The corrupted raider staggered toward Shunjiro, each step heavy, unstable, dripping with venomous darkness. Shunjiro’s limbs wouldn’t move. His lungs burned with poison. His vision pulsed in and out. He couldn’t dodge. He couldn’t even lift his head. The raider raised an arm, dark tendrils gathering like a blade meant to cleave Shunjiro in half. Shunjiro exhaled shakily… closed his eyes… and braced for the end. But the impact never came. Instead a rush of air engulfed him, and his body jolted. Suddenly the ground beneath him changed. The heat from the burning buildings wasn’t as intense. He blinked, disoriented. “Wh-what…? How did I-” “Stand down.” The voice came from behind him. Shunjiro turned his head. A boy stood there, sleeves rolled up, fiery determination in his eyes. Short dark hair. Tan skin. A lean but powerful build. Ryuji Sayo. One of the rookies from their entrance exam group. The same Ryuji who punched anything that moved and flirted with anything that breathed. Shunjiro stared in disbelief. “R-Ryuji?! Where the hell did you come from?! And how did I move-” Before Ryuji could answer, something flickered in Shunjiro’s peripheral vision. A flash of light, fast, sharp, precise. Someone appeared directly in front of the corrupted raider. A girl brimming with confidence, her purple hair just above her shoulders and her hands glowing faintly with spiritual energy. Aiko Hanabi. Ryuji pointed casually with his thumb. “That’s how,” he explained. “She swapped you with a rock.” Shunjiro blinked. “A… rock?” Ryuji stepped forward, dropping into a battle stance. “Listen up, Shunjiro.” His tone sharpened, surprisingly serious for once. “You’re poisoned, exhausted, and one hit from collapsing again. Same for Tetsuo. Same for Yoshinori.” Itsuki shook her head as she healed Yoshinori faster. “He’s right. You’re in no shape to fight.” Ryuji flexed his hands, a crackling aura forming around his arms, his body hardening ability coating him like living iron. “Let Itsuki patch you all up,” he said. “Aiko and I will handle the monster.” The corrupted raider roared and lunged straight at Aiko, poison swirling off his body like smoke. But the moment his clawed hand reached her she vanished. The raider’s arm cut through empty air. His eyes widened with animal confusion. He spun in a circle, snarling “Where?!” A shin smashed into the back of his skull. His face slammed into the dirt, kicking up dust. He whipped around, rage burning in his eyes but no one was there. A shadow passed above him. The raider looked up just in time for a massive boulder to come crashing down. He rolled aside with a guttural snarl, the stone shattering where he’d been a heartbeat before. “How?! What are you?!” he screamed, whipping around in delirious panic. A figure materialized directly in front of him. Ryuji. His right arm gleamed, muscle hardened to steel, layered with spiritual energy that crackled. “Right here,” Ryuji said, voice cold. His hardened forearm smashed into the raider’s cheekbone, sending the man skidding backward in a spray of dirt. The raider howled, stumbling to regain balance. His veins pulsed with corrupted power, and he flung both arms outward in a violent burst. A thick cloud of poison erupted in every direction, swallowing the ground around him. Ryuji instantly disappeared. Gone, just as Aiko had. The raider staggered, coughing through his own poison. Fear crept into his corrupted, bloodshot eyes. “What is happening?!” he yelled, spinning wildly. “Stop hiding and face me!” Above him, unseen on a rooftop, Aiko rolled her eyes. “Relax,” she murmured. She placed two fingers on a pebble beside her. A flash of aura. Down below, the raider froze as the air shimmered behind him. Ryuji reappeared behind the raider just long enough for his hardened fist to crack against the man’s jaw. The corrupted raider staggered but didn’t fall. He roared, spinning with murderous fury but Ryuji was already gone again. He reappeared beside Aiko on a rooftop, lungs burning from the poison. Aiko flashed him a quick smirk. “Nice punch,” she said. “Let me annoy him a little.” She flicked a pebble off the rooftop. It struck the raider square in the forehead. He clawed at his face in blind rage. “Stop playing with me!” Aiko vanished. In