Chapter 91: An Endless Cycle of Forgetting

Curious, Sophie walked over and pulled the curtain aside.

Sitting on the broad windowsill was a blonde girl with red eyes. She narrowed them slightly as she looked at Sophie, her beautiful face carrying an unmistakable chill. "You're awake?" she asked flatly.

Sophie nodded.

The mountain breeze swept through the open window, lifting the violet gauze dress draped over her body. Only then did Sophie realize there seemed to be nothing beneath the thin fabric, and her face immediately heated. Embarrassed, she instinctively retreated behind the curtain, trying to hide herself from view.

"What are you hiding for?" the blonde girl said impatiently. She pulled the curtain aside with one hand, exposing Sophie again, then pointed to the edge of the windowsill beside her. "Sit here. Your hair can dry while the wind blows."

Sophie obediently sat with her back facing the breathtaking mountain scenery beyond the window. She spread her damp hair over her shoulders and let the cool mountain breeze slowly dry it in silence.

An awkward stillness settled between them. Sophie felt she ought to introduce herself. After all, this breathtakingly beautiful girl appeared to have saved her life... and even changed her clothes.

Sneaking a glance toward her companion, Sophie was immediately caught in the act. She gave the girl an awkward smile anyway. "Hello. My name is Sophie. What's yours?"

Instead of answering, the blonde tilted her head slightly and replied with a question of her own.

"What do you think you should call me?"

Sophie opened her mouth.

There was clearly a name lingering at the edge of her tongue, desperate to escape, yet no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't remember it.

Unable to help herself, she carefully studied the girl's face. Her eyebrows, a shade darker than her platinum-blonde hair, were elegantly arched with unmistakable pride, as though silently urging Sophie to answer more quickly. Those red eyes nestled beneath them were strangely adorable, reminding Sophie of an alert little rabbit.

Then, all at once, the perfect name came to her.

"Alice!" Sophie exclaimed happily. "I should call you Alice!"

A blonde Alice with red eyes, falling into the rabbit hole and wandering through Wonderland, meeting the Mad Hatter, the Red Queen, and the Cheshire Cat. It felt like the beginning of a fantastical adventure, one led by a rabbit with red eyes.

It did not take long for Sophie to discover she had guessed wrong.

The girl's expression darkened as she coldly informed Sophie of her real name.

Jane.

Sophie repeated it several times until she was certain she had memorized it.

What she couldn't understand, however, was why Jane suddenly seemed irritated. She even tore apart the bloodstained silk cloth resting across her own knees as though venting her frustration.

Maybe only a fortune teller could correctly guess someone's name the first time they met...

According to Jane, Sophie had suffered life-threatening injuries before being rescued by the Volturi Guard. She had since become one of the vampire race and would remain under the Volturi's protection until her newborn period ended. After that, she would be free to leave Italy and survive on her own.

There was only one absolute rule.

She was never to reveal the existence of vampires to humans.

The so-called "vampire race" was simply what vampires called themselves, distinguishing their kind from humans and beasts alike.

In theory, vampires possessed limitless lifespans, bodies far stronger than humans, astonishing speed, and strength that left them nearly unrivaled by anything in nature.

It all sounded wonderfully perfect.

Unfortunately, Sophie quickly discovered there was one enormous problem.

Forgetting.

Forgetfulness was the greatest natural enemy of learning.

Even back when she was a student, Sophie had hated memorization. She firmly believed no student genuinely enjoyed reciting texts by heart. Those people who claimed they loved studying usually possessed photographic memories anyway. They skipped the painful process entirely because everything stayed in their heads after reading it once. 

If they ever experienced memorizing something, forgetting it, then memorizing it all over again, they'd probably become the first people to hate it too. 

Who would have thought becoming a vampire still required going to school?

What made matters even worse was discovering she was apparently the only vampire cursed with terrible memory.

The girl responsible for supervising her, Jane, also happened to be the Captain of the Volturi Guard. Everywhere Jane walked, guards immediately lowered their heads and greeted her with the utmost respect.

Sophie, however, forgot all of it almost immediately afterward.

She retained only a vague impression that Jane was incredibly busy and constantly taking her to meet different people.

Because of her memory problems, Sophie' education as a vampire progressed painfully slowly.

She repeatedly forgot how to control her own strength, could never memorize the routes through the underground palace, and would randomly decide to turn a corner that didn't exist, only to slam headfirst into a stone wall and leave behind a perfectly human-shaped crater.

Other times, curiosity would get the better of her and she'd push open hidden doors concealed inside the walls. Once, she nearly wandered into the public sections of Palazzo dei Priori before a guard managed to stop her in time. Had she taken even a few more steps, she might have violated Volturi law by exposing the existence of vampires.

Logically, Sophie should have been grateful to the guard who stopped her.

Instead...

She forgot him almost immediately.

In the entire Volturi stronghold, the only name she managed to remember was Jane's.

"This is ridiculous..." Sophie groaned, feeling as though she had fallen into an endless vortex of amnesia, repeating the same futile efforts day after day with absolutely nothing to show for them.

Eventually, overwhelmed by an unbearable sense of helplessness, Sophie made a decision that completely defied common sense but perfectly followed her heart.

She was going to run away.

Mostly...

She wanted to escape from this meaningless cycle of studying.

Sophie hated repeating things that accomplished absolutely nothing. Truthfully, Jane understood the situation just as well. No matter how many times she introduced Sophie to the same people or repeated the same lessons, everything would simply be forgotten again.

That was the strangest part.

Sophie could vaguely remember that another day had passed, yet she couldn't remember what had actually happened during any of those days.

She couldn't understand why Jane continued doing it so tirelessly. As Captain of the Volturi Guard, especially while Aro was away, Jane's responsibilities had only grown heavier.

And yet...

Jane still found time to personally teach Sophie every single day. She watched over her, supervised her mandatory training, reminded her to feed, and even insisted on helping her continue learning Italian.

Doesn't Jane find me troublesome? Or is this simply the kind of patience that comes from living forever?

Whatever the answer, Sophie had grown completely exhausted with a life that never moved forward. She was determined to run away. To escape this meaningless loop.

Or, to put it another way, she wanted to give herself a vacation. A long one. To give herself a break and to give Jane one as well.