Part 1: Fate
Ryuk stood frozen at the end of the long, dimly lit corridor, his breath catching in his throat.
He was too late.
Haruto's hand had already turned the heavy brass handle, and the wooden door slipped closed behind him.
Ryuk collapsed to his knees, his palms slamming against the cold, damp stone of the floor.
Confusion and dread washed over him in equal measure.
The vision he had experienced was no ordinary dream.
It was a warning, a divine piece of advice imparted to him in his sleep.
This was not the first time Ryuk had received such cryptic guidance regarding Haruto.
He vividly remembered the mysterious figure seated upon the grand throne, who had revealed Haruto's true identity as the Watcher.
Yet, even now, Ryuk remained entirely ignorant of what being a "Watcher" truly entailed.
A heavy knot of guilt tightened in his chest as he stared at the closed door.
He had messed up.
By failing to act in time, he had allowed the collision to happen.
Ryuk believed with absolute certainty that Haruto would exploit Leo's fragile psychological state, turning the beastman into nothing more than his obedient puppet.
Inside the reinforced library, the atmosphere was suffocatingly tense.
Dust motes danced wildly in the dim, amber light filtering through the high, narrow windows.
Leo was locked in a state of absolute mania, thrashing violently against his surroundings.
He hurled heavy wooden chairs against the stone walls and slammed his fists into the reinforced bookshelves.
In his blind, frantic frenzy, he even sank his teeth into the thick leather covers of ancient books, tearing the parchment to shreds.
Princess Ariel had sent Haruto into the room, hoping that as Leo's trusted companion, he might find a way to soothe the boy's raging mind.
Haruto walked calmly past the wreckage, his boots stepping softly over scattered pages and broken wood.
He pulled back a intact wooden chair, sat down, and folded his hands over his lap.
His expression remained unreadable, his eyes entirely blank as he looked at the thrashing beastman.
"Stop."
Hearing the voice, Leo whipped around, his eyes bloodshot and wild.
With a guttural roar, Leo lunged across the room and sank his teeth viciously into Haruto's hand.
Blood welled around his jaw, but Haruto did not flinch, twitch, or show even the slightest hint of pain.
His face remained a tranquil, unbothered mask.
Haruto spoke again, his tone dropping into a deep, heavy register laden with absolute authority.
"Stop right now, Leo. It is my order."
The sharp weight in Haruto's voice pierced directly through the fog of Leo's madness.
Leo's jaw loosened, and he stumbled backward, sinking onto the cold floor as clarity slowly returned to his eyes.
Haruto looked down at his bleeding hand for a brief second before fixing his gaze back on Leo.
"Tell me... in what sense did you kill that knight?"
Leo panted heavily, his shoulders shaking as he pulled his knees toward his chest.
"I thought... I thought it was the Sloth Commander because of the tattoo on his arm..."
Haruto responded instantly, his voice quiet and completely flat.
"Right. We discovered that it was indeed a plot executed by the Sloth Commander."
"He is currently hiding within the kingdom, and he used that knight as a pawn to attempt Ariel's assassination."
Leo buried his face in his hands, his voice trembling with deep frustration and self-loathing.
"Every single time... I depend on you."
"I always listen to you and obey you like a loyal dog."
"Whatever you tell me, I believe it and do it without question."
"In every decision I make, I rely entirely on your judgment."
"I don't want to be a dog anymore, Haruto... I wanted to stand on my own as a true warrior."
Haruto listened to the boy's outburst, his posture remaining perfectly motionless.
"So that is the case."
"Yet, because of your independent decision, the entire kingdom now demands your death."
Leo's shoulders slouched, his voice breaking into a faint, miserable whisper.
"Is it... is it because I didn't listen to you?"
"Because I tried to act on my own?"
Leo closed his eyes, bracing himself for the harsh affirmation he was certain would follow.
Haruto replied without hesitation, his tone cold and steady.
"No. Definitely not."
Leo's eyes snapped open, a flicker of shock passing across his tear-stained face.
Haruto continued, his eyes remaining entirely devoid of warmth or emotion.
"I approve of the fact that you attempted to act on your own initiative."
"When you take independent action, you will inevitably make mistakes."
"That is not a fault."
"However, as it stands right now, the public views you as a criminal."
"Therefore, in the battle to come, you must prove to the entire kingdom that you are a savior, not a murderer."
"Do you understand?"
Leo swallowed hard, his breathing slowly steadying as he looked up at Haruto.
"Yeah..."
Haruto stood up from the chair, smoothing down his dark tunic without a word.
"Now, return to the training grounds. Otherwise, you will remain a criminal in their eyes forever."
He turned toward the wooden door, pausing briefly before stepping outside.
"Sometimes, you ought to think using your own will rather than blindly obeying your friends without reason."
"Maintain this mindset going forward."
Without waiting for a response, Haruto stepped out of the library, the heavy door clicking shut behind him.
