The air cracks as Mizaru lunges forward—her movements blurred by violet energy, her strikes landing before Kairos can even register them. Ribs shatter. Blood sprays. He stumbles back, vision swimming, but she doesn't let him fall.
"Pathetic," she sneers, kicking him into a ruined building hard enough to send rubble raining down on him. "This is the 'resolve' you had?"
Kairos coughs up blood but forces himself upright again—teeth gritted behind a feral grin of his own as his Kizugami flares weakly in response:
"Nah… just warming up."
She humors him for exactly three more exchanges before driving her claws straight through his gut and lifting him off the ground by the wound alone—blood dripping onto broken concrete below like morbid rain.
Mizaru holds Kairos in the air, eyes glittering with cruel amusement.
"You can't even stand by yourself without help, and you think you have what it takes to save anyone? Pathetic."
He grits his teeth, one hand clutching at her wrist in useless struggle.
Then, in a flash of pain and desperation, Kairos does the unexpected—he laughs. A choked, bloodied sound.
"Funny," he rasps. "Same thing Yua said to me when we first met."
Mizaru's amusement flickers for half a second—long enough for Kairos to wrench himself free with a grunt of agony. He lands hard on his knees but still somehow manages to glare up at her through the haze of his own dripping blood.
The fight is far from over.
"You're stubborn, I'll give you that," Mizaru admits, almost reluctantly impressed.
She's circling him now like a predator closing in for the kill—each step deliberate and almost graceful.
"But stubborn alone won't save you now."
"Never said it would," Kairos spits blood onto the cracked pavement, gripping his Kizugami tighter. The blade trembles—not from fear, but from raw strain as he forces himself back to his feet.
Mizaru's smirk widens. "Then what will?"
Kairos doesn't answer with words.
He answers by swinging—a reckless, last-ditch slash aimed straight for her throat… only for Mizaru to catch the blade between two fingers like it's nothing more than a child's toy. The force of her grip sends cracks spiderwebbing down the steel before she snaps it clean in half.
The sound echoes like a death knell across Serenia's ruins as Kairos staggers back—now weaponless, bleeding out and barely standing… but still glaring defiantly up at her without an ounce of surrender in his eyes despite everything crumbling around him piece by piece...
"Is that truly it?" Mizaru asks almost mockingly as she tosses the broken pieces of his Kizugami into the debris.
Kairos staggers back, almost collapsing, but he keeps himself upright through sheer force of will alone. His gaze never wavers, not even when his vision blurs and his head is pounding like a drum.
No answer. He just grits his teeth and keeps his fists clenched at his sides… refusing to give in despite being completely at her mercy. And somehow that seems to spark something in her—some strange fascination.
(Mizaru tilts her head, studying him like an intriguing puzzle.)
"You still refuse to kneel?" she muses, stepping closer. "Even when you've lost?"
Kairos coughs out a bloody laugh. "I don't know how," he admits hoarsely. "Guess that's my flaw."
For the first time, something unreadable flickers in Mizaru's gaze—before she abruptly turns away with a dismissive wave. "How dull."
But just as Kairos braces for another attack... her body suddenly goes rigid—eyes widening in surprise as an unseen force seems to seize control from within. Violet energy sputters erratically around Yua's form like a dying flame before—
Release.
Yua collapses to her knees beside Ryo's unconscious body, gasping for air like she's just resurfaced from drowning… and the last thing Kairos sees before his own vision fails is her trembling hand reaching weakly toward him—before everything fades to black.
Two pairs of footsteps show up next a in and out Kairos. They take him back through a portal leading to the hunting realm as it gets eerily quiet.
Meanwhile a high pitched voice starts running towards Ryo and Yua. Ryo somewhat in and out of consciousness knows that voice anywhere…
Ryo slowly wakes to find himself lying on a soft bed, every muscle in his body aching as though he'd just run a marathon. His vision is blurry from fatigue, but he can still make out a familiar figure by his bedside.
"Ryo!"
The voice is high-pitched but frantic, worried.
He blinks blearily for a moment before recognition sets in.
"Rumi...?"
Ryo's vision clears just enough to see his little sister, Rumi, already sprinting toward him—eyes wide with panic and relief. Right behind her is their father, face tight with concern as he kneels down beside them.
"Idiot brother!" Rumi sobs, throwing herself at him in a hug that makes all his bruised ribs scream. "You scared us half to death!"
Their dad doesn't say anything—just grips Ryo's shoulder hard like he's afraid he might vanish if he lets go.
Meanwhile... Yua stirs weakly beside them.
Ryo looks around for a sign of the little girl, the worry now clear in his eyes—but their dad catches the look and gives him a reassuring squeeze on the shoulder.
"She's alright," he reassures him gruffly. "A little shaken up, but alive."
Rumi nods in agreement, already pulling back with eyes still red from tears.
"You saved her, big brother."
Ryo stares at Yua—still unconscious beside him, her breathing steady but shallow. His thoughts race.
What happened after I passed out…? Did Kairos fight Yua alone? How did they even survive?
