The world had never felt so quiet.
Kazuki sat on the floor of an abandoned shrine deep in the forest beyond Akiruno — days after the battle with the sentinel-class creature. His wounds had closed, but they ached as if echoing the violence that birthed them.
Before him stood Asera — tall, lithe, radiant in a way that defied time. Her silver hair fell down her back like threads of moonlight. She wasn't dressed in armor, but Kazuki could feel the steel in her gaze more than in any blade.
"Stand, " she said flatly.
Kazuki did.
She didn't speak again — not for a full minute.
Then—
She struck.
A blur.
Her palm slammed into his gut.
Kazuki doubled over, coughing air that hadn't had a chance to fill his lungs.
"What the hell—! "
Another strike. This time to his shoulder.
He hit the floor.
"You flinch too much, " she said calmly.
He gasped. "You—! "
"You hesitate. You protect. You think. That's fine for a mortal. " Her eyes narrowed. "But you are not just mortal anymore. "
He pushed himself up. "I didn't ask for this. "
She crouched beside him.
Her voice was low. Not angry. Sad.
"Neither did he. "
Kazuki's body stilled.
He looked up slowly.
"Who? " he whispered.
Asera stood. Turned away.
"The god whose power sleeps in you. Kaer. The Warbringer. The Wounded Blade. He died on a battlefield of silence. And all that remained… was a memory. A fragment. A will. And a runa. "
Kazuki's blood chilled.
"You mean—this isn't just a weapon? "
She turned back. Her eyes shone gold.
"No. It's not a tool. Not a gift. It is him. You are his vessel. "
Silence.
Kazuki stood slowly.
His hands trembled.
"You're telling me… there's a dead god inside me? "
"No, " she said.
He blinked.
She stepped closer.
"I'm telling you… he's awakening. "
Kazuki could barely stand.
The training ground was nothing more than a stone clearing deep in the forest, veiled in mist and surrounded by ancient cedar trees. Morning sun filtered through the canopy, casting golden lines across the blood-stained earth.
His shirt was torn. His breath came in short, ragged bursts. Sweat mingled with dried blood on his brow.
Across from him, Asera stood — perfectly still.
She hadn't broken a sweat.
"Again, " she said.
Kazuki gritted his teeth. "You're not even holding back. "
"Good. Neither will your enemies. "
He growled and charged.
Fist flying.
Too slow.
Asera side-stepped. Grabbed his arm. Flipped him over her hip.
He slammed into the ground with a bone-rattling thud.
The air was knocked from his lungs. Again.
Before he could recover, Asera was over him.
"You rely too much on instinct, " she said coldly. "On rage. Rage is fuel. But if you don't learn to control it, it will control you. "
Kazuki glared at her, coughing.
She turned and walked away.
"Get up. You don't get to rest until you land a hit. "
He didn't move.
Not right away.
Instead, he stared at the sky. The trees. The sun beyond the clouds.
His body ached.
But something inside him — something deeper — burned hotter than pain.
He rose.
One foot.
Then the other.
And the darkness came again.
A whisper in his ear.
"He bled for them. "
Kazuki froze.
The voice wasn't Asera's.
It was… ancient.
Male.
Wounded.
It wasn't just in his mind. It rippled through him.
His eye flickered crimson.
The markings on his arm pulsed.
"…What the hell was that…"
Asera noticed.
But said nothing.
She watched — for now.
Kazuki launched forward.
Faster.
More precise.
He swung low, shifted his balance, aimed for her ribs.
She blocked — barely.
Her eyes widened a fraction.
Then she smiled.
"Better. "
He struck again — this time a feint. Then a twist. A kick to her side.
She blocked again — but not without stepping back.
The pain in Kazuki's muscles disappeared. Replaced by a rush.
A thrum.
The feeling of movement not his own.
He heard the whisper again.
"They feared me. As they will fear you. "
Kazuki staggered.
Vision blurred.
He saw something else— a battlefield.
Not this one.
A different time.
A god — cloaked in red — standing alone against legions.
And falling.
Alone.
He collapsed to one knee.
