Morning came quietly.
A soft wind drifted beneath the forest canopy, carrying dry leaves that brushed gently against the bodies lying on the ground. The group remained where they had slept, scattered but close—exhaustion still clinging to them.
A leaf landed on Sora's lips.
She frowned slightly, exhaled, and blew it away.
Nearby, Yamato was already awake.
He pushed himself up slowly, his clothes wrinkled and dust-stained. He brushed dirt off his shoulders, stretched his arms once, then began walking without a word—his steps light, almost absent-minded, as if something else already had his attention.
Master Ozaki stirred.
Still lying on the ground, he turned his head and caught sight of Yamato moving away. He watched him for a brief moment… but said nothing.
He stood up.
Dusting off his clothes, his gaze shifted to the remains of last night's fire.
The flames were gone—but not dead.
Faint smoke curled upward. Heat still lingered.
Ozaki crouched, leaned forward, and blew gently into the ashes.
A sudden burst of grey powder shot back into his face.
He didn't stop.
Again.
Again.
Until—
A faint glow.
Then a spark.
Then flame.
The fire came back to life.
Ozaki added small pieces of wood, steady and practiced, until the flames grew stable again. Without hesitation, his arm slipped into empty space—vanishing into nothingness—and returned holding the leftover meat from the night before.
He skewered it on sticks and set them above the fire.
One by one, he moved through the group.
A light tap on Ichiha.
A groan. Eyes opening.
Chella.
Sora.
No groans—just quiet awareness as they sat up.
Before Ozaki could reach him, Lumei suddenly sat upright, rubbing his eyes.
"Morning, sir…" he muttered, his voice thick with sleep.
"Good morning, sir," Ichiha added, already more alert.
"Good morning, sir," Sora and Chella echoed together.
Ozaki gave a small, warm smile—
—but only to them.
Lumei's eyes narrowed slightly.
Wait… he smiled?
His fingers brushed his chin in thought.
My master? Smile? …Ah.
Girls.
Ichiha moved closer to the fire, stretching his hands toward the warmth.
"Where is Yamato?"
Ozaki exhaled softly. "Don't know. I saw him leave."
Lumei reached forward, taking one of the meat sticks. "Leave? To where?"
"I don't know," Ozaki replied calmly, standing upright. "He can handle himself."
Then—
BOOM!!
The sound tore through the forest.
Not just loud—heavy.
The ground trembled slightly beneath them.
Sora turned sharply. "What was that?!"
Chella dropped her hand to the ground—
—and it sank.
Not into earth.
But through it.
Like touching disturbed water.
Her eyes narrowed.
Lumei clenched his fists.
Ichiha raised his palm slightly, tension building in his stance.
Silence followed.
A stretched, uneasy silence.
Then—
A distant crack.
Wood splintering.
A long, dragging collapse—
…a tree falling.
But it didn't ease the tension.
If anything, it made it worse.
Ozaki chuckled lightly, though his eyes said otherwise. "Probably someone cutting a tree."
Before anyone could respond—
His body began to distort.
Space folded around him.
Piece by piece, he disappeared.
—
He stepped into another world.
Night.
Stillness.
A barren land stretched endlessly beneath a dim, lifeless sky. No trees. No movement. No sound—except the hollow wind sweeping across dry soil.
And there—
His house.
Unchanged.
Waiting.
Ozaki walked forward slowly, approaching the flower fence. He reached down and carefully cut three black flowers.
Their petals were shaped like hearts, deep black in color, their stems a soft green.
No buds.
Just… complete.
He stepped past the fence.
Three headstones stood quietly.
He stopped at the middle one first.
His knees lowered to the ground.
"Ollie…" His voice softened. "I've missed you."
His eyes shimmered—but he held the tears back as he placed the flower gently on the stone.
He turned left.
"Reggie."
Then right.
"Beta."
And just like that—
He broke.
Tears slipped down his face, silent and steady.
"Sora and Chella…" he whispered, voice trembling. "They reminded me… of how you used to wake me."
He wiped his face, but it didn't stop.
"It's been almost ten years… since I lost all of you."
He sat down fully now.
Not as a master.
Not as a fighter.
Just… a man.
"I have five students with me now," he continued, sniffing. "Lumei—my personal student, like I told you. Two girls… Sora and Chella. And two boys…"
A faint smile touched his face.
