Caleif and Mira both sit quietly in the kitchen, their expressions heavy with sorrow. Caleif nudges a small breakfast sausage around her plate with a forlorn fork, clearly unsettled by the lingering emotions from the previous night's events. She exhales deeply and turns to Mira, her voice tinged with regret, "Do you think we could have done something to help his parents last night?" she asks softly, her eyes searching Mira's for reassurance.
Mira takes a thoughtful sip of her coffee, the unusual blend of black coffee and strawberry creamer swirling in her cup. She sets it down gently on the counter, her gaze distant yet contemplative. "It's possible, yes," she finally replies. "But perhaps it was for the best that it happened this way. It may sound heartless, but eventually, his parents would have become targets themselves, and the outcome would have been inevitable. For now, our priority is to distract him, no matter what it takes."
A sudden bang echoes from upstairs, interrupting their musings. They exchange a knowing glance. "Sounds like Kamen's awake," Mira remarks, her voice steady as she rises from the table. She clears her throat with a soft cough and begins to move towards the door that leads to the upper floor. "What do you think we should do?" she inquires, looking to Caleif for guidance.
Caleif pauses, her mind a whirl of possibilities. "Maybe we should start with training," she suggests tentatively. "Or perhaps we should take him out today, give him a break from everything." Her voice catches slightly, betraying her uncertainty as they ascend the stairs towards the room. "No... he needs to train. He has to become stronger and learn how to control Estingoth better," she concludes, her tone wavering as they reach the top step.
I sit on my bed, my fingers idly combing through my hair, when I hear a gentle, almost timid knock at the door. With a sigh, I rise and walk towards it, opening it to find Caleif standing there, exuding a radiant beauty that momentarily takes my breath away. Beside her is Mira, equally stunning, and for a moment, I feel as though I've stepped into a celestial realm. Rather that than the infernal depths, though I keep that thought to myself. "What's going on? Is something happening?" I ask, rubbing the back of my head nervously, my hair swaying with the motion.
Caleif clears her throat, her eyes blazing like twin moons in twilight as they lock onto mine. "You need to start training today, Kamen," she says, urgency and compassion weaving through her voice like steel and silk. "You must become stronger—so you don't lose control again, or collapse after channeling Estingoth." Her words land heavy in the air, yet a melancholy smile tugs at her perfect lips, hinting at the burdens she carries. I glance down at the dark metal gauntlet wrapped around my forearm. "What do you think, Estingoth? What's our best path forward?" I murmur. The gauntlet hums, its runes flickering. "Train now rather than later. There are enemies out there far more powerful than you realize," it replies in a low, resonant tone.
We head down the stone steps from the mansion's back porch. The night air clings to my skin. Caleif stops mid-step and snaps her fingers. A section of cobblestone slides aside, revealing a hatch yawning open. "This way," she says, descending first. Mira follows silently, her pale hair drifting like mist behind her.
I join them, stepping into cool darkness. The stairs spiral down until, suddenly, we emerge in a cavernous hall that defies belief. Vaulted ceilings vanish into shadow; columns stretch off into the distance. The place must span miles. My jaw drops. "How is this possible?" I whisper.
Caleif watches me with that soft, sad smile. "Magic," she explains. "We expanded the backyard into this sanctum, folded space around our needs. It encircles the globe, yet it leaves the earth untouched—and only those we authorize may enter."
Mira glides forward and offers me a small iron key, her lips curving in a quiet smile before she slips away into the gloom. As the echo of her footsteps fades, I ask, "How many servants do you have here?"
Caleif coughs, clearly surprised. "Twelve in total, but only Mira is nearby right now. Elena's studying in another wing of the mansion." She gestures toward a massive rack of shadow-steel that stands against the far wall. Strange shapes hang there—some familiar, some not. She waves me over.
When I reach the rack, she lets her hand hover above it. Runes flare, and weapons materialize: gleaming swords, heavy-flanged maces, long pikes, even a pair of nun chucks that clash oddly with the rest. "Weapon training today," she announces. "You need more than just the gauntlet."
I shrug, uncertain. "Okay… but where do we start?"
Her smile is quiet but fierce. She swaggers to the rack, sweeping her hand in an arc. The weapons shimmer to attention. "Pick one."
I frown. My gaze lands on the nun chucks and I curse under my breath. Of course. "Goddamn it."
Caleif's silver laughter echoes off the stone. She steps close, presses the flat of a sword blade to my chin, tilting my head back. My pulse rockets. "Ready?" she teases in that sharp, soft voice.
"Can… can I have a minute?" I stammer, heart pounding against my ribs.
She straightens, eyes narrowing. "No minute. Enemies won't pause for you to catch your breath. Training starts now—get in position." Without warning, she slashes downward. The blade carves through the air, slicing open the old wound on my chest—the scar where Claire's blade once found me. Hot pain flares, and I lunge for the nearest weapon. My fingers close around the cold wood of the nun chucks.
I try to spin them, to prove I can handle this ridiculous choice of arms. But my coordination betrays me: the chain whips around and strikes me square in the groin. I gasp, collapse to my knees, breath roaring out of me. Tears sting my eyes. "Ah—damn it! I forgot why I hated these things!" I groan.
Caleif throws back her head and laughs, a rich, bell-like sound in the darkness. "You really are… unique, Kamen. I've never seen anyone disable themselves so elegantly." She steps closer, her voice dropping to a whisper I can almost feel against my ear. "Maybe that's why you couldn't save your parents."
