Chapter 16: Volume II. Chapter XVI. – A New Master

A spacious room designed after the culture of a country long gone called Japan. Paintings of trees and flowers decorate the walls, offering a cacophony of colours to contrast its ivory floor. In one of its corners lays a light wardrobe adorned with various flowers, and in another, what seems to be a small and simply built kitchen. Then there’s us. A round table made of dark wood behind which sits - in order from my right side - Mister Abe, Hidiku, myself, Vilia, and lastly, Miss Kurenai who is about to leave the table.

“I’ll go get your teacups.”

She’s was beautiful and soft-spoken, yet her impeccable posture hinted at a more disciplined upbringing. To me, she gives off the aura of a kind, well-raised and mannered person. Someone similar to a Yamato Nadeshiko from the legends of old.

This place is a complete mystery to me. I have no idea how far away from home I am or how long I've been here. Despite my apprehension, curiosity got the better of me, so I decided to find out.

“So…How long have I been out for?”

The mister takes a sip of his black tea, still steaming from warmth.

“Three whole days. That’s how long it has been ever since Nagi found you two in the forest. Can you remember anything that has happened?”

I shake my head in denial; the Mister and Hidiku look at each other, then my friend’s gaze is brought to me.

“Shortly after you have stopped breathing, I was attacked by another three demons.”

Upon hearing this, I jump into Hidiku’s conversation. I admit this was a bit rude, but I did so not only out of sheer curiosity but also out of concern.

“What?! How did you escape? Did you beat them all up? Or was that perhaps when Miss Kurenai saved us?”

Hidiku deems my assumptions incorrect with a shake of his head.

“No, Yuuna. You are the one that saved me.”

What? I saved him? But I was out cold!

“You have single-handedly defeated the demons and saved my life.”

Right now what Hidiku is saying sounds like a made-up fantasy to me. Something I cannot understand. At the time it was impossible for me to do anything. But he does know that, so then….

After Hidiku finishes talking, his expression changes. A face telling me there’s more to it than just that. I mean, such a story, that much is obvious, but he’s hesitant to tell me. What is it, Hidiku?

The Mister takes another sip of his tea, and Miss Kurenai returns with our cups and begins to pour.

“Hidiku, it will be best to tell her everything.”

Hidiku looks at him with a hint of surprise, then looks back at me as we lock into eye contact. I want to know what’s going on, don’t leave me in the dark.

The boy lets out a sigh.

“It’s true that you saved me, but at that point, you weren’t yourself. You had become what I could only describe as a half-demon. There were visible demonic traits on your body, and the strength you possessed was that of a beast, not to mention your abilities completely differed from your gift. And once the demons were defeated, you turned against me.”

As Hidiku finally gives me an explanation of the situation, Miss Kurenai quietly sits down next to her younger sister.

I can’t believe what I’m hearing. Turning into a demon without losing my humanity? That sounds ridiculous! But…It’s true that my injuries are all gone despite being asleep for only three days. Something like that does sound possible with a demon’s regenerative powers. Astonished after finally receiving an answer, I brainstorm for a logical solution for the situation Hidiku has just described to me, when the Mister jumps into the conversation.

“That being said, the information we have about the demon race is so limited that we don’t even have records of anyone turning even halfly into a demon while retaining their humanity. Yuuna, you might be the first one to accomplish such a thing.”

So, I’m partially a demon? I tried to kill Hidiku? My head…it’s starting to hurt from all the information I’m receiving. I feel like it’s about to split in half. I take in a deep breath in attempt to calm my nervous system down and ask worryingly.

“What exactly does all of this mean?”

“It means that you will ultimately become a worthwhile test subject if anyone were to find out. The option to use you as some kind of weapon of war is there too. And having such limited information means there is most likely no known cure or way to go back to being fully human either.”

Vilia voices her thoughts with a careless attitude as she sits next to me. So, what am I supposed to do now? I think to myself just before the Mister gives me an answer, almost as if he could read my mind.

“You have three options. The first is to go volunteer to be a test subject. I’m sure that whatever they’ll get out of you could help humanity.”

He says as he takes another sip of his tea. Anxiety slowly creeps into my consciousness.

“Second option, leave and try to survive in hiding. Though, we could probably both agree that you would either die or you’ll be the end of Hidiku before you manage to achieve anything.”

Despite his words being truthful, their honesty stings viciously. What he said is and will be true until I figure out what exactly happened to me and how to deal with it.

