3 hours after the incident at Dawn Chester hospital. in the south-east of the capital, in a barracks, where Colonel Abigail had taken the young boy Hiruko.
No sooner had he opened his eyes with a yawn than he saw three men in military uniform in front of him.
ABIGAEL: Hey, wake up!
The young Hiruko looked at them, sensing that he was not with people he could trust, and didn't say a word.
-ABIGAIL: What? Don't you know how to speak? Don't we speak the same language? Zaruba told me we all speak the same language.
-HIRUKO: Who are you?
-CASPER: That's a question for us to ask and for you to answer.
-ABIGAIL: Ah, so you can actually speak our language!
-HIRUKO: Um, my name is...
Hiruko started by touching his trousers and noticed that something was missing. He realised that it was Colonel Abigael who had it in his hands.
-ABIGAIL: What? Is this the book you're looking for?
-HIRUKO: Give it back!!!
-ABIGAIL: ah! Now we have your full attention, I presume.
-HIRUKO: But I've already told you, my name is Hiruko.
-CASPER: We know that. You haven't told us WHO? Who you are.
-HIRUKO: Who am I? What are you talking about?
Hiruko looked at the room he was in. He wanted to move.
-HIRUKO: Why can't I move? What is it?
-CASPER: It's a way for us to ask the question about your origins again and for you to answer it quickly.
- Hiruko: But I'm Hiruko, who do you want me to be?
- CASPER: Who? The beings we use a BOND BREAKER on are all but normal humans. Are you a spy?
- TAMAYO: No, I don't think so.
-CASPER: Are you sure, Colonel? Because given his physical characteristics...
- TAMAYO: Don't worry, I know what I'm saying.
-HIRUKO: Him? I remember him. We met in the forest, before I lost consciousness.
-CASPER: I see you knew each other and that you remember him.
-HIRUKO: Tell me, why am I here?
-CASPER: Because where should you be right now?
-HIRUKO is silent.
-ZARUBA: On the way here, I heard you say that you saw the path and that you had to follow it at all costs. Was it a message left by your accomplice?
-HIRUKO: I have to go.
-ZARUBA: We've lost two soldiers today, and you think after all that you're just going to walk away like nothing's happened?
While playing with his stenklinge, ZARUBA NIKAN said to him: 'Listen, you can be an envoy from my kingdom, as the colonel thinks. I don't give a damn who you are or where you come from. I lost two brothers today, even more competent than you, with whom I shared a dream. Don't think I'm going to let that go.
-ZARUBA, you're not helping. We're not here to be fragile, and it's not worthy for a military man of your calibre to show his emotions.
-ZARUBA: I beg your pardon? I'm playing soft? Do you realise the shit you're saying to me?
-CASPER: I'm your elder and superior, so if you don't need to be punished, I order you to take back what you've just said.
-ZARUBA: Fuck off, I'd have liked to have seen you in my place.
-Abigail: Hey ZARUBA, I'm sensing some anger in you, so if you could just calm down.
-Chief, he has no idea what he's saying about my former companions, says ZARUBA as he approaches CASPER, anger in his eyes.
-Abigail: Zaruba!!! I order you to calm down immediately and stop trying to do this stupid thing. You'll regret it and it could cost you your career. It's because I've always known you to be calm that I've left you here with us.
-ZARUBA: Sorry chief, you're right it's not in my nature to act like this, I'll calm down outside.
-ABIGAIL: No, stay here, I need you in this room and it's not for nothing that I want you here with us.
CASPER: And you will have your punishment for this insubordination towards your superior, soldier.
ZARUBA: Hm.
TAMAYO: Calm down, this is not the time to lose everything, nor to lose our composure.
And you refuse to tell us where you come from, or what brings you here or there. This path that you seem to be the only one to see, so far I'm still wondering why IZUMO insisted on taking you. ARIMA also told me the same thing.
-CASPER: What? That stubborn TENBATSU? I'm surprised he didn't kill you himself.
-TAMAYO: No, CASPER.
FLASH BACK *******
A few minutes after the explosion at the hospital.
TAMAYO, frozen, looked at the burning hospital.
ARIMA, TENBATSU: kof kof... Boss, boss, come on, we've got to get out of here, it's too dangerous.
