You may want to survive this one."
Niris' voice echoed in my chest like a cold whisper in a church.
Elira's hand gripped mine tightly. Her gaze fixed on the forest, glowing moons casting pale light across the treetops. I followed her line of sight…
And saw it.
A figure.
Tall. Misshapen. Arms too long. Legs too bent. It stood like a broken puppet held by invisible strings.
Its body was wrapped in shadows — not cloaks, not mist, but actual shadow.
The shape twitched unnaturally, its head jerking from side to side, sniffing the air like a predator.
Its eyes were the worst part.
Burning orange slits.
Like fire caught in crystal.
Not of this world.
---
> "Sakamoto. Inside. Now."
Elira's tone was calm — but her magic had already lit across her hands, a soft white glow humming in her fingertips.
She didn't wait.
With one motion, she scooped me into her arms and sprinted back toward the hut.
But we didn't make it.
The shadow moved.
Fast.
It appeared between two trees and threw something — a curved black shard, like a twisted boomerang.
Elira twisted mid-air, summoned a barrier of light — it hit with a loud CRACK, forcing us both to the ground.
She shielded me with her body. I hit the dirt. Hard.
> "Mama!" I shouted, dazed.
> "I'm okay!" she snapped. "Sakamoto, listen to me."
> "W-What was that?!"
> "A Kleyneth. A forest leech demon. They usually don't come this close to the village…"
> "This one smells something different," Niris whispered in my head. "Something... awakened."
---
Elira stood slowly, arms raised. The air around her shimmered with divine energy.
A small ring hovered above her wrist — I hadn't noticed it before.
It looked like a bracelet, but the longer I stared, the more it looked like a floating halo.
> "Get back!" she called to the creature. "You're out of your depth!"
The Kleyneth didn't reply.
It screeched.
The sound was like a dozen knives dragging across wet glass. Trees shook. Birds flew. My eardrums rang.
Then it charged.
---
What I Saw in That Moment
Everything moved slow.
Elira's body glowed like starlight.
She spun once, whispering a prayer.
And released a ray of pure white fire from her palm — it struck the demon clean in the chest.
The ground shattered.
The Kleyneth roared, stumbled—
But didn't die.
It lunged again. This time its arm stretched unnaturally — like liquid shadow reaching for my face.
> "Draw me."
> "NOW, SAKAMOTO."
Niris' voice boomed inside my skull.
My body moved on instinct.
I reached for the blade.
The instant my fingers gripped the hilt—
Time snapped.
---
The Awakening
My vision flooded with red.
Not rage.
Warning.
A flood of memories, of deaths that weren't mine.
Flashes of men screaming. Women falling. Swords clashing.
Niris' past? Or futures she'd seen?
I didn't know.
But I swung.
A single, clumsy, child's swing — barely a slash at all.
Yet the blade howled.
Black light erupted from the runes.
And the Kleyneth's outstretched limb—
Disintegrated.
The creature let out a high-pitched shriek and fell back, smoke pouring from the stump where its arm had been.
Elira's eyes went wide.
> "Sakamoto… what…?"
> "You called me cursed," Niris whispered. "But I am your only chance to survive this world."
---
The creature fled into the forest, trailing dark smoke.
I collapsed.
Elira caught me.
She looked down at me, trembling.
I didn't understand her expression.
It wasn't fear.
It was dread.
---
Later That Night
Back in the hut, Kael returned from patrol and nearly burst through the wall.
When Elira told him what happened, he didn't speak for nearly a minute.
Then he knelt beside me.
> "A three-year-old… who forced back a Kleyneth."
> "It wasn't me," I muttered. "It was the sword."
Kael shook his head. "No. The sword chose you. The blade only unlocks what's already inside."
I didn't respond.
> "You still fear yourself," Niris said later that night. "That is wise. For now."
---
Meanwhile… Far Beyond the Wildlands
In a silver cathedral in a floating city, a man in robes gazed into a glowing mirror.
He saw the child.
The black blade.
The ruined forest.
He narrowed his eyes.
> "Another echo… has awakened."
"In the village of Kael and Elira no less."
"This will not do."
He turned toward a kneeling figure clad in black armor.
> "Send a shadow. Observe the boy. If he speaks the sword's true name… we move."
The knight bowed.
> "As you command, Cardinal."