the next instant she reappeared behind him, driving her heel up into his nose. Blood sprayed as the raider stumbled, eyes watering, confusion mounting. “How… How are you getting behind me?! What trick is this?!” he screamed. His aura spiked. His breath turned into thick green vapor. His mind was slipping everything spiraling together. Then, his conscience snapped. “AAAAAAAAAARGH!!” Poison erupted outward in a massive spherical blast, engulfing the burning village in a sickening green fog. The corrupted energy roared like a beast set free. Debris shook. Flames bent backward from the force. Aiko and Ryuji landed beside each other on the street, both coughing, eyes watering. “We need to end this now!” Ryuji barked. Aiko nodded once, jaw tight. “On my mark!” The raider charged blindly. His body moved unnaturally, joints cracking, tendrils of dark energy lashing out like whips. One almost tore straight through the wall behind them. Aiko threw herself back, narrowly avoiding a tendril that sliced through a tree trunk like butter. “Mark!” Aiko slapped her palm onto a broken cart wheel. In an instant, she swapped both herself and Ryuji directly in front of the raider. The raider’s eyes widened with instinctive malice but he was mid-swing, his weight committed forward. “Now!” Aiko shouted. Ryuji hardened his entire body, steel-like muscle erupting along his arms, shoulders, and chest. He roared, locking his arms under the raider’s and wrenching them upward. The raider screamed, thrashing, poison bursting out in waves strong enough to melt nearby fences. Ryuji gritted his teeth as the poison seared into his skin. “Ghh-Hold-still!!” His legs buckled, but he held the raider in place. Aiko steadied herself, taking one deep breath. Her aura flared, white-hot and focused. She channeled every drop of her spiritual energy into her fist. Her hand hummed. Then burned with power. She sprinted in. “Get-off-me!!” the raider roared, twisting wildly, corruption surging. The ground cracked beneath them. Ryuji felt his grip slipping. Aiko leapt. Her fist shot forward like a cannon. The impact didn’t just knock the raider cold. It rattled the entire village, sending dust and debris flying. A shockwave rippled outward as Aiko’s punch crushed through the corrupted aura, snapping bone and consciousness in one clean strike. Ryuji and the raider both flew back from the force. The raider collapsed in a heap, dark energy flickering out like a dying flame. The poison cloud thinned, then dissipated entirely. A heavy silence settled. Ryuji coughed violently, poison still burning through his lungs, but he forced himself up. He grabbed rope from one of the abandoned carts and stumbled forward. His hands trembled, but he tied the raider’s arms and legs tightly, double-knotting everything in case the monster woke up again. Everything hit Ryuji at once. The adrenaline, the strain of using his body-hardening at maximum output, the poison still burning through his veins, it all slammed into him like a collapsing building. His knees buckled, and he fell forward, coughing violently, hands digging into the dirt for support. “Hey easy, Ryuji.” Aiko was at his side instantly, catching his shoulder before he toppled over. Her voice, normally teasing and sharp, softened. “You did good. Really good. Holding that monster still… that saved all of them.” Ryuji managed a crooked, painful grin beneath the sweat and poison. “Heh… I got… some moves…” “Yeah,” Aiko said, smirking as she hauled one of his arms over her shoulder. “We get it. You’re very manly. Come on.” Together they limped toward the others. Yoshinori sat upright now, his breathing steadying as Itsuki finished the last of his healing. The moment she pulled her hands away from Yoshinori’s chest, she turned, eyes scanning desperately. “Shunjiro!” She darted toward him. The moment she reached him, she froze. Shunjiro was pale. He wobbled where he knelt, eyes unfocused. “Itsuki heal him first,” Shunjiro rasped, clutching his side. “Don’t… don’t worry about me yet.” Itsuki nodded sharply, dropping to her knees beside Tetsuo. She pressed both hands against his shoulders, her healing aura flaring to life. But something was wrong. Her pulse was too fast. Her energy jittered. Her breathing was