Illuminati Training Center, Observation cabin
"Good afternoon, Mr. Yurihana. I'm Airi… I've been assigned as your assistant for the Trainee Potential Selection Examination." said Airi, her voice steady.
"Good afternoon Ms. Airi...", replied Taishiro, smiling softly.
Airi gave her Illuminati code and her documents to Taishiro. Taishiro skimmed through them quickly, and asked, "So, you've joined 3 months ago?"
"Y-Yes sir!" replied Airi, a wave nervousness hitting her...
"Hmm.... Okay then. I need a list of all the alive candidates of my batch. NOW!" commanded Taishiro.
"Copy that!" replied Airi, her hands already on the keyboard as she searched through the status of the candidates...
Taishiro stood at some distance, checking his phone. Airi continued her work, but the sudden silence made her slightly uncomfortable...
The keyboard was sounding too loud in the silence... As if resembling the calmness before a storm.
The room felt smaller, heavier… as if it had been holding its breath for decades. Airi's fingers hesitated for the briefest moment, and somewhere deep, she felt it... like eyes were on her, even though no one else had entered yet.
"Are you done yet?" asked Taishiro, impatiently.
"Ha- Halfway there..." replied Airi, startled by the sudden interrogation, her fingers pausing mid‑stroke. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears. Something about the stillness in the room made her stomach twist. A presence, unannounced, pressing against the walls.
"How's everything going, Yurihana?" came a deep, low voice of a shadow at the entrance door.
Airi's eyes shot to the doorway. The shadow didn't move… but it wasn't supposed to be there. Her fingers trembled over the keys; each tap a drumbeat in her chest.
Taishiro didn't flinch. He just looked up slowly, calm as a winter lake, and said, "Everything good. What 'bout you Lord Shigen?"
Shigen came out of the shadows, his golden mane shining under the light, eyes locked towards Taishiro.
Airi froze. She couldn't scream or run. Horrified, she turned towards Taishiro and whispered "I-Is that a... m-mask?!"
Taishiro ignored her.
Shigen stepped forward, each movement deliberate, like the shadows themselves were bending around him. The golden mane wasn't a wig—it shimmered unnaturally, shifting like living fire. His eyes, sharp and piercing, locked onto Taishiro, calculating, measuring… predatory.
Airi's fingers hovered over the keyboard, frozen mid‑tap. Her stomach twisted, her chest tight. She tried to breathe, but the air felt thick, sticky, alive. She whispered again, trembling, "I-It… it's… not real, right?"
Taishiro's expression didn't change. He just said, softly, "Focus, Airi. Do not be afraid... He's a hybridized Illuminator..."
"Hybridized Illuminators," Taishiro continued, calm as ever, "are not bound by human limitations. They see, they anticipate… they remember. Do not make sudden moves."
Airi's heartbeat drummed so loud it drowned out the keyboard. She glanced at Taishiro—he was calm, collected, inviting the storm. She looked back at Shigen… and something in his eyes promised chaos.
The room no longer felt like a room. It was a cage. And she was right in the middle of it.
"S-Sir... H-Here's you list..." stammered Airi, handing the printed paper to Taishiro...
"I've been waiting for this… meeting, Taishiro" Shigen said, voice low, vibrating against the walls.
Taishiro's eyes shifted from the report paper and glanced at Shigen...
Shigen leaned closer, and for a fleeting moment, the golden lion face seemed almost… human. Then the fangs gleamed. A low growl rumbled from deep within, vibrating through Airi's bones.
"I've been assigned as the Trainer Inspector for your batch, since it's your first training batch." claimed Shigen, voice still and deep...
Taishiro smirked and mockingly said, "So I'd need to follow a 150-year-old lion head to train my fellow students?"
"Yes kiddo..." replied Shigen...
Airi's hands shook. The keyboard felt useless now; the paper in her hand felt like it weighed a ton.
"How's Yuki's son doing?" asked Shigen out of curiosity. "I hope good, he's still alive... But, as per the stats, his condition doesn't seem any better.."
Shigen looked right into Taishiro's eyes, and said, "Yuki's legacy needs to be preserved... At any cost... And. What about your brother?"
Taishiro went quiet for a moment, and replied, "He's still alive, and seems to be seriously injured... I can't lose him..."
"He'd make it." replied Shigen... "He'd definietly make it.... Along with Yuki's son."
Airi felt it then..... not fear, not panic, but something colder. He wasn't threatening Taishiro. He was reminding him.
The room went still. Even the low hum of the monitors seemed to fade.
Taishiro's jaw tightened. The smirk was gone now. His fingers curled slowly around the edge of the report paper, crumpling it just enough to betray him.
"At any cost…" he repeated quietly.
Shigen straightened, mane settling like a crown of fire. "Legacy is a burden, Yurihana. Those who carry it either rise… or get crushed beneath it."