TAMAYO: Impossible. IZUMO is gone too.
Arima : Come on, our bodies have already been through too much from the fighting, the infection and the explosion, and if we add this fire smoke to it, I don't think even our mutated bodies will be enough. We have to get away.
He picked up his colonel, carrying him, and together they moved away from the fire.
-ARIMA: Don't worry about NISHA and Dr Soon. I've got them out of the way. As for the trainee, she managed to escape the fire and went off to call for help.
-TAMAYO: Thank God they're safe.
-ARIMA: I don't think it will be long before the forensics team arrives, given the scale of the explosion, and fortunately there were no casualties.
-TAMAYO: Yes, you're right.
-The fire is dying down. I hope the fire brigade has already arrived.
- FIREFIGHTERS: Greetings Colonel, I hope you're well, I just wanted to let you know that we've been able to bring the fire under control and also the forensics team will need to see you as you were in direct contact with the infected patient and the military corps of the ADNACIELS and one of the DAIMIO is here, they all need to see you.
- TAMAYO: OK, OK. Thank you, sir. ARIMA, let's go.
-ARIMA: OK, Colonel, I'll come with you.
But tell me, Colonel, he did say that there was one of the DAIMIO at the scene of the incident, didn't he?
- TAMAYO: yes, when the problem directly affects the capital, they're quick to react, even if it means calling in the highest military hierarchy in the kingdom.
-FIREFIGHTERS: It's here, gentlemen, in this tent.
Just as the forensics team were analysing our two young soldiers and realising that they had no infection, the colonel was reassured.
-Doctors: Apparently you and the young man were lucky, no signs of fatigue or arcane magic overload were detected.
Arima: Er... and what's that? Can we go home?
-Yes, just take a couple of days off, pop into our clinic. I'll write up the justification for your sick leave for you.
-TAMAYO & ARIMA: OK. Thank you very much, Doctor!
*** Just then, one of the military guards came towards them. The guard addressed the colonel:
-GUARD: Hello Colonel Tamayo, I'm glad to see you're in good shape.
-TAMAYO: Um, take me to your superior instead.
-GUARD: Our superior is waiting for you outside the hospital entrance.
They made their way to the entrance of the ruined hospital and, when they got to the door, they met the daimyo.
-TAMAYO: All these ADNACIELS here, it's a bit late, considering the incident that's just taken place.
-ADNACIEL: Colonel Tamayo, I can see you've had a hard day.
-ARIMA: And you, I can see that your day has been too light, away from the draugr and the infections.
-ADNACIEL: Away from the mess you made here earlier.
-DOROTHY: My dear TAMAYO, I'm delighted to see you in one piece today.
TAMAYO: Lady DOROTHY? Did they send you here?
- Colonel, I didn't know there were women in the ranks of the ADNACIELS, Arima whispered to him.
-TAMAYO: Idiots! She's not ADNACIEL and yes, there are women in that branch of the Royal Guard too.
-ARIMA: I see, but then who is this lady? What's more, she's slender, she's taller than me, I'd say she's about 1.88 m, but she's just a little taller.
-TAMAYO: ARIMA, the one standing in front of us, she's the daimyo of this kingdom.
-Wow, she's a daimio? Arima says in amazement.
TAMAYO: Yes, and as you can see, she's undoubtedly the strongest daimio in existence. It's even earned her the nickname of the 'Scourge of the Arcane'.
-ARIMA: So she's the most powerful daimio?
Dorothy: An incompetent colonel, two dead sergeants and a whole building on fire with an infection alert in the city, because you transported an infected case to the capital. One of his sergeants was an INUN. Do you realise how badly you've done your job? I ought to chastise you! TAMAYO!
Arima: Stop calling us incompetent. It was an unforeseen event and we risked our lives to be there.
ADNACIEL: Shut up, you wretch. The high daimyo didn't give you the floor and this is the last time we'll tell you.
-Tamayo: Sorry for the infection, but we brought our patient here because we knew we had the best qualified doctors here for his emergency case. And it was only in the operating theatre that we found out about it.
-Dorothy: What are you telling me, Colonel? You didn't find out about this until the operating theatre? Had you forgotten that after facing a jengu, it's unwise not to seek medical advice for a quarantine period? We'll have to explain that to the other kingdom.
