❀══✧══❀
Several days had passed since their last training session.
In the following weeks, the four of them tried to understand.
Why had the artificial eclipse failed?
How could such a precise attempt have caused such a catastrophe?
The answers still eluded them.
— Come to me, please.
Raythem's voice echoed through the courtyard.
Everyone stepped forward and formed a circle around their mentor.
Everyone… except Scarlet.
She was there, physically.
But her mind was elsewhere.
— This week's objective is simple, Raythem declared.
How do I fight?
Silence fell.
Raythem laid out the program. Continuing from the previous training, each of them would take turns stepping forward for a specific exercise.
An individual training.
But under the group's watch.
Scarlet would go first.
Her exercise: Red Zone.
Objective: master the range of her blood scythe and use her own blood as a natural extension of the blade.
Rule: keep Raythem at medium distance.
If he managed to break through the Red Zone… immediate failure.
Yuta would follow with The Astral Swordsman.
Objective: wield his sword with absolute precision and learn to alter its weight using his power.
Rule: in a duel against Raythem, if he managed to disarm him, he would win the exercise.
Then would come Ryota.
Solar Fists.
Objective: produce heavy yet precise impacts at close range, while compressing thermal heat into his fists.
Rule: face Raythem without uncontrolled explosions.
Clean strikes.
Control.
At the end of the duel, if Raythem deemed the conditions fulfilled, Ryota would win.
Finally, Evelynn would close the week.
Dance of the Two Blades.
Objective: learn to read the "timing" between her two katanas.
Striking too early would mean failure.
Too late as well.
She would have to anticipate Raythem's intentions and stop an attack to counter with a slight temporal delay.
If she managed to outplay her mentor… victory.
Raythem crossed his arms.
— At the end of the week, I will summon a clone of each of you. You will have three days to defeat it.
A murmur ran through the group.
To fight oneself.
— Prepare yourselves. This week will be intense. Take the rest of the day for yourselves.
══ ✦ ══
In the afternoon, Evelynn suggested going for a walk in Vera to get some fresh air.
Ryota immediately agreed.
Yuta too.
Scarlet refused.
— No interest.
The three left without insisting.
Scarlet stayed alone.
Once again.
But this time, she wasn't thinking about her power, nor the Eygis.
Her mind had drifted elsewhere.
To her past.
She tried to ignore it.
To erase it.
But some memories never disappear.
They simply wait for silence.
A few minutes later, Raythem returned to the kitchen to grab something to eat. As he passed by, he noticed her on the balcony.
Her favorite place.
— Hey Scarlet. Am I bothering you?
— … No.
— Why didn't you go with the others?
— … No interest. I'm not here to take a walk.
Raythem didn't reply immediately.
He sat beside her and looked up at the sky.
A moment passed.
— Don't rush. It never leads to anything good.
Learn to appreciate simple days. The peaceful moments between you.
Those are the ones we miss the most over time.
Scarlet kept her eyes fixed ahead.
Words.
Just words.
She too had wanted those moments.
With her family.
With those who were supposed to be close to her.
But she had never been allowed to have them.
— Listen carefully, Scarlet. Observe more than you speak. Listen more than you react. Think before you strike.
Strength is nothing without control.
If your heart wavers, you won't endure.
But a steady mind always prevails, no matter the outcome.
Raythem continued, his gaze lost on the horizon.
Scarlet slightly tightened her fists against the railing.
— I don't know your past. Nor the others'.
But if you feel frustration, shame… don't reject them.
Pain is a sign of growth.
Just don't let it define who you are.
His words slid over her.
She wanted to ignore them.
But a part of her was still listening.
— You want to become strong quickly. And that's a good thing.
But you will fail. Often.
And no one will be able to help you if you say nothing.
You are no longer alone.
Alone.
That word lingered in her mind.
— I will carry you if you fall. I will walk behind you, no matter the situation.
Learn from others. Learn from yourself. Learn from your mistakes.
Fear is normal. Hesitation is human.
Giving up… is a choice.
He paused.
— The day you accept others… and who you truly are…
A flame will be born within you.
And as long as you protect it, you will go far.
That is how true masters are born.
***
Silence fell again.
Raythem finally stood up and returned to the living room, leaving her alone facing the sky.
Scarlet felt her eyes burn.
She quickly wiped away the tears before they could fall.
She didn't want to cry.
In a low voice, almost inaudible, she whispered:
— Am I afraid…?
Afraid of losing those I care about again?
Afraid of becoming like my parents?
Ashamed to say who I am… and where I come from?
Afraid they'll abandon me, like the others…?
Her voice broke.
— I don't know anymore…
Why am I… me?
The wind gently swept across the balcony.
And for the first time in a long while, Scarlet was no longer trying to run from the question.