I lay on the grass, trying to guess when the sky would finally fade out. Suddenly, a White Wave rippled across the horizon. Quiet as a sigh, and fast as a thought.

  Something clicked in my head. I realized I had just forgotten something. A name? A year? It didn't matter. The problem was, I didn't even know what exactly had vanished.

  POP.

  I teleported to the source.

  There, in the middle of a scorched field, stood something. A formless radiance, vaguely resembling a human, but without a single clear feature. It glowed a blinding white, but its legs had already begun to turn black, as if infected by rot. The Demon of Oblivion.

  "I’LL CONQUER THIS WORLD IN A HEARTBEAT!" it shrieked into the void.

  I approached. The creature turned.

  "YOU... YOU FILTH!" Fear mixed with rage sounded in its "voice."

  "Why are you starting with the insults already?" I yawned. "It’s morning."

  "It’s you! You got lucky last time, Zenhald! You were lucky to defeat me, but now everything will be different!"

  It raised its palm and fired a white sphere at me. I didn’t even think about dodging. I just stood there and watched the magic of oblivion fly into my face. The sphere touched my chest, passed through the skin...

  And then came the buzz.

  Memories began to crumble like gray ash. The voices in my head—those thousands of screaming ghosts—suddenly shut up. Silence. Real, blessed silence.

  I looked at the radiant thing and, for the first time in a long while, I smiled sincerely.

  "You know... if we met under different circumstances, I’d like to get to know you. Have a chat about the weather or what light tastes like."

  I took a step forward.

  This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

  "But there is too much in my memory," I whispered. "A lifetime wouldn't be enough for you to erase it all with one blow. I am a bottomless archive. You’ll just drown in my lives."

  "OH, IS THAT SO?!" The creature trembled.

  A massive, humming sphere of energy began to accumulate in its hands. Blindingly white, heavy as a fallen sun.

  PEW!

  The projectile hurtled toward me. I accepted it without hesitation, opening my arms wide. And in response, simply because I was tired of the show, I spoke just one word. The one that ends any discussion.

  "DEATH."

  KABOO-OO-OM!

  The Demon of Oblivion exploded, turning into a cloud of sparks that instantly went out. Its last sphere slammed into me, enveloping my entire body in white flame.

  Everything burned. Skin, clothes, air. But in my head... in my head, there was perfect silence. No one argued anymore. No one accused. No one called out.

  I stood in the middle of the ashes, feeling my consciousness slowly switching off.

  "Well then..." I muttered. "Finally... silence."

  And I collapsed into a deep, dark sleep. It felt like this time, I would actually get some rest.

  I woke up.

  I was lying on the grass, looking at the sky. The sky was blue, bright, and somehow suspiciously unfamiliar.

  I sat up and looked around. A field. An endless green sea, swaying in the wind.

  "Where am I?" I asked aloud.

  Silence.

  "And... who am I?"

  My head was clear. No names, no faces, not even a short to-do list for tomorrow. A total zero. It was as if someone had taken a rag and wiped away my personality, forgetting to leave even a title.

  I got to my feet. A few meters away from me stood a girl. Beautiful. Probably. In my current state, I wasn't great at beauty standards, but she looked good.

  I approached her.

  "Hello," I said, trying to sound polite. "Give me food."

  The request was logical. There was a black hole gaping in my stomach that demanded immediate filling.

  The girl looked at me and... smiled. In her hands was a woven basket. She silently placed it in front of me and gestured for me to help myself.

  I didn't make her wait. I lunged at the basket like a starving beast.

  "Delicious..." I muttered, chewing on some juicy pastry.

  When the food was finished, I wiped my hands on my dusty pants and looked at the stranger.

  "Alright," I said, turning around. "I’ve got to go."

  Where to—I didn't know, but sitting in one place is boring. Catch you later.

  I had already taken a couple of steps when something pricked the back of my head.

  "Wait!" I turned back. "You wouldn't happen to know who I am, would you? You know, a name or a profession?"

  The girl looked at me with a long, enigmatic gaze that held something like irony.

  "How should I know?" she answered simply.

  She turned and walked away until she dissolved into the haze of the midday heat.

  I was left standing in the middle of the field. Alone. Without a past, without plans, but at least I was full.

  "Fine then," I muttered, shoving my hands into my empty pockets. "Since no one knows who I am, it means I can be anyone."

  I ambled forward, kicking pebbles.