Chapter 66 – The Ones Who Remember
Morning came quietly.
The fire had burned down to gray ash.
Brook sat outside the camp, staring at the small wooden figure Kael had given him.
He turned it between his fingers.
A simple carving.
A person standing beneath a tree.
Nothing special.
Yet Brook couldn't bring himself to put it away.
He thought about the village.
The people they had saved.
Kael.
His brother.
The way everyone had gathered around the fire that night.
Family.
Brook finally understood why the word mattered so much.
Because he had spent most of his life afraid of losing people.
Now he had people worth losing.
And that scared him more than any monster ever had.
"You're awake early."
Brook looked over.
Henry stood behind him.
"Couldn't sleep."
Henry sat beside him.
"Still thinking about Mara?"
Brook shook his head.
"Everything."
Henry smiled.
"That's a lot."
Brook looked down at the wooden figure.
"She said something."
"What?"
"That even the people who created me might not understand what they created."
Henry's expression changed.
"That's disturbing."
"Yeah."
Brook stared into the distance.
"Everyone keeps knowing pieces of my life."
He clenched the wooden figure.
"Except me."
Henry didn't answer immediately.
Then he said:
"You're still Brook."
Brook looked at him.
"That's enough for now."
Brook smiled.
"Thanks."
The others slowly woke.
Kael packed his belongings.
Sera checked the remaining supplies.
Elias studied the map.
Crowley stood at the edge of the camp.
Brook noticed him staring toward the west.
He walked over.
"What's wrong?"
Crowley looked at him.
"Nothing."
Brook raised an eyebrow.
"You're a terrible liar."
Crowley smiled faintly.
"We're going home."
Brook looked at him.
"Home?"
"Shinokuni-01."
Brook nodded.
He had almost forgotten how long they'd been away.
"We're actually going back?"
"Yes."
Brook looked toward the mountains.
"How long?"
"If we keep moving, two days."
Henry overheard.
"Finally."
Sera laughed.
"You miss civilization?"
"I miss beds."
Kael looked at them.
"What's Shinokuni-01 like?"
Henry smiled.
"You're about to find out."
Brook looked ahead.
He remembered the city.
The walls.
The people.
The places they'd left behind.
But something about returning felt different.
He wasn't the same person who had left.
He now carried three Sources.
He had met Michael.
He had heard Lucifer.
He had felt Death.
And he was beginning to understand that the world knew something about him.
Something he didn't.
They began the journey west.
The terrain gradually became easier.
The mountains gave way to forests.
The snow thinned.
The roads became wider.
Signs of civilization appeared.
Old watchtowers.
Trading posts.
Abandoned roads.
Eventually, they found the main road leading toward Shinokuni-01.
Brook stopped.
He could see the Wall.
Far away.
Massive.
It stretched across the horizon like a mountain range.
Kael stared.
"That's a Wall?"
Henry laughed.
"Yeah."
"I thought it would be smaller."
Brook smiled.
"Everyone says that."
They continued.
The closer they got, the more people they encountered.
Caravans.
Merchants.
Travelers.
Soldiers.
Families.
For the first time in weeks, Brook saw ordinary life again.
People arguing over prices.
Children running through the streets.
Merchants shouting.
Animals pulling carts.
It felt strange.
Almost peaceful.
Brook watched everything.
He had forgotten what normal looked like.
Sera walked beside him.
"Feels different."
Brook nodded.
"Yeah."
"Why?"
Brook looked at the Wall.
"I don't know."
Sera studied him.
"You're worried."
"Maybe."
"About going back?"
Brook nodded.
"People inside those Walls know things about me."
Sera frowned.
"How do you know?"
"The men we fought."
She understood.
"Fair."
Brook looked at her.
"Do you think they'll come after us?"
"Probably."
Brook sighed.
"Wonderful."
Two days later…
they reached the outer settlement surrounding Shinokuni-01.
The massive gates were visible ahead.
Hundreds of people passed through them.
Brook stopped.
He looked up.
The Wall towered over him.
He had grown up beneath it.
But he'd never truly appreciated how enormous it was.
Kael stood beside him.
"Do you live inside?"
Brook nodded.
"Yeah."
"What's it like?"
Brook smiled.
"Complicated."
Kael laughed.
"That's not helpful."
"Get used to that answer."
Crowley approached the gate.
The guards immediately recognized him.
One stepped forward.
"Xcution."
Crowley nodded.
"We're returning."
The guard looked behind him.
Then his expression changed.
His eyes settled on Brook.
He stared for several seconds.
"Is that…"
Crowley interrupted.
"Open the gate."
The guard hesitated.
Then nodded.
The enormous doors began to move.
Brook heard the mechanisms grinding.
Slowly.
The gate opened.
Shinokuni-01 waited beyond it.
Brook took a breath.
Then stepped inside.
Everything felt familiar.
And completely different.
The streets.
The buildings.
The markets.
The people.
Brook hadn't realized how much he missed it.
Henry smiled.
"Feels good."
Sera nodded.
"Yeah."
Kael looked around in amazement.
Elias laughed.
"First time?"
Kael nodded.
"Completely."
Brook watched him.
Then smiled.
"Welcome to Shinokuni-01."
They didn't make it far.