shaky. She was trying too hard to force power out. No. She realized, too late. I’m doing it wrong. Healing wasn’t about force. It was about flow. Control. Calm. She squeezed her eyes shut, forcing her frantic breaths to slow. In. Out. In. Out. Her energy steadied. Warm light enveloped Tetsuo, stronger this time, reaching deeper, cutting through the poison like sunlight melting frost. His pained wheezing softened. His shoulders relaxed. He slumped forward with a groan of relief. That healing was faster than her work on Yoshinori. Itsuki opened her eyes, panting. I did it… I actually… improved. She moved next to Ryuji. He raised a hand quickly. “H-Hey, hey, don’t waste any fancy healing on me. Just take out the poison and I’m good. No need to-” Itsuki placed a hand on his arm and ignored him completely. Ryuji blinked, cheeks heating. “U-uh… an honor to be healed by such a pretty girl, by the way-” “Creepy,” Aiko muttered, flicking dirt at his face. Itsuki didn’t even react, she was in a complete flow state, her mind entirely on stabilizing Ryuji’s energy. She pulled the poison from his bloodstream so swiftly he nearly gasped at the pressure lifting off his chest. Color finally returned to his face. “Damn,” he said under his breath. “You’re incredible…” Itsuki stood and moved on. “Aiko, are you hurt?” Aiko lifted a thumb without missing a beat. “Only emotionally, Ryuji exists.” “Hey!” Itsuki cracked the faintest smile, then turned toward Shunjiro. He sat against a burned wall, chest rising and falling raggedly, still drenched in sweat and blood. She knelt beside him, her expression finally cracking with visible worry. “You okay?” she breathed. “No,” Shunjiro admitted softly. “You can heal me now.” Her hands glowed, light flooding into him. He let out a long, shaking exhale as the poison unwound from his organs and the pain in his ribs loosened. Shunjiro leaned his head back, closing his eyes for a moment. “…Thank you,” he murmured. Itsuki lowered her gaze, cheeks warming. “You don’t have to thank me. I’m your healer.” Shunjiro chuckled weakly. “Nah… you’re more than that.” Before she could respond, Yoshinori walked over, tensing. “How did you two even find us?” he asked. Aiko folded her arms behind her head. “We were heading toward the wine-making village, you know, priorities. Then we saw the smoke.” Ryuji nodded. “Figured it was trouble. Didn’t expect this level, though.” “Still,” Aiko added, smiling at each of them, “it’s good to see all of you again, even in a hellhole like this.” “Likewise,” Shunjiro said with a tired grin. Ryuji glanced at the collapsed raider, expression darkening. “What was up with that guy? He moved like a beast.” Yoshinori’s face hardened. “Corruption. The darkness in him overtook his control.” Both Aiko and Ryuji stiffened. “Corrupted…?” Ryuji muttered. “That’s… not good,” Aiko added quietly. Shunjiro pushed himself to his feet, still a bit shaky. He walked over to the unconscious raider and rummaged through his pockets. “Let’s see if he has anything that can get these people out.” He found a ring of iron keys. “Got ’em.” The group followed him toward the cart. The captives, women and frightened children, stared at them with wide, trembling eyes. Shunjiro inserted the key, the lock clicking free. He swung open the gate and met their terrified gazes with a soft, reassuring smile. “Everyone’s safe now,” he said quietly. “You’re going to be okay. I promise.” Itsuki stepped carefully through the shaken crowd, her gaze settling on a small figure curled up at the edge of the cart. A little girl. Clutching a worn doll so tightly her knuckles turned white. Her body trembling despite the fading heat of the ruined village. Itsuki knelt gently before her, lowering herself to the child’s level. “Sweetheart…” she whispered. “Are you Aya?” The girl’s lip quivered. Tears welled in her wide brown eyes as she gave the smallest nod. Itsuki’s expression softened with both warmth and heartbreak. “Your father is waiting for you,” she said softly. “You’ve been so brave… so, so strong.” At those words, the dam inside Aya broke. A sob tore out of her, small shoulders shaking as she dropped the doll and reached for Itsuki. Without hesitation, Itsuki wrapped her arms around the girl, pulling