The throne room of Dravon stretched endlessly into shadow, carved from black volcanic glass that seemed to drink in what little light dared to enter. Massive obsidian pillars twisted upward like frozen screams, their surfaces reflecting distorted images of things that weren't there.
At the center of this void sat Tsuyari.
His white hair cascaded over his shoulders like spilled moonlight, a stark contrast against the throne of midnight stone. Silver eyes stared into nothingness, unblinking, as if seeing through the very fabric of reality itself.
"Gone."
The word fell from his lips like a drop of poison.
His fingers drummed against the armrest of his throne, each tap echoing through the vast chamber like a funeral bell. The sound reverberated off the walls, growing louder with each repetition until it became a symphony of frustration.
"Completely... gone."
Tsuyari's jaw tightened.
The Tier 4 Verythra had been perfect. A creature of pure malice and hunger, strong enough to overpower any mortal, yet controlled enough to capture rather than kill. It should have been simple.
Grab the boy. Bring him here. Let me finish what I started.
But something had gone wrong.
The beast had found its target, had cornered Itsuki in that pathetic training ground, had even begun the extraction... and then nothing. The connection had simply... severed.
Not destroyed. Not blocked.
Severed.
As if Itsuki Naoya had simply ceased to exist.
Tsuyari's hand clenched into a fist.
"Impossible."
He had woven his essence through every corner of Vilaris, had eyes in every shadow, had whispers in every wind. Nothing moved in this realm without his knowledge. Nothing lived without his permission.
Yet somehow, a seventeen-year-old boy with Mythic power had vanished completely from his sight.
The silence in the throne room grew heavier.
Tsuyari closed his eyes and extended his consciousness outward, letting his power flow through the realm like invisible tendrils. He searched every domain, every city, every forgotten corner where someone might hide.
Silverstone – empty of his presence.
Zenkai Dojo – no trace.
The capital itself – nothing.
Even the boy's friends seemed unaware of where he had gone. Their confusion was genuine, their fear real. They truly didn't know.
Which meant someone else did.
Tsuyari's eyes snapped open.
Silver irises blazed with cold fire as a terrible realization began to dawn. There were only a handful of beings in all of Vilaris with the power to hide something from him so completely.
The other Trueborns.
Tsuyari rose from his throne with fluid grace.
His footsteps made no sound as he walked to the massive window that overlooked his domain. Beyond the volcanic glass, the landscape of Dravon stretched out like a scar across the world – black earth split by rivers of molten stone, perpetual storms crackling with red lightning.
It was beautiful in its devastation.
Just as he had always intended.
But now, staring out at his perfect realm of controlled chaos, Tsuyari felt something he hadn't experienced in centuries.
Uncertainty.
"Which one of you is playing games with me?"
His voice was barely a whisper, yet it carried the weight of mountains. The very air seemed to tremble at the sound.
Yunrei was the obvious suspect. The time manipulator had always been too clever for his own good, too willing to meddle in affairs that didn't concern him. And his power... yes, Yunrei could theoretically hide someone in a temporal fold, making them unreachable even to Tsuyari's sight.
But would he dare?
Tsuyari's lips curved into something that might have been a smile.
Oh, brother. If you're protecting the boy...
The thought was delicious in its implications. Yunrei, the self-righteous keeper of order, harboring a being first of his type. The hypocrisy would be exquisite.
Then again, it could be any of them.
Mizuko with her cosmic tides could have swept the boy away to some distant shore beyond even Tsuyari's reach. Rinako might have trapped him in a dream so deep that his physical form no longer registered in the waking world. Even Kurojin, with his absolute prisons, could have sealed Itsuki away somewhere undetectable.
The possibilities were endless.
And infuriating.
Tsuyari's reflection stared back at him from the volcanic glass, silver eyes burning with barely contained rage. But beneath the anger, something else stirred.
Anticipation.
This changed things. Made them more interesting.
If one of his fellow Trueborns had indeed taken Itsuki, then the game had evolved beyond simple manipulation. It had become personal. And Tsuyari had always excelled at personal conflicts.
"Enjoy your small victory," he murmured to his reflection.
