The ruined kingdom did not remain quiet for long.
Where silence had once lived, noise soon followed.
Mostly Sora's.
"HEY! THAT WAS TOO FAST!"
Water exploded across the courtyard.
Sora tumbled backward and landed flat on the ground.
Johan stood several meters away, one hand raised calmly as droplets of water slowly returned to the puddle beside him.
"You ran straight at me again," Johan said.
Sora sat up, rubbing the back of his head.
"Well yeah!"
"That's not a strategy."
Sora pointed his wooden sword at him.
"Then stop using magic!"
Johan crossed his arms.
"That's the point of training."
Sora turned toward Juluis.
"That's unfair!"
Juluis sat on a broken piece of stone nearby, watching the two of them with quiet eyes.
"You will face enemies who use Aether," he said calmly.
"Then you must learn how to fight them."
Sora groaned.
"But I don't even have Aether!"
Johan smirked slightly.
"Maybe you're just weak."
Sora froze.
"…What did you say?"
Johan shrugged.
"You heard me."
Sora jumped to his feet.
"Come here!"
The fight started instantly.
Wooden swords clashed.
Feet kicked up dust across the ruined courtyard.
Sora attacked wildly, swinging his blade with relentless energy.
Johan moved with sharp precision, dodging strikes and striking back with perfect timing.
A wave of water suddenly slammed into Sora's legs.
Sora crashed to the ground again.
"HEY!"
Johan sighed.
"You fall too easily."
Sora grabbed a rock and threw it.
Johan ducked.
The rock hit a broken pillar behind him.
Juluis closed his eyes briefly.
"…Enough."
Both boys stopped immediately.
Sora stood up slowly, brushing dirt from his clothes.
Johan looked away, pretending not to care.
The wind moved softly through the broken walls of the ruined kingdom.
For the first time in years—
the place felt alive again.
Time moved forward quietly.
Seasons changed.
Grass grew taller around the ruined fortress.
Rain fell across the broken stones.
Snow occasionally covered the valley in silence.
But every morning—
training continued.
Sora ran until his legs burned.
Again.
And again.
And again.
Johan practiced his magic beside the river that flowed not far from the ruins.
Water obeyed him easily.
At first it had been small things.
Moving puddles.
Shaping droplets.
But as the years passed—
the water grew stronger.
Larger.
Sharper.
One afternoon, Sora sat on the grass watching.
Johan stood near the riverbank.
With a single motion of his hand—
the entire river rose.
Water twisted through the air like a giant serpent before crashing back into its path.
Sora stared.
"…That's ridiculous."
Johan glanced at him.
"You're just jealous."
"I am jealous!"
Sora threw a stick into the river.
"Why don't I get cool powers?"
Johan shrugged.
"Maybe the world just likes me more."
Sora scowled.
"That doesn't even make sense."
Johan looked at him for a moment.
"…You still haven't felt it?"
Sora blinked.
"Felt what?"
"Aether."
Sora looked down at his hands.
"No."
Johan frowned slightly.
"That's strange."
Sora forced a grin.
"Doesn't matter."
He grabbed his sword and stood up.
"I'll just train harder."
And he did.
Every day.
Every night.
While Johan mastered magic—
Sora sharpened his body.
His speed improved.
His sword strikes became faster.
Stronger.
More precise.
Sometimes they fought until sunset.
Sometimes until the moon rose high in the sky.
Their rivalry never disappeared.
"Too slow!"
"Stop dodging!"
"You missed!"
"That was on purpose!"
Even Juluis occasionally wondered how the ruined kingdom hadn't collapsed completely from the noise.
Through all those years—
Juluis watched.
Quietly.
Patiently.
The two boys grew stronger.
Stronger than most warriors their age.
Stronger than many adults.
But sometimes—
late at night—
Juluis stood alone outside the ruins.
Looking at the sky.
His expression was unreadable.
Because something inside him had begun to stir.
Something ancient.
Something patient.
Sometimes he felt it in his dreams.
A presence.
Watching.
Waiting.
Juluis never spoke about it.
Not to Sora.
Not to Johan.
But deep inside his thoughts—
a single realization slowly formed.
It is getting closer.
Years passed.
The boys were no longer children.
Both had grown taller.
Stronger.
Seventeen years old.
The ruined kingdom had become their home.
On one quiet morning—
Sora woke up first.
Sunlight was already creeping across the broken courtyard.
He stretched lazily.
"Juluis?"
No answer.
That wasn't unusual.
Sometimes Juluis woke earlier than them.
Sora walked outside.
The valley was quiet.
Too quiet.
Johan soon stepped out from the ruined tower.
"Where's Juluis?"
Sora shrugged.
"Probably outside."
They searched the courtyard.
The training grounds.
The river.
The nearby hills.
But Juluis was nowhere.
By midday, the silence had become unsettling.
Johan stood in the center of the courtyard, arms crossed.
"…He's gone."
Sora frowned.
"What do you mean gone?"
"There's no trace of him."
Sora looked around again.
The sword rack.
The broken pillars.
The training field.
Everything looked exactly the same.
Except—
Juluis wasn't there.
No footprints.
No signs of struggle.
Nothing.
Sora suddenly shouted toward the hills.
"JULUIS!"
His voice echoed across the valley.
But only the wind answered.
Johan looked at the ground quietly.
"…He left."
Sora clenched his fists.
"Without saying anything?"
Johan didn't reply.
The wind moved through the ruined kingdom once more.
Just like it had before they arrived years ago.
And for the first time since they had met him—
Juluis was truly gone.