her close, holding her as if shielding her from the entire world. “It’s okay,” Itsuki murmured, stroking her hair. “You’re safe now. You’re going home.” Shunjiro watched them from a short distance, a tired smile tugging at his lips. She’s good with kids, he thought, warmth swelling in his chest despite the exhaustion. Really good. He turned to the rest of the captives, mothers clutching their young ones, teenagers trembling in soot-covered clothes, elders staring blankly in shock and raised his voice so everyone could hear. “Help is coming,” he assured them. “Knights from the Kingdom of Radiance will be here soon. They’ll take you home or help you find a new one. You’re not alone anymore.” Voices broke into grateful cries. “Thank you…” “Bless you…” “You saved us…” As if the world itself answered those words, the sound of heavy armored steps thundered through the clearing. Everyone turned. Seven knights approached through the smoke, their armor gleaming even under the ash-filled sky. At their head strode a woman radiating authority: golden breastplate polished to brilliance, long hair tied in a high ponytail, yellow-green eyes sharp with unwavering focus. Akira Namiki from The Gilded Blades. Shunjiro stiffened at once, recognition flashing across his face. Akira scanned the area swiftly. “Which one of you is in charge?” Shunjiro stepped forward before he could second-guess himself. “I am. Shunjiro Tenzai, leader of the new guild Illumina.” For a brief moment, Akira’s eyes widened ever so slightly. Shunjiro Tenzai.  The S-ranked spiritual energy rookie. The boy who landed a blow on Kaito Ishiro. Her posture changed instantly, straightening, and respectful. “Akira Namiki,” she introduced herself with a nod that held genuine acknowledgment. “From The Gilded Blades. It’s an honor to meet you properly, Tenzai.” Shunjiro nearly flinched at being shown such respect from someone of her rank. “Uh likewise.” Akira’s gaze swept the burning ruins and bodies. “What happened here?” Shunjiro took a breath. “We were training in the forest when we heard a man shouting for help. His daughter was taken by slave raiders. We followed the smoke and found this village being sacked.” He stepped aside, pointing toward the bound figure lying unconscious on the ground, the leader of the raiders. “There were nine raiders total. We took them down… and stopped him last.” Akira approached the tied leader, kneeling beside him. The moment her hand touched the ground, her expression sharpened. The aura around the man, even unconscious, still pulsed with a sickly, lingering darkness. “He was corrupted…” she muttered. “But this isn’t normal. This feels… like it’s weakening.” She looked back at Shunjiro. “Do you know how it happened?” Shunjiro hesitated. The image replayed in his mind, the question he asked, the look on the raider’s face, the memories that seemed to tear him apart from the inside. “I think it was because I asked him… if he had a family,” Shunjiro admitted quietly. Akira absorbed that, her eyes dimming with understanding. “That would do it,” she said. “Corruption feeds on negative emotion, guilt, rage, despair. One sharp push in the wrong direction, and a person’s spiritual energy rots from the inside out.” She rose to her feet, jaw set. “But this one… Even for corruption, his transformation was unstable. Violent. Something is off.” Itsuki held Aya close as she spoke gently. “Is… that dangerous?” “Yes,” Akira said frankly. “Extremely. If you hadn’t stopped him, he would have fully lost himself. Once corruption settles completely, the person is gone. Forever.” The group fell silent. Akira turned to them fully now, gaze sweeping over every member of Illumina, bruised, bloodied, exhausted, but standing strong. “You all did an incredible job today,” she said, voice firm with respect. “You prevented further deaths. You saved innocent people. And you subdued a corrupted raider, something even seasoned adventurers struggle with.” Shunjiro blinked. “Thank you…” Akira nodded once. “More knights and support teams are already on the way. These villagers will be cared for, and the bodies of the fallen will be handled with dignity.” Itsuki lifted Aya gently into her arms before turning to Akira. “Akira… may we return Aya to her