After his breakthrough in cultivation, Yuto chose to engage in activity.
He was behind the luxurious inn booked by Gonzo, the vast lawn dancing with the fresh breeze caressing his skin.
Margrave Coldsteel had called Gonzo himself regarding negotiations and the goods they needed.
Indeed, from what he knew, the population here was a bit too crowded; he even heard that some were still staying outside the city, unguarded by the large walls circling them from threats, considering this city directly bordered Verdant Hollow.
Before he arrived here, he met the adventurer trio, who explained what happened after he passed out.
The assassins' bodies were left as they were, leaving their heads, which they had kept in a pouch and handed over to Yuto.
Yuto was left speechless at first, but thinking back, he already stored one of them, so he might as well take it. Who knows, maybe it could be useful in the future.
Amidst all that, he now stood in the middle of the garden. His snowy white hair swayed, and his body disappeared like an illusion.
"Ugh!"
Yuto appeared a few meters from his previous position. His expression was tense, and a drop of sweat streamed down his cheek.
'This is strange! Urp!?'
He slapped his own mouth, feeling his stomach suddenly churn, his vision blurred, and the pounding in his head made his brow furrowed intensely.
After calming down, Yuto released his hand, surprised that even in prime condition, he still suffered backlash from his own technique.
The mobility art he created on his own.
Things didn't go smoothly. His eyes shifted to the corner, where the hotel lunch was scattered in the form of porridge.
Even now, the bitter and sour taste still lingered on his mouth each time he swallowed hard.
Yuto gritted his teeth, racking his own brain.
What made his technique different?
In the battle last night, he still recalled the sensation of his disappearing and managed to retaliate against the cat by slashing its eye.
'Was it because my life was in danger? So, I instinctively mastered it.'
In life-or-death moments, a human could sometimes awaken their dormant power beyond their limit.
If that were the case, Yuto would not need to change his approach. What he needed was only one thing.
'I need to train more!'
Yuto closed his eyes, allowing the Qi energy to surge, flowing throughout his body.
Then, he conjured a clear image of his technique and the principle behind it.
The technique wasn't too profound. He merely imitated the black cat's movement, which seemed to move through shadows.
Without scent, and any presence, like a ghost.
His eyes opened as he took a deep breath. Yuto took a step, and his body jolted due to the sudden shift.
The sudden change in his perspective, sending a searing signal to his brain, gave him a head throbbing pain that split his skull..
Yuto curled his fingers, digging his nails into the skin of his hand until it turned red. After a few seconds, the symptoms subsided, and he could breathe a sigh of relief.
But it wasn't over; he trained once more, again and again. Unbeknownst to him, blood flowed profusely from his nose because the burden on his brain was immense.
Not only was it the backlash from the technique itself, but he had to visualize it clearly, every single time.
"Not yet. Again!"
Yuto's body vanished like a puff of smoke that suddenly appeared across the way. He continued this tormenting routine, like being possessed.
However, his extreme training clearly yielded results. From one jump to two, from two to three.
After several jumps, Yuto's lips curled into a satisfying grin.
"Now!"
Yuto disappeared and reappeared a dozen meters away from where he belonged. He clenched his hands tightly and raised them into the air.
'I did it!'
It's true what people always say: practice makes perfect.
Looking at his own shadow, Yuto was exposed to a reddish-orange glow stretching from the horizon.
His eyes narrowed as he reached for the sun that began to set in the west.
For some reason, his body felt heavy, like a statue, watching the sky's last glow before it turned pitch black.
"Oh, I know a good name for this technique."
Talking to himself, Yuto opened his mouth with a wide smile.
"Netherworld Step!"
He chose that name because its characteristics made him disappear like a ghost from the underworld. Making him untouchable and unstoppable.
Yuto stood still for a while, trying to calm his pounding heartbeat from the overwhelming emotions.
When he heard approaching footsteps, his head turned to the side. Yuto's eyes widened, and he loosened the tension in his body that still haunted him when night fell.
'Thanks to those assassins.'
"Yuto? What are you doing here?"
Seeing that the person was Gonzo, Yuto shrugged his shoulders and turned.
"Just a bit of training."
"A bit, huh?"
Gonzo's eyes scanned the surrounding area: the gouged ground resembled human footprints.
Then he turned to the corner, his expression soured, smelling the pungent odor of Yuto's leftover food.
The man let out a long sigh, not knowing what to do with the boy in front of him.
"Come on, let's go to the room. Dinner will be served soon."
"Perfect, because I'm starving now."
Yuto walked ahead of the man and entered the rented inn.
Fortunately, the wealthy inn still had many empty rooms, unlike the common district, which was packed due to the people coming from everywhere.
"Why are you spacing out there?"
Gonzo snapped from his daze, looking at the boy who gazed at him weirdly.
'This kid always speaks so bluntly to me. Totally different from how he treats the female members of my family.'
Still, deep inside, the man didn't dwell on it too much; on the contrary, talking without reservations like this indicated that their relationship was becoming closer than before.
"You say that, but go wash up first!"
"I was going to do it without you telling me."
The boy left, leaving Gonzo chuckling to himself. A smile plastered on his mouth as he murmured to himself.
'So this is what it feels like to have a son?'
His whisper sank into his heart as his feet carried him into the white luxurious hotel, bringing a curtain that ended their first day in Coldsteel town.
***
Time rewinded back when the attack in the forest began.
In a magnificent castle adorned with a spacious yard.
A gust of cold wind jolted the grass, trees, and blooming flower beds, exhaling a terror that made a lone woman shiver.
She exhaled a white mist from her pink, delicate lips, rubbing each other's arms.
Her eyes widened, seeing the golden bracelet adorned with white jewels coiled around her wrist flickering.
"Gena?"
It was no ordinary bracelet, but a magic item connected to her shadow subordinates, who were sent to the empire without anyone's knowledge.
The object could inform the girl of her subordinates' current condition. However, the bracelet that should not have lit up suddenly showed some bad omen.
"What happened?"
It happened so fast, and the pure white color of its gem faded, turning into dark ash, indicating that her subordinate had lost her life.
"H-How could this be?"
Dahlia's mouth gaped, unwilling to accept the reality before her.
She bit her lip, causing blood to spill from her mouth.
"...Who dared to do this?"
Her sobs were carried by the cold wind that seeped into her heart, causing Dahlia's feelings to become numb as she cried softly in solitude.