It's been a year since the resurrection of Jiraci.
The wind had been ruthless that day.
Hot. Dry. Merciless.
Sand spiraled through the desert like ghosts dancing over a battlefield stained in blood. Jiraci stood at the center of it all—calm, almost amused—while Hatrood faced him with cracked armor and trembling hands. A few meters away, Noa knelt on one knee, blood dripping from his forehead onto the burning sand.
How had it come to this?
To understand that moment, you had to go back—back to the uneasy alliance between Sovereign and Elysium.
The Alliance of Necessity
After months of bloodshed, both nations reached a bitter conclusion:
Jiraci was a greater threat than each other.
Amity of Elysium and Water of Sovereign stood before their armies and declared a temporary alliance. Pride was swallowed. Grudges were postponed. The goal was singular—kill Jiraci.
But alliances without strength were meaningless.
So they created a training plan.
The Top Four Warlords of each nation would personally train the combined forces.
Elysium's Four:
Amity
Midnight
Felix
Kyutaro
Sovereign's Four:
Water
Skewpid
Revs
Tree
And thus began hell.
The Training From Hell
No powers.
No abilities.
No regeneration.
No shortcuts.
Only raw human endurance.
They stood beneath freezing waterfalls before sunrise, muscles shaking as icy torrents battered their skin. They ran kilometers under a merciless sun, boots sinking into hot sand. They punched sandbags buried deep in dunes for five hours straight—knuckles splitting, bones aching.
Anyone who failed… received double punishment.
Some soldiers broke mentally.
Some physically.
Some both.
Noa endured.
Even inside a borrowed body.
Even without his eye's power.
Even without regeneration.
He fell. He bled. He stood up again.
Despite losing what once made him monstrous, he still outscored many soldiers in combat drills. Training matches ended with opponents staring at the sky, wondering how someone so weakened could move that sharply.
Water noticed.
Skewpid did too.
And Skewpid did not like it.
After Hours
When the others left at dusk—groaning, exhausted—Noa remained.
Again.
And again.
He practiced sword forms under the fading light. Switched to an axe. Then to a bow. Then hand-to-hand footwork in the sand. Sweat soaked his clothes. Blood stained his palms.
Behind him, soldiers muttered.
"Idiot."
"Trying too hard."
"Lost his powers and still acting big."
Noa ignored them.
Water approached slowly.
"Hey! You. I want to talk with you."
They sat on a large rock overlooking the empty field.
Noa wiped sweat from his face. "So what exactly what you want?"
Water looked at him quietly before speaking.
"Well, first of all… I am sorry."
Noa frowned. "Sorry? What you even did? Gave me hard training?"
Water shook his head.
"No. Not that. I am sorry on the behalf of Sovereign. Because of Sovereign ancient rituals, you lost your body… and also your powers due to your eye now belongs to 7th."
The wind grew softer.
Noa shrugged.
"Oh come on, stop being dramatic now. I didn't give a fuck when I lost my powers and my body. Why are you so worried about me?"
Water looked at him carefully.
"Well you know… you're exactly like me and my original friend Jiraci."
Noa tilted his head. "Original friend? Not very nice to say that to your friend."
Water's expression hardened.
"Well, he was my original friend. Now not. After what he tried to do… he tried to use black magic in order to rule over this world and abuse the army of Sovereign on others. Well… that really wasn't nice."
Silence.
Then Noa asked the question that changed everything.
"Can you teach me your techniques? Like… you are so good in weaponry — sword, axe, bow, even hand to hand combat. So can you teach me everything?"
Water smirked.
"And why would you wanna learn that?"
Noa answered honestly.
"I wanna be like you. You're the strongest in Asia and one of the strongest in Europe. That's why."
Water's smile faded.
"Well even though I am strongest… I know everything… I still am not best person."
Noa blinked. "What you mean?"
Water's voice lowered.
"I know every attack. Every weaponry. Still I am not master of anything. I might know when to attack and when to block. Being perfect at everything… still I wasn't good enough to stop my friend without killing him."