“Or option three, stay with us. You’ll be under my protection, but I have two conditions. The two of you will be trained by me and you’ll be joining my organization.”

An organization? What kind I wonder. Though I’d love to let him train me as he’s a master apparently. Wait a minute…

“Ah! It’s you!”

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A sudden wave of excitement overflows within me. I spring up and slam the table while yelling out, startling everyone in the process. The Mister looks confused, I mean...everyone does. A sigh then escapes Hidiku’s lips before going ahead and translating my feeling of excitement for everyone.

“What Yuuna most likely wants to say is - we were searching for you. Apparently, her father was trained by some master living somewhere in this forest. We set out on a search to find that master after what happened in our town. Well, you know the situation there.”

Mister Abe places his hand beneath his chin as thoughts seemingly begin to flow within his mind. Then he pulls up an expression showing slight worry.

“I’m afraid I’m not the one you are looking for. The only people I have trained are these these two.”

He replies, gazing over the two Kurenai sisters. To be fair, he does look younger than dad.

“You are probably looking for my old man. Unfortunately, he’s not with us any longer.”

“No matter! If we can be trained well, I’d like you to accept us! But…the organization. What is it about?”

My apparent excitement is yet to diminish, only being fueled by my yearning for answers. But instead, the Mister turns it into a deal as he continues to drink out of his slowly cooling cup.

“That I’ll tell you after deciding if you are worthy of joining in the first place.”

I stand up with my fist clenched at my chest, and my eyes glitter like the falling stars in a midnight sky.

“We accept your conditions! We’ll be in your care, master!”

“Man, look at her shining with all that positivity, I could melt. But you on the other hand…”

Says Vilia as she looks at Hidiku. He looks concerned.

“Oh, sorry. I was just thinking.”

Maybe I shouldn’t have accepted it without consulting him first.

“Yuuna, may I ask you a question?”

A-ah! She spoke! The flower-like Miss with a voice soft as clouds has finally spoken to me! I shift my attention to her straight away.

“What do you plan on doing if you fail to meet the master’s expectations?”

Right, that is also a possibility, but that doesn’t matter, not to me.

“The military of Taiyo city most likely took in our siblings. I’ll go look for my sisters even if I must do it on my own! But that will have to wait because first we’ll make sure to crush any doubt you have about us! Right, Hidiku?”

Due to my sudden mention, he’s caught by surprise, but just moments later, he gives me a confident smirk and nods. That’s right; If we want to get them back, we first need to become stronger.

In response to my answer, Miss Kurenai shows me a slight yet warmth-filling smile.

“‘The military’ you say. If I recall correctly, you said you are thirteen, right Hidiku? The age of enrolment into Taiyo’s military is fifteen years. By then you better show me that you meant what you said earlier.”

Says Mister Abe. His face has a slight grin giving me the small impression of some maliciousness hiding behind his words. Though, I’m sure he’s just teasing me… I hope. But that smile changes into the kind of face you’d make during a eureka moment.

“That’s right, I almost forgot! Vilia, I’ll be sending you to the military in one year’s time since you will be old enough, so get ready before then!”

The girl in question instantly springs to her feet and slams the table with both of her palms. A mixture of surprise and anger appear on her face and resonate within her tone.

“What?! You are sending me to the military? This is the first time I’m hearing about it! Are you nuts?!”

Her sudden aggression startled just me and Hidiku. It’s apparent Mister Abe and Miss Kurenai both saw this reaction coming as they remain calm. The Mister then continues to vaguely explain to her which piques my interest.

“Now, now, Vilia. You have no need to worry, it will be part of the organizations first mission. Doesn’t it sound great? You will be the one who puts the team into motion, the opening act.”

The previously enraged girl has now turned into what seems to be a satisfied girl. She lies down on the floor and tosses her feet up the table, all while saying -

“Whatever, if you say so. But it better be worth it, hmpf.”

She tries to sound like she’s not pleased at all, but that doesn’t really work when the excitement she’s feeling is written all over her face. The mister then gets up on his feet and catches me by surprise. He’s much taller than I expected him to be!

“Alright, kids. We have only two years to get you prepared for the outside world, for some just one year. The sooner we start the better for all of us. Everyone be outside in five minutes; we will begin our training.”

Yes yes yes yes yes, it’s finally here! I can’t wait!

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