Shock paralyzed my tongue when Ain uttered that truth: his father is the Clan Leader! I couldn't suppress the question that rushed out spontaneously: "If he is your father, how could he leave you and your mother to face your fate in the forest?"
Silence hung over Ain for a moment. A sorrowful gaze slipped from his eyes to settle on the procession passing below, while a faint light reflected on his features as he spoke in a calm voice:
"This is the Fire Clan... a clan that has preserved the legacy of the First Hero, 'The Pure Fire,' for decades. But, for the first time in ages, someone was born from the clan's bloodline carrying the power of 'Demon Flames'.. and that person was me."
The words hit me like a thunderbolt. Questions raced through my mind, the most terrifying being: Is Ain a demon?
Ain sensed my inner turmoil just by looking into my eyes. He struck my back hard, joking: "You fool, do you doubt I'm a demon? Don't worry, I'm not. It's just that my power is similar to theirs. But when the clan saw that, they considered me a bad omen. All the hopes and joys that accompanied the birth of the leader's second son turned into endless accusations."
He sighed bitterly and continued: "At first, I thought they were just accusations. But my father... the man I believed in, looked up to all my life, and hoped would be my support, was the one who issued the exile order. My mother and I were banished to the Forest of Beasts as demons the clan must be 'purified' from. Under the pretext of 'protecting us,' he suggested that dying in the forest was more honorable for us than being executed by the clan. And so, we were thrown into the woods."
Ain's eyes glistened as he mentioned his mother: "Because I was young and didn't know how to control my power, my mother was the one who risked her life to bring me food. I saw her return every day with deep wounds and bleeding, yet she refused to dress her wounds until she made sure I had eaten my fill. Days passed, I grew up, and I became the one protecting and caring for her. I no longer care about my father; my mother is all I have."
He paused, then looked back at the procession: "Yet... I sometimes get this strange feeling that pushes me to come here. I don't know why, but there is a fire inside me that only subsides when I stand in this place. A deep-rooted feeling, I don't know if it's longing, reproach, or just a desperate attempt to comfort myself."
Ain's words touched the strings of my heart and squeezed them; I had tasted a similar bitterness. Ain turned to me, staring directly into my eyes, and asked in a low voice:
"Andrei... what does it feel like to have a father?"
His question poked an old wound, increasing my pain, but I answered truthfully: "I don't know, Ain... I never met my father."
Ain smiled bitterly: "I see... it seems we are alike after all. I wanted you to accompany me today to ask you this; I thought I might understand these feelings through you... how can someone be attached to a father who threw them to their death without blinking? But it seems my question will remain unanswered."
Then, words rushed out of my mouth without thinking: "Listen to me, Ain. A father might abandon his son and leave him to his fate, but for us, a father is the first hero we see after our mothers. The first person to give us a sense of security, the first name we spoke, and the one we looked up to. After all this... do you really think it's easy to forget him?"
My words fell on Ain's empty heart and filled it. A genuine smile appeared on his lips this time: "You're right, perhaps that's the most convincing answer. When did you become so wise, Andrei? Has your soul grown old? And what about your members—have they grown old too?"
As we exchanged laughs mixed with suppressed anger after the procession left, Ain said: "You have training waiting for you, don't you? Let's go back."
We stood up to prepare, but soon our hands reached for our sword hilts. The clan guards had surrounded us from all sides.
One of them shouted threateningly: "You two are not from the clan! Your presence here means death!"
Ain replied with cold sarcasm: "Our death? I'd really like to see you try."
With a powerful strike from Andrei, the roof beneath us shattered. Amidst a thick cloud of dust and debris, we fell to the floor below and vanished from sight.
We heard the guard's scream from above: "They escaped! Block the exits, we'll pursue them!"
We began running through the corridors. When we faced another group of guards, we changed course only to find ourselves in a dead end.
Ain pointed upward: "To the roof!"
By the time the guards arrived, we had vanished, running lightly across the rooftops.
While running, Ain laughed: "Well done keeping up with me, old man!"
I replied with a breathless grumble: "Is this the time for your jokes?!"
We descended near a building to check the situation; we were close to an exit. An eerie silence filled the place—a silence broken only by a flaming sword blade piercing the wall right next to me!
With lightning speed, Ain pulled me back before the wall shattered from a violent fiery explosion.
From the smoke, a familiar laugh rose, and a voice said: "Big brother Ain! Long time no see. When I heard about an intruder today, I knew it was you. What luck, I came to say hello!"
Calmly, Ain returned his sword to its sheath: "Kenji... if it's you, I have no need for my sword. I know you won't hurt me."
Kenji placed his sword behind his back dismissively: "Hmm, and what makes you so sure?"
Ain smiled, but his gaze went past Kenji: "Big brother Hiroki... I see you've honored us as well."
Kenji turned to find his eldest brother standing behind him. His face soured as he said with childish anger: "The fun is over."
Hiroki stepped forward with confident strides, his sword burning with flames that dripped like molten wax. With a swift movement, he drew a ring of fire that encircled us all and said in a firm, non-negotiable voice:
"This way, no one will disturb us. Listen to me, brother. As you can see, this is a sacred celebration for the Fire Clan, and we don't want anything to ruin it. I'm tired of you coming here every time. I will allow you and your friend to leave this time too... but on one condition: that you never return. What do you say?"
Ain looked at him with a defiant stare: "A tempting offer... but you say you'll 'allow' us to leave as you do every time. It's true you are the eldest, Hiroki, but don't think for a second that you are the strongest."
Upon hearing these words, Hiroki placed his finger on his sword blade. The ring of fire surrounding us vanished in the blink of an eye. He looked at Ain with emotionless eyes and said:
"There is the exit. If you can defeat me, you leave... and if you can't, consider yourself among the dead."