Ren woke the next morning feeling like he had barely slept. His limbs were heavy, and every muscle ached as if he had been in a fight all night. But it wasn't just physical exhaustion. His mind was burdened with the weight of everything he had learned—Kaelir, the gods, Mira's warnings.
It had been less than 24 hours since his life had been turned upside down, but it felt like weeks. And even as he lay there, staring at the ceiling, he could still feel it—the dormant pulse of power lurking beneath his skin, like an ember waiting to ignite.
You're not ready yet, Mira had said.
Ren sighed, pushing himself up out of bed. He wasn't sure how long he could keep up with this, how long he could balance his old life with this new, impossible reality. But ignoring it wasn't an option anymore.
He glanced at his phone. A message from Yuto.
"Yo, Ren! You alive? You disappeared after school yesterday. You good?"
Ren stared at the screen for a moment, debating how to respond. He had vanished without a word after his encounter with Mira, but how could he explain that to Yuto? How could he explain any of this?
He settled for a quick reply.
"Yeah, sorry about that. Wasn't feeling well. I'll catch up with you later."
As he put his phone down, there was a knock at his door. Ren's heart skipped a beat, half expecting Mira to appear in the doorway, but instead, his mother's voice called from the hall.
"Ren, are you awake? You're going to be late for school."
He groaned. School. After everything that had happened, going to school felt like the last thing he could handle. But he knew he couldn't just stop living his normal life. Not yet.
"I'm up," he called back.
The day passed in a blur. Ren went through the motions, attending classes, listening to lectures, but his mind was elsewhere. Every time he closed his eyes, he could feel that flicker of Kaelir's power, the memory of the surge from last night still fresh. It was intoxicating—an overwhelming force that called to him, urging him to tap into it again.
But it was dangerous too. He could barely control it last night. If he tried again without Mira's guidance, he wasn't sure what would happen.
"Yo, Ren!"
Yuto's voice cut through his thoughts, and Ren snapped back to the present, blinking as his friend waved a hand in front of his face.
"You okay, man? You've been spacing out all day."
Ren forced a smile, hoping it didn't look as fake as it felt. "Yeah, just tired. Didn't get much sleep."
Yuto raised an eyebrow but didn't press further. "Well, you missed a lot yesterday. Mrs. Tanaka's history lecture was brutal, but I got notes if you need them."
Ren nodded absently, grateful for Yuto's usual chatter. His friend had no idea how much Ren appreciated the normalcy he brought into his life.
But even as Yuto continued talking, Ren felt something shift in the air. A strange, prickling sensation crawled down the back of his neck, making the hair on his arms stand on end. He glanced around, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Just students going about their day, laughing, talking, oblivious to the unease that gnawed at him.
Then he saw it—a flicker of movement at the edge of his vision.
A shadow.
It was faint, barely noticeable against the bright afternoon sunlight, but there was something off about it. Something wrong. Ren's heart sped up as he tried to focus on it, but the moment he turned his head to get a better look, it vanished.
Ren froze, his pulse quickening. Was he imagining things? Or was it something else—something tied to Kaelir's power? He hadn't seen anything like it before, but then again, nothing in his life was normal anymore.
"Ren?"
Yuto's voice sounded distant, and Ren realized he had been staring blankly at the spot where the shadow had been. He shook his head, forcing himself to snap out of it. "Sorry, I thought I saw something."
Yuto gave him a puzzled look but didn't press. "Maybe you should head home early. You're not looking great, man."
Ren was about to agree when he felt it again—that prickling sensation, sharper this time. And then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw it again. The shadow. But this time, it didn't disappear.
It moved.
Ren's breath hitched as the dark shape slithered along the edge of the courtyard, weaving through the crowd of students like a living entity. No one else seemed to notice it, as if it existed in a space only Ren could perceive.
Without thinking, Ren took a step toward it, his heart pounding in his chest. Something about the shadow felt familiar, like it was connected to him, to the dreams, to the power within him. He had to know what it was. He had to understand.
"Ren, where are you—?"
But Yuto's voice faded into the background as Ren followed the shadow, his feet moving on their own. The air around him seemed to thicken, the sounds of the schoolyard growing distant and muffled. The shadow led him toward the edge of the courtyard, where the trees cast long, dark shapes over the ground. And then, without warning, the shadow shifted, rising from the ground like smoke.
Ren stopped in his tracks, his heart pounding in his ears. The shadow twisted and coiled, its shape solidifying into something more tangible. A figure. Tall, cloaked, its form almost human but not quite. The air around it shimmered with a dark, oppressive energy.
Ren's mouth went dry. He could feel the weight of Kaelir's power stirring inside him, reacting to the presence of the figure. But he didn't know if he was ready. He wasn't prepared for this.
The shadow figure's eyes, two glowing orbs of pale light, locked onto him. And then it spoke, its voice like the hiss of wind through dead trees.
"Kaelir…"
Ren froze, his body going cold. It knew his name—Kaelir's name. But how?
Before he could react, the shadow lunged, its form shifting into a blur of darkness as it closed the distance between them in an instant. Ren's instincts screamed at him to move, to fight, but his body wouldn't respond fast enough. The world around him seemed to slow as the shadow's claw-like hand reached for his chest.
And then, in a flash of silver light, Mira appeared.
Her blade cut through the air with deadly precision, slicing through the shadow's form like it was made of smoke. The creature shrieked, its shape unraveling as it recoiled from her attack. But instead of retreating, it lashed out again, this time aiming for Mira.
Mira's movements were fluid, practiced, as she dodged and countered with swift, graceful strikes. Each swing of her sword sent pulses of silver energy through the air, cutting through the creature's dark tendrils. But the shadow was relentless, its form constantly shifting, reforming every time she struck it down.
"Mira!" Ren shouted, finally snapping out of his paralysis.
"Stay back!" Mira called over her shoulder, her voice sharp with command. "This isn't a fight you're ready for!"
Ren gritted his teeth, frustration boiling inside him. He wasn't ready. He knew that. But standing here, watching Mira fight while he did nothing—it made him feel powerless. Weak. And he wasn't weak.
Not anymore.
Ren closed his eyes, focusing on the pulse of energy deep inside him. The ember of Kaelir's power. It was still there, waiting. All he had to do was reach for it, to harness it, to control it.
The moment his fingers brushed against that power, it surged through him like wildfire, flooding his veins with heat and strength. His eyes snapped open, glowing with an otherworldly light, and the air around him seemed to crackle with energy.
The shadow creature turned its gaze toward him, sensing the shift. And in that moment, Ren knew—he wasn't going to run.
He was going to fight.