Est

Hunt and Mirian stood dumbfounded by the scene before them. Hunt smirked, casting a sideways glance at Mirian as if to say, "Told you so," about Ryan's mental strength. Mirian sighed, a mixture of relief and resignation. They watched as Ryan gently laid Daniel down and exited the room, his expression unreadable.

"What really happened to Neav? You seem to know a lot more than I do" Ryan asked, his voice steady but laced with curiosity and a simmering anger. "And who the hell is that red-haired bastard?" His fist clenched tightly, the anger burning in him again.

"It ain't—" Hunt began, but a voice from the corridor interrupted him.

"It wasn't just Neav. Other villages nearby were hit by the attack."

They turned to see a man in his early twenties walking toward them, flanked by Lock and Brit. His white long hair and piercing blue eyes stood out in the dim light of the corridor.

"Captain," Hunt saluted, placing his right fist against his chest. Mirian bowed her head slightly in respect.

He is the youngest captain of the imperial knights, a genius among geniuses known for his unmatched fighting prowess and leadership. One of the eight pillars of Arth Kingdom; Roy Cinaed.

But to Ryan, Roy is more than that. He isn't just a distant, untouchable figure of authority; he was his brother. The brother who had taken care of him since birth. He was his model.

"Roy..." Ryan's voice softened, his anger melting away into something calmer. A small, nostalgic smile crossed his face as memories of their past flashed through his mind. But almost immediately, he snapped back to the present.

"Yo, Ryan, you've grown a lot," Roy said, grinning slightly, clearly relieved to see his brother in one piece; at least on the outside. "You probably have a ton of questions, but let's talk when we're seated. My legs are about to give out from the journey," he added, scratching the back of his head with a sheepish smile.

Mirian had secured a room for them, preparing refreshments to help them unwind. Lock and Brit accepted water, while Hunt grabbed a beer. Ryan, however, wasn't interested in anything but what Roy was about to reveal. Meanwhile, Roy, unbothered by the tension, was happily indulging in cakes and hot chocolate, like a kid savoring his favorite treat.

"You'll never change, will you?" Ryan smirked lightly, but the smile quickly faded. "It's been five years, you know..." His smirk gave way to an expressionless stare. "You never visited, never replied to any of my letters, so..." His voice shifted into a mix of sadness and anger. "...Why now? Did it have to come to this for you to show your face?" His anger began to rise, his fists clenching tightly. "If you were there, they'd all have been saved. You'd have saved them!" His voice cracked with the weight of his sorrow and rage.

"I've been holding back since you're the captain's brother, but I can't anymore," Brit snapped, grabbing Ryan by the collar and effortlessly lifting him off the ground. Ryan was shocked, Brit was half his size, yet he was powerless against her iron grip.

"The captain dropped everything and ran here on foot from the capital the moment he heard what happened. He didn't take a single break 'til he got here," Brit's voice was filled with anger, but Ryan's own fury only grew.

"That's enough, Brit. He has every right to be angry, the capital is not that far anyway." Roy said, waving his hand to signal her to release Ryan. "But captain, this brat..." Brit began, but she stopped when she saw the deep sorrow behind Ryan's eyes. She scoffed and dropped him before leaving the room in a huff.

Still simmering with anger, Ryan was caught off guard when Roy gently patted his head. "You did your best, Ryan. Stop blaming yourself," Roy's voice was soft, knowing. Despite the years of distance, Roy understood Ryan better than anyone, he knew Ryan was mostly blaming himself for failing to protect the village.

The warmth of Roy's hand and his words brought a wave of nostalgia, nearly bringing Ryan to tears. Embarrassed, he batted Roy's hand away and turned to wipe his eyes. "Guess you are also the same," Roy said with a grin.

Ryan wiped the last of his tears, then turned back to Roy, more determined. "I'm ready now. What or who is behind this?"

Roy smiled and sat down, gesturing for Ryan to do the same. After taking a sip from his cup, he asked, "Have you ever heard of Est?"