The vision faded.
Blood dripped from his nose.
Asera was beside him in a breath, kneeling.
"You saw him, didn't you? " she asked quietly.
He nodded.
Trembling.
"I saw… war. Fire. Death. "
Asera's voice was softer now. "That was only a memory. A shard. But it means you're beginning to resonate. "
"With what? "
She touched his chest.
Not gently.
"With him. "
Kazuki sat by the fire, chest rising and falling in uneven rhythm.
The night was cold, and the shrine's stones held no warmth. Only silence — the kind that wrapped itself around thoughts and pulled them into the dark.
He stared at his trembling hand.
The runic markings glowed faintly beneath the skin — pulses of light matching his heartbeat.
"I saw him again, " he said quietly.
Across from him, Asera poked at the firewood, flames dancing in her golden irises.
"I know, " she answered. "Your connection is strengthening. "
"Is that good? " he asked, unsure if he wanted to hear the answer.
She didn't look at him when she spoke.
"It means you're one step closer to awakening his full presence. "
Kazuki swallowed.
"And one step closer to losing myself, " he muttered.
Asera finally looked up. Her expression was unreadable — somewhere between empathy and resolve.
"Kaer was a god of war, Kazuki. Not a monster. But gods do not see the world as we do. To him, blood was a language. Sacrifice, a necessity. He fought not for glory, but because he had to. Because no one else could. "
Kazuki clenched his jaw. "And now he's inside me? "
"Pieces of him are, " Asera said. "The runa is more than a container. It's a doorway. You don't just hold Kaer… you channel him. "
Kazuki stared into the fire.
"And if I stop resisting? "
Her voice lowered.
"Then you become the flame. "
Later that night, he dreamt.
But it wasn't a dream.
He stood in a broken field — ashes on the wind, twisted iron spears rising from the ground like dead trees.
Bodies littered the soil.
The sky bled crimson.
In the center stood a figure — tall, armored in deep red, with a jagged blade strapped across his back.
The god turned.
His face was Kazuki's.
But older. Wiser. Hollowed by sorrow.
"You're not ready, " the god said.
Kazuki stepped back.
"What… are you? "
"A memory. A warning. A beginning. "
Kazuki reached toward him — and his arm turned black.
Runes surged. Power erupted.
The figure shattered like glass.
Kazuki screamed.
And woke — drenched in sweat.
Asera was already there.
She said nothing.
Just handed him a cup of cold water.
He drank it in silence.
She finally broke the stillness. "The more you fight him, the more violent the reaction. "
"So what… I just surrender? "
"No, " she said firmly. "You balance. He is not your master. And you are not his puppet. You are both… something new. "
Kazuki looked at her. For the first time, he noticed the fatigue behind her perfect posture. The weariness in her eyes.
"You knew him, " he said softly.
She didn't deny it.
"I did. "
"What was he like? "
She stared at the fire again.
"Beautiful. Terrifying. Lonely. "
Kazuki felt something twist inside him.
A resonance.
A sorrow that wasn't his — but lived within his bones.
And something else…
A presence.
Watching.
Waiting.
Kazuki sat cross-legged on the cold stone.
The wind in the forest was quiet tonight — as if the world itself held its breath.
Asera stood before him, arms crossed, hair swaying like silver threads caught in a silent tide.
"Close your eyes, " she said.
Kazuki obeyed.
"Now breathe. But not with your lungs. With your soul. "
He almost scoffed — until something shifted.
The air around him grew thicker.
His skin tingled.
A pressure built behind his forehead, pressing inward, then… downward.
Darkness.
But not unconsciousness.
When Kazuki opened his eyes again, he wasn't in the forest.
He stood inside a vast, circular chamber — lit by floating shards of red light. The floor beneath him shimmered like molten obsidian. The air crackled with tension.
He was inside the runa.
Or inside himself.
A voice echoed through the chamber — low, ragged, familiar.
"Well. You came. "
Kazuki turned.
Standing at the far end was… himself.
But not quite.
