Tap. Tap. Tap.
Footsteps echoed through the corridor, slow and deliberate, as if the sound itself enjoyed being heard.
"Hmmm… hmm…"
A familiar, amused hum drifted through the air, playful—yet laced with menace.
"Dear Catia… I never expected to see you here, darling."
Growndie murmured under her breath the moment the voice reached her ears.Her fingers tightened unconsciously.
She's dangerous…
Even with all her power, Growndie felt an instinctive warning flare within her chest.
A devilish woman. One I can't handle.And I never knew she had a little sister…
Catia froze.
"Why are you here, sis?" she asked, her voice trembling despite her attempt to stay composed."And what do you intend to do this time?"
The woman smiled slowly, savoring her fear.
"Oh? My cute little sister," she said softly."I've never done anything bad to you, have I?"
She took a step forward.
"So why are you always so afraid of me?"
Before Catia could respond—
"Enough."
Pride's voice descended like a verdict.
"That's enough talking."
The air compressed instantly, pressure bearing down on everyone present. Even breathing felt heavier.
"Growndie. Amanda," Pride continued calmly."You will train these two—Joshen and Catia."
His gaze shifted.
"Kame. You're coming with me."
Amanda's lips curved upward.
"Ara~ ara~ Catia," she said with mock sweetness."I'll be training you personally. Get ready, sis~ hm~ ha~ ha~ ha~"
Her laughter echoed, sharp and unsettling.
Joshen clenched his fists.
"Mr. Pride… isn't there any other way?" he pleaded."Any other person who can teach us?"
Pride didn't even turn.
"No excuses."
Two words.
Final.
Joshen and Catia exchanged helpless glances before following Amanda and Growndie, dread clinging to their steps like chains.
Pride turned away.
"Kame. Come."
He began walking.
"I'll take you to the Sanctuary," he said."For your trial."
Kame followed, unease settling in his chest.
"What trial?" he asked.
Pride didn't slow.
"A trial that is inevitable," he replied."One required to awaken the Third Power."
They walked.
And walked.
Time lost meaning.
"Mr. Pride…" Kame finally said, fatigue creeping into his voice."When are we supposed to reach this Sanctuary?"
Pride stopped.
"We already have."
Kame frowned.
"What…?"
"Didn't you notice?"
Silence surrounded them.
White stone pillars stretched endlessly in every direction, their tops disappearing into a pale, artificial sky.The ground beneath their feet was smooth—unscarred.
Too perfect.
Kame felt a chill but couldn't place why.
"How far is the trial?" he asked again.
No response.
They moved forward.
Kame didn't notice when the air changed.Didn't notice when the echoes of their footsteps dulled.Didn't notice when the world stopped feeling real.
Only when the sound reached his ears did he stop.
Ding.
A school bell.
Kame froze.
"That wasn't—"
He looked down.
His hands were smaller.
Too small.
His sleeves hung loose. His body felt light—fragile.
Wrong.
He lifted his head.
The Sanctuary was gone.
He stood in a narrow school corridor. White walls covered in childish drawings.The scent of chalk filled the air.
Above the door ahead, neat letters read:
NURSERY – A
His heart pounded violently.
"This… is the trial," Kame whispered.
He reached inward, summoning his power.
Nothing answered.
No strength.No presence.
Only emptiness.
Inside the classroom, tiny desks were arranged in perfect rows.Colorful alphabets filled the blackboard.
A teacher stood at the front.
Her face was blurred—undefined.
"Good morning," she said gently.
The voice shattered him.
His mother's.
Kame stepped back.
"This isn't real."
He looked around.
The children's faces were familiar.
They were his childhood friends—unfinished, fragile versions of who they once were.
One of them tilted his head.
"Why do you act like you're already grown up?"
The world shifted.
He stood in his childhood home.
Small.Quiet.Safe.
His parents faced him, worry etched softly across their faces.
"You don't have to be strong all the time," his father said.
"I do," Kame replied instantly."If I stop… everything falls apart."
His mother smiled sadly.
"That's what scares us."
A mirror rose before him.
The reflection wasn't a warrior.
It was a child—
standing too straight, fists clenched, pretending not to tremble.
Pride's voice echoed, calm and merciless.
"This is not your fear, Kame."
"This is your pride."
"You believed growing stronger meant growing up."
"But you never allowed yourself to be weak."
The mirror shattered.
In its fragments, Kame saw every moment he forced himself forward—
—and the cost others paid instead.
Lost childhoods.Broken futures.Unspoken regrets.Silent graves.
The illusion collapsed.
White stone returned.
Pillars.Silence.
The Sanctuary.
Kame stood exactly where he had begun.
Pride faced him, expression unchanged.
"When did the trial begin?" Kame asked quietly.
Pride replied,
"When you stopped noticing where you were."
The Sanctuary remained still.
But Kame's hands trembled.
And for the first time—
he didn't hide it.