"Est? I think I've heard something about it being some kind of magic from ancient times. Isn't it just a false thing made up by tricksters and storytellers?" Ryan was confused by the question, unsure of how it connected to the incident.

Roy took another sip before continuing. "The ancient part is true, but, it's no trick, and it's more than just magic. Everything that exists, living or non-living, dead or alive, real or abstract, possesses Est. It's the very fabric that forms existence. Whether one can manipulate it or not determines where they stand on the pyramid of existence. And those who have awakened the ability to control Est are called Weavers."

Ryan was stunned by this revelation, struggling to connect it to the incident. But he decided to listen as Roy continued.

"By manipulating Est, you can 'change' the shape and nature of all that exists," Roy explained, setting down his cup. "What affected the villages was an Est experiment designed to give unawakened humans power beyond their limits, in exchange for their sanity and life force."

Ryan's mind raced, the pieces of the puzzle starting to fall into place. Roy's expression turned cold as he continued.

"It was conducted by an Est researcher, Barol Gurahan, who is now a national criminal. His testing ground was Runs, and the infection spread by air to Aan, Guram, and Neav. The death toll stands at 2,383, with 86 survivors, 22 of whom are in one piece, and only 6 still sane."

The sheer scale of the tragedy left Ryan overwhelmed. He needed time to process everything but grasped the gist of it.

"I get that this is bigger than just Neav now, but why was there no help? What's the point of having knights or nobles if they don't do anything?" Ryan's voice still held a note of anger, but no one could blame him.

"It happened on the same day as an official ceremony. Most knights and nobles were in the capital, and ordinary soldiers could easily be killed or infected by the affected. We were lucky that Hunt's team was nearby to contain the spread," Roy replied calmly.

Logically, Ryan understood the situation, but emotionally, he couldn't let it go. He scanned the faces of the knights in the room and sighed deeply, trying to calm himself.

"Barol Gurahan, he's that red-haired bastard, right?" Ryan asked.

"Red-haired...? Ah, you mean the Hounds official. No, he's not Gurahan. He's from a dangerous group of weavers called Hounds, commonly known as the Red Devil. He was probably hired by Gurahan to cover his tracks." Roy explained.

Ryan's anger flared again as he remembered his encounter with Red, but then another thought came to mind. "You said it was an experiment that affects normal people. So why am I and Ale alright? Does this mean we aren't normal?"

Everyone in the room was stunned by Ryan's question. Hunt burst out laughing. "You really think you're normal?"

Confused, Ryan looked around and saw everyone staring at him in disbelief. "Ale aside, where do you think your strength comes from, training?" Roy teased. "Though I wouldn't say you're fully awakened, since you can't really sense Est yet."

Ryan was shocked in a different way now. He had always wondered why he was stronger than others but had chalked it up to a stronger constitution.

"Then Ale is also..."

"Yes, she's probably a pseudo-awakened like you" Roy cut in before Ryan could finish. 

"We also believe she's the reason Daniel's case is better." Mirian added.

Ryan looked at Mirian as she continued, "The effect must have been reduced when Daniel bit Ale, mixing her blood with his. As a result he's not totally out of control and preserves his life span"

"I believe you'll need some time to process everything you've learned," Mirian said, noticing the troubled look on Ryan's face. She ushered everyone out of the room, leaving Ryan alone in deep thought.

Daniel and Ale, the village's demise, Est, Barol Gurahan, the Red Devil—so much had been revealed in just one day, and Ryan didn't know what to do with it all. He decided to clear his mind and tackle each issue one by one.

After a while, Ryan got up, his determination renewed, and left the room. He went straight to Roy, who was resting under a tree outside.

"Can Daniel be cured?" Ryan asked.

"If you mean going back to normal, then no. His Est has been altered and forcefully awakened. Nothing can reverse that," Roy replied, his tone grim. Ryan's face darkened. "But we can prevent his life force from leaking and even regain his memories if he learns to control and stabilize his Est," Roy added, offering some hope.