"It won't last long."
The sound of footsteps echoed through the throne room.
Not one set, but two. Measured. Purposeful. The kind of steps that belonged to beings who feared nothing and respected even less.
Tsuyari didn't turn around. He had been expecting this visit ever since the attack on the capital had failed to achieve its secondary objective.
"Tsuyari."
Yunrei's voice cut through the air like a blade of ice. Cold. Precise. Utterly without warmth.
"Yunrei. Kurojin."
Tsuyari finally turned, his movements languid and unhurried. He took in the sight of his two visitors with apparent calm, though his silver eyes missed nothing.
Yunrei stood tall and rigid, his green hair perfectly styled despite the chaos of recent events. His green eyes held the weight of centuries, and right now, those centuries were focused entirely on Tsuyari. Behind him, Kurojin loomed like a living shadow, black eyes reflecting nothing, revealing nothing.
"To what do I owe the pleasure?"
Tsuyari's voice dripped with false courtesy.
Yunrei stepped forward.
"The Verythra attack on the capital."
"Ah yes." Tsuyari nodded solemnly. "Terrible business. So many innocent lives lost. My heart goes out to the survivors."
The words were perfect. Concerned. Appropriately grave.
Completely hollow.
Kurojin spoke for the first time, his voice like stone grinding against stone.
"The beasts appeared without warning. No scouts detected their approach. No essence disturbances were recorded in the Beyond."
"How strange," Tsuyari mused.
"Almost as if they materialized from nothing."
Yunrei's eyes narrowed.
"Or as if someone with the power to erase detection had guided them."
The accusation hung in the air like a poisonous cloud.
Tsuyari smiled.
Not the cold, calculating expression he usually wore, but something genuine. Almost delighted.
"Are you suggesting I had something to do with this tragedy, dear brother?"
"I'm not suggesting anything," Yunrei replied evenly.
"I'm asking directly. Did you orchestrate the attack on Astralyn's capital?"
For a moment, the throne room was completely silent.
Then Tsuyari laughed.
It was a sound like breaking glass, sharp and beautiful and dangerous. It echoed off the obsidian walls, multiplying until it seemed like a chorus of demons was filling the chamber with mirth.
"Oh, Yunrei." Tsuyari wiped an imaginary tear from his eye. "Your paranoia never ceases to amuse me. Do you really think so little of your own brother?"
Kurojin stepped forward, his presence suddenly oppressive.
"Answer the question."
The temperature in the room seemed to drop. Shadows began to writhe along the walls, responding to Kurojin's barely contained power.
Tsuyari's laughter died.
"You want an answer? Very well."
He walked back to his throne, each step deliberate and measured. When he reached it, he turned and sat with regal dignity.
"No. I did not orchestrate any attack on the capital."
The words rang with absolute conviction.
Because they were technically true.
Tsuyari hadn't orchestrated the attack on the capital. The attack on the capital had been a distraction, a way to occupy the other Trueborns while his real target was elsewhere. The deaths, the destruction, the chaos – all of it had been incidental to his true purpose.
Which was the capture of Itsuki Naoya.
Yunrei studied him for a long moment.
"The timing was suspicious. The beasts struck just as several promising young warriors from various dojos were away from their normal protections."
"Coincidence," Tsuyari said smoothly.
"War rarely follows convenient schedules."
"This wasn't war," Kurojin interjected.
"This was calculated. Precise. The kind of precision that requires intimate knowledge of our defenses."
Tsuyari spread his hands in a gesture of innocence.
"And you believe I possess such knowledge? How flattering. But I'm afraid my domain is rather isolated from the capital's military planning. Perhaps you should question Mizuko instead – her people have much more contact with the central command."
It was masterfully done. A deflection that contained just enough truth to be believable, while simultaneously sowing seeds of suspicion about another Trueborn.
Yunrei's expression didn't change, but something flickered in his green eyes.
Doubt? Suspicion? Or just recognition of Tsuyari's skill at manipulation?
"We'll be conducting our own investigation," Yunrei said finally.
"Of course you will." Tsuyari nodded approvingly. "And I'll offer whatever assistance I can provide. The safety of Astralyn is paramount, after all."