father?” she asked softly. Akira’s stern expression softened ever so slightly. “Where is he?” “We told him to wait in the forest,” Itsuki replied. “Not far from here.” Akira nodded. “Go get him. Bring him back. We’ll handle the rest from here.” Shunjiro shook his head immediately. “We’re all going. Together.” Akira paused then gave a short, approving nod. “Very well. Go.” Leaving the scorched village felt surreal. Every step they took hurt, every muscle, every bone, every breath reminding them they had gone far beyond their limits. The forest floor crunched softly under their boots as they limped forward in a loose, uneven group. Aya clung to Itsuki’s side, one small fist gripping the fabric of her skirt like a lifeline. Shunjiro glanced back at his team. “So… how’s everyone holding up?” Tetsuo dragged his feet, arms hanging limp at his sides. “Bro…” he groaned, “I have zero energy left. I swear I could eat an entire cow, maybe two, and then sleep for the next week.” Shunjiro snorted despite the pain in his ribs. “That sounds like you any normal day, though.” “Okay but now I mean it,” Tetsuo insisted, dead serious. Ryuji, still moving at a steady pace despite the fading aftereffects of poison, chuckled. “We’re fine. Nothing a few hours of sleep and a feast won’t fix.” Yoshinori walked quietly for a moment, one hand over his stomach. His breathing was shallow. “…I’m spent,” he admitted. “Not even an ember left inside. Using the lightning blade twice nearly fried my nerves.” Itsuki frowned, concern tightening her brow. “Do you need more healing?” “No,” Yoshinori replied. “You need to save your energy. I’ll manage.” Shunjiro chuckled. Then he turned to the smallest presence in their group. “And you, Aya? How are you feeling?” Aya looked up at him timidly, fingers still curled around Itsuki’s sleeve. “I… I’m okay,” she whispered. Her voice was small but steady, bravery mixed with exhaustion. Itsuki smiled warmly at her. “Hold still for a second, okay?” She pressed her glowing hands gently on Aya’s shoulders. Soft warmth poured into the girl, like a breath of fresh air after drowning. Aya’s eyes widened, her posture straightening. “I… feel good.” Itsuki nodded. “Good. You deserve to rest without pain.” Aya hugged her tightly. “Th-thank you, big sister!” Itsuki’s eyes widened and then softened with a fluttering smile. Shunjiro grinned at the sight. They reached the same clearing where the man had been left, slumped against a tree, head hanging, eyes open but unfocused. Shunjiro called out gently. “Sir?” The man’s head jolted up. And when he saw Aya walking beside Itsuki, safe, alive, his entire body shook. “A-Aya?!” He stumbled forward at first, as if not believing his own eyes. But then his legs found strength, and he sprinted across the clearing with a desperate, ragged cry. “Aya!” The girl broke into a run. “Papa!” They collided in a trembling embrace, the father falling to his knees as he hugged his daughter so tightly she squeaked but didn’t pull away for even a moment. “I thought… I thought I lost you-” His voice cracked, tears streaming down his ash-smeared face. He held her cheeks with shaking hands. “My baby… my sweet Aya…” Aya clung to him, sobbing quietly into his chest. Itsuki covered her mouth with her hand, eyes glistening. Shunjiro felt a heaviness lift from his shoulders, a warmth spreading through him. After several long moments, the man finally tore his gaze away from his daughter and looked up at Illumina. Their bruised bodies. Their exhausted faces. Their burned clothes and trembling limbs. He burst into tears again. “Thank you. Thank you… thank you…” he repeated, bowing his head with each breath as if the words weren’t enough, as if gratitude itself fell short. “I don’t have anything… I can’t give you anything…” he choked out, “but… thank you for saving my daughter. Thank you for saving everyone you could.” Shunjiro crouched down beside him. “You don’t owe us anything,” he said softly. “But we need you guys to come with us to the Kingdom of Radiance. They’ll help you get back on your feet… rebuild your life… find a new home if needed.” The man nodded vigorously, clutching Aya closer. “Of course… of course… whatever you say. You’re heroes. True heroes…” Shunjiro froze for a