The cold had changed.
It wasn't the same biting, familiar chill Haruki had grown up with—the kind that nipped at your fingers and settled into your bones like an unwelcome guest. No… this cold felt deeper. It crept inside his thoughts, lingered behind his eyes, and twisted the edges of reality itself.
They had left the Rift behind.
But the Rift hadn't left him.
The forest thinned as they moved, snow crunching beneath their boots in uneven rhythm. Haruki lagged slightly behind Karin and Raizen, his steps slower, less certain. His breath came out in uneven bursts, not from exhaustion alone—but from the weight pressing against his mind.
Fragments.
That was all they were now.
Not full visions like before—no overwhelming floods of past and future crashing into him all at once. Instead, they came in pieces. Flickers. Glitches.
A branch snapping… before it snapped.
Karin turning her head… before she actually did.
The faintest shift in the wind… seconds before it happened.
Each one small. Harmless on its own.
But together?
They were suffocating.
Haruki pressed a hand to his left eye, wincing slightly.
"Still happening?" Karin's voice came from ahead, softer than usual.
He hesitated.
"…Yeah."
She slowed her pace until she was walking beside him. Her red hair shimmered faintly, tiny embers dancing at the tips like living sparks defying the endless snow.
"You should've said something earlier."
"I thought it would stop once we got far enough from the Rift," Haruki admitted. "But it's not… it's still here."
"Not the Rift," Karin said quietly, glancing at him. "Your Eyes."
Haruki didn't respond.
Because he knew she was right.
Ahead, Raizen stopped.
No warning. No signal.
He simply… stopped.
Haruki nearly walked into him before catching himself.
"What is it?" Karin asked.
Raizen didn't turn.
"Settle your breathing," he said calmly. "Both of you."
Haruki frowned. "Why—"
"Now."
There was no force in Raizen's voice.
And yet, it carried weight.
The kind that made arguments feel pointless.
Haruki exhaled slowly, forcing his shoulders to relax. Karin did the same beside him, though her flames flickered a little brighter—as if instinctively ready for danger.
The forest went quiet.
Too quiet.
No wind.
No creaking branches.
No distant sounds of movement.
Just… stillness.
And then—
A flicker.
Haruki's vision split.
For a fraction of a second, he saw Karin step forward—
—and then he saw her standing still beside him.
His breath hitched.
"…Don't move," he muttered instinctively.
Karin blinked. "What—?"
A branch snapped.
Right where she would have stepped.
A thick, snow-laden limb crashed down in front of them, exploding into powder as it hit the ground.
Silence followed.
Then Karin slowly turned to look at him.
"…You saw that."
Haruki swallowed. "…Yeah."
Raizen finally glanced over his shoulder.
"Then stop hesitating."
Haruki froze. "What?"
"You're still questioning what you see," Raizen said. "Still doubting whether it's real."
"…Because sometimes it doesn't feel real," Haruki snapped before he could stop himself. "It feels like I'm losing track of what's actually happening!"
Raizen turned fully now, his pale blue eye steady—calm, unreadable.
"And yet," he said, "you just saved her."
Haruki went quiet.
Karin crossed her arms, though there was no anger in her expression—just a faint, knowing look.
"He's right, you know."
Haruki looked at her. "You're taking his side?"
"I'm taking the truth's side," she replied simply. "You saw something. You acted on it. That's all that matters."
"It's not that simple."
"It is," she said firmly. "You're just making it complicated because you're scared."
The words hit harder than he expected.
Haruki looked away.
"…Of course I'm scared."
For a moment, neither of them spoke.
Then Karin's voice softened.
"So am I."
He blinked, surprised.
She shrugged lightly. "You think having the Eyes of Firelight means I've always had control? When they first awakened, I nearly burned down half the village."
Haruki turned back to her.
"You never told me that."
"You never asked."
A faint smile tugged at her lips.
"But I learned," she continued. "Not because I stopped being scared… but because I stopped letting that fear decide everything."
Haruki clenched his fist slightly.
"…I don't even know what I'm seeing half the time."
"Then don't try to understand it all at once," she said. "Just… trust the parts you do understand."
Raizen nodded once, approving.
"Training begins now."
Haruki blinked. "Here?"
"In your current state," Raizen said, "you are most vulnerable. Which makes this the ideal time to adapt."
"That sounds like a terrible idea," Haruki muttered.
Karin smirked. "Welcome to his teaching style."
They moved to a small clearing.
The snow here was thinner, the ground uneven beneath their feet. Tall trees circled the area like silent watchers, their branches heavy with frost.
Raizen stepped back.
"Karin."
She stepped forward immediately, flames flickering to life around her hands.
Haruki frowned. "…Wait. What?"
"You will spar," Raizen said. "No holding back."
Karin glanced at Haruki.
"…You sure about this?"
He hesitated.
Then another flicker hit him.
Karin lunging forward—
Flames spiraling—
Him stepping too late—
Pain—
Haruki inhaled sharply.
"…Yeah," he said, forcing himself to steady. "Let's do it."
Karin's expression shifted.
Not playful anymore.
Focused.