This Kazuki had black sclera. A glowing red eye. Veins of darkness running through his skin like cracks in porcelain. His right arm was fully transformed — the runic markings pulsing like veins of lava.
"You're not me, " Kazuki said.
The echo smirked.
"Oh, I am. I'm just the part you bury every time you pretend you're normal. "
Kazuki took a step forward.
The echo did the same.
"Why are you here? " Kazuki asked.
"To wake you up, " the echo replied. "To remind you what you really are. "
Kazuki clenched his fists.
"I'm not a god. I'm not a killer. "
"Not yet, " the echo whispered.
And then, the chamber shook.
Flames erupted around the edges.
Visions flashed in the air — Kazuki slaughtering monsters, standing atop piles of ash, eyes glowing, mouth screaming in agony and triumph.
"No! " Kazuki shouted.
He looked away.
But the visions followed him.
"You think power is mercy? " the echo growled. "That you can save people by holding back? "
Kazuki turned back, defiant.
"I think power without restraint is destruction. "
The echo smiled. Not cruelly. Sadly.
"Then prove it. "
And lunged.
The clash was instantaneous.
Kazuki dodged left, narrowly avoiding a punch that cracked the molten floor.
He countered — a low kick, then an elbow to the echo's ribs.
It landed.
The echo staggered.
Then laughed.
"Good. You're angry. "
Kazuki's eyes flickered red.
"No. I'm awake. "
He surged forward, his movements guided not by fury — but by intention.
He ducked a wild swing, grabbed the echo by the arm, and threw him across the chamber.
But the echo landed gracefully, crouched like a shadow ready to strike again.
"You can't kill me, " it said. "I'm part of you. "
Kazuki nodded slowly.
"I know. "
He walked forward.
Extended his hand.
The echo blinked.
"What are you doing? "
"I'm not here to destroy you, " Kazuki said. "I'm here to accept you. "
The chamber pulsed with energy.
The echo hesitated.
Its form began to flicker — unstable, flickering between Kazuki's face and something older. Something divine.
"You would merge with me? "
Kazuki nodded. "Not as your puppet. As your equal. "
A long silence followed.
Then…
The echo smiled.
And reached back.
Their hands touched.
Light exploded from the point of contact — a vortex of runes, memories, and fire.
Kazuki screamed.
Not in pain.
In release.
And then — silence.
When he opened his eyes, he was back in the forest.
Asera was watching him closely.
"You were gone for hours, " she said.
Kazuki blinked. "It felt like minutes. "
She tilted her head. "What did you see? "
"Myself, " Kazuki said.
Then paused.
"No. More than myself. "
He stood slowly.
The runes on his body no longer pulsed out of control.
They moved in rhythm with his breath.
With his will.
Asera smiled faintly.
"Then you've taken your first real step. "
The shrine stood deeper in the forest, where the trees grew twisted and light refused to fall.
Asera led the way — silent, focused.
"This place…" Kazuki murmured.
"It's not just sacred, " Asera said. "It's cursed. "
The ground underfoot was blackened stone, cracked from heat that no longer burned. At the center stood a stone pedestal, encircled by faint glyphs — flickering in red and silver light.
"This is where Kaer left his breath, " she said. "The last echo of his will. If you are ready, it will answer you. "
Kazuki approached, unsure why his heart thundered in his chest.
"Place your hand on the stone, " Asera instructed. "And don't resist what comes. "
He hesitated. Then obeyed.
The instant his palm touched the cold surface — the world vanished.
Darkness exploded into flame.
Kazuki stood in a realm of fire and wind — not hell, but something older. More intentional.
Before him floated a jagged sword — curved like a scythe, forged in black steel veined with pulsing red runes. Its blade shimmered like liquid obsidian, the hilt wrapped in leather that shifted like skin.
The sword looked alive.
No — it was alive.
It pulsed with emotion.
Anger.
Grief.
Duty.
And recognition.
Kazuki stepped forward, drawn to it like a tide to the moon.
As his fingers neared the hilt, a voice surged into his mind.
"Are you vessel… or warrior? "
Kazuki closed his eyes.
