POV – Heyo
Why is she looking at me like that?
I don't know if I'm prey she wants to devour… or a kid she wants to protect.
But knowing Évra, it's probably both.
She's holding back. From eating me. Breaking me. Crushing me.
And yet… her flames heal.
Flames that heal, for fuck's sake.
Who would've thought that this barbarian—this half-dragon creature—could produce something other than destruction?
And I have to admit… it feels good.
A little too good.
I'm going to get used to that warmth.
To that gentle brutality.
I look at her. I stare.
"First training session… you almost killed your three students. Congratulations."
She smiles. Wide. Provocative.
"You can call me 'you,' little dove. The fact that you're all still alive proves you deserve to be my students."
I look away, a sigh on my lips.
"Honored. So what's the training program?"
She stares again. A bit distant.
"I already told you: survival. You barely passed the first step. Once you can stand… we continue."
I look at her, lost. Stunned. Terrified.
"For three months? And after?"
She says it like it's obvious.
"After? You take the test to become demon hunters. If you survive… you go to the front with me. To kill demons."
What the hell.
My stomach knots. My legs almost buckle.
So that's the future?
I'm supposed to train to go to war?
To fight my Contrary—the demon born from me?
That feeling again.
That suffocating pressure…
Like the whole universe wants me dead.
I whisper:
"The future looks… eventful."
She answers with a smile.
And the blue flames around us flare brighter.
I think she's going to flambé us again.
I close my eyes for half a second.
But no.
I reopen them.
And I feel… fine.
Too fine.
My wounds? Gone.
I even feel a faint surge of Word energy.
Fortuna rises. Beauty restored instantly, but her voice is strained.
"You're insane. I thought I was dead."
Évra laughs—rough, mocking.
"Haha, I forgot about you. Nice power. But next time you can hit me… hit hard."
Fortuna exhales.
"I see, I see… I won't forget."
And in her eyes—
A flame.
A seed of rage.
She's ready too.
Aris is already on his feet. Straight. Solid.
"That was a magnificent attack. I didn't think I could survive it. Thank you for healing us."
Évra grins, proud.
"Finally someone who understands the privilege of being trained by the greatest warrior. You've got potential, kid! Hahaha!"
Then I hear the most irritating thing in existence.
"TEST ONE TWO! TEST ONE TWO!"
I grimace.
Valie. And her damn megaphone.
Shame the dragon breath didn't vaporize her.
She screams across the Coliseum:
"ARIS, STOP USING YOUR ABILITY ON YOUR WHOLE BODY! FOCUS ON—"
I snatch the mic, exhausted.
"Valie… You can speak normally into this thing. We'll hear you."
I hand it back.
She screeches, "HEYOOOO—"
I sigh.
She tires me.
She entertains me.
She shreds my nerves.
But she knows us.
All three of us.
And sometimes, in her chaos, she says truths no one else would.
She breathes out, calmer.
"Aris… stop using your ability on your entire body. You're wasting your energy. You're suffering for nothing. Focus your strength on key areas. Legs when you strike, torso when you defend. You don't need to burn yourself from the inside with every movement."
Aris lowers his head slightly.
He listens.
He doesn't argue.
He absorbs.
He learns.
Then Valie turns to Fortuna.
Her voice shifts again.
"Fortuna. Your power is twisted. And strong. Maybe too strong. But you understood it. If the target refuses your challenge… your power is dead. And you're not protected from attacks not aimed at you—collateral damage still hits you. You can't just hope fate plays in your favor. Assume everyone will refuse to play. And train yourself to fight without relying on luck. Because a power that depends on others… is a weakness if you can't control the rules."
Silence.
Fortuna doesn't answer.
But her eyes narrow.
She watches Valie.
She thinks.
And I see it—
the spark of rebellion,
the refusal to be dominated.
She takes the note.
In her own way.
Then Valie sighs, turning to me.
"And Heyo…"
I tense.
"You can summon anything. And you choose shitty pistols. Wobbly rocket launchers. You really think that's going to cut it? Go to the armory. Learn weapons. Learn Words. Learn the world. Because your Word… it's too strong to be left in the hands of an ignorant kid."
Silence falls. Heavy.
She's not wrong.
I summoned what I knew.
What reassured me.
But maybe what I know…
is already too outdated for what I have to face.
The others watch me.
Évra with her amused smile.
Fortuna, arms crossed, thoughtful.
Aris, focused as always.
Valie exhausts me—
but somehow, she makes me laugh.
I catch the small smiles on Aris and Fortuna's faces.
Then Évra slaps my shoulder.
"Hahaha! Didn't know you had a bit of humor in you. You always look constipated."
I…
Constipated?
The comment stings.
But…
I smile.
For real.
And laugh. A little.
"Heh… constipated, huh? Can't remember the last time I laughed."
Weird.
I feel… lighter.
Less crushed.
Maybe we just survived hell.
But here, in this still-smoking Coliseum…
I think something changed.