"Weapons do not forget their wielders. They simply wait for their return."
The night was long.
The battle had ended, but the air still felt heavy.
Rei stood over the Abyssborn's corpse, its twisted form stilled, but not truly gone. The dark energy that had once fueled it still clung to the air, fading slowly, like embers dying without fuel.
Ren exhaled, flicking the blood off her blade before sliding it back into its sheath. She didn't speak right away.
Didn't need to.
She had felt it too.
Something about that creature wasn't normal.
Not just another lost Sinner who had fallen too deep.
Not just another mindless beast.
Something else had been present. Watching.
Rei knew it.
And so did she.
The world was not a kind one.
For as long as Rei had lived, for as long as anyone had lived, there had only been two great powers—The Divine Oath and the Sin Covenant.
The Holy Dominion claimed that the Divine Oath was absolute.
That their warriors—the Exorcists—were chosen by higher forces, blessed by celestial beings who granted them power in exchange for unwavering faith.
They wielded Seraphic Techniques, calling upon miracles of light, of purification, of divine wrath.
They were supposed to be righteous. Just. Protectors of humanity.
But Rei had seen the truth.
He had fought beside them. He had knelt before their altars, sworn their oaths, bled for their cause.
And he had seen how easily faith could be twisted into a weapon sharper than any blade.
The Sin Covenant, on the other hand, did not demand faith.
It demanded desire.
To wield its power, one had to embrace their darkest emotions—wrath, greed, envy, pride.
Each Sin granted power, but in return, it took something from its wielder.
Those who could balance the weight of their sins without succumbing to them were feared.
But most were not so lucky.
Most drowned in their own darkness, becoming Abyssborn.
Lost souls who had given too much and lost themselves in the process.
Rei had once belonged to one side.
Now?
Now he was something else entirely.
Something that should not exist.
Rei clenched his fist.
That presence from before—**that whisper, that pull deep within his blood—**he still felt it.
And he knew exactly what it was.
The blade.
His blade.
A weapon he had once sworn he would never wield again.
It had been sealed away, hidden from the world.
Because it was not just any sword.
It was something old. Something unnatural.
A blade that had been carried by warriors long before him. A blade that had tasted more blood than any weapon should.
A blade that had chosen him.
And yet, he had left it behind.
He had thought it was over.
That he could walk away from it.
But weapons like that?
They never truly let go.
And now, it was calling for him again.
Which meant one thing.
It was time to go back.
Rei exhaled, his crimson eyes flickering in the dim light.
Ren was watching him.
She had been watching him since the moment the battle ended, her expression unreadable, her fingers resting lightly near the hilt of her sword.
Not out of distrust.
But out of curiosity.
She had seen it—the way he had reacted.
The way he had felt something that wasn't there.
And now, finally, she spoke.
"You're thinking about something," she said. "Something important."
Rei glanced at her.
He didn't confirm or deny it.
He didn't have to.
Ren studied him for a moment, then huffed out a quiet breath.
"Let me guess," she said. "We're not going the same way anymore, are we?"
Rei exhaled slowly. Shook his head.
"No," he admitted. "I need to go somewhere."
Ren tilted her head.
"Somewhere or to someone?"
Rei hesitated.
Not because he didn't know the answer.
But because he didn't want to say it out loud.
Finally, he sighed.
"To something."
Ren raised an eyebrow. "That's vague."
Rei smirked slightly. "It's complicated."
Ren studied him for another long moment.
Then, surprisingly—she just shrugged.
"Alright," she said simply.
Rei blinked.
"...Alright?"
"You've got unfinished business," Ren said, stretching her arms. "I get it."
She didn't ask what.
Didn't press him for details.
Just accepted it.
And somehow, that made it harder to leave.
Rei had been ready to walk away.
Had been ready to go alone.
But for the first time in a long time—he wasn't sure if he wanted to.
Ren noticed his hesitation.
And, as if reading his thoughts, she smirked.
"You want company?"
Rei exhaled.
Did he?
He had spent so long walking alone.
Had convinced himself that it was easier that way.
But the truth was—
He wasn't sure anymore.
And maybe that was reason enough.
Finally, after a long pause—
He nodded.
Ren grinned.
"Good," she said, adjusting her sword. "Because I wasn't planning on letting you run off alone anyway."
And just like that—
They had a new destination.
A place Rei had long abandoned.
A place where something ancient still waited for him.
A place where his blade—**the blade that had chosen him, the blade that had tasted his blood before anyone else's—**was waiting.
And soon, he would have to face it again.