"Alright," she said quietly. "Don't blame me if you get burned."
"Wouldn't dream of it."
She moved first.
Fast.
Faster than he remembered.
A burst of flame ignited beneath her feet, propelling her forward in a streak of red-orange light against the white snow.
Haruki's vision flickered—
Left.
He stepped left.
A wave of fire surged past where he had just been standing, heat brushing against his coat.
His heart slammed in his chest.
That worked.
But there was no time to think.
Karin pivoted mid-motion, her hand snapping forward—
Another flicker.
He ducked.
A concentrated burst of flame shot over his head, scattering sparks into the air.
Haruki stumbled slightly as he regained balance.
This wasn't like fighting Rift-Beasts.
Karin wasn't predictable.
She adapted.
Changed rhythm.
Adjusted instinctively.
And his visions—
They weren't keeping up.
Another flicker—
Too many at once.
Left. Right. Forward. Stop.
His mind scrambled to process them—
And that hesitation—
Cost him.
A burst of heat struck his shoulder, sending him skidding across the snow.
Haruki winced as he hit the ground, the impact knocking the breath from his lungs.
"Too slow," Karin said, though there was no mockery in her voice—only focus.
Haruki pushed himself up, breathing hard.
"I saw it," he muttered. "I just—"
"You tried to see everything, didn't you?" she said.
He didn't answer.
Because that was exactly what he had done.
Karin exhaled, lowering her stance slightly.
"Then stop that."
Haruki frowned. "What?"
"You don't need every answer," she said. "Just the one that keeps you alive."
Raizen's voice cut in from behind.
"The Eyes do not grant perfection," he said. "They grant possibility. Your role is to choose which possibility to follow."
Haruki steadied himself.
Choose…
Another flicker came.
Karin stepping forward.
Her right hand igniting.
A strike aimed at his chest.
There were other fragments too—
Other possibilities.
But this one—
Felt… clear.
Haruki didn't hesitate.
He moved.
Forward.
Karin's eyes widened slightly as he stepped into her attack instead of away from it.
Her flame grazed his sleeve—
But he was already inside her range.
Too close for a full strike.
Haruki reached out, grabbing her wrist—not forcefully, but enough to disrupt her balance.
For a moment—
Everything stopped.
Karin blinked.
Then she smiled.
"…There it is."
Haruki released her, stepping back as his heart pounded.
"I… I didn't think. I just—"
"Exactly," she said.
Raizen nodded once.
"Again."
They trained like that for what felt like hours.
Snow churned beneath their feet.
Steam rose where fire met ice.
And slowly—
Something changed.
Haruki stopped chasing every vision.
Stopped trying to understand every possibility.
Instead, he began to feel them.
Like currents in a river.
Subtle shifts guiding him forward.
He dodged—not perfectly, but better.
Moved—not confidently, but with purpose.
And for the first time—
His Eyes didn't feel like a burden.
They felt like… something he could grow into.
By the time they stopped, the sky had darkened.
A faint twilight cast long shadows across the clearing.
Haruki collapsed onto the snow, breathing heavily, staring up at the grey sky.
"…I'm exhausted."
Karin dropped down beside him, letting out a small laugh.
"Same. But you did good."
He turned his head slightly. "You're not just saying that?"
"Nope," she said. "You still suck… but you suck less now."
He huffed. "…I'll take it."
For a moment, they just lay there in silence.
The cold didn't feel as oppressive anymore.
Not gone.
But… manageable.
Karin raised a hand, a small flame flickering to life in her palm.
"You know," she said, watching it dance, "fire's weird."
Haruki blinked. "That's random."
"Listen," she insisted. "When it's out of control, it burns everything. But when you focus it… it keeps people warm. Protects them."
She glanced at him.
"Your Eyes are the same."
Haruki looked at the sky again.
"…You really think so?"
"I know so."
A pause.
Then she added, more quietly—
"And I'm not going anywhere. So you're not dealing with this alone."
Haruki didn't respond immediately.
But something in his chest eased.
"…Thanks."
Not far from them, Raizen stood silently.
Watching.
Waiting.
His gaze shifted—not to his students—
But to the forest beyond.
To the darkness creeping between the trees.
His expression didn't change.
But his voice, when he spoke—
Was barely above a whisper.
"…It's beginning."
Far beyond their sight—
Beyond the forest—
Beyond even the Rift they had left behind—
Something stirred.
Watching.
Waiting.
And for the first time—
It had noticed Haruki.
Back in the clearing, Haruki closed his eyes.
Just for a moment.
Just to rest.
But as darkness took him—
A single fragment surfaced.
A vision.
Brief.
Sharp.
Unclear.
A figure standing in the distance.
Watching him.
Not a Rift-Beast.
Not Raizen.
Not Karin.
Something else.
Something… human.
Haruki's eyes snapped open.
His breath caught.
"…Did you feel that?" he whispered.
Karin frowned slightly. "Feel what?"
He hesitated.
Then slowly shook his head.
"…Nothing."
But deep down—
He knew.
It wasn't nothing.
And whatever he had just seen—
Was only the beginning.