"I'm both, " he whispered. "But I will not be consumed. "
Silence.
Then —
"Then take me. "
The blade surged toward him.
Kazuki screamed — the sword fused into his hand, tendrils of shadow wrapping up his arm, embedding runes into his skin.
Pain — and clarity — struck in unison.
The fire faded.
He stood again in the forest.
But now — he held the blade.
It breathed in his grip.
And it knew him.
Asera watched, impassive. But her voice held an edge of awe.
"You summoned it. "
Kazuki looked at her, panting.
"It came to me. "
She nodded. "Then your training truly begins. "
A sudden crack echoed through the trees.
They turned.
A shape lumbered from the dark — twice Kazuki's size, reptilian and muscular, covered in plates of greenish-black armor. Its mouth split into jagged mandibles that clacked hungrily.
"Class B — Devourer, " Asera murmured. "It must have sensed your awakening. "
The beast roared — a guttural sound that rattled the trees.
Kazuki stepped forward.
His right arm still glowed with the runes. The sword pulsed in his grip.
He didn't wait.
He moved.
The fight was a blur of instinct and flame.
Kazuki dodged the first lunge — the creature's claw gouged a tree in half.
He rolled, slashing upward — the blade met flesh, and the monster howled.
But it wasn't enough.
The Devourer spun, tail sweeping toward Kazuki like a whip. He leapt — barely avoiding the strike — then countered, bringing the sword down on the beast's back.
It sank deep.
The runes along Kazuki's arm flared — and the sword erupted in dark fire.
The Devourer shrieked.
Kazuki's eyes glowed red.
He pressed forward, driving the blade in deeper.
The creature twisted — tried to flee.
But Kazuki was faster.
With a cry, he leapt onto its back — and plunged the sword through the base of its skull.
The beast went still.
Smoke rose from the wound.
Kazuki dropped to his knees, gasping.
The blade pulsed once — then dimmed, satisfied.
Asera approached.
"You controlled it, " she said softly.
Kazuki looked at his hands. "It felt like it wanted to fight. "
She nodded.
"It's a weapon. But it's also memory. You carry Kaer's final act. That blade isn't just forged steel — it's his will. And now… it's yours too. "
Kazuki stood.
The sword remained in his hand — heavy, but balanced.
Not a curse.
Not a gift.
A burden.
But one he could now carry.
Kazuki sat alone on the cliffside, far from the place where he'd slain the Devourer. The forest stretched out before him like a black sea, trees shivering beneath a silver-streaked sky. The night air was crisp, and yet sweat clung to his skin. The sword rested beside him—dark, curved, and quietly pulsing like a sleeping heart.
He hadn't touched it since the battle.
Not since it spoke to him.
Not since it responded to his thoughts.
He closed his eyes, trying to silence the whirlwind inside.
But the voice came anyway.
"You are flesh. I am memory. Together, we become purpose. "
Kazuki's hand tightened on the grass.
It wasn't just a hallucination. He felt the presence behind the words—immense, old, weary.
Alive.
He didn't hear her arrive.
Asera stood behind him, arms crossed, gaze fixed on the sword.
"Your aura is unstable, " she said quietly.
Kazuki didn't move. "It's talking to me. "
Asera stepped forward, crouched beside him.
"Of course it is. That blade is more than steel. It's an imprint—Kaer's final breath made manifest. It remembers him. And now… it's learning you. "
Kazuki finally turned to her. His eyes were shadowed, but calm.
"It feels like it's watching me. Judging. Waiting. "
Asera nodded. "It is. The blade doesn't follow commands. It responds to will. But if your will falters… it will take control. "
"Take control? "
She met his eyes. "It's happened before. The last wielder was lost to madness. Consumed by Kaer's lingering wrath. You must learn to speak with it, not suppress it. "
Kazuki looked down at the weapon.
"How? "
Asera drew a sigil into the dirt with her finger.
"You meditate. Deeply. Let your mind drift into its resonance. But never fully surrender. You need to balance — not dominate, and not submit. "
Kazuki exhaled slowly, nodding.