His fist tightened.
"Carrying the guilt every day."
He looked directly at Noa.
"Noa this is a lesson for you. You can be the strongest and be the hero in everyone's eye, with everyone thinking that 'how nice it must be to be strongest.' But they don't know what a person has to face to be the strongest — the guilt, the sacrifices, the pain."
His voice turned calm. Certain.
"You will know it soon Noa. As I know you will be the strongest after me."
Noa stared at him for three seconds.
Then sighed dramatically.
"Oh my god, such a big lecture. All I asked was can I train under you, jeez."
Water burst into laughter.
"Ha! First lesson — you need to be patient and listen everything nicely and patiently first."
Noa smirked. "Is this my first training lesson?"
Water stood up.
"Hmm. I guess so."
He began walking away.
"Be ready for tomorrow, Mr."
Water walked away with a faint smile.
Noa sighed.
"Old man talks too much…"
But he was smiling too.
Day One Under Water
Before sunrise, Noa arrived.
Water was already there.
Sword in hand.
"Draw yours," Water said calmly.
Noa blinked. "That's it? No speech?"
Water attacked.
No warning.
Steel clashed. Sparks scattered in the dark.
Water's movements were flawless—no wasted motion, no hesitation. Every strike was precise. Noa blocked three attacks before the fourth slipped through and knocked him into the sand.
"Too slow," Water said.
They repeated.
Again.
And again.
By noon, Noa's arms were shaking uncontrollably.
By evening, he couldn't lift his blade properly.
Water never once looked tired.
Enter Skewpid
On the third day, as Noa trained footwork drills, a slow clap echoed across the grounds.
Skewpid.
Tall. Lean. Eyes sharp with quiet arrogance.
"So this is the 'future strongest'?" he said mockingly.
Noa didn't stop moving.
Skewpid smirked. "Lost your eye. Lost your regeneration. Borrowed body. And you still think you can surpass anyone here?"
Noa finally looked up.
"And you?" he replied. "Still hiding behind sarcasm?"
The air tightened.
Water watched silently.
Skewpid drew a wooden training blade.
"Let's see what Water sees in you."
Rivalry Ignites
Their first clash was brutal.
Skewpid was fast—faster than most warlords. His strikes were unpredictable, shifting angles mid-swing. Noa blocked two. The third hit his ribs. The fourth swept his legs.
Sand filled Noa's mouth as he fell.
"Pathetic," Skewpid muttered.
Noa stood up.
Again.
They fought until sunset.
Every day after that, Skewpid interfered.
If Water trained Noa in swordsmanship, Skewpid tested him in hand-to-hand.
If Noa practiced archery, Skewpid disrupted his breathing.
If Noa ran endurance drills, Skewpid ran beside him—just fast enough to stay ahead.
The rivalry became the talk of both nations.
Elysium soldiers cheered for Noa.
Sovereign soldiers bet on Skewpid.
And slowly…
Noa began closing the gap.
A Turning Point
One evening, Water handed Noa a blindfold.
"Today," he said, "you fight without sight."
Noa froze.
The missing eye.
The weakness.
The reminder.
Skewpid stepped forward eagerly. "Perfect. Now it's fair."
The blindfold tightened.
Sand shifted under Noa's feet.
He listened.
Breathing.
Wind.
Footsteps.
Skewpid attacked.
Noa moved.
For the first time—
He blocked cleanly.
Then countered.
A wooden blade struck Skewpid's shoulder.
Silence fell.
Skewpid's eyes widened.
Water smiled faintly.
"Good," Water murmured. "Now you're learning."
Weeks Later
Bruises became normal.
Pain became routine.
Silence became focus.
Noa wasn't regaining his old power.
He was building something new.
Something sharper.
Something earned.
Skewpid stood beside him one night after training, both staring at the stars.
"You're still not stronger than me," Skewpid said.
Noa smirked. "Give me time."
Skewpid didn't smile—but he didn't deny it either.