his intellect as well.It said that he was an illegitimate child that was bought in by the principal of that school.His martial arts talent were said to be learned illegally as it was filled with techniques that were equipped by Special Forces to handle in close quarter combat.He was also said to be fast enough to able to cause a slight distortion in the air whenever he used his speed."
"Okay,but that still doesn't answer the question why are you here and what's with your strength but please go on." Mio replied.
"The reason I was Rank 2 on the hierarchy was due to my skill in which could take out anyone within 2 or 3 strikes,The king of reign saw my potential and promised me to bring me power and money,which I was going to decline but the mention of money can help with my family's financial issues.So i took in his dirty works.Taking out anyone who was in his way or against him." Rei explained,with his breath almost out.
He explained why he was here and he saw Mio's stare went from a threatening stare to a somewhat remorseful stare.
"You felt bad for me huh?" Rei teases her
Mio's grip on her fist before letting her fist open, her face a mask of stubborn pride. "Feeling 'bad' for a monster is a waste of metabolic energy, Koga. I'm just making sure the rot from your past doesn't spread to Hiyori. She sees the best in everything—it's her greatest flaw."
Rei straightened his collar, the weight of the confession still hanging in the humid night air. "She's not a flaw, Mio. She's the only person who looked at a Rank 2 predator and saw a librarian."
Mio let out a sharp, short huff—not quite a laugh, but the ice in her gaze had thawed into something more like a begrudging respect. She sheathed her wooden sword into her belt. "A librarian who can move at subsonic speeds. Fine. But if I see that 'Ghost' side of you take over... if you break the peace she's trying to build... I won't just use a wooden stick next time."
A sudden notification appeared on Mio's phone."And Koga?Wear the hoodie tomorrow. Hiyori's been smiling like a fool since you gave it to her.I want to see her smile like that again.
Rei stood alone under the tree for a moment.He looked up at the stars,which were visible now that the school's floodlights had dimmed.In Tokyo,the sky was always choked by smog and neon–a constant pressure of light.Here,the darkness was vast but it wasn't empty enough to look like a void.
He walked toward the shed,where the muffled sound of Kenji explaining the "Gravitational constant of a falling hammer" was then replied by Hiyori's soft,melodic giggling.
Rei paused at the door, his hand resting on the handle. For the first time in his life, he didn't feel like a spring coiled for impact. He felt like a man standing at a Still Point—the moment in a pendulum's swing where gravity and momentum are perfectly balanced, and for a split second, there is no friction at all.
He opened the door.
"The structural integrity of the shed is fine, Kenji," Rei said, stepping into the warm light. "Stop confusing Hiyori with your collapse theories."
Hiyori looked up, still wearing the oversized charcoal hoodie, her eyes bright. "Welcome back, Rei."
The ghost inside him was gone.At the moment,he felt the need to tell Hiyori the truth about his past.
"Hey Kenji,could you go home and rest first.I want to have a moment with Hiyori." Rei spoke softly for the first time of his life,Hiyori heard his voice soft.
"Sure thing,could you please not give me intensive training tomorrow?" Followed by Rei's response,"Did you forget your father's promise?"
Kenji, feeling defeated, agreed to leave the shed and prepare himself for tomorrow's training.
"So, what do you want me for?" Hiyori spoke.
"I wanted to tell you something,something I've been hiding from." Rei replied,with a soft tone this time.
"Go ahead,I'm all ears." Hiyori said.
Rei leaned against the wooden frame of the shed,his eyes not focused on Hiyori's eyes."Back in my former school… I wasn't just a student who got into fights for fun. I was a tool made for fighting.A Rank 2 for a mysterious person just to crush people.I used this strength because it was easy,and because the person mentioned something,a monetary benefit,something that could help my family."
He looked up then,meeting her gaze.The moonlight filtered through the window of the shed,casting silver light across both of them."The accident that took my parents… I used to think it took away my only purpose in this world.But standing here,in this town,with you and everyone else… I realize it was the only thing preventing me from going down the wrong path,something my parents would not want me to have.I'm not a 'Ghost' because I'm scary,Hiyori. I'm the 'Ghost' because the person I used to be had to die just for me to stand here,at this moment."
Hiyori remained silent for a long moment,the sound of chirping crickets echoed throughout the night.She didn't look away,and she didn't look afraid of him like she used to.She reached out,her smaller hand hovering over his scarred knuckles before gently resting there.
"Rei…," she whispered."Photography is about capturing a single moment in time.But people aren't still images.They're a sequence.Your past 'frames' might be dark,but the ones you are developing here?They're full of light."
She squeezed his hand softly,a tiny gesture that Rei didn't calculate."The only Rei I care about is the Rei right now not the 'ghost', the 'ghost' in the past doesn't matter anymore and the Rei I know and care about is right now."
Rei felt a weight lift from his chest– a localized reduction in atmospheric pressure that made it finally able to breathe.He didn't flinch or anything,not even a sudden calculation in his mind.He stood there with her in the quiet shed,two point in space finally finding a common equilibrium.
The promise wasn't just about not hurting people anymore.It was about moving through his past guilt and moving on to his new life to avoid the same mistakes he made in the past.
"Thank you,Hiyori.." Rei thanked her, not realizing he was using his soft tone to call her name.
Hiyori grabbed the collar close to her face,hiding her flustered face.
"Are you alright? Did I say something bad?" Rei worried.
Hiyori giggled,a bright,clear sound that made Rei's chest filled with something he hadn't felt for a long time."Nothing," Hiyori said.
"Come on" Rei said,his voice regaining a bit of his usual depth,though the edge was gone."It's getting cold,and I need to walk you home before Mio decides to hunt with an actual katana instead of a wooden sword." which made Hiyori laughed.
"Deal. But Rei?You're keeping the hoodie. It looks better on you anyway."
"Keep it for tonight" he muttered,turning to hide a rare emotion,something Hiyori never saw him have before,a smile."Consider it… yours."
As they walked out into cool Inuyama night, the stars seemed a little brighter to Rei,and the path ahead felt a little clearer.He was slowly learning to joy,something his past never once gave him.