The Will

The voice of the masked man echoes through the world. The entity looks down a bit and its eyes glow brighter. The position it takes shows its anger. Kazuki wants to know more about what the masked man just said but the entity disappears, leaving no time for the kid to ask questions. It rushed to the masked man, splitting in two the bottomless water on his path. The Masked man only has the time to protect himself with his arms covering his face. The entity throws a powerful punch which sends the intruder flying through the world, almost getting him out of it. The masked man starts shaking. 

"This thing.. If only I could get my hand on it and the others.. I'm not enough to fight this. We'll meet again… Kazuki."

And like he came, the masked man disappears by blending with the water. The water blends back together. The entity slowly walks back towards Kazuki, who is resting from the intense fight. Kazuki looks at it, with admiration. The way he just made the Masked man flee with a punch. Kazuki wants to be as strong as the black man. That's it. That's his will. He wants to be the man strong enough to win against the masked. He wants to be him.

The entity stands before him. It looks down on the child. Then it turns its gaze in a direction beyond the rock structure, at the opposite of where the fight took place. Kazuki stands up and looks in the same direction. In the distance, Kazuki can see a tiny black spot standing on the water. It's another figure. Kazuki starts to rush towards the new thing, but his forehead starts to burn where the mark is. He falls on the water. Everything suddenly becomes black again.

While Kazuki was sleeping, Tian-Han came back. He looks at Kazuki. He sees blood on the bed and marks on Kazuki's face. There is also a little burn left by the mark of the eye on Kazuki's forehead. Tian-Han takes a deep expression.

"So they were here.. As predictable as I thought.."

Kazuki slowly wakes up. He looks around him. Tian-Han is crushing something on a plate with his fists. When he sees movements in the bed, the old man stops his activity. He wipes his fists and approaches the young boy. 

"How are you doing, my boy ? You slept well, it seems."

Kazuki thinks about what just happened. He looks at the blood on the bed. He turns again face to face with his master. He wonders if the old man really didn't see the blood or if he is just ignoring it. Kazuki takes time to answer. Tian-Han seems curious about the time Kazuki takes. The young boy remembers what the masked man told him. Should he doubt his master? No. He still thinks that he is the only one he can trust. Maybe the masked man wanted him to be confused by spreading false information. But there is definitely something he doesn't know yet. It's not the first time. Tian-Han didn't tell him the name of his father. Kazuki trusts the judgment of the old man. But to try to break the master's character, Kazuki decides to become a bit colder for once. 

"Pretty well…" 

The nickname that the masked man gave to Tian-Han rings in Kazuki's head. But he doesn't want to use this one, as it is too insulting. Deep down, he can't hurt his master. 

"... Old.. Man." 

But Tian-Han seems pretty amused by the new label.

"- How did you call me? 

-Old man. 

-Haha. Watch your tongue, my boy. You'll call me Old man when I'll be on my deathbed. I'm still far away from it.

-Death.. Bed? 

-When I'll be on the verge of death, Kazuki.. You know, I won't always be there. But by the time it happens, you should be old enough to take care of yourself. Oh, don't make such a sad face! You don't have to worry about it yet, my boy! As far as I know, I'm still there!"

As always, the old man puts his hands in Kazuki's hair. This move, he feels like it recently happened. And then, he remembers. The Black figure. It's the same movement. It just confirmed to Kazuki the link between the events and Tian-Han. If he couldn't believe the masked man, at least he can trust Tian-Han. 

Tian-Han went back to crushing some kinds of plants. Kazuki, curious, looks at them. 

"- What is it? 

-Twilight Lotus petals. It's the main ingredient for the Serenithral Veil Elixir. It'll temporarily numb your pain."

Kazuki looks at Tian-Han mixing the petals's powder with other unknown ingredients and puts it in a teapot filled with hot water. After a bit of time, letting the plants infuse in the water, Tian-Han serves a cup to Kazuki. The liquid has no smells. Kazuki tastes it. It has a very bitter taste. It's difficult to drink because of it.

Kazuki turns to his master. He wants to tell him something but hesitates. He takes a deep breath to get more courage. 

"Master… I.. I want to be stronger! I have enough to stay in bed each time I use the Art.. I want to be as strong as you! And if those bad guys show up again, I'll be able to beat them!" 

Tian-Han turns to Kazuki and smiles. His words are gentle but strong. 

" Alright then. We'll resume your training once you'll feel better without the elixir. But be aware that it will be harder than the first times. But for now, drink"

Kazuki isn't scared, because he wants to be stronger. That's his will. The old man gave him the confidence he needed. He drinks the cup as fast as possible because the taste is unbearable.

Once he drinks the elixir, he starts to feel better in every way possible. The pain gradually goes away and he can't feel any new pain as long as the substance makes its effect. He could hurt himself and feels nothing during this short time of numbness. And everyday he'll consume the drug until he feels better.