More hollow words. More perfect lies.
Kurojin hadn't moved during the entire exchange, but now he spoke again.
"There's another matter."
"Oh?"
"A student from Zenkai Dojo has gone missing. Itsuki Naoya."
Tsuyari's heart rate didn't change. His breathing remained steady. His expression showed only mild concern.
"Missing? How unfortunate. I trust he'll be found safely."
"He disappeared during the attack," Yunrei added.
"His friends believe he was taken."
"By the Verythra?" Tsuyari asked.
"How terrible. Though I suppose if the beasts were hungry enough..."
He let the implication hang in the air. The suggestion that Itsuki had been devoured, that there was nothing left to find.
It was cruel. Heartless.
Perfect.
Yunrei's jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
"We have reason to believe he might still be alive."
"Well then, I hope your investigation bears fruit." Tsuyari's voice remained pleasantly neutral. "Young people shouldn't suffer for the failures of their elders."
Another perfectly crafted statement. Sympathetic on the surface, but with subtle implications that the other Trueborns had somehow failed in their duties.
Kurojin stepped forward again.
"If you learn anything about the boy's whereabouts..."
"I'll contact you immediately," Tsuyari finished.
"You have my word."
Which is worth less than nothing, he thought.
But you don't need to know that.
Yunrei and Kurojin left without ceremony.
No formal goodbyes, no pleasantries. Just the sound of their footsteps fading into the distance as they made their way out of Tsuyari's domain.
Tsuyari waited until he was certain they were gone before allowing his mask to slip.
The pleasant expression melted away, replaced by cold calculation. His silver eyes gleamed with anticipation as he began to plan his next moves.
So they suspect me. Good.
Suspicion without proof was just paranoia. And paranoid people made mistakes. They acted rashly, trusted the wrong allies, revealed more than they intended.
Tsuyari could work with paranoia.
He rose from his throne and walked to a different window, one that looked out over the heart of his domain. In the distance, he could see the forge-cities where his people crafted weapons of unimaginable power. Closer to his palace, the training grounds where his most elite warriors perfected their skills.
All of it would be useful in the coming conflict.
Because there would be a conflict. Tsuyari had seen to that.
The attack on the capital had served multiple purposes. It had tested Astralyn's defenses and found them wanting. It had created fear and uncertainty among the population. It had forced the other Trueborns to reveal some of their capabilities and response protocols.
And most importantly, it had provided the perfect cover for his attempt to capture Itsuki.
An attempt that had failed.
But failure was just another form of information. It told him that someone else was playing the game, that Itsuki was more important than even Tsuyari had realized.
Which meant finding the boy had just become his highest priority.
Tsuyari closed his eyes and let his consciousness expand again, this time reaching beyond Vilaris itself. If Itsuki had been hidden somewhere in this realm, Tsuyari would eventually find him. His power was too vast, his network of influence too extensive.
But if the boy had been taken elsewhere...
That would require a different approach.
Tsuyari opened his eyes and smiled.
The expression was beautiful and terrible, like sunlight gleaming off the edge of a blade.
"Run and hide, little Naoya," he whispered to the wind.
"It will only make the hunt more interesting."
He turned away from the window and began to walk deeper into his palace, toward the chambers where his most dangerous servants waited for his commands.
The first phase of his plan had been discovery and recruitment. Shion Enther now served him willingly, his mind shaped by carefully crafted illusions and his power amplified by gifts that came with terrible prices.
The second phase had been disruption. The attack on the capital, the spreading fear, the seeds of doubt planted in the minds of the other Trueborns.
Now came the third phase.
Escalation.
If one of his fellow Trueborns thought they could protect Itsuki from him, they were about to learn how wrong they were. Tsuyari had been patient for centuries, content to work from the shadows and manipulate events subtly.
But patience had its limits.
And Tsuyari was very close to his.
The sound of his footsteps echoed through the darkened corridors of his palace, each step bringing him closer to the chamber where his most loyal servants waited. They would need new instructions, new targets, new levels of acceptable collateral damage.
Because the game was changing.
And Tsuyari intended to win.
Whatever the cost.