The camp was silent.
Even the wind seemed to have stopped speaking.
Kneeling, hands resting on my thighs, my katana stabbed into the dirt… I stayed motionless.
My eyes were fixed on a point—though I wasn't really seeing.
My mind had already sunk deep into the past.
Those two...
How can they get under my skin so easily?
My brows furrowed on their own.
Could it be… like they said?
Is this really my weak spot?
A long sigh rose from my chest, slow and heavy.
They're a pain in the ass.
But their absence… this silence...
I lifted my head slightly.
Moonlight draped over my shoulders like a thin sheet.
It wasn't cold, and yet I shivered.
Does this silence bring peace… or is it just a massive void?
Just like... the bottom of that cliff.
Endless. Echo-less. Still.
I don't know.
My thoughts dissolved into whispers inside me.
Are those two my real weakness?
Or is it something else?
Something only I know—something no one else can see...
Then came a sound.
No—
Not a sound, but a presence.
Footsteps.
The swish of a cloak.
A familiar figure emerging from the dust.
I didn't need to turn my head.
I'd recognize that rhythm anywhere.
Renji.
His steps always the same rhythm.
Always that same calm, distant confidence.
The moonlight glinted off his cloak.
There was no smile on his face. No anger either.
But somehow... he knew everything.
As always.
His voice was soft enough to vanish into the wind—
but the weight it carried was unbearable.
"Ten years ago… do you remember that quiet boy waiting at the bottom of the cliff?
Same place. Same silence.
I'm not surprised this is your hiding spot."
I turned my head and looked at him.
His silhouette was like a shadow.
I spoke with a cold tone:
"You again?"
A twitch at Renji's lips.
Half smirk, half scold.
"Were you expecting someone else? Maybe… two someones?"
I narrowed my eyes.
My tone didn't change.
"You're more annoying when you're serious."
He tilted his head slightly.
His eyes shimmered faintly in the moonlight.
"You're always serious. Isn't that exhausting?"
Less exhausting than faking smiles.
But I answered before he asked.
"Less than faking smiles."
Renji stopped walking.
Then, with measured steps and careful words, he asked:
"What are you doing out here alone?
Your friends are looking for you."
I froze.
The word friends sounded strange in my ears.
Foreign.
My gaze dropped to the ground.
I repeated the word. It felt heavy.
"Friends…?"
He caught it.
Quickly corrected himself—
his voice more cautious now:
"Ah. Right. I meant your team."
I lowered my head.
My voice was muffled. Half a whisper:
"My team...
There's only one left."
Renji's expression shifted.
He no longer looked like a mentor.
He looked more like a friend.
Or... tried to.
"The twins told me the contract is over.
At first I didn't believe it.
How did they even beat you?
They haven't even reached Level Three."
I shook my head.
I was tired. But honest.
"They used their brains."
A spark flickered in his eyes.
That interest—that spark—it always kept him alive.
"A clever trick, huh.
But I can't let you go soft, Hayato.
So... let's see—
Can you beat me?"
Something stirred inside me.
A flicker from years ago.
A hand—
Reaching out to me at the edge of the cliff.
Refusing to leave me behind.
Even in my broken state, offering a pouch of silver.
And now... that same hand was reaching again.
Why?
Why are you pulling me out of the Abyss again?
The twins are free.
But you...
You're tightening my chains.
Renji stepped forward.
A leaf cracked beneath his foot.
Even that sound rang sharp in my ears.
"If you're ready... let's begin, Hayato."
Instinctively, I surged the Eye Flame.
Level Three.
My irises turned blood red.
Energy pulsed through my veins—
but my temples felt like they were about to explode.
Renji didn't move.
He was at Level Three too.
But not a hint of tension in his body.
It wasn't the power controlling him—
He commanded the power.
"Give me everything you've got, Hayato," he said.
And then—
he vanished.
I couldn't follow him with my eyes.
But his voice—
a whisper—was suddenly at my ear:
"I'm here."
I turned by reflex.
Swung my blade.
But his katana had already touched mine.
Steel met steel.
I was knocked back.
Rolled before I hit the ground—
but my balance was already off.
"You've slowed down," Renji said.
Like he was diagnosing me.
"My head just hurts," I growled.
My vision was blurred.
Reflexes sharp, but the body—
It hurt.
My nerves were burning.
Renji walked calmly.
Hands clasped behind his back.
He wasn't fighting.
He was watching.
"I've seen you grow stronger, Hayato.
But control… is worth more than raw power."
Suddenly, he was in front of me.
He spun—kicked.
I raised my sword, but the blow was too strong.
I flew.
My knees slammed into the dirt.
My lungs burned.
Level Three. Tier Four.
Blood pressure surged.
My head... behind my eyes... all of it burned.
If I lose focus even for a second, this fight is over.
Renji was approaching.
His voice was a mix of approval... and warning.
"Good.
You're testing your limits. But..."
He was in front of me again.
Grabbed my arm.
Our eyes locked.
"But your body doesn't want this."
His strike landed in my ribs.
Breath gone.
I dropped to one knee.
Pressed my hand into the ground.
My nails dug into the dirt.
I whispered to myself:
"Steady...
Find your---"
But...
Everything went black.
And my consciousness… slipped away.