"What the hell was that?" Nox asked, still seated on the ground.
Shuri finally dropped her guard and sank down beside him. "Yeah… what the hell was that?"
"Couldn't you tell? It was a fight!" Ren grinned and pumped his fist like a child.
Nox shook his head. "When Raizen trained us, every strike that mattered, we fueled it with iora. But just now?" His voice cracked with dread. "There was nothing."
Shuri perked up, curiosity shining through her exhaustion, forgetting entirely she had been trying to kill Nox not long ago.
"We were just testing each other," Ren said, his tone briefly serious.
"Testing?" Shuri and Nox echoed, then both turned away, cheeks red with embarrassment.
"Calm down," Ren waved his hands casually.
"Raizen told me the demon saved you once in the forest," Ren said, glancing at Nox. "Back when you fought that horned Dreknar. He figured the demon lord might return, and he was right. That thing was watching from the start."
Nox's stomach turned. "He was here the whole time?"
"Not just that." Ren folded his arms. "Raizen says he's the one creating those overpowered Dreknars." He pointed toward the spot where the corpse had dissolved. "The one you killed wasn't the original. It was necromancy, a puppet. He wanted to measure the strength of his foot soldiers."
"Foot soldier?" Shuri's voice cracked as her face went pale. "That thing was a foot soldier?"
"Then what the hell is he measuring it up against?" Nox muttered, horrified.
"Isn't it obvious?" Ren's grin faded. "The Kurai. These demons are definitely cooking something devious."
Shuri let out a shaky laugh and slowly pushed herself up from the ground. Her legs wobbled at first, but she steadied them, brushing dust from her arms as if shaking off the battle itself. Step by step, she crossed the distance until she stood beside Ren.
Without hesitation, she rested her hand on his shoulder. Her touch was firm, like she wanted to anchor herself to his strength. Her eyes, though tired, burned with something raw and desperate.
"Hey," she began softly, then her voice rose, quivering with suppressed rage, "one of those demons is already ruling Blitz as we speak. Do you realize how many people have died since a demon took the king's body? How many families shattered?" Her lips trembled, but she refused to look away from him. "If you're as powerful as you just displayed, aren't you obligated to stop him?"
Ren slipped her hand off his shoulder with a careless ease, rubbing at the spot as if her touch had left behind a strange weight. His grin spread wide again, but there was a glint of seriousness hiding underneath.
"Hold your horses, missy," he said, tone light but firm. "We know a demon lord's running Blitz. And for now…" he gestured vaguely toward the distance, "…there's nothing we can do about it."
Shuri's hands balled into fists. "We? Who's this we you keep talking about? Do you even understand what's happening? Do you know how many people Serus has slaughtered in the last three weeks, ever since he took the king's body?" Her voice cracked, the fire in her words trembling into despair. "If you're this powerful, shouldn't you be helping them?" Tears streaked down her cheeks before she could stop them.
For the first time since he appeared, Ren's grin slipped into something grim. "First of all, when I say we, I mean the Kurai. We've been protecting humans from demons for longer than you realize." He pointed over his shoulder, past them, to the scarred battlefield they had just crawled out of. The crater yawned like an open wound in the earth, its edges still glowing faintly from the clash.
Shuri and Nox turned to look, and the sheer devastation made both their throats tighten.
"Second," Ren continued, his tone lower, "imagine this. A demon lord and someone like me fighting in the heart of Blitz. What do you think would happen?" His eyes narrowed, suddenly sharp. "At worst, he's killing hundreds now because he's bored. But if you gave him a real fight, if you gave him something to get excited about?" Ren's voice dropped into a chilling calm. "The death toll would climb into thousands before the first hour passed. The capital would drown in blood."
His words hung heavy in the night air.
Shuri's anger dissolved into silence. She had no counter, no argument left.
A long quiet stretched between them. Shuri bit down on her frustration until her jaw ached, then finally let out a weary sigh. She glanced over her shoulder at Gelly, who was starting to stir, shifting faintly on the ground.
"I better get her out of here," Shuri muttered. "If she wakes up and sees Soren, she'll just start another fight."
Ren slipped a hand into his pouch and pulled out a small black ring, identical to the ones gleaming faintly on his own fingers. He held it out, his face suddenly calm, almost solemn.