People began staring.
Whispers followed them.
Brook heard his name.
"That's him."
"Brook."
"Three Sources."
"Xcution."
"Is it true?"
"He's the anomaly."
Brook slowed.
Henry noticed.
"Ignore them."
Brook nodded.
But the whispers kept coming.
He looked around.
Some people were afraid.
Others were curious.
Some looked at him with hatred.
Brook lowered his head.
The world had changed.
Or perhaps…
the world had always looked at him differently.
He just hadn't noticed.
They reached Xcution's old base before sunset.
The building was still standing.
Brook stopped outside.
He stared at it.
Henry smiled.
"Home."
Brook nodded.
"Yeah."
They entered.
Dust covered the furniture.
The place looked abandoned.
Sera immediately started complaining about cleaning.
Elias laughed.
Kael wandered around.
Henry opened windows.
Crowley stood near the center of the room.
Brook walked upstairs.
His old room was still there.
He opened the door.
Nothing had changed.
His bed.
His desk.
The old marks on the wall.
Brook stood in silence.
He touched the desk.
A memory flashed.
Someone laughing.
A voice.
Then nothing.
Brook froze.
He tried to hold onto it.
But it disappeared.
His mother's voice.
Gone again.
Brook clenched his jaw.
"Not now."
That night, everyone gathered downstairs.
They ate together.
They talked.
They laughed.
For the first time in weeks, Brook felt safe.
Then someone knocked on the door.
Everyone went quiet.
Crowley stood.
He opened it.
Nobody was there.
Only a sealed envelope lay on the ground.
Crowley picked it up.
Brook approached.
"What is it?"
Crowley opened it.
His expression changed.
"What?"
Crowley handed Brook the paper.
Only one sentence was written.
THE CELESTIAL COUNCIL KNOWS YOU'RE BACK.
Brook looked at Crowley.
"What's the Celestial Council?"
Crowley was silent.
Henry looked at him.
"Crowley?"
Crowley folded the paper.
"The people who govern the twelve Shinokunis."
Brook's expression hardened.
"Twelve?"
Sera frowned.
"We've never dealt with them directly."
Crowley shook his head.
"No."
Brook looked at the letter again.
"Then why do they know I'm back?"
Crowley didn't answer.
A second knock came.
This time, there was someone standing outside.
Brook opened the door.
Rick stood there.
Brook's eyes widened.
"Rick."
Rick smiled.
"Good to see you alive."
Brook stepped aside.
"You could've warned us you were coming."
Rick walked inside.
"Wouldn't have been as dramatic."
Henry laughed.
"Still annoying."
Rick looked at him.
"Still alive."
"Unfortunately."
Rick smiled.
Then Shoyo entered behind him.
Brook's expression changed.
"Shoyo."
She looked around the room.
"Looks like you've been busy."
Brook looked at her.
"You knew we were coming back?"
Shoyo nodded.
"Yes."
"How?"
She didn't answer.
Brook sighed.
"Of course."
Shoyo smiled.
"You haven't changed."
Brook looked down at his hands.
"Actually…"
His voice became quieter.
"I have."
Shoyo's smile disappeared.
She understood.
"Michael."
Brook nodded.
Rick looked at him carefully.
"How far?"
Brook looked up.
"First Source."
Rick's expression changed.
"And?"
"He's testing me."
Shoyo's eyes narrowed.
"Which test?"
"Control."
Shoyo exchanged a glance with Rick.
Brook noticed.
"What?"
Rick didn't answer.
Brook's patience disappeared.
"What?"
Shoyo looked at him.
"Nothing."
Brook stared.
"You two are terrible at that."
Rick laughed.
Shoyo smiled.
Then her expression became serious.
"The test will get harder."
Brook nodded.
"I know."
Shoyo looked at his eyes.
"No."
She stepped closer.
"You don't."
Brook stared at her.
Shoyo's voice became quiet.
"The first test isn't about whether you can control Michael's power."
Brook frowned.
"Then what is it?"
Shoyo looked directly into his eyes.
"It's about whether you can remain yourself while using it."
Brook didn't answer.
Shoyo continued.
"Because every time you open one of those Sources…"
She paused.
"…something inside you opens with it."
Brook's expression hardened.
His memories.
His mother's voice.
The pieces disappearing.
He understood.
Rick stepped forward.
"That's why you need to be careful."
Brook looked at him.
"How much do you know?"
Rick smiled faintly.
"Enough to know that you should ask fewer questions."
Brook sighed.
"Seriously?"
Rick laughed.
Shoyo looked toward the window.
Outside, the lights of Shinokuni-01 filled the night.
"Something has changed while you were gone."
Brook looked at her.
"What?"
Shoyo's eyes remained on the city.
"People are beginning to remember."
"Remember what?"
She looked back at Brook.
"You."
Silence filled the room.
Brook stared at her.
"Why?"
Shoyo didn't answer.
She simply said:
"That's what we're going to find out."
Brook looked around at Xcution.
His family.
His home.
His city.
Everything suddenly felt unfamiliar.
Because somewhere beyond the walls…
people were beginning to remember a boy who wasn't supposed to exist.
And Brook was finally beginning to realize that returning home might be more dangerous than leaving it.
End of Chapter 66