Hiro was sitting on a park bench at the academy. It had been over a year since he had first come here, yet this place always reminded him of how vast and imposing it was and how small he felt.
If it weren't for his rare element of light, and something about being a child of Raftive, he was sure he wouldn't be able to be here at all. After all, he had endured hardships and even small bullying from other nobles and a few commoners.
But it wasn't all bad. He had made true friends—his master, Lady Yalanue, a formidable swordswoman and his classroom teacher, who patiently taught him the ways of the sword; and his companions, Sophia and Leah, both of whom seemed willing to do anything to be near him. It was strange, almost amusing, to have girls fawn over him—but maybe it was because he had saved them from a beast attack, or perhaps he was simply blessed by the gods. He didn't know, and he didn't need to.
Still, he couldn't let these distractions shake him from his true goal: revenge. Revenge against the people who had slaughtered his family—his mother and father. The only thing he knew about them was a name: the Seven Colors. He had asked the headmaster for any information, but he got nothing. That lack of answers burned like fire in his chest.
There was nothing he could do now, but in the future—when he was stronger, when he was ready—he would uncover everything.
"In the future…" Hiro muttered softly, his gaze falling to his hand. A memory flickered in his mindthe girl with black hair, kneeling beside him, carefully tending to his wounds. Her hands were gentle, her focus unwavering. Her presence had been calm, comforting, almost painfully human.
Yuzuki.
He blinked, the memory lingering, and whispered to himself, almost regretfully, "I shouldn't have been so harsh on her."
He looked back on his last interaction with Yuzuki how she had come to beg him for money. Was she lying about her illness? Or was she truly in need? He didn't know. Maybe he should go and meet her, be the bigger person, and apologize.
Yeah… he should. After all, it had been her family who had taken care of him after his parent died. And after that… it had been her.
Before he could think any further, the screams tore through the courtyard. Dozens of students were running in panic, and teachers shouted orders that were quickly drowned out by the chaos.
Hiro's eyes shot upward. A black rift had opened in the sky, jagged and writhing like a wound in reality itself. From it poured dozens upon dozens of monstrous creatures, landing with earth-shaking thuds among the students and teachers. Panic erupted instantly—screams, shouting, the clash of weapons and claws.
"What… what is happening?!" Hiro muttered, disbelief tightening his chest. The impossible was unfolding before him. Monsters were invading the heart of the northern empire, and not in some isolated village. In the Academy itself A place were Noble children, carefully studying, were now caught in the carnage.
Instinct took over. In one swift motion, Hiro summoned his sword and armor from thin air." The act of storage" allowed him to draw both items in an instant. Steel gleamed in the sunlight as his armor wrapped around him, a perfect fit, as if it had been waiting for this moment.
The beasts turned toward him, snarling, claws raised. One leapt straight at a group of terrified students. Hiro's sword flashed, cutting through the air with a deadly hiss. The creature's attack was stopped mid-lunge, its momentum carried forward by the force of Hiro's strike.
Another beast charged, teeth bared. Hiro rolled forward, planting his feet, and swung his blade in a wide arc, sending it crashing into the creature with bone-crushing impact. Its roar shook the air, but it wasn't enough to stop the tide.
Hiro moved like lightning through a thunderstorm, his sword flashing with deadly precision. Beasts of all shapes and sizes swarmed the courtyard, their snarls and roars filling the air. Most were weak, falling to his strikes in a blur of motion, but a few were strong—towering monstrosities with claws sharp enough to cleave stone.
He dodged a snapping jaw and rolled under a swinging limb, the tip barely grazing his armor as he moved. Any wounds he sustained could be healed by his elemental power, enhancing every strike, every parry. Even with his speed, the beasts kept coming—relentless and endless—pouring from the black rift in the sky.
Hiro's eyes locked on the rift. Black energy spiraled outward like smoke, its edges crackling with dangerous instability.
He had to close it.
Students screamed, scattering for cover, but Hiro couldn't stop. He was the only one capable of stopping the tide of destruction. His mind raced, calculating how to approach the rift safely while continuing to fight. Every second mattered. Every hesitation could cost lives.
A massive beast lunged at him, jaws snapping. Hiro sidestepped, twisting midair, and drove his sword into its chest. But it didn't matter—every beast he killed seemed to be replaced by seven more pouring out from the rift.
"I just need to close the rift," Hiro muttered, rolling under another snapping jaw. He plunged his sword into the eyes of a massive creature, pouring his elemental power into it from the inside. The beast screamed, gore and blood splashing across his face as it exploded, but he didn't falter.
"Hiro, are you alright?"
He froze at the voice, turning to see a girl with green hair, a bow in her hands, standing a short distance away.
"Sophie!" Hiro shouted, barrelling forward through the chaos and pulling her into a tight hug.
"Eww! Stop! You're covered in blood!" Sophie protested, struggling in his arms, her voice a mix of shock and concern.
Hiro quickly stepped back, releasing her, and took in her small frame. Her green hair was streaked with a few drops of blood, but aside from that, she looked unharmed. Relief washed over him, sharp and immediate, cutting through the adrenaline in his veins.
"Are you okay?" he asked, voice tense.
"I'm fine!" Sophie replied quickly, trying to sound brave, but her eyes betrayed her worry. "What about you? You're… covered in blood! are you hurt?"
Hiro glanced down at himself—his armor and clothes streaked with gore, the metallic scent of blood thick in the air. He shook his head.
"I'm fine. It's just blood, nothing else. Don't worry about me. Right now, we need to stop those monsters… and that rift."
Sophie's bow twitched in her hands, her fingers tightening around it. "Right… but how?"
Yes… how, Hiro thought, his mind racing as he tried to come up with a reasonable solution to close the rift.
"We'll have to get close to it first," Hiro said, meeting Sophie's determined gaze.