Leo sat in the quiet room, utterly stunned by the conversation.
Haruto had never offered him words of praise or validation before.
A strange warmth settled in Leo's chest, washing away the lingering panic and madness.
Feeling his mind stabilize at last, Leo wiped the blood from his mouth, stood up, and made his way toward the training grounds.
The central arena was a vast, open courtyard paved with rugged, moss-covered flagstones and surrounded by looming mountain cliffs.
The crisp afternoon air carried the faint scent of ozone and crushed stone.
Haruto stood in the center of the arena, his fingers wrapped tightly around the leather hilt of Dragon Slayer.
Opposite him stood Flora, resting casually on her floating broomstick, a sharp glint of serious intent in her eyes.
"We shall begin," Flora announced, taking a firmer stance. "I will not hold back my power as I did before."
She raised her catalyst wand, instantly channeling her internal energy to deploy a powerful Flamethrower Ritual.
A roaring torrent of crimson fire erupted from the tip of her wand, sweeping across the stone floor toward Haruto.
Haruto reacted immediately, thrusting his free hand forward to cast a Stone Wall Ritual.
A thick slab of solid granite erupted from the ground, absorbing the impact of the blazing flames and shielding him completely.
Flashback:
During his early instruction under Flora, Haruto had come to a grim realization about his physical composition.
Due to the complete absence of Eco Energy within his body, he was naturally incapable of learning or channeling standard rituals.
However, Flora had assured him that an alternative path existed.
This was not the first time Flora had encountered an individual with Haruto's unique condition who still sought to harness ritualistic arts.
She had previously met a traveler with the exact same affliction who successfully learned rituals using a method known as "Dot."
To master a ritual through "Dot," a practitioner required a specialized ritual tome inscribed entirely in the ancient Demon Language.
The practitioner had to trace their fingertips across the carved script, physically touching every letter and detail of the spell matrix.
When combined with the authority of the Lizam Artifact, a person lacking Eco Energy could forcefully imprint the ritual into their consciousness.
However, the process was brutally demanding—imprinting a single ritual required an hour of continuous, unbroken physical contact.
Furthermore, mastering the precise application of that imprinted ritual required days of grueling physical practice.
Through this tedious "Dot" method, Flora provided Haruto with a Demon-language tome, allowing him to successfully master two Specialist-type rituals.
End of Flashback.
Flora hovered higher into the air, sweeping her wand in a wide, circular pattern to deploy a high-level Water Summoning Ritual.
"Piranha Water Diving!"
A massive, swirling vortex of dark water materialized in the center of the arena floor.
From the swirling depths, multiple monstrous water-formed piranhas leaped into the air, their razor-sharp fangs snapped shut as they plummeted toward Haruto.
Haruto immediately channeled his energy, launching a Fireball Ritual directly into the sky.
The flaming sphere collided with the first two water beasts, evaporating them instantly into heavy plumes of steam.
However, three more aquatic creatures burst through the mist, diving straight for his head.
Leveraging his exceptional physical speed, Haruto sidestepped the falling beasts, the high-pressure water grazing his coat as they shattered against the stone floor.
Without missing a beat, Haruto countered by unleashing a high-pressure Water Cannon Ritual toward the sky.
Flora tilted her broom smoothly, gliding through the air to evade the rising jet of water.
"Fireworks Ritual!" Flora called out, weaving a rapid hand sign.
A blinding cluster of radiant, unstable energy spheres condensed around Haruto, exploding simultaneously in a thunderous shockwave.
BOOM!
The force of the explosion blew Haruto backward, scorching his dark combat attire and leaving multiple bleeding gashes across his arms.
Landing on one knee, Haruto immediately activated his newly learned Healing Ritual.
A faint green light enveloped his injuries, knitting his torn flesh back together within seconds.
The moment his wounds closed, Haruto thrust his hand toward the ground, launching a sequence of Stone Drill Rituals.
Massive, spiraling pillars of rock erupted beneath Flora's position, but she glided effortlessly between the rising stone spires, dodging every strike.
Recovering his footing, Haruto lunged forward and executed the Flare Sword Rotation.
He spun his body at high speed, sweeping Dragon Slayer in a wide arc that hurled a wave of blazing blue-and-white energy into the air.
Flora caught her breath, narrowly dodging the soaring energy blade as it grazed the hem of her robes.
Exploiting her momentary movement lock, Haruto deployed one of his new Specialist rituals—a Sleeping Ritual.
A wave of invisible, hypnotic energy rushed toward Flora, but she recognized the spell structure instantly and accelerated her broomward momentum to escape its area of effect.
Haruto seamlessly shifted into the martial forms of the South Sword Style, executing the technique Water Wind Shard.
He rotated Dragon Slayer in a fluid motion, wrapping his blade in pressurized wind current laced with sharp water droplets.
With a powerful swing, he released a sweeping, razor-sharp aquatic arc across the battlefield.