"If your king ever wanders somewhere away from the crowd, crush this," Ren said. "I'll come running."
Shuri stepped forward slowly, her eyes locked on his. She didn't take the ring immediately. Instead, she clasped his wrist and pulled him closer in a fluid motion that surprised both Ren and Nox. She leaned in until her breath brushed against his ear. Her arm curled behind his neck, pressing her chest against him with deliberate intent.
Ren stiffened, every nerve in his body screaming, though he tried desperately to keep a grin plastered on his face.
Shuri's voice dropped into a low, silken whisper. "When that day comes, I'll be expecting you. My life will be in your hands." Her lips brushed the edge of his ear, a quick kiss that sent an involuntary shiver down his spine.
Nox instantly averted his gaze, whistling into the night like an awkward bystander who had just witnessed something far too intimate.
Shuri finally pulled back, her face unreadable now. She slipped the ring into her palm and turned away. Without another word, she hoisted Gelly onto her back. But just before running off, she cast one last look at Nox. Her eyes softened, just for a moment.
"I guess this little revenge trip wasn't so useless after all," she said. And with that, she sprinted into the moonlit forest, vanishing into the half ruined trees in the direction of Blitz.
Shuri felt a sudden dampness spreading across her back.
"…Are you crying?" she asked quietly.
"He… Soren was right there. Why didn't you kill him?" Gelly's trembling voice cracked through the silent night.
Shuri's steps faltered, but she snapped back softly, "You woke up a while ago. Why didn't you?"
"Shut up!" Gelly's fingers twisted into Shuri's top, clutching desperately as her sobs broke loose, heavier and heavier until her tears soaked Shuri's back.
Shuri exhaled, the edge in her voice melting. "…Hai, hai. I understand."
A gentle smile touched her lips, strangely warm, almost motherly, as she adjusted Gelly on her back and kept walking. Step by step, she carried the girl deeper into the forest, heading toward Blitz, toward the path they had first taken.
The forest fell quiet again. The glow of the burning fig tree cast long shadows across the crater's edge. Nox and Ren stood side by side, their faces lit by flickering firelight.
Slowly, both of them turned their heads toward each other. Their eyes met for less than a heartbeat before they both spun away, their ears red.
"…Shit, that was awkward," Ren muttered under his breath, scratching at the back of his head.
The silence thickened, dragging on until Nox couldn't take it anymore. He clenched his fists and blurted, "So… can I ever be as strong as you?"
Ren froze, his hand falling from his hair. His grin faded into something sharper, heavier. He crouched low in front of Nox, so their eyes were level. His voice dropped, carrying none of his usual levity. It was dark, edged with something that almost made Nox flinch.
"I asked myself that same question when I first saw Raizen fight years ago," Ren said quietly. "Do you know what he told me?"
Nox swallowed, his chest tightening. "What?"
Ren's expression hardened, his mismatched lashes catching the firelight as his smile vanished completely.
"It depends on how far I'm willing to go."
The air seemed to press down on Nox as Ren leaned in closer, his tone lowering to a near growl.
"So tell me, boy…" His red tinged eyes glinted with something terrifying.
"How far are you willing to go?"
Nox didn't,or rather couldn't,answer. His throat felt tight, his mind blank. He averted his eyes from Ren's piercing gaze, from the weight of the question itself. How far was he willing to go?
He hadn't thought about it. Even though he had sworn to kill that red haired bastard, even though he had promised himself vengeance, the truth was harsher. He didn't know how far he was willing to go to reach that goal, or what it might cost him.
Ren held the silence for a moment longer, then straightened and clapped the dust from his hands. His usual grin slid back into place, as if that frightening version of him had never existed.
"For now, we're heading to a village to the south," Ren continued. "The villagers rely entirely on wheat for their livelihood. We'll join up with a friend there before continuing on to Eden."
"Well," he said lightly, "keep doing whatever you think is right, and the answer will come to you, eventually."
The sudden levity almost made Nox dizzy.
Nox frowned faintly. Something about the description tugged at his memory, though he couldn't place it.
Before he could ask, a low groan broke the moment.
Soren stirred, his face twisting in pain as he sat up slowly, one hand pressed against his ribs. His breath was ragged, but he was awake.