moment at the word, “heroes.” He felt Itsuki glance at him, warmth in her smile. Maybe… someday… they really could be. Back at the village, Akira Namiki and her squad had nearly finished stabilizing the area putting out lingering flames, freeing any remaining captives, and tending to the wounded. The village was battered and broken, but no longer under threat. Akira stood at the center, barking sharp orders to her knights. “Secure all exits. Gather the injured. Catalog the fallen. No one leaves until we’re sure the area is clean.” Her voice was steady, controlled, a sharp contrast to the devastation around her. Then a wet, harsh cough tore through the air. Akira’s head snapped toward the tied, unconscious raider leader, his body shuddering as he coughed up thick, dark blood onto the dirt. He’s awake. Akira rushed to him instantly, dropping to a crouch beside his heaving form. The raider’s eyes, once twisted and feral with corruption now flickered with painful clarity. “Do you know where you are?” Akira asked, voice low but commanding. The man wheezed, sweat drenching his brow. “…Yeah. I do.” Akira stared at him. Corruption should’ve killed him. Or sealed him in mindless madness forever. But this man… He wasn’t corrupted. Not anymore. How? Her mind raced. In her entire career she had never seen corruption reverse. The darkness always consumed the host. Always. Yet this man was… normal again. Broken, wounded, but undeniably human. Something impossible had just happened. She forced herself to stay composed. “What do you remember?” she pressed. He closed his eyes, brows furrowing in pain. “…I remember fighting… some brat,” he muttered. “Then… everything went dark.” “What’s your name?” The man hesitated, spine stiffening with instinctive defiance. But Akira’s aura, cold and powerful, washed over him like a tidal wave. He swallowed hard. “…Makoto Ryuzen,” he whispered. “Slave raider.” Akira’s stomach twisted with disgust. Slave raiders were parasites, cowards who preyed on the helpless. She had dealt with many. But something about this man felt… fractured, not rotten. “Why?” she asked sharply. “Why enslave people? Why burn villages?” Makoto coughed violently, blood spraying into his hand. His voice trembled not with fear, but with bitterness carved into bone. “Because… I have to,” he rasped. “Because it’s the only way… the only way I had left to get close to him.” Akira’s eyes narrowed. “Get close to who?” Makoto laughed, short, hollow, defeated. “My daughter’s killer.” The world seemed to still. Makoto lifted his gaze, revealing a man whose rage had eaten him from the inside out. “A man took her from me,” he said through clenched teeth. “A monster hiding behind gold and wealth. I swore I’d kill him. But to reach someone like that… you become part of the chain. You climb. You do what you have to do.” His fists trembled, even bound by rope. “But now…” His breath hitched, and he let his head hang. “Now I know I’ll never reach him.” He closed his eyes. “So I’ll help you bring down the slave empire instead.” Akira froze. She had expected excuses and lies. Not… this. Even with all her hatred for slavers, her trained instincts whispered the truth: He wasn’t just wicked. He was broken. And his corruption wasn’t born from evil, it was born from grief. Akira hardened her expression. “You know you’ll never see daylight again,” she said flatly. “Radiance will lock you away for your crimes. Probably for the rest of your life.” Makoto gave a bitter smile. “I died years ago. Do whatever you want. But before that, let me help you crush the man at the top.” Akira exchanged a glance with her knights. She didn’t like this. Didn’t like relying on scum. But the slave trade was deep, insidious, and connected to powerful figures across the continents. A broken man with nothing left to lose? He might talk where others bite their tongue. “…Fine,” she said at last. “You cooperate, and I’ll make sure everything you know reaches the highest offices in Radiance.” Makoto nodded weakly. Then his gaze hardened. “I had a meeting tonight,” he rasped. “A buyer. A big one. Supposed to happen at a temple deeper in the forest.” Akira’s eyes locked sharply onto his. “How long until the meeting?” Makoto’s chest rose and fell in shallow