That night, he sat cross-legged before the sword, its point planted into the earth.
He closed his eyes.
He breathed in. Out.
The world fell away.
He was no longer in the forest.
He stood in a temple of broken light and molten glass.
Floating before him was the blade — suspended, glowing, whispering. It shimmered with shifting symbols that felt like names. Memories. Pain.
He reached toward it.
And it opened.
Kazuki found himself engulfed in a tide of emotion — grief, fury, honor, loss. Images surged through him: burning cities, fallen comrades, a woman in silver armor crying out Kaer's name.
Then a voice—clearer than before.
"You are not him. "
Kazuki clenched his fists.
"I know. I'm me. "
"You hesitate. He did not. "
"Then teach me. "
Silence.
Then—
"You carry his pain. But not his judgment. That is why… I remain. "
The sword's aura shimmered.
Kazuki felt it settle—still wary, but no longer hostile.
It accepted him.
And in return, it showed him flashes of something deeper.
A throne of bone.
A god impaled.
A war yet unfinished.
Kazuki gasped and opened his eyes.
He was back in the forest. Asera sat nearby, watching in silence.
"I saw… things, " he said hoarsely.
"You connected, " she replied. "That's the first step. But it's only the beginning. "
Kazuki looked at the blade now driven into the soil.
It looked the same.
But something between them had changed.
The sword no longer resisted.
It breathed with him.
And in the distance—hidden in the trees—yellow eyes watched.
In the heart of the city, rumors spread.
Among students at the academy, whispers moved like wildfire.
Of a shadow that saved a girl from a collapsing alley.
Of glowing red eyes seen in the dark.
Of a masked figure that vanished into smoke.
No one knew the truth.
But someone was watching.
Someone wanted to know more.
And not all who watched were human.
The next morning, Kazuki awoke with a start. His sheets clung to him, soaked in sweat. His chest rose and fell rapidly as he struggled to calm his breath.
No dream.
No memory.
Just a presence.
Something had been there — not the blade, not Kaer. Something colder. Something with… eyes.
He sat up slowly, wiping his face, his mind clouded by the feeling of having been watched.
Or worse—invaded.
Later that day, Asera found him in the training field. He was moving through strikes with unnatural precision, his blade a blur of obsidian and scarlet as it tore the air. His expression, however, was distant — focused, but not present.
"You're not centered, " she said sharply.
Kazuki didn't stop. "I didn't sleep. "
"I can see that. What happened? "
He finally halted, the blade humming low as he planted it into the ground.
"There was something else last night. In my mind. Not the sword. Not Kaer. "
Asera narrowed her eyes.
"Describe it. "
Kazuki hesitated.
"It didn't speak. Not in words. It… observed. I felt exposed. Violated. But not attacked. Like a predator testing the cage. "
Asera led him into a meditative chamber — a circular space built into the mountainside, lined with ancient runes.
"We'll scan your aura, " she said. "There are entities — certain breeds — that can intrude into thought without entering this realm fully. "
As Kazuki sat cross-legged, Asera drew sigils around him. A low chant filled the room, her voice deep and resonant, vibrating through stone.
And then—
A flicker.
A ripple in the dark.
A shadow just outside the runic circle — faceless, but watching.
Asera's chant faltered.
"Something is listening, " she whispered.
Kazuki opened his eyes.
"I know. "
That evening, Kazuki returned to the city. The school was quiet, most students already gone. He crossed the courtyard toward the lockers, retrieving his gym bag, when he heard footsteps behind him.
Turning, he saw her.
Aoi.
She stood a few steps away, sunlight catching in her hair. For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then she gave him a small, polite nod.
"Good work today. I saw you in PE. "
Kazuki blinked. "Oh. Thanks. "
She hesitated.
"Are you… alright? You looked pale. "
His heart stuttered for a second.
"I'm just… tired. Long night. "
She smiled faintly. "I get that. "
Their eyes met — and for a brief instant, the world quieted. No shadows. No swords. Just two students, suspended in a fragile calm.
Then someone called her name, and she was gone.
But her gaze lingered.
