Everything was quiet. Not like peaceful quiet. It was like the whole world stopped breathing for a moment. The sky outside turned grey again, clouds moving slower than usual. Wind didn't blow. Trees didn't shake. It was like the land was waiting to see what would happen next.
Coker stood in the middle of the red hall. The fire around him was still dancing, but it changed. It was no longer wild and scary. It was calm now. Strong but not angry. His body was shaking a little, his skin burned with lines of red light. But he was standing. Still here. Still Coker.
Lira ran to him fast. Her eyes was wet but she smiled. "You won," she said softly. "You fought the Demon King. You pushed him back."
But Coker didn't smile. His eyes were staring at his hands. They still had the cursed marks. They still felt hot. "I didn't win," he said. "I just didn't lose... yet."
Behind them, the throne room was broken. The ground was cracked. Smoke was rising. But the evil feeling—it was still there. Like the Demon King wasn't gone. Just hiding inside the walls. Or inside the heart.
Lira touched his shoulder. "You're not alone," she said. "I'm still with you. Reko too. And even the hero..."
Coker looked away. The name *hero* still made something twist inside his chest. That guilt never left. Not even now.
"I don't deserve it," he said. "To feel this alive."
"You do," she replied. "Because you're fighting. That's enough."
They walked slowly out of the building. Outside, Reko was sitting against a tree. His armor was scratched and his sword stuck into the ground beside him. His face lit up when he saw them.
"You're alive," Reko said with a tired voice.
Coker nodded. "Still cursed. Still breathing."
Reko laughed a little. "Then it's not over."
The three of them sat together on the cold ground. It was silent for a while. The kind of silence that didn't feel bad.
Then Lira asked, "What now?"
Coker looked at his hands again. The fire was calm now, but he knew it could wake anytime. "Now… we train again. We grow. We fight smarter. The Demon King ain't done with me. I felt it."
Reko leaned back against the tree. "Then we get ready. He made a mistake letting us live this long."
Coker smirked a little. "You sound like a main character."
Reko laughed. "I was… until you showed up again."
That made all three of them laugh. For the first time in long time, it felt real.
But the peace didn't last.
The sky turned dark again. Not from clouds. But from magic.
A bright red mark appeared high above them, like a crack in the air.
Coker stood fast. "Something's coming."
Lira pulled out her blade. "What is that?"
Suddenly, a loud voice echoed from the red sky.
**"The Vessel has woken. The boy has touched the King's flame. Now the real hunt begins."**
Then silence.
Coker looked up. The fire in his chest began to shake again.
"They know," he said. "The Demon Army knows I'm awake now."
Reko stood beside him. "Let them come."
But Coker shook his head. "No. If we stay here, people die. Villages. Families. Kids."
Lira gasped. "They'll attack the human lands next."
Coker looked at both of them. "Then we don't wait. We go to them. We take the fight deep into the demon core."
Reko raised an eyebrow. "The Demon Core? You serious?"
"Yeah," Coker said. "That's where the King's soul is hiding. I felt it. It's not here. It's there. Waiting."
Reko sighed. "Then we need more help. Just us three won't make it that far."
Lira nodded. "What about the other Captains? They're still out there. Fighting their own battles."
Coker paused. "You think they'll follow me?"
"They'll follow truth," Lira said. "And right now, that's you."
Coker looked down the road. His fire rose again, this time not from hate, but from purpose.
"Then let's go get them."
That night, they camped under the dark sky. Coker couldn't sleep. The flame inside was too loud. He walked alone to the edge of the trees.
And that's when he saw him.
The ghostly figure.
The hero.
He wasn't clear. Just a shape of light and memory. His sword was glowing on his back, and his face was calm. Sad but proud.
Coker stared. "Why do you keep showing up?"
The hero didn't speak. Just pointed at his chest. Then disappeared again into the wind.
Coker touched his chest. The fire was beating like a second heart.
"What are you trying to tell me…" he whispered.
Behind him, Lira walked close. "Talking to ghosts again?"
"Maybe," Coker said.
"Think he forgives you?"
Coker didn't answer.
Then he said, "No… I don't think he's trying to forgive. I think he's pushing me. He wants me to become better. Stronger. Not just in power… but in heart."
Lira smiled. "Then listen to him."
The next morning, they started the new journey. They would travel across ruined lands, forgotten temples, cursed rivers, and secret warzones where Captains and demons still fought. They would search for the strongest. The broken. The silent. The brave.
Because Coker knew now\...
To win this war, he had to become more than a vessel.
He had to become a leader.
Not for himself.
But for everyone who still believed in something.
Even in a cursed boy.