The echo of their footsteps carried through the open steel walkway that curved toward the Mission Core, a vast, dome-shaped chamber where the academy's field operatives received their directives.

Wind currents shimmered in blue light below, reflecting the pulsing veins of the academy's Shinrei network.

Ceyla walked a step ahead, her cloak flickering with static; Juno moved in silence, fists already taped; Khael followed, his expression calm but alert.

The hum of energy, the murmurs of other Veinwalkers it all felt familiar.

But then a voice broke through the crowd.

"Oi! If it isn't the golden boy himself, the Dragon Knight back from babysitting nobles!"

Khael blinked then grinned.

"Kenji?"

Out from a nearby console leaned Kenji Gas, grinning ear to ear, curly wolf-cut hair bouncing slightly as he crossed his arms. His eyes gleamed with the same easy confidence as always, a swagger that could either charm or irritate depending on who you asked.

"Man, you actually came back alive. I thought they'd hang you up in Equinoxis as some kind of statue."

Khael chuckled. "They tried. I ran."

Before Kenji could laugh, a blur of blonde swept in Saya Kurenai, braid bouncing behind her. Her eye sharp as moonlight and twice as teasing locked onto Khael.

"Well, look who returned looking even more dramatic than before," she said, hands on her hips. "Did the wind carry you here, oh great Dragon Knight?"

Ceyla immediately scowled. "Oh, not her again."

Saya smirked. "Ah, The lovers are here."

"Keep talking, I might just short-circuit your petals."

"Try it and I'll make sure your hair grows sideways."

Khael stepped in between them, sighing with a faint smile. "Can we not start World War III in the hallway?"

Then, a familiar low drawl drifted from behind the group.

"How nostalgic. You're all exactly the same. Loud."

Shigeo Motome stood by the glass-paneled terminal, hands deep in his coat pockets.

His messy black hair hung lazily over half-lidded eyes, and even his posture radiated quiet indifference as if the entire academy spun too fast for him to bother keeping up.

"Shigeo," Khael said with a faint smile. "Didn't think I'd see you this soon."

Shigeo tilted his head slightly. "Didn't think I'd care. But here we are."

Ceyla frowned. "Still pretending you don't care about anything, huh?"

Shigeo's lips twitched faintly. "Pretending? I'm not pretending — I just prioritize peace and quiet. You three bring neither."

Kenji laughed, slapping Shigeo on the back which earned him a mild static shock from Shigeo's reflexive Shinrei flare.

"Still the same Static Genius, huh? You look half-asleep but your brain's got lightning circuits!"

"Overstimulation," Shigeo muttered. "You're the cause of most of it."

Khael chuckled, the warmth of old camaraderie seeping in. Weeks had passed since their last mission together, but it felt like no time at all.

This this banter, this rhythm was the kind of peace that didn't need silence.

Then, the mission console flared to life. The instructor's hologram Instructor Varn, an older Veinwalker with greyed hair and calm authority appeared before them.

"Team 9. Additional reinforcement unit, Team 7 consisting of Shigeo Motome, Saya Kurenai, and Kenji Gas. Your Silver Directive has been authorized."

A holographic map appeared, displaying the Florene Petalglade region and specifically, the village of Tildaroot.

"Two days ago, communication with Team 3 was lost. Last known report indicated residual contamination from Lunaris Dust experiments and an unidentified hostile signature. Mission: Recovery and containment. Priority, Silver-level."

Ceyla's eyes widened. "Team 3…"

Khael's breath caught for a second. (Kaen…)

Instructor Varn's tone was sharp. "You depart within the hour. Prepare your Shinrei stabilizers. We believe this mission's contamination has evolved possibly reaching a hybrid spiritual stage."

Kenji whistled softly. "Hybrid? That's not good."

Saya crossed her arms. "Guess peace was too much to ask for."

Shigeo finally looked up, eyes narrowing at the map. "...Florene Petalglade. I read something about that place. Shinrei waves don't behave normally there."

