Step by step.
Drenched in blood, Yujin walked out of the tavern. People who had gathered nearby, drawn by the commotion, scattered the moment they saw him soaked in crimson.
But among them, one girl did not run. She approached him with a towel, reaching out to wipe his face, but Yujin held out a hand to stop her.
"It's fine. You'll get blood on you."
"But..."
Seeing her on the verge of tears, Yujin felt a pang of guilt. He hadn't wanted her to know about this. He wondered who had told her.
Like most inhabitants of this place, two horns protruded from her beautiful white hair. The tips of her hair, white as a blank canvas, were tinged with a faint pink. Her eyes, the color of a mild autumn, gazed at him.
Theresia. She was Theresis's sister and one of the only two people in this world he truly trusted.
When Theresia tried to peek inside the tavern, Yujin quickly covered her eyes with his clean hand.
"Don't look. It's not good for your head."
"...Then what about you? You're always seeing things like this."
Before she could say more, Yujin turned and walked away.
"I'm the one who took action. I'll be the one to carry the weight of it."
Theresia's nature was far too gentle; witnessing such a scene would do her no good.
He opened a cigarette case he'd taken from Tur's pocket and pulled one out.
"Damn bastard. Smoking the good stuff with money earned from cutting open kids."
He moved to light it, but a wave of disgust washed over him. He threw the cigarette into the dirt.
Every time something like this happened, Yujin prayed—prayed that people would stop doing such things. In Tur's case, they were scum to begin with, so it didn't matter. But the streets were full of people committing atrocities just to feed their families.
The blood on his blade was thick and unpleasant, dripping steadily—a perfect reflection of his current mood. It wasn't exactly guilt. These people had abandoned their humanity and discarded any sense of justice. He was just disgusted.
"Sigh..."
As Yujin sheathed his sword and exhaled, Theresia's warm hand caught his. Her white hand stood in stark contrast to his blood-stained one.
Yujin immediately pulled away.
"..."
"Enough. Go back and rest. I'll return on my own."
I hope she never becomes like me. With that thought, Yujin walked toward a nearby stream to wash the filth from his body.
Stripped and floating in the relatively clean stream, Yujin fell into thought.
Theresis had a natural gift for combat, just like him. With luck, he could leave this place and become a noble knight of the Royal Court. Theresia, while not gifted in fighting, had a talent for design, architecture, and even tailoring.
If both of them had been born in a normal place, far from here, they could have lived happily. Others called it a pipe dream, but Yujin intended to make that dream a reality. They were his family. He had already lived a long life, but they hadn't. There were too many things they hadn't experienced yet.
Meeting a lover and laughing. Eating delicious food and feeling joy. Living without worrying about tomorrow. He wanted to show them that world. He had sworn it the day he saw them weeping over the body of a dead child.
Yujin lifted his arm and looked at a mark etched into his skin, shaped like a stylized burst of light. It was a tattoo-like mark that had appeared the day he made that promise to Theresis and Theresia. He suspected it was related to his Arts.
Arts. A magic-like power wielded by the gifted, manifested through Originium—the source of all calamities.
Just thinking about Originium made his head throb, but there was no avoiding it. Living in these backalleys while shunning Originium was impossible. Even the children he looked after were victims of it.
Originium, the versatile mineral. It had brought humanity dazzling progress, but at a terrible price: Oripathy.
A 100% mortality rate. Once infected, there is no cure—only a slow wait for death. As symptoms worsen, Originium crystals sprout from the body, causing immense pain. Eventually, the body turns into Originium and explodes, spreading dust that infects others. It truly was a walking disaster.
"Whew..."
Looking at his reflection in the water, Yujin saw no crystals on his skin. He felt no pain. He was still uninfected. However, Oripathy had already taken root in the bodies of Theresia and Theresis.
In these slums, he was likely the only one without the disease. Some had targeted him out of jealousy, but after a few "lessons" and his name gaining notoriety, no one dared touch him.
Yujin channeled his Arts, creating a glow of platinum light. The tattoo on his arm pulsed in response. As he swung his hand, the stream split open with a violent splash.
After his brief display of power, Yujin climbed out, dried off, and dressed. He looked up at the sky. It was as dark as ever.
As the grey sky turned to black, Yujin stood against Theresis with sword in hand.
Among the children, Theresis was the only one who could withstand Yujin's strikes. The others were sent rolling across the dirt by the slightest pressure.
Maximum efficiency with minimum force. Focusing on every movement, Yujin swung, while Theresis struggled just to parry. To an observer, it looked like Theresis was being overwhelmed, but his style was inherently defensive—unlike Yujin's aggressive swordsmanship.
When Yujin was away, Theresis was the one who protected the children. It was natural their styles would diverge.
Clang!
The blades clashed with a clear ring. Theresis repeated the same forms over and over. Four stances. They were unpolished, but they had a distinct flow.
However, since he had no formal training and only learned by watching, his forms were full of holes. Yujin didn't miss the opening. Gripping his sword with both hands, he lunged with his entire body.
Issen—Single Flash.
The sword thrust forward like a viper, breaking Theresis's posture. In an instant, Yujin's blade stopped just short of Theresis's throat.
"...I lost."
Theresis spoke with frustration as he lowered his sword. Yujin followed suit.
"You're better than before. But it's not enough. You can't reach the next level through practice alone."
"Only you could say that. Anyone else would have..."
Theresis trailed off. Even the stances he used were ones Yujin had stolen by watching the Royal Guards and then taught to him.
An insurmountable wall. That was what Theresis felt whenever he looked at Yujin.
No one had taught him, yet Yujin had awakened his own Arts. He had copied the swordsmanship of the Royal Court guards who came to the slums to purge gangs, just by watching them.
Yujin used various styles to train him, but even if he had used the same four stances Theresis knew, the result would have been the same. If Yujin had gone all out, the match would have ended in two moves.
Mercenary techniques, Sarkaz military forms, even the famous styles from the Kazimierz Major... Yujin copied them all simply by sight. He spent his free time in his room watching old recordings of knight competitions on a worn-out player. Even when Theresia tried to drag him out, he would finish his chores at supernatural speeds just to get back to his videos.
"Wait here. Do you know what I caught today?"
While Theresis lay on the ground staring at the sky, Yujin suddenly grinned and disappeared behind the lot. He returned lugging a massive wild boar on his shoulders.
"Let's go! It's a meat party tonight!"
"A boar? In the middle of these backalleys?"
Theresis was stunned by the size of the beast, which looked like it belonged in a mountain range, but Yujin was already excited.
"I don't know if something chased it down here or if it just got lost. Either way—meat!"
Living on foul canned rations was the norm here, but real meat was a rare luxury. Theresis's eyes brightened as he followed Yujin. They ran back toward the hideout where Theresia was waiting.