But before he can spiral further, a groan from Yua cuts through his thoughts. She stirs weakly, eyelashes fluttering as she fights her way back to consciousness—and when those familiar dark eyes finally open… they're her own again. No violet glow. No eerie smirk twisting her lips apart like a puppet on strings.
Just Yua.
Relief crashes into him so hard it nearly hurts worse than his wounds—but then something in her gaze shifts from disoriented to panicked, and she rasps out one word like it's the only thing that matters:
"—Kairos?"
Yua takes a moment to focus, visibly struggling to regain her bearings as her memories start coming back in broken flashes.
"I remember being in control at first…" she murmurs, her gaze turning distant as if she's looking through the past instead of the present.
"Then everything got blurry..."
Ryo leans a bit closer, listening intently.
Kujuro then explains they must head back home.
"Time to go back home now."
Ryo starts to protest, wanting to stay with Yua until she's fully recovered, but his dad fixes him with a look that says there's no room for argument.
"You're coming home, no argument," he says firmly. "Both of you."
Ryo grits his teeth, but even he knows better than to disagree. And next to him, Yua doesn't even try. She just nods weakly, looking exhausted in a way that goes beyond physical fatigue.
Later that evening while recovering Yua closes her eyes only to find herself in her mind's conscience.
Yua opens her eyes to find herself standing in the familiar, inner world of her own consciousness.
It's empty as always—still and silent except for the sound of her own breathing. But something about it feels... off. Like there's a subtle tension in the air that puts her instantly on edge.
"There you are."
Yua whirls around, heart already racing in her chest as she tries to place the source of that voice. But before she can react, it comes again—louder this time, echoing through the barren space like a low, mocking chuckle.
"You took your sweet time coming back."
Yua swallows hard, the hairs on the back of her neck standing straight up.
Yua forces herself to speak, keeping her voice steady despite her heart threatening to beat out of her chest.
"I'm guessing this isn't a social call," she says dryly.
A beat of silence, then the voice—Mizaru's voice—returns, sharp and biting.
"Smart girl," it purrs. "You really are observant."
Yua looks angry at Mizaru.
"Why did you attack him? You told me you don't condone violence."
Mizaru's voice takes on an amused tone when Yua points this out.
"Observant and perceptive," it teases. "Not every Engetsuju has the same values, you know."
Yua grits her teeth, but she keeps her cool—there's no way in hell she'll let Mizaru see how shaken she is.
"So what is it then?" she asks, feigning boredom. "What do you want?"
Mizaru's laugh echoes like shattered glass in the hollow space between them.
"Oh, Yua." The words drip with pity. "You still don't understand?"
A sharp inhale—Yua's nails bite into her palms as she waits for the punchline she already knows is coming.
"Kairos was never your ally," Mizaru murmurs, voice slithering through the dark like a blade between ribs. "He was your executioner. From the very beginning."
Mizaru's voice grows quieter, almost contemplative.
"Perhaps he doesn't even realize it himself." A pause—deliberate, letting the implication sink in. "But someone has been planning everything from the beginning."
Yua's fists clench tighter. "You're lying."
The responding chuckle is icy. "Would I bother?"
Mizaru softens her gaze at Yua.
"I care about your future," Mizaru's voice continues, quieter now—almost gentle, almost genuine. "You have such a kind heart."
The words hit more like a punch than any reassurance. Yua wants nothing more than to cover her ears and block out the sound, but there's no escaping her own head.
"And you don't even realize how others are going to take advantage of that."
Mizaru's voice changes again—this time softening into something almost reminiscent.
"We Engetsuju... we always end up as tools. Weapons for the people who bind us. We're the ones who fight their wars while they watch from safe distances and enjoy the spoils. It's been that way since ancient times."
Yua's pulse quickens as she listens, hating how much Mizaru's words make sense. But she still shakes her head stubbornly.
"Kairos isn't like that."
Mizaru sighs, as if disappointed by Yua's naivety.
"You really think he came to those conclusions on his own?" Her voice drops lower, a whisper in the dark. "Someone is sculpting him like clay—changing what he sees, twisting his ideology until it fits their purpose."
Yua's breath catches—because the worst part is... it makes sense. Too much sense.
Mizaru's voice takes on a darker edge now, warning and genuine in its concern.
"Kairos is being manipulated," she says. "But it's not just his life at stake. Yours is too."
Yua's frown deepens. "Me?"
Mizaru's tone softens again, almost sad.
"Yes, you. You have the kind of heart that others can't resist using."
It takes a moment for Yua's stunned mind to processes Mizaru's words.
"W—what?" she finally croaks out. "The realm… is after me because I have you inside me? Just because I have some of your power?"
Mizaru's laughter rings out, coldly amused by the sheer ridiculousness of the situation.
"My, my." She tisk-tsks. "You really are naïve, aren't you?"
Yua swallows hard as Mizaru's words sink in… and for the first time fear overtakes her anger.
"This… someone wants to use us. Collect us."
Mizaru's smirk widens. "Finally getting it?"
Yua shakes her head, still refusing to believe any of this.
"No," she mumbles. "That's… that's insane."
Mizaru's voice drops to a whisper—final, damning.
"Then ask yourself this: why do you think Ryo is the only one who's kept you safe so far?"
🌀 End Of Chapter Twenty Three