breaths. “Sunset… When the sun goes down, that’s when he appears.” Akira’s blood ran cold. She lifted her gaze to the horizon where the sun hung dangerously low, a sliver of gold sinking behind the treeline. Five minutes. Akira snapped her head toward her knights, golden hair whipping with the motion. “Notify the Gilded Blades. I want every available member at this village now.” “Yes, Captain!” the knights echoed, sprinting off in different directions. But Akira didn’t move. She couldn’t. A cold shiver ran down her spine. A presence. Not just strong. Terrifying. Her fingers curled around her hilt before her mind even registered the motion. Her Light Blade erupted into existence, a gleaming weapon forged entirely from concentrated energy. The glow bathed her armor in pale gold as she slid one foot forward, ready to strike. “Knights,” she snapped, voice taut and deadly, “On standby. Now.” The ruins fell silent. Smoke drifted. Ash fluttered like black snow. Then, from the far end of a collapsed alleyway, a faint crackle of energy. A red spark. It grew until the silhouette of a scythe ignited in the darkness, its blade glowing with a searing crimson aura, sparks showering the ground beneath it. Every knight felt it. Even the villagers sensed it, those still conscious shrinking back behind broken walls and overturned carts. Akira felt her pulse spike. This aura…  “Show yourself!” she barked, her voice ringing like steel, bright against the haunting quiet. Her Light Blade flared brighter, washing the alley in blinding gold. Footsteps answered her. Slow, unhurried,and confident. From the shadows emerged a man wrapped in a flowing black and purple cloak, the hem whispering across charred ground. His scythe rested casually over one shoulder, its blade dripping strands of red spiritual energy that hissed like molten metal in water. His slicked-back black hair caught what little firelight remained, and those deep, purple eyes glimmered with amusement. A smirk tugged at the corner of his lips. “Easy there,” he drawled, twirling the scythe with one hand as if it weighed nothing. “No need for all that hostility. Not yet, anyway.” Akira raised her blade an inch. “Name.” The man chuckled. “You can call me Renjiro.” His voice held a kind of confidence Akira rarely heard in foes. Not arrogance… Certainty. The scythe spun once more, carving a thin crescent of crimson light through the air. “And I’m here,” Renjiro continued, eyes sliding toward Makoto’s tied body, “to collect the man you’ve got all wrapped up there.” Akira’s jaw clenched, her stance tightening. “So that’s your plan,” she said. “Take him and run?” “Precisely,” Renjiro said smoothly. Akira’s blade brightened, casting sharp shadows across her determined face. “I’m afraid,” she said coolly, “we have… other ideas.” Renjiro’s smirk widened into something feral. “Oh?” he murmured. “Then I suppose I have my answer.” He dropped into a low stance, scythe angled diagonally in front of him, the red glow flaring brighter with each breath he took. “Careful now,” he murmured, voice dripping with sarcasm. “You might get cut.” Akira didn’t flinch. Her knights moved as one at her unspoken command, forming a shifting crescent around her, shields up, blades drawn, their armor catching the flicker of firelight. These were not fresh recruits. These were Radiance knights, each trained enough to face down A-rank threats. But the man before them… The energy radiating from him didn’t belong to any rank she’d ever encountered. Renjiro’s fingers tightened minutely around the scythe handle. The red aura swelled. Something’s wrong, Akira thought. This level of spiritual pressure…  Her fastest knight lunged, blade trailing a streak of golden light. Renjiro moved only an inch, barely a shift of weight. His scythe lashed out. A single, clean, diagonal streak of scarlet. The knight screamed falling back, clutching at his chest as black veins erupted under his skin, spreading like roots of shadow. “Corruption?!” Akira breathed, horror snapping through her like lightning. But she didn’t have time to process it. Renjiro was already moving. One moment he stood still, the next he blurred, scythe slicing arcs that hummed like death bells. One strike per knight. One moment per life. Each