the farmer continued his journey for two days and one night, yet Rem and Nadya, whom he carried, remained unconscious.
As far as the eye could see, a small farm stretched out, containing most types of fruits and crops. In the center of these fields stood a small shack—the farmer's home.
The cart he was pulling was not light; in fact, such carts were meant to be pulled by horses, yet he was pulling it with his bare hands.
The farmer stopped the cart outside the shack. He lifted Rem onto one shoulder and Nadya onto the other and carried them inside.
He gently laid Rem on his back on the floor, then placed Nadya on his small bed near the wall. His house was extremely humble, containing only a single dining table, one chair, one mattress, and a few hanging candles.
He fetched some herbs, mixed them with water, and slowly poured the mixture into Rem's mouth. Afterward, he sat down at Rem's feet and simply watched him.
After a short period of silence, Rem's eyes slowly opened to the sight of the farmer sitting with his head resting near Rem's.
Rem tried to bolt upright instantly, slamming his head into the farmer's. Both men fell to the floor, writhing in pain.
"Hey, you! Is that how you thank the person who saved you?!"
the farmer screamed.
"What? Who are you? Where is my sister!" Rem's expression was hostile, as he clearly didn't understand the situation, his first instinct being to secure the most important asset: his sister, Nadya.
"She's over there, don't worry," the farmer gestured toward his bed.
"Who are you?.."
"Me? You can call me Asari."
"Asari? What are we doing here?"
"When I was coming back from the Western Market, I spotted you two falling from the sky. I thought you were falling stars and I wanted my wishes to be granted, so I saved you."
"We are not stars."
"And my wishes weren't granted. Life doesn't always go as one desires. Sometimes you wish for rice with honey, and you get honey with rice."
Rem's expression twisted into one of confusion, but he sensed that the answer would only be more nonsense, and he didn't have time for gibberish.
Memories of his father's execution and his fight against Roger flashed in his mind for a few seconds. That was enough to make him gag in disgust.
Asari approached and patted his shoulder, but the sheer shock reflected in Rem's eyes was enough to make Asari leave him be.
"Who died? Someone close?"
Rem's eyes lifted toward Asari.
"My father..."
"Was he killed? Or was it an illness?"
"He was killed by th—"
"No need to tell me who killed him. Was he a warrior?"
Asari's simple questions caused the memories of Regam to flood Rem's mind, displacing all the painful memories of that day. Regam's loving smile, how he hugged Rem every time he returned from the castle, and how they trained together all the time.
Unbeknownst to him, tears streamed down onto the wooden floor of the shack, and a small smile touched Asari's lips.
"You didn't answer me. Was he a warrior?"
"Yes."
"Was he a strong warrior?"
"Yes!"
"Did you love him?"
"Very much! More than he knew."
Asari slowly stood up, approached Rem, and patted his shoulder with a compassionate smile.
"Young man, the people who passed away and left us alone... they didn't really leave. They just found another way to be close to us... in memories."
"And so we remember them and carry those memories with us through every situation. That way, they live every moment of our lives. If we continue living, it means they never truly left."
Rem didn't speak, but he continued to cry until his tears dried and his eyelids turned red.
Asari didn't interrupt his weeping or mind it at all. He simply carried on with his own affairs until Rem finally stopped crying.
Asari gave Rem a quick glance and smiled. Rem didn't understand the meaning of that fleeting look, but Asari then approached a long box that was buried beneath the wooden floorboards of the house.
Asari pulled out a sword twice Rem's length. It was covered in dust and grime.
With a single puff, particles of dust scattered everywhere. Once they settled, Rem could see a stark, dark blackness in the edge of the blade.
Asari approached Rem and placed the tip of the sword against Rem's neck.
"Before sadness, there was happiness. Before loneliness, there was family. And after tears, comes revenge."
Asari handed the sword to Rem and took two steps back, drawing his own blade from its sheath. Asari's sword wasn't long, nor did it possess a terrifying aura like Destruction Bringer or Point Zero instead, it was serene and pure, like river water.
"The sword I gave you belonged to General Mahin... a man I killed in the war between Arashia and Solar."
"...."
"He was a truly strong and annoying man. I was forced to fight him for two continuous weeks until his sword was knocked from his hands. In the end, I delivered the final strike."
"Arashia won the war, and many Solar residents sought revenge until their Enza gathered and took a dark form. That Enza possessed this sword."
"Possessed it...?"
"If you confront someone you hate and wound them with this blade, their Enza flow will stop until you lift the effect. This means you will be the only one with Enza in the fight."
