The desert finally ended.
Beyond the dead sands, a vast valley stretched open, lush with unnatural greenery. Giant trees twisted into impossible shapes, and glowing vines shimmered under the half-clouded sun.
Yukio stood at the edge, breathing in the damp air. His body still ached from the ambush, but something about this place felt… different.
Not safe. Not dangerous.
Just… alive.
> "This is it," Daigo muttered beside him. "The Verdant Expanse. Few enter. Fewer return."
Shigure checked his sword, adjusting the grip. "We camp at the tree line. No fire tonight. The forest watches."
---
Visions Return – The Verdant Spire Calls
That night, Yukio dreamed again—but it was no vision of fire or blood.
He stood in a garden under a massive silver tree. Thousands of broken weapons lay scattered around its roots.
At the base, a single figure kneeled—Ryouji—but this time, older. Weathered. Crying.
> "I tried to save them... but the world refused to be saved."
Yukio reached out—but Ryouji looked up, and his eyes were wrong.
Empty. Void.
> "When you reach the Spire," he whispered, "you must choose: Destroy me... or become me."
---
Morning March – Into the Living Forest
The group moved at dawn. Every step into the Verdant Expanse felt like stepping into another world.
Leaves whispered in unknown tongues.
Flowers shifted color when they passed.
And from the shadows, unseen eyes watched.
Daigo pointed toward a distant peak. "That's where the Spire lies. Three days' march, if nothing slows us."
Yukio nodded, but his senses felt dulled—like the air itself was fighting him.
Shigure threw him a dried root. "Chew it. Anti-hallucinogen. The forest plays with minds."
---
Ambush – Sentinels of the Spire
By afternoon, they crossed a shallow river of crystal-blue water—too clear to be natural.
Suddenly, the air snapped.
> Krrr-CHT!
From the trees dropped humanoid figures made entirely of bark and silver leaves—Verdant Sentinels, ancient protectors of the Spire.
They didn't speak.
They attacked.
Shigure spun forward, slicing the first in two—but the creature reformed instantly, its wooden limbs twisting unnaturally.
Yukio called on his Ironblood energy, summoning a spear from his core.
"Enough."
He lunged, striking true—right into the creature's heart.
It screamed in pain—but instead of dying, it shattered into light.
> "Only the worthy may pass," a voice echoed from the trees.
Daigo scowled. "This forest has trials. We passed the first."
Yukio wiped blood from his brow. "How many more?"
Shigure stared ahead. "As many as it takes to make you question yourself."
---
Campfire Truths – Daigo's Confession
That night, as they sat in silence under thick green canopies, Daigo finally spoke.
"I didn't leave Ryouji because of fear," he said. "I left because... he killed her."
Yukio looked up. "Who?"
Daigo's jaw clenched.
"My sister. She was... the first prototype for the Ironblood Core. It tore her apart. And he... let it happen."
Silence fell like a sword.
Shigure said nothing.
Yukio simply whispered, "Why are you helping me then?"
Daigo stared into the fire. "Because maybe if you succeed… her death meant something."
---
Flashback Fragment – Birth of the First Core
Yukio saw it clearly:
A dark lab. A young girl, strapped into a metal chair, screaming as crimson light surged into her chest.
Ryouji standing behind glass, fists clenched, silent.
> "We're close," he said. "Just a little more."
And then... silence.
Her eyes dimmed.
---
Day Two – Into the Echoing Glen
The next day, the forest changed again.
Now it was silent—no birds, no wind, only distant echoes.
Yukio heard voices that weren't there.
> "You will fail."
"He will betray you."
"You are your father's shadow."
He gritted his teeth, pushing forward.
Suddenly, the trees opened into a clearing where a stone archway rose—half-broken, covered in runes.
Beneath it stood a figure cloaked in silver and black, long dark hair falling across her face.
> "So... the child comes," she said.
Shigure tensed. "That's the Warden of the Spire."
---
Warden Trial – The Inner Mirror
The woman raised a hand.
"Speak your purpose."
Yukio stepped forward. "To reach the Spire. To finish what Ryouji started."
The Warden's smile was sad. "Then you must face the Mirror."
She gestured, and a pool of liquid silver rose from the earth.
Yukio stepped close—and in it, he saw himself.
But older.
Colder.
Wearing the same black armor his father once did.
Eyes glowing red.
> "You will become me," the reflection whispered. "Because no one can resist the hunger of power."
> "You're wrong," Yukio growled.
The reflection smirked. "We'll see."
---
Warden's Verdict
Yukio stepped back, sweating, fists clenched.
The Warden studied him.
"You did not look away. Few do."
She turned, opening a path between the trees.
"Two more trials remain. Then... the Spire."
Shigure exhaled.
Daigo placed a hand on Yukio's shoulder. "You're doing better than any of us expected."
But Yukio didn't feel victorious.
He felt heavy.
> As if every step closer to the Spire brought him closer... to becoming something he feared.
---
Meanwhile – In the Depths of the Spire
At the heart of the mountain, where no light reached, a black throne pulsed with power.
From it, a figure rose—masked, cloaked, and silent.
He placed a hand on a broken pendant that once belonged to Ryouji.
> "The heir comes," he said.
And then he looked at a massive iron sarcophagus behind him—marked with glowing red runes.
Inside, something stirred.
> "Soon… the Flame will rise again."