It was the morning of the seventh day, the last day before Kazuki's first mission. Enea had brought him back to the barren plain where his grueling training had begun.
"Kazuki," Enea began, his tone matter-of-fact, "with yesterday's session, I've taught you everything I can. A person like me, with limited experience in training, can only do so much in seven days. So, today we'll have a final test to determine if you're truly ready for your mission."
Kazuki, by now familiar with Enea's penchant for making even simple things painfully difficult, felt a wave of unease. His voice wavered slightly as he asked, "What… what exactly is this test?"
Without answering immediately, Enea raised his hand. An oval mirror of ice materialized beside him, its surface shimmering. A moment later, the mirror turned liquid while retaining its shape, rippling as though alive. From its center emerged a figure—a girl.
She had long black hair tied into a ponytail, with one wisp partially covering her sky-blue right eye. Her face bore a striking resemblance to Enea's but was softer, more feminine, and lacked the dark circles under his eyes. She wore a black tank top that emphasized her ample cleavage and dark gray, tight sweatpants that hugged her athletic frame.
The girl's gaze fell on Kazuki, and a feral grin spread across her face—a smile that could only be described as wild. "So, this is the one I'm up against, Lord I?" she said, her voice filled with excitement. "I like him. He seems like someone worth playing with."
Kazuki's confusion grew, but before he could ask anything, Enea spoke. "Let me introduce her. This is Nero, a kind of alter ego—or, more accurately, a part of me. She was created from my emotions of anger, joy, and, if you want to call it that, sadism."
"You can create people based on your emotions?" Kazuki asked, his face a mixture of disbelief and fascination.
"Not exactly," Enea replied. "Nero, along with two others, existed in my imagination before my powers became real. When that bastard made my abilities a reality, they became real too, because they were deeply connected to the powers I'd dreamed up."
Slightly worried, Kazuki leaned closer to Enea and whispered, "Are you sure it's okay to talk about this in front of her?"
Before Enea could answer, Nero laughed. "Don't worry, boy. I already know, and I don't care. Now, Lord I, could you hurry up and explain this test to him? I'm trembling with anticipation to play with him."
Enea frowned. "How many times have I told you to stop calling me that? It's embarrassing. Just use my name." Turning back to Kazuki, he continued, "The test is simple. You have to make Nero bleed before the day ends. It doesn't matter how much—a single drop or a bucketful—it's all the same. If you succeed, you pass. But be careful. Avoid dying, because, unfortunately, I can't revive people."
Kazuki's stomach churned at the thought. "And if I can't make her bleed by then? What happens? Do I have to start training all over again?"
Enea's expression darkened, his usual casual demeanor replaced with something far more serious. His eyes widened slightly as he said, "No. If you fail, I will kill you myself."
The weight of Enea's words hit Kazuki like a sledgehammer. "What?" he stammered, barely able to process the statement.
Enea continued, his tone ice-cold. "The bastard won't give us any extra time to train you. If you fail this test, you'll die a slow, agonizing death on your mission. For your sake, I'd prefer to give you a quick, painless one."
As he spoke, a katana materialized in Enea's hand, its blade split evenly between black and white, with a gray hilt. He pointed it at Kazuki, and in that instant, an overwhelming wave of fear washed over him. It was a terror unlike anything he had ever experienced—paralyzing, suffocating, and all-encompassing. His muscles refused to move, and even breathing felt impossible.
"What's happening to me?" Kazuki thought, panic rising in his immobilized body.
Then, as quickly as it had appeared, the katana vanished, and Enea's expression softened. "Relax," he said, his voice now calm. "I was only making a point. I've already told Nero to hold back. If you give it your all, I'm sure you can do it."
The suffocating fear evaporated, and Kazuki's body regained its freedom. But before he could fully recover from the ordeal, Enea clapped his hands together. "If you're both ready, let's begin."
"Yes!" Nero exclaimed, practically vibrating with excitement. "I can barely hold back much longer."
Kazuki hesitated. "W-wait. Just give me a few seconds."
Enea nodded while Nero huffed impatiently, tapping her foot.
Kazuki took a deep breath, steeling his nerves. "Stay calm, Kazuki. There's no room for doubt. Enea's training was brutal, but it was never impossible. If he believes I can do this, then I can."
He slapped his cheeks lightly, raised his arms into a fighting stance, and shifted his right foot slightly behind his left. Locking eyes with Nero, he declared, "Okay, I'm ready. Let's do this."
"Perfect," Enea said, pulling a one-euro coin from his pocket. "I'll toss this coin. When it hits the ground, the test begins. Remember, you have until the light behind the clouds fades."
Kazuki nodded, his gaze steady. Nero's grin widened, her wild energy barely contained.
Enea tossed the coin high into the air, so high that even with his heightened senses, Kazuki lost sight of it almost immediately. For a few tense seconds, he stood still, scanning the sky. Finally, the coin reappeared, falling toward the ground.
The moment it landed, sparks of blue electricity erupted around Nero, forming an intense electric aura. In a blink, she closed the distance between them, her speed incomprehensible. Electricity crackled in her right hand as she launched a blow that broke the sound barrier several times over.
