Morning arrived peacefully at Reikosha Academy. The campus was as lively as ever, with students filling the training grounds, the library, and the open courtyards. Some sparred with wooden swords, others practiced controlling their Base Energies, while a few simply enjoyed the rare day without missions. From a distance, the academy looked untouched by danger, as if the world beyond its walls had never known conflict.
Inside the faculty building, Griffin leaned comfortably against the window while sipping a cup of coffee. Across from him, Shougo sat with his arms folded, reading through several mission reports stacked neatly on his desk. The room remained quiet until Griffin suddenly broke the silence.
"You know... Kairo surprised me."
Shougo didn't lift his eyes from the papers.
"He surprises everyone."
Griffin smiled to himself.
"When I first saw him, I thought he'd quit after his first mission."
"He almost did."
"Yet now he's standing beside your strongest students."
Shougo finally looked up.
"Kairo still has a long road ahead."
Griffin chuckled.
"You're never satisfied."
"I can't afford to be."
A brief silence filled the room before Griffin placed his coffee on the table.
"Do you think... they'll surpass us someday?"
Shougo glanced out the window toward the training grounds where Kairo, Yura, Tyouro, and Kimimaru were practicing together.
"I hope they do."
Griffin looked at him with a grin.
"That's the answer I'd expect from you."
Shougo remained calm.
"If they never surpass us..."
"...then we failed as teachers."
Outside, Kairo tightened his grip around the Black Spartan while facing Tyouro in another friendly spar. Unlike their previous matches, neither of them rushed in immediately. Both had learned from one another, carefully observing every movement before making the first step.
"You're thinking too much," Tyouro laughed, pointing at him. "Come on! Attack already!"
Kairo smiled awkwardly.
"I know you'll counter me if I rush."
"Hehe... you've learned."
The moment Tyouro lunged forward, Kairo sidestepped before swinging the Black Spartan toward his shoulder. Tyouro barely managed to block with his forearm coated in Blast Energy, creating a small shockwave that pushed both of them backward.
Nearby, Yura watched quietly with her arms crossed.
"His predictions became faster..."
Kimimaru nodded once.
"He reads movements better."
Yura looked toward him.
"You've noticed too?"
"I always notice."
Tyouro suddenly laughed while rubbing the back of his neck.
"Seriously... fighting Kairo isn't as easy anymore."
Kairo scratched his cheek.
"I still lose sometimes."
"Sometimes?"
Tyouro grinned.
"Let's keep it that way."
The four continued training until lunchtime, eventually making their way toward the academy cafeteria.
As expected...
Lady Chõko had already claimed an entire table.
Plates of fried rice, grilled meat, noodles, curry, roasted fish, dumplings, desserts, fruit, and several pitchers of juice completely covered the tabletop. Students walking past couldn't help but stop and stare.
"...Is she feeding the whole academy?" one student whispered.
"I think that's all for her," another replied.
Lady Chõko happily stuffed another spoonful of rice into her mouth before noticing Griffin walking past.
"Griffiiiin~!"
Griffin stopped.
"...Why do I suddenly have a bad feeling?"
She smiled brightly.
"Come here!"
"...No."
"Please?"
"No."
"I'll share my food."
"I value my life."
She puffed out her cheeks dramatically.
"You're so mean..."
Several nearby students laughed quietly.
Griffin sighed before walking over anyway.
"I don't know why I keep answering you."
"Because you like me."
Griffin almost choked.
"W-What?!"
Lady Chõko burst into laughter.
"I'm kidding!"
"...One day you're going to give me a heart attack."
Shougo walked into the cafeteria just in time to witness the scene.
He pinched the bridge of his nose.
"...You're both hopeless."
Lady Chõko pointed at Griffin while chewing happily.
"See? He's jealous."
"I'm leaving."
Griffin immediately turned around.
"HEY!"
She couldn't stop laughing.
The atmosphere inside the cafeteria became lighter as everyone watched the strange interaction. Even Yura quietly smiled while Kairo laughed harder than he had in days.
For just a little while...
It felt like nothing bad could ever happen.
Far beyond Reikosha Academy...
Hidden beneath endless cliffs and ancient stone, an enormous underground chamber remained untouched by time. Massive pillars surrounded seven gigantic stone monuments covered with symbols no human language could understand.
The air was completely still.
Then...
A tiny piece of stone broke away from one monument.
Crack.
Another followed.
Then another.
Ancient dust slowly drifted into the air.
Deep within the darkness...
A faint heartbeat echoed.
Once.
Twice.
Then silence returned.
Somewhere in the chamber, an old voice whispered almost too quietly to hear.
"...Soon."
The chamber became silent again, as if nothing had happened.
Yet the cracks remained.
Growing wider...
Little by little.