Somewhere in the Continent Daikokuten.

*Boom*

A loud explosion occurred as a tower like building was brought to the ground. Close to where the tower exploded where two people, one was a man whose facial features was very close to that of a lizard, he had scales on certain parts of his body and a long lizard tail sticking out from his behind, the man was a lizard man and he was on the ground with a blade sticking out of his chest, a hint of surprise could be seen in his eyes as stared at the opponent before him.

His opponent was a young human boy, he looked to be around the age of twelve, he had jet-black spiky hair that fell over his forehead and a white fox mask hanging at one side of his face. The boy had dark, onyx-colored eyes and a pale complexion that could make even the cruelest of people have pity on him. He wore a long sleeved-white shirt with no collar which exposed his chest area and his clan crest on the back which was the symbol of a red cloud, along with dark blue pants, a white belt tied around his waist which held up a black piece of cloth that he tied around his waist and black shinobi sandals. He held a long silver colored blade and its tip was impaled into the chest of the man on the ground.

"Nats-suki, how dare you?"

The man on the ground asked as he stared at the boy menacingly, his lizard like eyes darted around as if searching for something.

Natsuki smiled calmly as he stared coldly at the lizard man,

"It's been nearly two years since you guys took me away from my village, I am really greatful for the great things you lizard men thought me but I have to go"

He then pulled out the blade and sheathed it before walking away.

"Get him!"

The lizard man shouted. Natsuki looked forward and saw a massive amount of lizard men garbed in armor rushing towards him. Although he was heavily outnumbered, Natsuki wasn't fazed, he stood in the same position as if waiting for the army to reach him.

"You will regret the day you betrayed us"

The lizard man on the groud was still cursing Natsuki while trying to heal his injuries. Natsuki looked at the man, his eyes were no longer the usual onyx black color, his pupils were blood red and had a pattern on them which were black in color.

The lizard man looked directly into Natsuki's eyes and began to feel uncomfortable, he was beginning to feel irrational fear all while seeing an illusion of all the things that made him afraid.

"Y-you have already developed it this much?"

The lizard man stammered as he shifted back trying to take his eyes away from Natsuki's gaze.

" Even more reason for you to stay with us then, if you are caught using this power, your freedom will be striped from you and you will become a tool for the sole purpose of war"

"I just have to not get caught then"

Natsuki spoke as he snuffed out the life of the lizard man.

*

A certain village in the Continent Jurojin.

"We are gathered here today to celebrate the graduation of my boy Riku"

A man garbed in chieftaincy attire announced, in his right hand was a wooden mug filled to the brim with red wine, he laughed heartily as he held his son on the shoulder with his left hand.

The boy's name was Riku, he looked to be around twelve years of age, he had spiky blond colored hair and fair skin, his eyes were deep blue in color and his face, although still young could easily put most beautiful girls to shame.

Riku looked at his father who was busy drinking and laughing, he smiled for a brief second before a certain thought entered his head.

'If only Natsuki were here, its been two years now, hasn't it?'

He then shook his head, this was a joyful day, he just graduated from the academy, there was no need to feel sad.

He then went over to where his classmates were and began chatting with them.

"So what are you guys going to do now that we have graduated from the academy?"

One of his classmates asked, all of them looked at each other before looking back at the person that asked.

"I'm not sure about you guys but my uncle invited me to take over his business, so I guess that's where I'm gonna end up"

"My dad had already signed me up to join one of the famous guilds in the city" Someone else spoke.

"I guess I'm gonna be stuck helping my mum in her bakery, hahaha" One of the girls answered.

Some more people gave their answers and after a while the whole class was looking at Riku.

"Are you still planning on joining the imperial army?"

The girl beside him asked, her face was filled with concern as the job of an imperial knight was not easy. Imperial knights where the ones in charge of protecting the continent, they were also the ones who came into direct contact with the demon beasts which were roaming around the wilderness that separated the borders of the main continents. In short, their jobs are the hardest and most dangerous, even to the point that almost 9 million people attend magic academies but only about 100 want to join the army later on.

Riku nodded his heard, he had made up his mind since the day Natsuki went missing that no matter what happened, he would find out the person responsible for that incident.

Seeing Riku unchanging resolve, the girl smiled,

"I guess I'm joining the imperial army then"

Riku looked at her, his eyes depicted seriousness but before he could say anything, the girl cut him off.

"Before you ask if I am sure or not, just know that my resolve is not that weak, I just want to see the person who was able to conquer the heart that wouldn't fall for me"

Hearing her words, Riku smiled, he looked at his classmates gathered around him, they were also smiling at him.

"Thanks guys"

Riku uttered as tears streamed down his cheeks.

"Okay kids gather round"

The voice of the adults calling them put an end to the emotional party they were having.

All of them went towards the place where the adults were gathered and continued their celebration.

The celebration lasted until the sun was down, every parent said their farewells before taking their children home for the night. Since Riku's family were the ones that hosted the party, they were also the ones responsible for cleaning up after it was done.

Riku's father called for the house maid to cleanup the place while they went inside to discuss Riku's future.

"Riku, I have some friends who hold high positions in the imperial army, I can easily get them to sign you up for the academy but is that really what you want?"

Riku's father asked, he knew of Riku's goals and the reason for him wanting to join the army but he also understood the risks of it. He didn't want his son to go down the wrong path all because he was blinded by petty revenge.

Riku's mother was also about to say something about her son's choice when she was interrupted by Riku.

"I've already made up my mind, it's not a matter of if I want to or not, it is something I must do"

Riku's mother saw the resolve in her childs' voice, she then smiled before saying;

"I wasn't going to stop you, you are the only special elite grade person amongst your peers, it would be a waste if you didn't join the army, go prepare your things, you are leaving for the academy tomorrow"

When Riku was ten years old, he was only a common grade like everyother person of the same age but past that age one undergoes an awakening and depending on their talent, that person's grades can change. Riku's talent could be considered to be very high since he became a special elite grade after his awakening.

Riku smiled, he was finally going to avenge his best friend's death. That night Riku packed his things, he wasn't sure about the environment he was going to so he made sure to pack the things he might need. After packing his things, Riku laid down on his bed feeling restless and exited at the same time. The thought of moving to a new environment was something that brought joy to him, just thinking about the thrill and adventures that awaited him the next day made him unable to sleep.

*

The next day, Riku's parents saw him off as he booked a carriage which would carry him directly to the academy, he wasn't travelling alone though, a female classmate of his whom had decided to join the imperial academy with him was also entering the same carriage.

"Are you sure about this, Mio? It's not too late" Riku asked the girl as they went to the place where the carriages was been loaded with passengers.

Mio nodded her head, she had already decided to follow Riku and since her parents were alright with her decision, she saw no more need to hesitate.

The two boarded the carriage, it was a one week journey to the imperial academy which was located at the capital of Jurojin.