My blood runs cold. Pain throbs through me, but her words strike deeper than the nun chuck blow. I force myself upright, chest heaving. "What… did you just say?"
Her lips curl into something fierce and predatory. "You heard me. Stand up. Show me the man who could've saved his parents." She lunges, blade arcing toward my throat.
In a flash reflex, I seize her wrist and wrench the sword. Metal snaps like dry bone. She staggers, blade broken in two. I hold the shattered hilt inches from her face. My pulse pounds in my temples. "Don't talk like that, Caleif," I whisper, voice trembling. "I don't want to hurt you."
Caleif releases a booming laugh, a sound heavy with mockery and disdain. "Trust me, Kamen," she sneers, her voice dripping with derision. "You can't touch me. But your absence wounded your parents deeply." She inches closer, her presence a looming shadow. "It's your fault they're gone," she accuses, each word a dagger. "You should have been there for them, but you failed."
My blood boils, anger seething beneath my skin as I crack my neck, trying to rein in the storm building within. Yet, she presses on, relentless. With a deceptively sweet voice, she leans in, her words a venomous whisper in my ear. "They faced the world alone, sacrificing everything to protect you, and this is your gratitude? No wonder you're so weak," she taunts.
Her final words ignite a firestorm inside me. I snap, my fury erupting as my fist rockets upward, slamming into her gut with a force that lifts her off her feet. The gauntlet strapped to my arm hums to life, roaring to a full 100% power, a wild energy coursing through me and solidifying within the gauntlet's grasp. A primal roar escapes my lips as the gauntlet charges, a sinister energy swirling around me before consolidating into a tangible force.
In a heartbeat, the gauntlet releases, unleashing a searing ball of red light that blazes through the air, faster than anything I've ever witnessed. It homes in on Caleif just as Mira bursts back into the room, her eyes wide with shock at the chaos unfolding. "Kamen, don't!" she cries out, her voice tinged with a desperate concern.
But the momentum is unstoppable. The ball of light streaks toward Caleif, who nimbly evades it at the last moment. The blazing projectile crashes into the ceiling, detonating with the force of an explosion. The shockwave ripples through the building, a violent wave of destruction echoing like a bomb.
Caleif emerges from the chaos, a twisted grin etched across her face. "Good," she hisses, her eyes alight with a perverse delight. "This is what you need. Let it all out, Kamen. Show me everything you've got." Her words are a challenge, daring me to unleash the full fury of my power.
"Estingoth, give me more power." I demand but Estingoth is unreasonably silent for a few seconds. "Kamen, this isn't wise. If you use too much power all at once, it can have negative implications for you." He explains and this really sets me off. "Estingoth, I don't care. I'll fucking deal with it later. More power now." I demand. Estingoth sighs and gives in, giving me more power than I expected as I feel weightless and limitless.
"This is what I'm talking about, I'll show you exactly how strong I am, Caleif. So get ready." I say as the gauntlet roars to 150%. Caleif is taken back, she squints as she sees the gauntlet's power output and her eyes go wide. "Kamen, this is too much. You can't use that much power yet, you have to calm down!" She yells out in a panic. But I'm too angry and pissed to listen. "I won't let you trick me again, you said I was too weak to help my parents, so I'll prove you wrong." I yell out as the energy from the gauntlet spreads over my body. Caleif can't keep up with my movements as I weave around her in a blur, punching her in between grunts as I start feeling the feedback from using this much power.
"Damn it, Kamen. Please, I'm telling you that you need to stop!" She cries out as one of my punches lands against her chest knocking the air from her lungs and sending her to the ground with a spider web crack around the ground. Seeing this, Mira steps into actions calling out to me. "Kamen, you need to stop. You don't understand what you're doing!!" I ignore her as I walk over to Caleif. "Who's the weak one now." I spit out with venom, but it seems Caleif has had enough as she stands up as if nothing happened to her. She looks me in the eyes and grimaces. " I warned you, Kamen. I told you to stop and now you've used too much power. You need to calm down and lessen your power." She spits out as she cracks me over the head with the hilt of the blade.
Dazed, I shuffle around not expecting her to use so much strength but also confused that I even felt that pain the first place. I thought with the power I possessed now I wouldn't feel pain. "What… What the fuck did you do to me." I say slurring my words. Caleif walks up to me and slaps me across the face before kneeing me in the stomach making me retch, finally understanding how it feels to get hit in the stomach like that as I fall to one knee. Slowly I feel the power start to fade as the gauntlet dribbles down to a mere 25%.
"Just how powerful are you, Caleif?" I ask dazed and out of breathe. She glares at me before sighing and putting her hand on my shoulder in a comforting way. "I'm a lot stronger than you are now, but this is why this needed to happen. You let your emotions control you too much, if it hadn't been me. You could have killed someone." She says in a solemn but aggravated tone. "I'm sorry for what I said about your parents, it wasn't your fault. I just said that to see how far you would go. Please forgive me Kamen." She says lower and quieter with a tone of sadness as she pulls me in for a hug, letting my head rest between her perfect breasts.
"Ah shucks, I guess it's okay if it's you, Caleif." I say feeling my heart beat rise and suddenly hear the gauntlet start to charge. Caleif and I look at the gauntlet and see a new gauge appear, it's pink and shows 50%. Caleif sighs and smacks the back of my head and laughs. "It looks like pink is lust, you're a naughty boy, Kamen. You seriously need to calm down, at-least for now." She says the last part quieter than the rest.