The stone circle was never silent.
Wind whispered. Swords clashed.
And under the stars, three boys trained — each on a different path.
🌀 Day 5
Sumiyoshi took his first steps into the Stage 2: Endurance and Strength — tasked with scaling vertical stone walls carrying weights twice his size while a constant storm beat against him. Every failed attempt bloodied his hands, but he gritted his teeth and climbed again. The voice of the Guardian echoed in his head: "You were not chosen to give up."
Akito trained endlessly with his weapons. Not swords. Not daggers.
But a pair of long, spear-like tonfa with blades attached — elegant yet brutal.
Each swing drew sparks from the ground.
"Feel the flow. Don't force it," the Guardian Spirit murmured.
Akito gritted his teeth. Still no connection.
ShintarĹŤÂ ran through an open field in the forest, his bare feet kicking dirt.
Speed.
Then he carried weighted logs on his shoulders.
Endurance.
Then sat in silence in front of an ancient tree, his eyes shut.
"Listen to your heartbeat. Then, to the weapon's soul."
⚔️ Day 6–7
Sumiyoshi's legs trembled under the weight of Stage 2, but after collapsing more than twenty times, he finally reached the peak, collapsed against the wall, and cried out,
"I made it... I actually did it."
Stage 2: Complete.
Akito, now in Stage 4, stood in front of his tonfa blades.
He sat still. Focused. Listened.
A faint hum pulsed from the metal.
The weapons didn't fight back anymore. They flowed.
He had synced with them.
Shintarō now entered Stage 5 – Spirit Awareness.
Blindfolded, weaponless, he faced illusory shadows.
He dodged. Countered. Predicted.
Each enemy was a mirror of himself — cruel, impatient, full of doubt.
But he did not falter.
💎 Day 8–10
Sumiyoshi stepped into Stage 3: Illusion and found himself in a long-abandoned battlefield. Ghosts of his parents, his village, and twisted enemies surrounded him, accusing him of weakness, of surviving when others didn't. He shook, knees buckling.
Sumiyoshi finally stood in the illusion battlefield and yelled at the ghosts:
"You don't control me anymore!"
The darkness lifted.
Stage 3: Complete.
Akito, at Stage 5, saw faint ghosts walking behind trees.
Spirits of the dead?
Or memories?
He tried to fight them.
They slipped through him.
"I don't understand this stage at all..."
Shintarō, now at Stage 6 – Combat Tactics, faced real beasts.
His weapon, a bladed iron chain with two crescent-shaped heads, swung and sliced with elegance.
Unlike daggers or swords, it curved and wrapped — flexible, unpredictable.
He used the environment. Listened to wind. Predicted patterns.
"Not power. Precision," the Spirit whispered.
And he understood.
🌒 Day 11 – The Final Stage
The training circle was still under the silver light of dawn.
Shintarō stood tall — eyes calm.
He faced Stage 7: Final Acceptance.
It wasn't a trial of strength...
But of truth.
His entire journey reflected around him.
Failures. Insecurities.
Regret of arriving late.
Feeling second to Akito.
Fear of not being chosen.
He breathed deeply.
His chain weapon lay in front of him — silent.
"I've always felt like I was chasing behind...
but maybe... this path was mine all along."
He stepped forward.
The jewel embedded at the chain's center — dark until now — began to glow silver-blue.
It pulsed once. Twice.
Then... it shone brilliantly.
The Guardian Spirit did not speak.
ShintarĹŤ's weapon had accepted him.
He was chosen.
But—
In that moment, the sky rippled.
The trees, the circle, the Spirit — vanished.
He was standing in the middle of a dense, unfamiliar forest — alone.
His weapon, glowing faintly, was still in his hand.
Eyes wide, he stepped forward.
"Where did they go...?"
A sudden flashback struck him.
đź’Â Flashback: Akari's Words
"If I'm a Divine Weapon owner... I can't even see that place."
Back to the present, his voice shook.
"Does that mean... I've... I've really obtained one?"
He looked down at his chain.
"Finally... I found you."
But then his smile faded.
He looked toward the invisible training ground, toward nothing.
"Sumiyoshi... Akito... You'll probably take more time."
"But I'll be waiting."
He tightened his grip.
And walked away.
🌙 That Night – Training Ground
The training circle felt... emptier.
Sumiyoshi, now in Stage 4, sat beside his sword.
Akito, in Stage 5, stood watching the trees.
They both looked at the empty space where ShintarĹŤ once trained.
Neither spoke for a long time.
Finally, Akito muttered,
"He came after me. And yet... he left before me."
Sumiyoshi gave a faint smile.
"He always felt... light. Like he didn't carry what we did."
Akito shook his head.
"No. He carried it. But he didn't fight it. He accepted it."
Silence.
Only the wind replied.
The circle had two left.
One filled with illusion.
One lost in spirit echoes.
But deep down, both boys knew—
The time would come.
Their weapons would glow too.
And they would walk out — not as boys... but as warriors.