touched by the blade convulsed as corruption consumed them from within, their auras twisting into monstrous echoes of who they once were. “No!” Akira shouted, voice cracking as another knight crumpled, then rose again, eyes blackened, mouth twisted in an animalistic snarl. Seven knights fell. Seven knights rose again. Renjiro landed lightly on his feet, twirling his scythe with a casual flick, grinning as though admiring his handiwork. “Impressive, isn’t it?” he said, crimson aura curling around him like smoke. “You Radiance folk have such malleable souls.” Akira’s breath trembled but she forced her grip on her light blade steadier. “Why are you doing this?!” she shouted. Renjiro blinked slowly. “Because,” he said with a shrug, “it’s fun.” Her stomach twisted. “Knights!” Akira commanded, voice shaking but resolute. “Restrain yourselves! Fight it! Don’t let it-” The corrupted knights lunged. Her heart cracked. “Forgive me,” she choked, eyes burning. “I-I have no other choice.” The first knight swung wildly, strength multiplied by corrupted energy. Akira parried with her Light Blade, golden sparks hissing as they collided with tendrils of shadow. The darkness recoiled as if in pain but retaliated violently. They came at her in a frenzied wave. Her blade moved faster than thought, slashes of radiant gold cutting through blackened metal and twisted aura. She severed weapons, shattered corrupted tendrils, and pushed back each assault with a precision that masked the agony inside her. These were her people. People who trusted her. People whose names she knew. Tears streaked down her face, mixing with soot and sweat. “Stop, please, stop…” she whispered with each strike. But corruption didn’t understand mercy. One by one, the knights fell, lifeless whispers escaping their lips before the blackness evaporated. When the last one dropped, Akira stood alone in the clearing, their bodies sprawled around her, illuminated by the dying flames of the ruined village. She trembled. Her knees buckled. And she collapsed to the ground, clutching her blade with white-knuckled desperation. “What… What in the world is happening?” she rasped to no one. But she already knew the answer: A threat had arrived. Something beyond any rank, any record, any classification. And then, a soft scraping sound. Akira’s head jerked up, vision blurred by grief, just in time to see Renjiro kneeling beside Makoto’s still form. With a careless tug, he slung the raider over his shoulder like weightless cargo. “You!” Akira lunged. Renjiro hopped backward, crimson energy swirling around him like dancing embers. He smirked. “No need to get upset,” he mused. “I’m not killing him. Not yet. He’s worth much more alive.” “That man is wanted by Radiance. You will release him.” Renjiro laughed. “Radiance?” he echoed. “You think Radiance has any say in this?” His scythe tilted slightly, its blade humming with a sinister pulse. “Pity about your knights, though,” he added with mock sympathy. “Their screams had such nice tones.” Akira roared, thrusting her light blade forward. But Renjiro vanished in a swirl of red as if swallowed by the night itself. Only a faint echo of his voice lingered: “Tell Kaito Ishiro that I said hello.” Silence swallowed the village, broken only by the soft crackling of dying fires. Akira collapsed fully now, falling to her hands. Surrounded by her fallen comrades. Unable to save them. Unable to stop him. Her tears hit the scorched earth one by one. “Who are you… Renjiro?” she whispered, voice cracking. Only the darkness answered. A man in a blacked-out cloak had been observing the confrontation between Renjiro and Akira from the shadows of a ruined rooftop. He did not flinch when Renjiro unleashed his corrupted scythe, nor when Akira felled her own men. He simply watched, motionless, as though he had been carved from the same darkness that clung to the burning village. When Renjiro finally vanished into the forest with Makoto slung over his shoulder, the cloaked figure quietly stepped forward. He moved with an eerie grace, dropping from the rooftop without so much as disturbing the ash beneath him. The firelight flickered across his silhouette, but never quite revealed his features. With slow, deliberate strides, he followed.