The Immortal Couple's Love Game

Nineteen years ago.

Within a secluded manor that warned strangers away, inside a castle that had stood for centuries, a man and a woman sat on either side of a fireplace, where flames leapt and danced joyfully.

It was winter, and the warmth from the fire made the setting more comfortable, though neither seemed at all troubled by the cold.

Each of them held in their hands an ancient tome—volumes that belonged in a museum, carefully preserved for future generations to admire.

Time passed in serene silence.

The woman was the first to finish reading. She closed her book and waited.

About half an hour later, the man also closed his, and then he spoke, breaking the quiet: “Go on, what new wild idea have you come up with this time?”

The woman smiled, not at all offended by his words.

Her smile was captivating, her bright eyes reminiscent of the dazzling stars scattered across a night sky. “Don’t make it sound so terrible. I have a good idea.”

“Let’s hear it.”

“Once this winter is over, the time will be just right. This time, I want to play a bolder game.”

“Be more specific?”

“We’ll seal all our memories, return to infancy, grow up in different places, and see who finds the other first!”

The man fell silent.

The flames in the hearth suddenly danced even more vigorously, as if they found the game both thrilling and perilous, so they flickered restlessly.

The man lifted a hand to his brow, a gesture that made his headache clear.

The woman, seeing his reaction, felt somewhat displeased;