Kazuki's reflexes, honed from six days of brutal training, barely saved him. He managed to dodge the strike by a hair, the electricity crackling dangerously close to his skin. Seizing the opening, he countered with a punch aimed at her nose—one of the most vulnerable places to draw blood.
But his fist met only an afterimage.
"You've got better reflexes than I expected, boy," Nero said, stepping back gracefully to avoid Kazuki's punch. A wild grin spread across her face as she added, "But if you think that's enough to dodge all my attacks, you're dead wrong!"
Before Kazuki could react, Nero vanished from his sight, reappearing in front of him in an instant. She aimed a powerful kick at his chest. Realizing he couldn't dodge in time, Kazuki quickly covered both arms in the brown bandages and raised them to shield his chest. The impact sent him flying several meters, skidding to a stop on the rough ground.
"Damn, she's too fast," Kazuki thought as he struggled to his feet, pain shooting through his arms. "I can barely react to her attacks. If I hadn't used the bandages, my arms would've been useless after that kick. I wanted to see if I could do this without relying on these abilities, but Enea was right. If I don't give it everything I've got, I'll die before I even make her bleed."
Determined, Kazuki slammed both fists into the ground, creating two walls of earth side by side. Holding his hands open, he advanced toward Nero, using the walls as mobile shields.
Nero watched his approach with amusement. "What's this? Hiding behind walls now? Do you really think that'll work? Even if you get close, you're too slow to hit me!" she taunted.
Kazuki didn't respond. He stayed hidden behind the walls, steadily closing the distance between them.
"Fine, if you're that determined, come at me," Nero said, her grin widening. "I'll show you just how futile your little plan is."
When Kazuki was close enough, he made the walls split apart like a double door, leaving Nero standing between them. With a sharp movement, he clenched his right hand into a fist and feinted a punch at her. Nero prepared to dodge, but at the last second, his fist changed direction, slamming into the ground beneath her.
The sudden shift caught Nero off guard, her reaction delayed by a fraction of a second. She instinctively stepped back, only to find herself pressed against a wall that hadn't been there moments ago.
Taking advantage of her limited mobility, Kazuki launched an uppercut with his left hand, aiming for her chin—a likely spot to draw blood. But just as his fist neared its target, Nero's grin returned.
A split second later, a bolt of lightning descended from the sky, obliterating Kazuki's walls and throwing him back to where he had started. The shockwave left his body numb.
"I'll admit it, boy, that was a clever move," Nero said, brushing dust off her shoulder. "It's rare for someone to force me into using a ranged attack, even when I'm holding back. That's more Bianca's style, and I hate borrowing it."
But Kazuki barely heard her. He was too focused on processing what had just happened.
"A lightning bolt?" he thought, his mind racing. "It tore through my walls like they were paper. My whole body's numb—I can barely move. If she can do that, trapping her is useless. I can't beat her in a straight fight, and I don't even know if she's got a limit to her stamina. If I'm going to win, I'll have to gamble everything on her personality."
Kazuki pushed himself to his feet, his movements sluggish. Using the bandages, he coated his right arm in hardened earth. With no other options, he charged at Nero, returning the fight to close combat.
Nero's eyes lit up with excitement. "Good boy!" she exclaimed, licking her lips. "No more tricks—just a good, old-fashioned bloodbath. Of course, it'll only be your blood!"
The next two hours were a grueling nightmare for Kazuki.
As promised, it was a bloodbath—his blood. None of his punches landed, while Nero's strikes found their mark repeatedly. Bruises covered his entire body, and every blow she landed made him cough up more blood.
If Nero had continued using her full strength or her lightning attacks, Kazuki wouldn't have lasted a minute. He knew that as well as she did. The only reason he was still standing was because she didn't want the fight to end. Throughout the entire battle, her wild grin never wavered, her excitement palpable.
Finally, Nero's expression shifted. The grin faded, replaced by a neutral look tinged with disappointment. "I'm sorry, boy," she said softly. "I've had my fun, but it's time to end this."
Without warning, she delivered a powerful blow to his stomach. Kazuki felt the air leave his lungs as blood surged up his throat. His vision darkened, and his body sagged toward her. Nero assumed he had passed out.
But Kazuki wasn't done yet.
Summoning every ounce of willpower, he endured the searing pain in his stomach and managed to grab Nero's right arm with his left hand, locking her in place.
Nero's eyes widened in surprise before her familiar grin returned. "Another great plan," she said, her voice brimming with amusement. "But aren't you forgetting something?"
Electricity surged through Nero's body, coursing into Kazuki. The shock was excruciating, burning his skin and sending waves of agony through every nerve. The smell of his own charred flesh filled his nostrils, but he refused to let go.
Through gritted teeth, Kazuki forced out his first and last words of the fight. "Of course… NOT!"
With his right arm encased in hardened earth, Kazuki mustered all his remaining strength and delivered a crushing blow to Nero's face. She hadn't anticipated the attack, expecting the electricity to incapacitate him. The punch landed squarely on her nose.
For a moment, Nero's body didn't move, as if frozen in shock. Then, a thin stream of blood trickled from her nose, staining her lip.
Kazuki's grip on her arm loosened, and he stumbled back, exhaustion finally overtaking him. A satisfied smile crossed his face as he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.