From the third-floor window, Haruki watched the exchange.
He wasn't jealous.
Not really.
But something about Kazuki — the way he moved, the way others were drawn to him — it stirred something beneath Haruki's grin.
Something like curiosity.
Or warning.
That night, it returned.
Kazuki sat by his window, the blade resting across his lap, when the whisper came—not from the sword, not from Kaer, but from the veil beyond reality.
"Little vessel…"
He stood up.
"Who are you? "
"The first of many. "
His vision shifted.
In the glass of the window, a reflection — not his.
Pale eyes. Teeth like needles. A grin that didn't match its face.
"You shine too brightly. You wake the dead. "
Kazuki gripped the sword.
"Come closer, and I'll cut you down. "
The whisper chuckled.
"No… you'll invite us in. Every time you bleed. Every time you dream. "
Then it was gone.
But the glass was cracked.
In the shadows of the forest, a figure knelt before a blackened altar.
Its form was humanoid — but wrong. Too thin. Too tall. Its fingers stained with ichor.
It had felt Kazuki.
Had tasted his mind.
And it was hungry.
The morning air felt thicker than usual. As Kazuki walked through the school gates, something felt… off. The sun shone, the breeze moved gently through the leaves, and yet whispers traveled faster than the wind.
He heard his name.
More than once.
Not just from his classmates — but even from teachers who fell suddenly silent as he passed.
It was happening.
Rumors.
He walked down the hallway, backpack slung over one shoulder, as two girls from his literature class quickly turned away.
"Isn't he the one who—? "
"No way, he couldn't— But what if it's true? "
"Kazuki? That quiet guy? "
He pretended not to notice.
But every stare, every whisper, settled like thorns under his skin.
He hadn't done anything. At least… not here.
Not yet.
Haruki leaned against his locker, arms folded, eyes sharp.
"Yo, " he said casually as Kazuki passed. "You're kinda famous all of a sudden. "
Kazuki raised an eyebrow. "Famous? "
"Some second-years say you disappeared in the middle of the gym drills. Then reappeared like nothing happened. Also—someone saw your hands glowing. That true? "
Kazuki remained silent.
Haruki tilted his head. "You're not denying it. "
"I'm not confirming it either. "
"Interesting. "
That afternoon, Kazuki went to the infirmary, complaining of dizziness.
The nurse checked his pulse — and frowned.
"Your heart rate's elevated. Skin temperature high. You haven't been overexerting? "
"No more than usual. "
When she touched his wrist, she recoiled slightly.
His skin felt warm… but it also shimmered, just for a second.
Kazuki looked away. "Maybe I'm just tired. "
She nodded uneasily, scribbling notes, watching him as he left.
Later, in the solitude of the mountain shrine, Asera paced before an open scroll. The parchment was brittle with age, covered in faded ink and divine script.
Her fingers traced the symbols.
"The Vessel of Kaer, once awakened, shall stir what sleeps in ash and whisper. As above, so beneath. The light shall tremble. The veil shall thin. "
She closed her eyes.
Kazuki wasn't just a wielder.
He was a catalyst.
That night, Kazuki couldn't sleep.
His body felt like it was burning from within. Black tendrils licked his shoulder, only to fade when he sat up and breathed.
In the mirror, he noticed it again.
For a moment—just a moment—his right eye glowed red.
He blinked.
Gone.
Aoi stood alone on the school rooftop, the wind tugging gently at her skirt. She stared at the courtyard below, where Kazuki had just passed.
She hadn't said a word since their last encounter.
But she knew.
She had seen something that night. Not a dream. Not imagination.
She remembered the moment he pulled her from the rubble — his hand glowing, his body shrouded in shadows.
The image haunted her.
And now, hearing all the rumors, it all felt too real to ignore.
The following day, a girl from Class 2-C "accidentally" bumped into Kazuki near the vending machines.
She smiled coyly, placing a hand on his chest to steady herself longer than necessary.
"Oops, sorry~ you're stronger than you look, Kazuki-kun. "
Her friend giggled behind her.