- TAMAYO: And it wasn't the INUN who lost his life, it was one of our citizen soldiers.
-DOROTHY: Oh, I'm glad it worked out this way.
-ARIMA: You've got to be kidding me, I'm glad it worked out this way? I've lost LIDE and IZUMO, my best friends, today, and you're happy about it?
-DOROTHY: I've heard they're talented, but to be taken in by draugr shows they don't belong here.
- You're getting on my nerves and I'd like you to take back what you just said about Izumo and Lide. He picked up a knife and leapt at Dorothy with all his strength, but as he approached her, her limbs immediately stopped moving. Dorothy then reached out to touch him, after which Arima felt in danger, a danger he had never felt even in front of a draugr. Suddenly, the colonel came in front of Dorothy and implored her to stop, while lowering Arima's head.
The colonel came in front of DOROTHY and implored her to stop while lowering Arima's head.
- TAMAYO: Please excuse this rookie's overreaching, he's still in shock it's made him lose his mind, please forgive him, Lady Dorothy.
-DOROTHY: 'Um, I can also see that you have failed in the supervision and education of your young soldiers, Colonel,' says DOROTHY, pausing after trying to take Arima's life.
- Tamayo: He's a bit upset.
-DOROTHY: I've heard about you, Tenbatsu, and be careful, make sure this is our last meeting.
-ARIMA: Believe me, we'll meet again next time and our positions will be reversed. 'What the fuck happened? What kind of spell did she use? Immobilisation? Gravity? It felt like she forced herself on my soul. Shit, the gap is still abysmal.
-DOROTHY: If it's any consolation, you're still alive, so you're allowed to dream and I'll always be here to wake you up.
-ARIMA: Hmm.
-TAMAYO: Please, can we see iZUMO's remains? We would at least like them to have a funeral.
-ADNACIEL: Two? for the one who was in the morgue the explosion set fire to the whole underground level and everything there was charred.
-DOROTHY: I can't do anything for you about that, as the area will be quarantined. And there's nothing left of it. And I've just come from the inside with the ADNACIEL, which is all we had of what was left of your friend.
- TAMAYO: I see. Thank you.
-ARIMA: But what about his fingers?
-DOROTHY: Only two fingers could be torn from his body, which exploded when it mixed with the iron filings.
-TAMAYO: Thank you very much. If not, can we go? I have to give this body to the family of this dead boy.
-DOROTHY: Otherwise, TENBATSU to FEORIS. I hear you had a child with you when you returned after the incident.
-ARIMA: No, we didn't see any children, nor did we take anyone with us.
-DOROTHY: My men have confirmed that you were not alone.
- TAMAYO: By the way, Lady Dorothy...
-DOROTHY: I asked Tenbatsu and not you, Colonel.
DOROTHY: Shit, she knows that if the question had been put to me, I'd have handled it better. The last thing she needs is to find out about this kid. ARIMA has already gone upstairs. I don't think he'll be able to protect the kid. There's a reason she showed us the rest of his body. She's too sadistic, Dorothy. And now that boy's future is up to us. But I'll manage, I'll take responsibility. ARIMA, you've been through too much today, not to mention your age.
ARIMA: By the way, we did take one person with us.
-TAMAYO bowed his head at the testimony ARIMA would give and then suddenly.
-ARIMA: The area we fought in was depopulated. All we found were ruins. And only this child was still there. When we met him, the young boy always said he was waiting for his parents, who were certainly all dead given the large number of draugrs nearby. So ZARUBA NIKAN insisted that we could take him. The colonel assumed he was doing it out of patriotism, which is why he let him come with us. So we decided to take him with us.
-ADNACIEL: To take him along, and what if he was a child spy?
-TAMAYO: I took responsibility for him and I would never leave a child prey to predators.
-ADNACIEL: You say you found the population exterminated by the Draugr in the vicinity. Passages by the Draugr should alert the inhabitants, especially in an area like this, and yet there were no witnesses, apart from the boy you took?
-ARIMA: Like you, it came as a surprise to us and cost us two sergeants.
-DOROTHY: Hmm, I see. I'm going to keep an eye on this child to make sure he doesn't show any symptoms and doesn't bring us any infection, as you've come from the same place.