"But I can't use Enza..."
"Ah... then it will be a fair fight~"
"...."
"But I won't give it to you for free. I worked hard to get it and control its power, and I haven't had a good training in a while. So..."
Asari stepped out into the field. Rem followed him to a large circular area within the field, surrounded by trees but empty in the center, as if all the trees there had been sliced down by a massive blade.
"I used to train here a lot."
"Did you cut down the trees so you could train?"
"I cut down the trees while I was training..."
"...."
"Take your stance, and take a deep breath."
Only the wind spoke in that second of time.
Asari rode the breeze, moving like a shadow in the sunlight, while Rem's movements mirrored Asari's with the exact same speed.
Sparks flew everywhere, yet there was no trace of either of them, only the footprints they left behind. The swift phantoms clashed multiple times, and the sound of swords echoed and reflected through the tree branches.
With every one or two strikes, Rem and Asari would pause and exchange a momentary glance before moving like storms again.
After numerous continuous clashes, Rem's body was covered in scratches, while Asari stood with a casual smile, his body completely untouched.
"You're fast, little one... but that's all you have. And unfortunately for you, I'm faster."
Rem and Asari clashed again, and Rem was sent flying deep into the forest, his back crashing against one of the trees. Asari could hear the sound of Rem's spine from where he stood.
"See? One mistake from you could cost you your life. My Enza is the reason for the speed difference, but what about you? What will you do?"
A pure white aura, like the fires of Eden, flowed from Asari's body, surrounding him like the spring wind.
"Use the sword... its power was created from the hatred for the people of Arashia... I am from Arashia."
As soon as the sword heard Asari's words, a hideous, dark aura erupted from the black blade Rem held.
The dark aura began to devour Rem's hands, infecting them. The feeling burned deep within Rem like hellfire, and he could hear the sword's emotions.
"Damn them! They killed my son! My mother!! Let them die! My father!!"
All these emotions poured deep into Rem, corrupting him from within. His eyes were enveloped in absolute blackness, and the rot began to cover his forearms. His screams echoed deep into the forest.
"Control it! This is their hatred, not yours! Don't carry it for them! You have your own hatred, your own goal, and your own enemy! Think about that!"
Once again, the image of Roger and Rodan reflected in Rem's mind, completely overriding the sword's emotions. All Rem could see was his mother, his father's blood that had blinded his eyes, and the crimson rain that drowned his life.
The blackness cleared from Rem's eyes, but the rot on his hands remained steady. Rem wanted it to stay.
Rem closed the distance between himself and Asari, leaving a dark, burning trail of the sword's hatred, as if it was hellfire behind him.
Black flames flew with every clash between the two swords. Rem's presence was no longer quiet like the wind, it was furious, like a storm.
Like the two halves of the Yin and Yang, Asari and Rem clashed countless times, both leaving cuts on the other's body, but neither stopped swinging their swords.
In a battle of equal attrition, Rem fell defeated after the sword had consumed all his physical energy.
"This boy... was it the effect of the Gull Herb that gave him all this endurance, or is he just a little monster?"
Asari picked up Rem and returned him to the shack. The moment he stepped inside, a ceramic bowl was flung at him, hitting his head and knocking him to the floor.
Nadya ran toward her older brother and hugged him tightly, then glared at Asari with cute hostility.
"I won't let you hurt my brother!"
"What?"
Asari rubbed his swollen head. Rem gently touched his sister's head, exhaustion gnawing at his limbs.
"I'm fine, Nadya."
"But look at your hands…" Rem's hands were completely charred, the marks of the curse having devoured them entirely.
"It's nothing."
"Power comes at a price," Asari said, heading toward the shelves above his small bookcase.
"This sword has the power to defeat all your enemies... but it can also be your doom."
Asari handed long gloves to Rem. The gloves were the same dark color as the sword. The moment Rem let go of the sword, the rot vanished from his hands. He quickly put on the gloves.
The blade returned to its silver color, and the traces of the curse vanished.
"If you use these gloves, the curse won't affect your body... but the sword's powers will not activate unless your body touches it. Wear them always, and only take them off in emergencies."
"Understood."
"Your inability to use Enza means you can't become an Eathlth, which means you'll never be able to use the Soul Tamer Form."
"That's true."
"This sword will compensate for that weakness. So, just as an Eathlth names his sword, you must name this one."
Rem looked at his sword for a long time, gripping it tightly. In his grasp now was his path to finding the reason behind everything that happened, achieving his revenge, and returning to his peace.
"Judgment blade.. "
"Sounds good~"