The Journey of Suzuki Kyōi: The Weight of the Divine Skill
Kyōi looked at the mercenaries, their faces filled with admiration and gratitude, but the growing emptiness inside him gnawed at him.
They saw him as a hero, the man who had saved their lives from the grip of an impossible enemy, but Kyōi knew the truth.
The real victory wasn't just in battle, but within himself.
And today, he had lost that.
"I must become stronger…" the thought repeated like a mantra.
He had always aspired to become a warrior capable of facing any challenge without relying on the divine skill he had been granted.
That power wasn't a gift but a responsibility that weighed on him every time he used it.
Using it felt like admitting he wasn't ready, like confessing to himself that he still had insurmountable limits.
And that was an admission he couldn't tolerate.
"If only I had been stronger," Kyōi reflected, gripping his katana with a mix of anger and disappointment.
"I would have been able to defeat that King of Law with just my sword."
The Kings of Law were not easy opponents for him in general, and he knew it.
Although they were relatively young creatures, they were endowed with supernatural powers and abilities, rulers of universal forces, and bearers of knowledge forgotten by many.
Though many could kill them without much difficulty, few warriors could hope to face one and survive with just "normal" abilities, let alone win.
Yet, Kyōi had tried.
He had hoped that his skill, honed through years of training, battles, and duels, would be enough.
But he was wrong.
"Damn it," he thought bitterly. "Even this time, I wasn't enough."
Every battle against an enemy like that was not just a test of physical strength, but also mental and spiritual endurance.
And while Kyōi had won, he felt he hadn't truly reached the level he desired.
He wasn't yet the warrior he wanted to be.
Relying on the divine skill, even if necessary, made him realize that his path was still long.
The divine skill wasn't just a technique or an innate ability: it was a manifestation of his very soul.
A devastating weapon, yes, but one that carried a heavy burden.
Using it meant admitting that he hadn't yet surpassed the limits he had set for himself.
The creature he had fought, with its endless regeneration and control over the undead, had been a challenge no ordinary warrior could have overcome without using every available means.
But Kyōi didn't want to win like that.
He didn't want to rely too much on it.
He wanted to be strong enough to prevail with just the power of his sword and determination, using it only as a last resort.
"I was forced…" he reflected bitterly, knowing that if he hadn't used that power, he probably would have died.
But that thought didn't comfort him.
In fact, it made him feel even more frustrated.
The words of recognition and gratitude from the mercenaries reached his ears, but they couldn't erase the weight he felt in his chest.
He looked around at the destroyed cavern, the bodies of the undead finally disintegrated and lifeless.
It was over, for now. But he knew that this victory wouldn't last long.
"Next time, I have to succeed without it," Kyōi thought with determination.
He could no longer afford to depend on the divine skill.
He needed to become stronger, master every technique, every movement, and become the warrior he dreamed of being.
The battle against the King of Law was over, but the one within him had just begun.
As the group gathered, preparing to return, Kyōi turned one last time toward the darkness of the cavern, as if bidding farewell to an enemy he knew would return, in one form or another.
"And next time," he thought, his gaze fixed into the void, "I will be ready."
The Journey of Suzuki Kyōi: The Mystery of the Chimera
After fighting and reflecting on his choices, Kyōi set aside the tormenting thoughts that had plagued him until then.
It wasn't the time to focus on what he could have done differently, nor to dwell on his limitations.
They had defeated the enemy, and the cavern was finally free of shadows.
Now, however, his instincts urged him to understand who that creature really was.
"One thing is certain," Kyōi thought, observing the spot where the dark figure had been annihilated. "That wasn't just any enemy."
He slowly approached the center of the cavern, where the remnants of the shadows had dissolved.
The air was still thick with dark energy, as if the creature's presence had left an invisible trace behind.
Even without a physical form, Kyōi could still feel the power that the creature had emanated.
"I need to figure out who or what it was," he thought, gripping the katana at his side.
He glanced toward the mercenaries, who were beginning to recover the bodies of fallen comrades and gather what remained of the spoils.
The fight had been fierce, and while they had claimed victory, there was still much to uncover.
Kyōi knelt toward the ground where the creature had fallen for the last time and closed his eyes, concentrating his spiritual senses.
He had to find a clue, something that would reveal the nature of the enemy.
He sensed the creature's residual energy, like a distant echo, and that's when a thought struck his mind.
"A Chimera…" he whispered to himself, raising his gaze.
Chimeras weren't common creatures, but peculiar beings, much like humans, and one thing made them unique: their chaotic nature.
Like humans, Chimeras didn't possess a single divine ability fixed in one part of their body that defined them.
They weren't limited to a specific power that was more or less similar in each individual.
On the contrary, their potential varied, and each Chimera could develop completely different divine abilities, tied to various forces or elements.
They were creatures in constant flux, which made them unpredictable.
"A Chimera… here, in a place like this?" Kyōi reflected, puzzled.
While Chimeras were rare, they weren't typically enemies found in dark caverns unless drawn by something much bigger.
Or perhaps there was something else that had brought them there.
But what?
"Why would a creature like that be here?" he wondered. "What could have attracted such a being to this forgotten place?"
He knew that Chimeras could take on different forms and master powers ranging from darkness to light, from life to death, but the link between this creature and the undead was unusual.
It seemed that its divine ability was directly connected to regeneration and soul control, a deadly combination in an environment already saturated with death.
Kyōi felt a strange unease growing within him.
What had that Chimera been searching for?
Was it there for a reason, or was it merely following someone else's orders?
"It couldn't have been here by chance," he thought, his gaze now directed toward the depths of the cavern.
"There's something more. But what?"
The fact that such a powerful creature had appeared here, of all places, meant that something dark was happening in these lands.
Perhaps there was a hidden power in the depths of the mine that he had yet to discover, or perhaps someone was drawing Chimeras to that place for even more sinister purposes.
As these thoughts continued to torment him, Kyōi slowly rose, his eyes fixed on the void.
"I have to find out," he murmured to himself, as the determination within him grew once again.
"There's still so much I don't understand. But one thing is certain: we're not out of danger yet."
With his mind focused on the new challenge, Kyōi decided he would delve deeper into the true reasons why a Chimera had been there.
And to do so, he needed to dig even further into the secrets of that place before another enemy could emerge from the shadows.