Khael's hands clenched. His expression hardened not out of fear, but focus.

"Then we find them," he said quietly. "Kaen. Lira. Rael. Whatever's in that village, we end it."

Ceyla glanced sideways at him, noticing the glint in his eyes.

"That tone…" she muttered. "Yeah. He's serious."

Kenji grinned, tossing his jacket over his shoulder. "Then let's go break the storm."

Saya added with a teasing grin, "And maybe save the world again — you know, just another Tuesday."

Shigeo sighed softly. "What a complicated world…"

As the teams dispersed toward the departure docks, the wind howled through the glass hall carrying faint whispers of thunder and something darker beneath.

Khael looked up once more at the holographic projection of Tildaroot Village.

(Kaen… I'm coming.)

Meanwhile on Tildaroot Village

The medic tent was quiet, save for the faint rustle of bandages and the muted hum of Shinrei stabilizers. The air smelled faintly of herbs and antiseptic, mingled with the residual scent of scorched earth from Kaen's last battle.

Kaen Suro sat upright on the cot, his back still marked with the faint outline of the cursed seal. Though his body had healed thanks to his innate resilience, his mind replayed the encounter over and over, the shadowed figure of Bakuza, the wild yellow hair, the primal hunger in his feral eyes.

"Echo Art: Dark Spike."

Kaen's hand clenched involuntarily. The memory was sharp: the jagged shadow spike tearing through the air, aimed at his chest, a physical manifestation of fear itself. The blow hadn't killed him not entirely but it had left a scar on more than just his flesh.

"Echo Art: Flame Shield."

Flames had erupted around him, mingling with the dark energy. Fire and shadow danced violently, the clash of emotions manifesting as pure Shinrei. Kaen had survived because he was born to withstand it, but the mark on his back, the cursed emblem of the Eclipse Rite pulsed faintly even now.

He closed his eyes, trying to calm his racing thoughts. Every movement, every flicker of shadow, reminded him of his origin.

The Eclipse Rite, Legacy of the Suro Clan

Long ago, during the final war of the Vein Clans, the Suro Clan attempted to forge a warrior capable of wielding all six emotional Shinrei types including the forbidden Shade Affinity (fear).

The ritual, known as the Eclipse Rite, required sacrificing both parents to fuse their Shinrei cores into the child. They used the Hollow Vein, a fragment of the ancient Voidrot meteorite, to bind the energies. Only one child survived, Kaen.

The cost? A soul partially hollowed, a seal of Void upon his Shinrei flow, and a predisposition to emotional volatility.

…

Effects on Kaen

Passive Effects:

Shinrei leaks unpredictably, creating sudden spikes of emotional energy.

Dreams are haunted by a shadowed version of himself, Hollow Kaen.

Animals and trained warriors sense wrongness in his presence when he is agitated.

Activated Effects:

When pushed to emotional extremes particularly when friends or allies are endangered the seal can be partially unlocked, granting him limited control over Shade-type Shinrei.

With guidance from his master, Genzu, Kaen can control roughly 60% of this volatile power, enough to manifest devastating Echo Arts without fully succumbing to Void.

Kaen's hand traced the faint burn-like pattern on his back, a reminder of how close he had come to losing himself.

He recalled the way Bakuza had vanished, leaving only the echo of his feral laughter behind.

"He's testing me… always testing."

Kaen's eyes, a mixture of amber fire and shadow, glinted with determination. He had survived the darkness before. He would survive again.

He flexed his fingers, feeling the residual heat of his Flame Shield, and allowed a small smile to touch his lips.

"Next time, I won't just defend… I'll end it."

Outside, the wind whispered through the village, carrying faint remnants of Lunaris Dust and the scent of damp earth. Kaen knew that even though he was recovering, the fight in Tildaroot was only a prelude shadows still lingered, and the storm was far from over.

To be continue

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