"Then, Barol Gurahan, how do I get him?" Ryan asked, his fists clenched.

"That'll be difficult, we couldn't even find a trace of him after searching for days. It's like he vanished like a ghost after that day. And even if you did find him, the current you wouldn't stand a chance. He'd waste you in no time," Roy replied coldly.

Ryan, determined and defiant, argued, "I managed to beat that Red Devil bastard, didn't I?"

Roy shook his head. "Yeah, after he'd already fought over a thousand infected by himself. He contained most of them alone, leaving Hunt's team with only the stragglers. To put it in perspective, you're at most as strong as five infected. He's a fully awakened. I'm telling you, you were lucky to be alive after confronting him."

Ryan was stunned by Roy's blunt assessment. He knew there were people stronger than him, but he hadn't expected the gap to be so vast. Roy could see the despair starting to settle on Ryan's face.

"But that's an evaluation of the current you, not the future you," Roy said, patting Ryan's shoulder. "With enough training and proper guidance, forget a Hounds official or imperial knight, you could become as strong as or even stronger than a pillar."

Ryan's eyes filled with determination as he clenched his fists. "Train me," he demanded. "I'll crush those bastards with my own hands."

Roy smiled. "Of course, but I'm very strict. You'll have to follow every order I give without a single complaint. And it'll last for five years. Got it?"

"Yeah," Ryan affirmed, his voice resolute.

"Then the first thing is..." Roy began to lay out the training regimen, unaware of the dark plans unfolding in the shadows of the kingdom.

Far away, in a secluded cabin deep within a dark, foreboding forest, Barol Gurahan sat sipping tea, enjoying the view of the twisted, mutated trees outside his window. He was a genius who had published groundbreaking theories on Est from the age of seven. By 24, he had become the kingdom's foremost Est researcher. Earned the title of the greatest Est researcher in Arth's history at the age of 46 by solving a theory on Est evolution that had stumped the brightest minds of the past. But his insatiable greed for knowledge had led him down a dark path, turning him into a national criminal responsible for the deaths of over 2,500 people at the age of 52.

In hiding from those who once praised his brilliance, Barol felt more free than ever. He took another sip of his tea, admiring the creepy trees outside. "What beauty," he mused aloud. "These trees have mutated to assimilate the strong dark Est in the area. Such tenacity to survive. If only humans possessed this, we would be on another level of evolution by now, don't you think?"

A man clad in black, emerging from a dark portal that appeared behind Barol, replied with a smirk under his mask, "Only a crazed man like you would find that beautiful."

Barol didn't turn around. "I see you lack an appreciation for true beauty, my black-clad friend. You'll never understand. Evolution is the greatest beauty of all."

"Enough about evolution. Did you get the data you needed?" the man in black asked, his voice sharp and to the point.

"Of course I did. I'm the smartest person in the history. But finalizing everything will take some time and resources," Barol replied confidently.

"We'll provide whatever you need. How long are we talking?" the man in black asked, his tone growing impatient.

"Even for me, it'll take about three to four years to complete," Barol answered, setting down his cup.

"Three to four years? Smartest man, my ass, that's too long!" the man in black snapped.

Barol shrugged. "That's rude. I only gave you an estimate based on my current capabilities. I'll probably get faster as I progress, but I can't promise anything less than three years."

The man in black sighed, accepting the answer reluctantly. As he prepared to leave, Barol called out, "Oh, and Mr. Sint..."

The man in black, Sint, paused.

"Could you get some more black tea leaves for me? I'm almost out," Barol asked politely, his tone casual.

Sint's annoyance could be seen, even behind his mask, as he disappeared back into the dark portal.

Barol returned his gaze to the twisted trees outside, a smirk creeping onto his face. "I'm getting goosebumps just thinking about what I'll create this time. Now, what should I name it?"