"Or maybe just… hotter than we thought. "
Across the courtyard, another girl watched with narrowed eyes.
Then another.
The tension wasn't just among the students anymore.
The air was charged.
Boys began to glare. Girls whispered and stared. Some even tried to catch Kazuki alone after class, asking odd questions or giving him sly looks.
He hated it.
And yet… something inside him stirred at their attention.
Something not entirely his.
In the deep corners of the forest, the entity that whispered before now crouched above an ancient pool, watching reflections.
It saw the blush on Aoi's cheeks.
It saw the heat in Kazuki's core.
It smiled.
Soon.
Very soon.
The vessel would crack.
And what lay within — Kaer's wrath, and something far worse — would spill out.
The afternoon sky over Shinjuku was fractured with low-hanging clouds. Students bustled down the sidewalks, their chatter blending into the mechanical hum of the city.
Kazuki walked among them — but he wasn't truly there.
Something gnawed at him.
A presence. A heat under his skin. A voice just beneath hearing.
And then — everything stopped.
Time didn't freeze. But something heavy fell over the air. Like gravity, but twisted. Wrong.
A vibration surged through the pavement. People staggered. Car alarms screeched.
And from the alleyway ahead — it emerged.
Tall. Twisted. Hunched.
It crawled forward on elongated limbs, black ichor dripping from its joints. Its face — or what passed for one — was a jagged, vertical maw with no eyes. Its chest bore a sigil, charred into flesh. It radiated power.
A Class S entity.
In broad daylight. In the middle of Tokyo.
People screamed. Chaos erupted. Phones came out. Sirens blared in the distance.
And Kazuki — just stood there.
His heart thundered.
The creature turned to him.
And smiled.
"You smell of death, " it said, voice like iron dragging across bone. "You carry Him. You are ripe. "
The air thickened.
Kazuki's right eye flared — blood-red, burning. His arm twitched.
"No…" he whispered. "Not now. Not here. "
The creature lunged.
In an instant, Kazuki's body reacted.
Not his mind.
The rune.
His arm turned obsidian. Veins lit up like lava. A shockwave blasted outward as his hand caught the monster's claw mid-swipe — and stopped it cold.
People gasped.
They saw.
His back was exposed — runes glowing along his spine.
One boy dropped his phone.
Another girl screamed, "What the hell is he! "
Aoi stood on the train station stairs — frozen.
She had been heading home. She saw the crowd scatter. And she saw him.
Kazuki.
Right arm black as void. One eye red, blazing like hellfire.
And yet…
He looked in pain.
Fighting himself as much as the monster.
The monster shrieked and twisted. It leapt backward, then spat a wave of black flame.
Kazuki raised his arm.
The flame hit — but was absorbed into the darkness crawling over his body.
Then he moved.
A blur.
A flash of black lightning.
He appeared above the beast — his foot crashing into its back, shattering the concrete.
The creature howled.
Kazuki stood tall, breathing hard, his shadow stretching like claws behind him.
Then his head snapped toward Aoi.
Their eyes met.
She didn't flinch.
Didn't run.
Just stared.
As if saying: I see you.
He vanished.
The battle ended in seconds — the monster melting into smoke, its burnt sigil glowing before fading.
Sirens approached. The crowd surged again.
But Kazuki was gone.
In the mountains, Asera felt it.
She dropped the scroll she had been reading.
"No…"
She rushed to the altar, pouring over the prophecy.
"When the sigil burns in daylight, the veil weakens. The vessel shall fracture or ascend. "
Kazuki's time was running short.
And he didn't even know it yet.
That night, in the silence of his room, Kazuki sat on the floor — shirtless, staring at the shifting lines on his skin.
He couldn't breathe.
His hand trembled.
And all he could think of… was her eyes.
Not afraid.
Not horrified.
Just present.
Like she had known.
Like she still accepted him.
And for the first time in days, Kazuki's breath steadied.
From the shadows of an abandoned temple, a cloaked figure stepped into the moonlight.
Their eyes glowed silver.
Their voice, soft but cold, echoed into the night.