-ARIMA: He's in no danger, the doctor had already examined him before starting IZUMO's treatment.
-NISHA? You lie so well and it's the first time I've ever been proud of a lie*, says TAMAYO.
-Dorothy: OK, if it was NISHA who gave the order, I'll trust his skills. If not, you're dismissed, Colonel.
-TAMAYO: Thank you.
* Arriving outside the hospital*
-ARIMA: Chief, I...
-TAMAYO: Stop it. You can call me TAMAYO.
-ARIMA: What? But I can't.
- TAMAYO: I thank you for what you have done for me today and I will take care of Hiruko. I will also try to find out why Izumo cared for him until the day he died.
-ARIMA: Thank you too, boss. Otherwise, were you going to tell his family about the incident with IZUMO? Because I'd like to do that, as I often came to pick him up at his house before going to training sessions during our military training.
- TAMAYO : No, it's already too much of a burden for a superior like me to put on you. I'll go and break the news to them myself, as well as hand over the remains of the body. Let me remind you that if IZUMO and LIDE hadn't stood in front of me or given me their support, I'd be lying in the rubble of this hospital today. You have no idea Arima, it hurts me the most.
-ARIMA: OK boss, but don't put yourself under so much pressure.
- TAMAYO: Otherwise, I don't know where he lives. All I know is that he lived with his mother and older sister. Did he not have a father? Had his father already died?
- ARIMA: No, IZUMO told me that his father was an alcoholic who abandoned him when his mother gave birth to him. They had to leave their home for the suburbs, and it was only after IZUMO joined the coalition army that his family moved to the city. He gave all his wages to his family, because he did everything he could to make sure they had a good life.
Here's his address, I'll drop by to offer my condolences and tell them that it was all my fault, because I could have done better.
-TAMAYO: ARIMA?
-Yes, boss.
- TAMAYO: 'I've already told you that you can call me by my first name. But anyway, you told me you had ambitions: to become the most powerful being this world has ever known.
-' Of course, Colonel, and I will be before I die', he replied, looking at him with eyes full of conviction and assurance.
-TAMAYO: Then you'll have to train harder than you ever have before, master all the spells in the world and be three times or even ten times stronger than Dorothy if you want to make a difference, because I know that Izumo didn't die for nothing.
-ARIMA: I promise, Chief.
* Back at the barracks *
-TAMAYO: I'm not going to beat around the bush or interrogate you. Instead, I'm going to give you two choices, and your answer will decide whether we let you live or kill you, because even though ARIMA pleaded for you, the final decision is mine alone.
-HIRUKO: I'm listening, sir.
-TAMAYO: What is your purpose or what use do you have in achieving my ambitions?
- HIRUKO: I know I'm not in my right mind yet, but when I got up I heard a voice telling me to follow the path of grace wherever it takes me. That's all, and if I can help you achieve your ambitions while following my path, I'm all for it.
- TAMAYO: OK, so you're going to join the army and for the next seven years you're going to do everything you can to become a good soldier. You'll then be able to take part in the arcanic tournament, as we all saw at Fèoris, when the colonel opened the Boumbreaker that bound Hiruko's hands and magic, then gave her back her book. 'I can see that you have mastered magic without even needing an arcane stone or ANIMA. You will put them at my service and if you dare go against our agreement, I will kill you myself with my own hands.'
-HIRUKO: Let's just say I'll have fulfilled my dream before that happens.
-CASPER: Here, I nearly forgot, I'm going to find you a name.
-ZARUBA: A name for him? Indeed, it would be safer for a cover during these coming years, a name like Inun or Zachesh would be perfect for him, and why not H'Azad?
-CASPER: Yeah, maybe. It would be perfect for him and it would match his skin?
-HIRUKO: I don't want it.
-CASPER: And you think you have a choice?
-HIRUKO: When I woke up, I didn't know anything about my past, apart from my name. So I'd like to keep it, this identity is the only precious thing in this new life you're giving me.
-ZARUBA: I also promise to stop you if you ever show hostility towards my companions.
-CASPER: Fine, you can keep the name, but if you do, it'll be...
****7 years later, when registering for the arcane tournament****
'HIRUKO KOSUGA' HIRUKO replied to the people in charge of registering for the arcane tournament.