. As I sank deep into the water -- it felt like I was Doctor Strange falling into the spiritual world -- the figure screamed, "Keep your promise."

"Ack!" I cried as I fell off my bed. "What the hell was that? A dream? A nightmare?" It was still midnight, but after such a creepy nightmare, it became hard for me to go back to sleep. The whole night, I kept thinking about the dream and that mysterious voice, which kind of seemed like he was in pain, or to be more exact, it felt like he was all alone.

My name is Yuki, a 21-year-old normal university student. I have average looks, with black being the key colour of my hair and eyes. I have long eyelashes, and my height is just decent like any other Asian. I don't know what my surname is, which is one of the reasons I feel isolated everywhere I go. My parents died when I was very young, so I don't have any memory of them. After their death, my uncle Ishida, who was more like a brother to me, brought me to Korea because my parents, who were musicians, bought a house in Korea for me before their death.

I don't even remember how my parents looked as there are no photos of them in my house, and whenever I ask Ishida about them or my surname, he just responds with, "knowing about them will only attract media problems, so no." 

It's not like I blame my parents for this. I couldn't even hate them for leaving me. The unlettered memories that I still have of them, though unclear, are still precious.

No matter where I went, be it school or university, I always felt isolated. Because of that, even at this age, I don't have any friends. But it didn't mean that I was alone! I had books.

Since my childhood, I have harboured a love for books. While I enjoy reading books of all genres, my favourite genre is fantasy novels. Recently, I have been engrossed in a novel called 'Elysian', which was gifted to me by my uncle on my 18th birthday.

The cover of 'Elysian' is black with the title 'Elysian' written in glossy black cloth. The rest of the cover is matte. Initially, I was hesitant to read the book, as my uncle had a reputation for having poor taste in literature. However, after my uncle's passing, I discovered that my parents had left the book with him and instructed him to give it to me when the time was right . 

My uncle claimed that he had tried to read it, but found the language unintelligible. Upon researching, I discovered that the language used in the book was not recognizable on Earth. However, I was determined to read the book, and eventually discovered that it was written in simple English, but with the words mirrored.

After a year of reading, I finished the book and was moved by its uplifting and straightforward story of Solis Laboriosi, who sacrificed everything to save the world and give hope to the people of Elysian.

One evening, while cleaning dishes after dinner, I noticed a paper cut on my index finger that I had not noticed earlier. As I searched the book for the last time, I noticed that the last page was stained with my blood. As I chuckled to myself, I realised that I had been so engrossed in reading that I hadn't noticed the injury.

However, things took a strange turn as I began feeling dizzy and experienced increasing pain from the paper cut. I went upstairs to look for an ointment but the pain only kept on increasing, and I don't know if I was hallucinating or not but I saw the page's of the novel ' Elysian' getting flipped backwards .

Eventually, I collapsed and fell unconscious. The next thing I knew, everything went dark, and I couldn't feel or hear anything.

Suddenly, my body started throbbing, and the pain was so intense that I felt as if I were being burned and cut into pieces simultaneously. I began to wonder if I had died and was experiencing the afterlife, possibly even hell itself. However, as quickly as the pain had appeared, it disappeared entirely.

The pain that had wracked my body moments ago was now replaced by a warm embrace, akin to that of a child being cradled in their mother's arms. The sensation was comforting, and I hoped that it meant that I had escaped the unknown darkness that had enveloped me before.

Struggling to open my eyes, I heard a beautiful voice, belonging to a woman I could not yet see. There were two figures before me, and as I tried to focus on them, the woman began to hum a familiar tune. It was a lullaby that someone had once sung to me, and her sweet and melodic voice brought the song to life.

As the dizziness returned, this time more like the feeling of a person being lulled to sleep, I gave in and drifted off once again. It was difficult to tell how long I slept, as it seemed both like days and only a brief moment had passed.

Suddenly, I heard a sound, like the splash of water, echoing in my mind. Other noises followed, and it seemed as though I was surrounded by a bustling crowd. Gradually, my eyes opened, and I was greeted by a crystal-clear blue sky, accompanied by the sounds of the bustling crowd.

Finally, I could smell the breath of fresh air .However, the smell that invaded my nostrils was anything but refreshing - it was the overpowering stench of fish. 

' what the fu*k! Where am I?'