The attack moved with terrifying speed and precision, cutting through Flora's magical defenses and leaving a minor, stingy slice across her cheek.
Flora began to weave an intricate, high-level counter ritual, but Haruto refused to grant her the time to complete it.
He instantly deployed another Specialist technique—a Sound Ritual.
A sharp, high-frequency sonic vibration erupted directly beside Flora's head, shattering her concentration and forcibly disrupting her spell casting.
Haruto immediately followed up with another South Sword Style combination—Sound Bounce.
Combining the Sound Ritual with a localized Wind Ritual, he amplified the sonic shockwave, scattering deafening blasts of sound across the entire arena.
The sudden, overwhelming noise disoriented Flora, forcing her to cover her ears as her broom wobbled unsteadily in mid-air.
Capitalizing on her exposed state, Haruto invoked his third Specialist technique—a Light Ritual—to execute Sun Saber Throw.
He channeled the radiant light energy directly through the steel of Dragon Slayer, constructing a glowing, sword-shaped construct of pure luminescence.
With immense physical force, Haruto hurled the light saber straight at Flora.
The radiant blade impaled the air beside her, detonating in a brilliant, violent explosion of blinding light and energy.
CRASH!
The force of the blast tore through the training field, scattering stone fragments everywhere.
Flora managed to stabilize her flight at the last second, looking down at Haruto with genuine astonishment.
She realized that he was utilizing his tactical intellect to its absolute limit, seamlessly weaving swordplay and rituals together through the South Sword Style.
Determined to test his absolute limits, Flora raised her catalyst wand high above her head.
A violent, howling gale swept across the courtyard as she summoned a massive Tornado Ritual.
The towering vortex of wind roared across the stone floor, threatening to swallow Haruto whole.
Haruto reset his footing, taking a firm two-handed grip on Dragon Slayer.
He initiated the Flare Sword Rotation once more.
However, instead of the brilliant blue-and-white flames he usually produced, a deep, radiant orange fire erupted across the steel blade.
Haruto slashed Dragon Slayer downward in a single, decisive stroke.
SWOOSH!
The moment the deep orange flame touched the roaring storm, the massive tornado instantly dissolved into nothingness, vanishing as if it had never existed in the first place.
Flora's eyes widened in utter disbelief.
Haruto did not halt his offensive.
Using a Wind Struck Ritual, he launched a concentrated pressure wave that pushed Flora backward toward the adjacent mountain cliffside.
He then executed a massive Tornado Ritual of his own—having completely absorbed and redirected the energy from Flora's original storm.
Demonstrating incredible combat creativity, Haruto simultaneously cast a Thunder Ritual, weaving crackling lightning directly into the violent wind currents.
The lightning-infused tornado surged forward, colliding directly into the mountain face with catastrophic power.
BOOM!
A massive section of the stone cliffside crumbled into dust, sending giant boulders cascading into the valley below.
Flora immediately held up her hand, raising her voice to halt the duel.
"Stop! End the fight!"
Haruto instantly lowered Dragon Slayer, the strange orange fire fading from his blade as his breathing remained steady and unhurried.
Flora descended to the ground, stepping off her broomstick with a deeply shaken expression.
"Haruto... the technique you just used to destroy my tornado... that was the Amber Effect."
Haruto looked at her, his expression remaining entirely neutral and unbothered.
"What is the Amber Effect?"
Flora stepped closer, her voice dropping into a hushed, dead-serious whisper.
"It is a legendary, special type of flame that possesses the absolute authority to destroy and erase any power source it comes into contact with."
"In the entire recorded history of Tenzu, only one entity was ever capable of manifesting those orange flames—Hermit Zero."
She stared into his emotionless eyes, her tone filled with profound concern.
"How were you able to use it?"
Haruto responded plainly, his voice completely devoid of shock or confusion.
"I do not know."
"I simply deployed the technique unconsciously during the strike."
Flora let out a slow, tense breath, looking around the devastated training grounds to ensure no spectators were nearby.
"This is an extraordinarily rare and dangerous phenomenon."
"Under no circumstances must you ever reveal to anyone that you can manifest the Amber Effect."
"If the powerful factions of this world discover you possess Hermit Zero's flame, countless entities will hunt you down without mercy."
Haruto nodded slowly, accepting her warning without a single trace of anxiety.
"I understand. Thank you for today's instruction."
Returning to his private quarters, Haruto placed Dragon Slayer beside his desk and lay down on his bed to rest his exhausted body.
As his eyes closed, his consciousness slipped away from the physical realm.
Haruto opened his eyes to find himself standing within the vast, infinite expanse of the Dream World.
The surreal, shifting sky stretched out endlessly above him.
Before him stood Oujuro, his stance respectful as he bowed his head toward Haruto.
Oujuro spoke in a formal, measured tone.
"Mr. Watcher... Mrs. Watchtower requested that I inform you of something important."