The next morning, the cold had settled over the mountain like a shroud of silence. Kael woke before dawn, his back pressed against the cold stone of the tower. He had barely slept. The revelations of the previous night still churned in his mind, heavy, cumbersome.
Across from him, Kaelan was already awake. He had relit the brazier and was preparing a dark infusion in a small dented pot. His movements were precise, measured, but Kael noticed a tension in his shoulders. He hadn't slept much either.
"You look like death," Kael said in a hoarse voice.
"I could return the compliment."
"That's exactly what I just did."
Kaelan almost smiled, but didn't answer. He handed a chipped cup to Kael. The liquid steamed, black and bitter.
Kael took a sip. It was foul. He made no comment.
They remained silent for a while, sitting across from each other, as the day slowly rose over the mountains. Then Kaelan spoke.
"We need to talk about the name."
Kael raised an eyebrow.
"The name?"
"Kaelan. That's the name I used during my research. But now that you're back, it serves no purpose."
"You chose it."
"Yes. For safety. I needed to move without drawing attention. Kira was too well-known in certain circles."
"And now?"
"Now I want to become Kira again."
Kael set down the cup.
"Why?"
"Because Kaelan was a mask. An identity built to survive. Kira is me. It's the name you gave me."
"I didn't give you that name."
"You let me keep it. It's the same."
Kael looked at him for a long moment. The former assistant's face was marked by the years, but his grey-red eyes hadn't changed. Still just as sharp. Still just as watchful.
"Very well," said Kael. "Kira."
The half-demon seemed to relax slightly.
"Thank you."
"Don't thank me for that."
A silence passed.
"Now," Kael resumed, "there's something else we need to talk about."
"Memory cleansing?"
"No. My body."
Kira looked up.
"What about your body?"
"It stayed ten years without fighting. Without training. Without maintaining its reflexes. I haven't used my combat mana since I woke up. Not really."
"You crossed cities, traveled, lived among humans. You must have used magic."
"Utility magic. Construction. Camouflage. Nothing military."
Kira slowly nodded.
"You want to regain your former level."
"I want to at least know what remains."
"You think you've lost power?"
"No. Speed. Instinct."
Kira stood and stretched.
"There are rocky plateaus a little lower down. Out of sight. We can go there."
"Now?"
"Why wait?"
Kael finished his infusion in one gulp and stood as well.
"Then let's go."
---
They descended the mountain by a narrow path, covered in frost. The air was sharp, almost cutting. Stones rolled beneath their feet.
After half an hour, they reached a natural plateau, clear for several dozen meters. The ground was dark rock, cracked in places, but stable enough. Tufts of frozen grass clung to the crevices.
Kira removed his cloak and laid it on a stone. He wore a light tunic despite the cold. He rolled his shoulders, cracked his neck.
"Rules?"
"No lethal blows. No deliberate maiming. We stop if either of us asks."
"And if I win?"
Kael arched an eyebrow.
"You win first."
Kira smiled. It was an almost childlike smile, despite the fatigue and scars.
"Very well. No heavy magic then. Just the body."
"Why?"
"Because that's where you're rustiest. Magic, you'll recover quickly. But combat reflexes are something else."
Kael nodded.
"Agreed."
He took a defensive stance.
It was a strange posture. He remembered perfectly what to do. The footwork, the distance, the angle of his arms. But his body didn't quite respond. There was a tiny gap between intention and movement.
Kira watched without moving.
"You feel it, don't you?"
"Yes."
"It's normal. Ten years of sleep is no small thing. Even for a Demon King."
"Stop talking and attack."
Kira lunged.
He was fast. Not at Kael's level in his prime, but enough to surprise. He struck with his right fist toward the flank.
Kael pivoted.
Too late.
The blow hit his ribs. A dull pain, but real. He stepped back, gritting his teeth.
"You're still anticipating like before," said Kira. "But your body no longer follows."
"I know."
Kael counterattacked immediately. A left straight, fast. Kira dodged narrowly and replied with a kick to the knee.
Kael staggered.
"Focus," said Kira. "Not on my eyes. On my footwork."
"I remember."
"Remembering isn't enough."
He followed up with a series of short, dry strikes, alternating levels. Kael blocked the first, dodged the next, but took a hook to the temple. He fell to one knee.
The taste of blood in his mouth.
Kira stopped immediately.
"Stop?"
"No."
Kael rose slowly. His head spun, but he stayed upright. He wiped his lip with the back of his hand.
"Again."
Kira resumed his stance.
They exchanged several assaults. Kael took more and more hits, but he also landed some. His movements became more fluid, more instinctive. He no longer thought about each gesture. He let his body remember.
After about ten minutes, he managed to hit Kira on the jaw.
Kira staggered, spat out some blood-tinged saliva.
"Not bad."
"Again."
They continued.
The cold was no longer felt. Their clothes stuck to their damp skin. The sound of their breathing filled the plateau.
Then Kael feinted with his right fist and struck with his elbow at liver level.
Kira blocked the forearm. The impact resonated through both bodies.
"That was good," said Kira, stepping back slightly. "You're regaining reflexes."
"Not fast enough."
"You want more?"
"I want everything back."
Kira rolled up his sleeves.
"Then prepare yourself. Now we speed up."
He lunged again, but this time with a different intensity. His strikes were heavier, faster, almost savage.
Kael didn't retreat.
He took the hits.
He returned them.
The fight intensified until it became a fierce brawl, without magic, without weapons, just flesh against flesh. They struck each other, grappled to the ground, rose, started again. The rocky plateau echoed with their impacts.
At one point, Kael sent Kira to the ground with a kick to the solar plexus. Kira rolled and immediately rose, breathless.
"That's better," he panted. "Much better."
Kael, also out of breath, leaned on his knees.
"Again."
"No. Not yet."
"I'm not tired."
"You're lying."
Kael straightened up, legs trembling.
"Again."
Kira sighed.
"Fine. But if you fall, we stop."
"I won't fall."
They resumed.
But this time, Kael felt something change. Not in his body. In his mind.
The movements were coming back. The dodges became more natural. The strikes came faster. He no longer thought about what he was doing. He acted.
It was as if a lock had just given way.
He hit Kira on the temple.
Then the sternum.
Then a sweep that put him on the ground.
Kira lay still for a moment, breathing short, eyes fixed on the grey sky.
"Good."
Kael sat down heavily beside him.
"What just happened?"
"Your body remembered. Not your mind. Your body."
"It was..."
"Exactly. The reflexes hadn't disappeared. They were buried. They just needed to be awakened."
Kael closed his eyes.
"We're going to have to do this often."
"Every day if possible. Until you at least regain the level you had before the battle."
"And after?"
Kira turned his head toward him.
"After, we work on combat magic. The techniques from your old arsenal. Combinations."
"And then?"
"Then you'll be ready."
Kael opened his eyes again.
"Ready for what?"
"Ready to return to Noctyra. Ready to face those who believed you dead. Ready to become the Demon King again."
The wind swept across the plateau, lifting frozen dust.
Kael remained silent for a long moment.
"Kira."
"Yes?"
"Thank you."
Kira blinked, surprised.
"Why?"
"For staying."
The half-demon didn't answer. He looked away, jaw tight.
"I had nowhere else to go," he finally said.
"You're lying."
"Maybe."
They stayed there, sitting on the cold stone, as the day slowly stretched above them.
The first training session was over.
But the real rebuilding had only just begun.