The forest stayed quiet.
Too quiet.
Where Gorvath once stood…
There was nothing.
No body.
No ash.
Just silence.
Ren didn't move.
His blade was still in his hand.
His eye…
Still open.
The air around him felt wrong.
Heavy.
Unstable.
Behind him, Aikari slowly pushed herself up from the ground, her body still trembling as she tried to steady her breathing.
Every inhale burned.
Her throat ached where Gorvath had held her.
"…Ren…"
Her voice was soft.
Careful.
No response.
Daiki exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair.
"…Alright… yeah… that was insane."
He glanced at Shin.
"You saw that, right? He just—he just erased that thing."
Shin didn't answer right away.
His eyes were locked on Ren.
"…That wasn't normal."
Kuroha's gaze narrowed slightly.
"…No," she said quietly. "It wasn't."
Aikari took a slow step forward.
Then another.
"…Ren," she said again, a little louder this time.
Still nothing.
The air shifted.
A faint ripple of something darker pressed outward from him.
Aikari stopped.
Her chest tightened.
This feeling…
Ren's grip on his sword tightened slightly.
His breathing—uneven now.
"…Not yet…" he muttered.
Shin's eyes sharpened.
"…What did he say?"
The ground beneath Ren cracked softly.
"…Go…" Ren said, his voice strained now.
"…Get back…"
Daiki frowned.
"…What?"
Ren's head lowered further.
His shoulders tensed.
"…I said… GO."
The force behind his voice this time made the trees tremble.
Silence.
Aikari didn't move.
"…No."
Ren's hand twitched.
"Aikari—" Shin started.
She shook her head.
"I'm not leaving him."
Ren's breathing grew heavier.
That faint glow in his eye flickered—unstable.
"…You don't understand…"
His voice cracked slightly.
"…If I lose it right now…"
The air around him warped.
"…I won't be able to stop."
That landed.
Even Daiki went quiet.
Aikari's hands clenched slightly at her sides.
Her body still hurt.
Her strength wasn't fully back.
But she took another step forward anyway.
"I don't care."
Ren froze.
Just slightly.
Aikari's voice shook—but didn't break.
"You think I didn't feel that?" she said. "That power… it's terrifying."
Another step.
"But I'm not scared of you."
Silence.
"…You should be," Ren said quietly.
Aikari shook her head.
"No. I'm scared for you."
That hit deeper than anything else.
Ren's grip on his sword trembled.
"…I told you to go," he said again—but there was less force behind it now.
Less anger.
More strain.
Aikari stopped a few steps behind him.
Close.
But not too close.
"I'm not leaving," she said.
The air pulsed again.
Then—
Paused.
Ren's breathing slowed.
Just slightly.
His hand tightened—
Then loosened.
The glow in his eye flickered again.
Weaker this time.
"…Damn it…" he muttered.
Seconds passed.
Heavy ones.
Then—
Slowly—
His eye closed.
The pressure in the air vanished.
Like something had been pulled back… sealed away again.
Silence returned.
Ren stood there for a moment longer.
Then his sword slipped from his hand and dissolved away.
His shoulders dropped.
"…It's under control," he said quietly.
Aikari let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.
"…Good," she said softly.
For a moment—
Neither of them moved.
Then Ren turned slightly.
Not fully facing her.
Just enough.
"…You shouldn't have stayed," he said.
Aikari frowned.
"And leave you like that? Not happening."
"…You could've gotten hurt."
She let out a small, tired laugh.
"I did get hurt."
That made him pause.
"…Right," he said quietly.
For a second—
There was almost something like guilt in his voice.
Aikari took another small step closer.
This time, he didn't tell her to stop.
"You saved me," she said.
Ren didn't respond.
"But…" she continued, her voice softer now, "…you don't have to carry all of that alone."
Silence.
"…I do," Ren said.
It wasn't harsh.
It wasn't angry.
It was… certain.
Aikari's expression tightened slightly.
"…Why?"
Ren didn't answer right away.
"…Because if I don't…"
His hand clenched slightly at his side.
"…someone else will pay for it."
That was the end of it.
At least for him.
Aikari looked at him for a moment longer.
Like she wanted to say more.
But instead—
She just nodded.
"…Then get stronger control," she said quietly.
Ren blinked slightly.
"…What?"
She met his gaze.
Calm.
Determined.
"Because I'm not going anywhere."
Silence.
Behind them—
Daiki let out a low whistle.
"…Damn…"
Shin crossed his arms slightly, watching the two of them.
"…That's going to be a problem later."
Kuroha didn't say anything.
But her eyes lingered on Ren.
"…Or a weakness," she murmured.
The wind finally moved again.
Soft this time.
But something had changed.
Not just the battle.
Not just the danger.
But the space between them.