Rei frowned faintly. "I think so. Why?"
A silence stretched, heavy, while Kazuo searched his memory.
He let out a slow breath, his voice low, almost reluctant. "…I remember. Faintly. It was in the Hollow Veins. There was a strange old man down there… he talked about a lotus."
Rei blinked, unsettled. "Creepy. I'm still surprised you even made it out alive. But do you really believe this is the same thing?"
"I don't know," Kazuo admitted. "Down there… strange things happened. Half the time, I couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't."
Then — a flicker of memory. "Wait. There was also someone else. He wore a cloak… and on his chest, stitched in silver, was a lotus. The petals were wrong. Twisted. I dismissed it at the time, thought it was just another hallucination…"
Silence hung between them for a moment.
Rei shook his head firmly, waving a hand as if brushing the thought aside. Even if there is a connection — what should that even mean? Nothing. Don't break your head over riddles. You need to focus on that match you've got."
Kazuo forced a faint nod. "…Yeah. You're right."
But in the back of his mind, the words still echoed — you should not exist.The man who passed him by… was he real?
And if he was… then just what is this Lotus?
Silence stretched between them, the night air heavy.
Rei finally pushed himself up, brushing dust from his pants. "I gotta go. You should get back to training… and for the love of the gods, finally take a shower. You reek."
Kazuo looked up at him, incredulous. "Seriously?"
Rei smirked, tapping his chin as though struck by sudden genius. "Wait. Why do you even take showers? Can't you just magic yourself clean with water?"
Kazuo blinked, then let out a disbelieving laugh. "Where the hell did that come from?"
Rei only waved a hand dismissively, already taking a few steps back. "After the tournament, you're telling me everything about your battles — in the hot springs. We're dragging the old man with us too. No excuses."
A faint smile tugged at Kazuo's lips. "…I'll hold you to that."
Rei grinned wide, throwing him a lazy salute before turning toward the path.
Just before he reached the corner, Kazuo called out: "Oh — Rei."
He glanced back over his shoulder. "What is it?"
Kazuo opened his mouth — questions burned in the back of his mind. The serpent. Gramps. The Hollow Veins. All of it. But the words never came. He swallowed them down. "…Just keep yourself safe."
Rei smirked, lifted a hand in a mock salute. "Always do." Then his figure slipped into the dark, swallowed by the night.
Kazuo stood alone in the training yard, the faint smile fading from his face.
I don't want him dragged into this. If I survive this… I'll ask Gramps directly.
Above, the banners swayed with the night breeze. Below, far beneath Yurelda's streets, the world was different.
The cavern in the Hollow Veins pulsed faintly with the lotus sigil.
From the shadows, a tall figure sat against the wall, katana resting across his knees. The dim light caught his eyes — dark red, unblinking, sharp as drawn steel.
Beside him, his partner shifted restlessly, wings twitching with irritation. "This is so monotonous. The others get to scour temples, trace ruins, dig up truths. And us? Just watching him. Day after day. It's suffocating."
The red-eyed swordsman stirred at last, tilting his head slightly toward her. His voice was quiet, steady. "You didn't watch him. I was."
She frowned. "And what did you see?"
A long silence. He closed his eyes. "…Nothing. Not yet."
Her wings bristled. "Then why waste our time? I already spread the word of the Lotus in the Hollow Veins — it'll reach the Lower Crescent soon. Why not let me move on?"
His hand lowered to the hilt of his blade, fingers resting lightly there. "Orders are orders. The leader sees something. That's enough."
She groaned, turning away. "Observation while the others move forward? It feels like stagnation."
His eyes opened again, the silver light catching faintly on the red. "Patience. When the time comes… perhaps then it will be clear. Whether he is curse or possibility."
The lotus sigil flickered once, shadows deepening as if in answer.
Last day before the match — beneath the palace.
A biting chill clung to the underground hall, the kind that seeped into the bones. Thin layers of frost webbed across the stone pillars, while stagnant puddles mirrored the flicker of distant torchlight.
Kazuo stood at the center, drenched in sweat, sword trembling in his hands. Water circled him in a restless coil, rising and falling with every uneven breath.
He thrust his blade forward — and the vortex surged to life. A spiraling torrent ripped across the chamber, tearing through the dummies with brutal precision. For once it didn't collapse. The whirlpool roared, stable, before fading into mist.
Kazuo dropped to one knee, panting — but still conscious, still in control.
Setsuna crunched into a rice cracker, the sound sharp against the hush of the chamber. "Finally. Arcane of Water: Vortex… pulled off clean. Took you long enough."
Kazuo braced against his sword, forcing a grin.
"Don't celebrate yet." Setsuna dusted crumbs from his hand. "That spell's your trump card. If you throw it out carelessly, it loses its bite. And when it does — you lose."
He nodded, pulling himself upright. His sword gleamed as water gathered along its edge, coating the steel in a fluid sheen. The tremor in his arm was still there, but weaker than before. He slashed once — and though the wave fizzled halfway, the drain on his body wasn't immediate.
Setsuna's eyes tracked the movement. "Better. You can manage two solid Resonance coatings in a day now. Three if you push."
"That's twice as much as before."
"Exactly." Setsuna leaned back against the wall, arms folding loosely.
The chamber stilled. Mist curled around their ankles, and the frost on the stone glimmered in the torchlight.
Kazuo's grip tightened on his sword. "Tomorrow's the match… I'll finally face Rulthan."
"Kazu," Setsuna said, steady and deliberate. "Your advantage isn't power — it's agility. You saw it yourself in the Battle Royale. Rulthan could toss people around like they were nothing. If you try to meet that head-on, you'll be crushed. Keep moving. Make him chase you.
A silence stretched, his words sinking into the chill air before he added, quieter: "And because he wields Sound Magic… you'll need more than speed. You'll need to listen. Every shift in the air. Miss it, and the fight ends there."
Setsuna ran a hand back through his white hair, the gesture unhurried. "I believe you'll win tomorrow. And honestly…" a faint smirk tugged at his mouth, "I can't wait to see Vaskel's face when you do."