---
**[Scene - Royal Magic Academy – Morning]**
"Where is Kuro today?"
Rei's silence was louder than the instructor's voice.
Kuro hadn't shown up since the battle.
Ryuto could feel it too. A quiet stillness within the academy halls. A heaviness in the air.
> *He lost his parents. It's like something in him was lost before too...* His eyes were wide with realization.
Princess Alisa stood quietly in the corridor, clutching a single white flower.
> "How long... will we keep losing to the demons...? We couldn't protect what was important to him. And what's important to others..."
She gritted her teeth.
---
**[Scene - Kuro's Abandoned Home – Edge of the Forest]**
The house that once stood proudly—a humble cabin built by two veteran adventurers.
Now, only burned wreckage remained.
Kuro stood amidst the ruins, his hands in his pockets, staring vacantly.
The wind carried ashes. A scorched doll. A half-melted picture frame. A shattered teacup.
He said nothing.
Rei approached his side, her eyes trembling.
> "Kuro-sama…"
Still, he said nothing.
He slowly knelt, picking up a splintered piece of wood from the doorway, gathering all that remained of the entrance.
> "I was too slow," Kuro finally murmured. "They... were too kind."
Rei looked down at him. "Not even the gods could save them."
> "Then the gods aren't worthy of saving."
---
**[Scene - The Religious Sect – Emberholme City, Ironwood & Flarewood Border]**
In a city far from the capital, surrounded by white spires and golden domes—the sacred stronghold of Sanctum Lumina, Emberholme—whispers echoed.
[Sanctum Lumina - The religious organization]
Inside the grand Cathedral of Radiance, hundreds of white-robed followers lined up, kneeling, eyes closed, hands raised.
On the pulpit, Grand Cardinal Sarion stood, his eyes glowing faintly.
> "The Light has returned," he declared, spreading his hands. "A new Hero has been summoned."
Cheers erupted. Bells rang.
Behind him, a massive stained glass window depicted the first golden-armored hero, slaying demons and chasing away shadows.
> "Let us usher in a new Age of Light."
But deep below the church, beneath layers of prayer and polished floors, lay the Inquisition Division.
Their leader, a hooded man with crimson eyes, tapped a clear crystal orb.
> "Find the Hero," he commanded. "And protect him from the shadows."
> "And the Darkness Lord?" another voice asked.
The hooded man smiled thinly.
> "He is no hero; he is merely a dissident."
---
**[Scene - The Forest Mountains – Kuro and Rei]**
At sunset, Kuro and Rei built a small shrine beside the ruins of the house.
Rei placed two wildflowers there. Kuro remained silent.
> "Master doesn't have to bear this burden alone," she whispered softly.
Kuro's voice was hoarse.
> "It's a burden I must bear, Rei."
> "Master is still human."
He looked at her, his eyes cold yet trembling.
> "I'm not sure."
He stood and turned away.
> "If the gods created this world where kindness dies and wicked rules exist, then I will become their opposition."
> "This world doesn't need justice. It needs mine."
---
**[Scene - Royal Magic Academy – That Night]**
Ryuto stared at the moon from the academy rooftop.
> "I was summoned to overcome the darkness…"
But a doubt grew in his heart.
> "Who decides what is darkness?"
He remembered Kuro's quiet demeanor. How he had helped show him around the school. How he respectfully bowed to the teachers.
> *I never felt anything from Kuro... He... couldn't be.*
> *And yet... the Church of Light has declared Shujin evil.*
> *Is the world just black and white like the gods say...?*
---
**[Scene - Emberholme - A Secret Meeting]**
Within the holy city, Grand Cardinal Sarion met with a shadowed noble, a representative of the Flarewood Royal House.
> "The Darkness Lord has appeared," Sarion stated.
> "Then the time has come," the noble replied. "Our nations must unite under the Light."
But they didn't notice the flicker within the crystal behind them.
> "How interesting," Shujin's voice whispered in the air. "So even faith... is just another mask."
---
✦ **To be continued...**