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Chapter 5 - CHAPTER FIVE: FIRE AND SHADOW

The train rattled endlessly, carrying Sachu and Mia through the night. Beyond the windows, the city lights glowed brightly as ever.

Mia rested her chin on her knees, eyes fixed on the glass. Her reflection stared back, pale and anxious. "…Feels weird," she muttered, "leaving like this. No teachers. No parents. Just… us."

Sachu sat across from her, the cursed blade resting in its wrappings beside him. He didn't respond. He hadn't said much since they left.

The whispers in his skull hadn't stopped. They slithered between his thoughts, curling like smoke.

Find him. Find the flame. End him. Only a blade can kill another blade.

Mia glanced at him. "…You're scaring me, y'know."

He blinked, dragging his eyes up. "What?"

"You've got that haunted look again. Like you're not here."

Sachu forced a breath. "…Sorry."

Mia tilted her head, her smile weak but stubborn. "You're not alone in this, you know."

The simple weight of her words steadied the storm inside him.

The next day, the city of Yozora greeted them with smoke.

The charred skeleton of a house still stood on the outskirts, blackened wood jutting against the gray sky. The air reeked faintly of ash. Yellow tape crisscrossed the front, but locals still gathered, whispering in hushed tones.

"That's where it happened…"

"The boy survived, right?"

"They say his eyes were white—like a ghost."

Mia tugged her hood lower as they slipped through the crowd. Sachu's stomach twisted. He didn't need to hear more. He already knew.

They slipped away before anyone noticed them.

Ten days passed.

Ten days of whispers, false leads, and sleepless nights in cheap hostels. Viran was a ghost, but wherever they looked, his trail of fire remained.

An apartment block gutted by flames.

A market stall burned black.

Families missing, never found.

Every crime scene smelled the same—burned flesh and smoke.

Sachu's chest ached with each step. The sword pulsed at his side like it knew the hunt was nearing its end.

Finally, they found him.

It was midnight when they reached the abandoned warehouse, its walls scorched and half-collapsed. The air shimmered faintly with heat, though no fire burned.

Inside, shadows twisted unnaturally, flickering with dull orange. And in the center, sitting atop a pile of blackened crates, was Viran.

He was younger than Sachu expected—only sixteen, maybe. His pale eyes gleamed in the dim light, his smile sharp and easy. The cursed blade rested lazily against his shoulder, its edge flickering with faint embers.

"Well, well," Viran said, his voice smooth. "Took you long enough."

Sachu froze. "…You were waiting?"

"Of course I was waiting." Viran hopped down, boots crunching against ash. "The whispers told me. One of my kind was coming. A shadow blade, huh?" His grin widened. "How fitting."

Mia stepped forward, fists clenched. "Why? Why are you doing this? You could feed on animals—like us!"

Viran tilted his head, his smile fading into something colder. "…Animals?"

He stepped closer, fire curling lazily from his hand. "Sure. They keep the rot away. They keep you… breathing. But they don't give you what matters."

Sparks leapt from his blade, scattering across the floor.

"Only humans give lifespan. Years. Decades. Eternity." His eyes gleamed. "Why settle for scraps when you can feast?"

The air thickened, heat swelling until sweat ran down Sachu's face. His chest constricted. "…You killed them. Your family. Just to live longer?"

Viran's grin returned, sharper than ever. " Afcourse i did it, I am not a fool like you to waste this golden opportunity "

The words hit like a blade to the gut.

Mia's face twisted with disgust. "You're insane."

"Maybe." Viran raised his sword. Flames roared to life. " You think you can cling to your little morality forever? You'll break. You'll crave. The sword, The whisper will always wins."

The warehouse groaned under the sudden heat. Shadows writhed at Sachu's feet, instinctively rising, but the fire pressed them back.

And then Viran lunged.

The first strike seared through the air, fire trailing behind his blade. Sachu barely blocked, his cursed sword shuddering under the impact. The heat singed his skin, shadows recoiling.

Mia darted aside, shouting his name, but Viran was relentless. His movements were fluid, precise, every swing heavy with intent.

Sparks showered the floor as their blades clashed again and again. Fire met shadow, hissing violently with each collision.

"You're slow!" Viran laughed, pressing forward. His blade caught Sachu's shoulder, fire licking his skin. The smell of burning flesh filled the air.

Sachu cried out, staggering back. Shadows surged desperately, shielding him, but the flames ate through them like paper.

Mia grabbed a fallen pipe and swung it wildly, striking Viran across the side. He barely flinched. With a single swipe, his blade knocked it from her hands, the flames nearly catching her hair.

"You're weak," Viran said, voice calm despite the chaos. "The whispers chose you? Pathetic."

Sachu's lungs burned. Every breath felt like swallowing smoke. His body screamed at him to run. But Mia was behind him—trapped.

He couldn't run.

He forced himself upright, shadows writhing from his blade. They trembled, fragile against the fire, but he poured everything into them.

Viran's eyes lit up. "There it is."

Their swords collided once more—flame against shadow, heat against void. The ground trembled beneath their feet.

Sparks rained. Shadows writhed.

And for the first time, Sachu felt the cursed blade hum in his hands. Not with hunger—

but with power.

The fight had only just begun.

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