"Yamato and Ichiha. They remind me of how me and Regns used to be… always opposite."
His gaze lowered.
"Sora and Chella… they're raw. Untouched talent. But…"
He paused.
"That Yamato boy…"
His expression shifted—uncertain.
"He's like someone who hacks power itself. He doesn't follow rules."
A leaf drifted onto Reggie's headstone.
Ozaki reached out and brushed it off gently.
"I can't sense magic from him. No Divine Magic. No Divine Energy."
His body moved instinctively toward Beta's stone—his hand brushing over it, though there was nothing there.
He chuckled weakly. "Muscle memory… you always wanted the same attention."
His voice dropped again.
"But somehow… he sees everything. Understands everything."
"I saw Sora… watching him. Like she wanted him to notice her."
He exhaled.
"If someone like him had guided me back then… maybe I would've been special from the start… just like Mom said."
He slowly stood.
"We're going after Kaku."
A pause.
"They're coming with me."
His hands clenched together, his head bowing deeply.
"I'm sorry… truly. I might forget to come back… forget to change your flowers…"
His voice softened further.
"But not because I forgot you."
A breath.
"I just… don't want to lose anyone again."
Silence.
"When this is over… I'll come back."
Another breath.
"And I'll tell you everything."
He straightened.
Then turned—
—and stepped out.
—
The forest returned.
Yamato was already back.
The others looked toward Ozaki as he reappeared from nothingness.
They ate quietly.
Then stood, ready to move.
Ichiha spoke, his tone still heavy. "Sir… you haven't told us what we're doing."
Ozaki blinked. "I haven't?"
"No, sir," Lumei and Chella answered.
Ozaki faced them fully.
"It's about a man named Kaku."
Ichiha's focus sharpened instantly.
"I fought him once," Ozaki continued. "I was weak… so I sealed him."
A pause.
"He broke himself apart and said… he would return."
The air tightened.
"I don't want him regaining his full power. So I need your help."
"Help how?" Sora asked.
"You'll find fragments of his power," Ozaki replied. "I'll track the main source."
"Tch…" Lumei muttered. "So we're fighting."
Silence settled.
Everyone thinking.
Everyone processing.
Except—
Yamato.
Ichiha glanced at him. "You don't have anything to say?"
A small laugh escaped him.
Chella joined in. "And someone likes him," she teased, turning to Yamato. "Mr Know-It-All?"
Lumei smirked quietly.
Sora frowned. "Stop it. He's not some tool. He's human."
Ozaki remained silent—
—but his eyes stayed on Yamato.
I thought he'd say something…
Yamato exhaled.
"You're all joking," he said calmly. "But I'm doing something more important."
They stilled.
"I'm sensing."
A pause.
"About three hundred and forty kilometers from here… there's a crowd."
Their expressions shifted.
"Over five hundred people."
Silence.
"In distress."
Shock.
"And farther…" Yamato continued, his gaze distant, unfocused. "Four hundred and fifty-two kilometers from here… something unnatural."
The air changed.
Lumei's smirk vanished. "What…?"
Chella's eyes widened. "That far?"
Ichiha stared at him. "You're serious…?"
Sora said nothing—just watched him.
Ozaki turned immediately.
Facing north.
Wind burst outward from him, surging through the trees—searching, scanning, stretching across distance.
Time passed.
Five minutes.
Then—
His eyes sharpened.
He saw it.
Both of them.
His thoughts echoed—
This boy… how?
Ozaki turned back.
"We move."
His voice carried weight now.
"There's a connection to Kaku… in that direction."
He looked for Yamato—
—but he was gone.
"Look up."
Ozaki raised his head.
Yamato stood high on a tree branch, balanced effortlessly.
"Let's move."
Sora flicked her fingers.
Water droplets fell—
hissing as they extinguished the fire.
And without another word—
They moved.
—
Far away.
Four hundred and fifty two kilometers.
Village Bres.
Inside a dark house—
Silence.
Heavy.
Unnatural.
A figure sat in the corner.
Still.
Watching nothing.
White hair shimmered faintly in the darkness, catching what little light existed.
Her face… barely visible.
Eyes closed.
Dark bags beneath them.
No movement.
No sound.
Then—
A slow breath.
Her fingers twitched.