The Ball of the Past II

In the depths of his mind, Brando felt that he had seen this forest somewhere before. But that was hardly strange. The Nameless Ones' dream had fused with fragments of his memories, and the dream itself was filled with his personal imprint.

He lingered by the river for a while, then suddenly remembered. When he was young, there had been a park near his home, and the pine trees there had grown just as tall and straight.

Brando's heart suddenly began to pound.

He remembered his childhood, and his parents. They had still been young then, and proud of him. Like every child, he had been brimming with confidence, believing that he could shoulder the hopes they had placed in him.

But in the end, he had disappointed them.

Brando had once thought that their disappointment was caused by his failures. To escape it, he had immersed himself in games. But it was only after he encountered that Sword Saint of Eluin—his grandfather—in the Golden Tree's dream that he realized how terribly mistaken he had been.

But did he still have a chance to ask for forgiveness?

Could it be that Lady Martha was truly willing to give him this chance?

Brando looked at the radiance beyond the forest and could not help pressing a hand to his chest. He still remembered how, during every holiday, all sorts of celebrations would be held in the park, and his parents would take him there, still a child, to join in the festivities.

He knew perfectly well that this was only a dream.

Yet as he stood by the river, his feet seemed weighed down by a thousand pounds. The evening breeze swept past, setting the trees rustling. Just then, faint footsteps suddenly came from within the forest. Brando turned his head