"So… the vessel has awakened. "
The next morning, the sky above Akiruno was blanketed with a pale gray mist, diffusing the sunlight into a cold silver haze. The streets buzzed with the usual rhythm of a weekday, but for Kazuki, everything had slowed to a quiet hum.
He sat at the back of the classroom, near the window. Outside, cherry blossoms rustled despite the season being long past. The storm of whispers had only grown since yesterday's incident. Everyone had seen something. No one said it out loud, but the looks — the wide eyes, the furrowed brows, the fearful half-glances — told him everything.
But none of it mattered right now.
His thoughts were only on her.
Aoi.
She had seen it all. And yet… hadn't run.
Her gaze had held him steady, like an anchor in the middle of a storm.
Why?
He didn't know.
Didn't understand.
Couldn't stop thinking about it.
At lunch, she approached him.
Students quieted as she walked across the courtyard, tray in hand, confident but calm. Kazuki didn't move, still seated on the low stone edge near the koi pond.
"Mind if I sit? " she asked softly.
Kazuki looked up — hesitant. "You sure about that? "
She tilted her head. "People are already whispering. Might as well give them something real to talk about. "
He let out a short breath, a half-laugh that wasn't quite humor.
"I saw you, " she added. "What you did yesterday. "
He tensed.
"I know, " he muttered. "You should stay away from me. "
"I won't. "
"You don't understand what I am. "
"No, " she said firmly, "you don't. "
Silence stretched between them.
"You're not a monster, Kazuki, " she said. "Whatever's happening to you… it didn't stop you from saving people. From saving me. "
His jaw clenched. His fists curled.
"You don't know what this is. What's inside me. I'm not sure I do either. "
"Then let's find out together. "
Her voice didn't waver.
Something in his chest stirred — painful, soft, warm.
He didn't deserve her.
He didn't deserve hope.
That night, Kazuki stood alone in the mountains.
He had returned to the old shrine — the one Asera called her sanctuary. Wind swept through the trees, carrying with it the scent of pine and old stone.
Asera waited near the altar. Her usual composed expression was different — more tense, as if something weighed heavily on her.
"You used the power, " she said without preamble.
Kazuki didn't deny it.
"I didn't have a choice. "
"There's always a choice. But perhaps… the time for hesitation is over. "
He stepped forward.
"Tell me the truth. Who was Kaer? "
Asera's eyes narrowed. "You're not ready. "
"I need to know. "
She looked away — toward the flickering brazier behind the altar.
"Kaer was the God of War. But not the kind mortals remember in myths. He was not born from chaos — he fought it. For centuries, he held back what lies beyond the veil. When the final war came, he gave everything — his body, his name, his divinity — to create the runic seal that would keep the Abyss shut. "
"And now I carry that? "
"You are more than a carrier. You are the vessel of his flame. "
Kazuki's eyes dropped to his right hand. The veins still shimmered faintly, even in darkness.
"Then what does that make me? "
Asera walked to the brazier.
She reached inside, unflinching, and drew from the fire a molten brand — a symbol, glowing red.
She pressed it into the stone beside her, revealing a forgotten crest.
"Kaer's name was not just divine. It was a command — an anchor in the cosmic tide. And you…"
She turned to face him fully.
"…are beginning to awaken his will. "
A low pulse echoed through the shrine.
Kazuki staggered, his chest burning.
Flames erupted in his vision — not literal, but memory, power, sensation. He saw soldiers screaming, monsters surging from black fog, cities falling, and a single warrior cloaked in darkness standing at the front — sword in hand, crimson eye glowing.
It was him.
But it wasn't.
The vision faded.
Asera steadied him.
"Your path isn't written in stone, Kazuki. But the flame is no longer dormant. It knows you. And others… will feel it too. "
Elsewhere, beneath the cracked floor of an abandoned cathedral in Northern Hokkaido, a woman in white knelt before a dying flame.
Her eyes opened — pitch black, unblinking.
"So… the flame remembers its name, " she whispered.
"Let us see if the vessel can bear the truth. "
She rose.
And behind her, seven shadows moved.