*Clang!*
The sound of steel meeting claw split through the silence of the forest.
For a moment, the demon froze. Its grin faltered. It didn't understand what had just happened, no, it couldn't understand.
The frail girl who stood trembling before him only seconds ago now met his strike head-on.
The little lady he thought would be an easy meal had bared her fangs.
Kanae's arms trembled under the force, but her stance held. The fear that once bound her feet now burned into something else... something sharper.
"…I won't die," she whispered through gritted teeth, her eyes blazing. "Not now… not here!"
*Slash!*
Kanae's blade flashed, forcing the demon into a defensive stance.
With a snarl, it crossed both claws in front of itself-
*Clang!*
Steel met bone. Sparks burst between them. Kanae's arms trembled from the impact, her knees almost buckling, yet she refused to yield.
The demon blinked, its grin twisting into something uglier. "Oya~ So the flower has thorns after all"
Kanae didn't answer. Her breath came shallow... but steady. Each inhale carried rhythm, control, and focus.
That was what her teacher always said.
When fear grips your heart, focus on your breathing.
Her fingers tightened on the hilt. The katana felt heavier than ever, but it was enough.
The demon lunged again, claws slicing through the night air-
*Step*
Kanae's foot slid lightly. Her movement was fluid, almost like a dance. The blade swept past, grazing the demon's arm. Not deep, but enough to draw a hiss of pain.
"Tch! You little...!" the demon snarled, whipping its tail-like limb toward her.
Kanae ducked low, her hair brushing the dirt as she rolled aside. Her body screamed to stop, to run, but her heart defied every instinct.
She rose again, chest heaving, eyes burning.
'I can't die here… not before I see Shinobu smile again'
The demon charged once more.
This time, Kanae didn't retreat. Her breath steadied. Her steps flowed. Her body moved like water.
She exhaled, slow, calm, like the blooming of a petal.
"Flower Breathing: First Form... Cherry Blossom Blooming!"
Her blade swept in a graceful arc, moonlight glinting along its edge. The motion wasn't perfect, but it carried heart.
The demon staggered back, disbelief frozen on its face as a long gash bloomed across its chest.
Kanae stood firm, body trembling, breath ragged, but her spirit alight.
Even if this was just the beginning of her path, she had already bloomed once beneath the moonlight... surrounded by a mist no one knew when it had formed.
--------
- With Kagerou.
When he entered the forest, the first thing that greeted him was a bone-chilling scream.
Probably one of the participants.
He didn't move. Not because he was heartless, but because it was already too late.
Occasionally puffing on his kiseru, Kagerou walked aimlessly among the towering trees.
The smoke that escaped his lips drifted and curled, cloaking him like a faint, ghostly veil, whether a shield or camouflage, even he didn't know.
The forest was too quiet.
Too quiet for a place crawling with demons.
That was why, even from afar, every scream reached him clearly.
Each one sharp, brief, and final.
"…Death," Kagerou murmured whenever the sound echoed through the woods, counting under his breath. "…That one's dead too"
Then-
*Clang!*
A sharp ring of steel meeting claw split the silence.
Different from the others.
"…This one," Kagerou muttered, eyes narrowing as he exhaled a slow plume of smoke, "This one's still alive"
Without haste, he began walking toward the sound.
When he arrived, he didn't intervene.
He stood behind a tree, half-shrouded in mist, and watched. Observed... Assessed.
A girl stood before a demon.
No, a woman, young but composed, beautiful in a way that didn't belong to battlefields.
"Hoh~ Flower Breathing?" Kagerou mused quietly as he saw her move. Her form was elegant, disciplined, her blade bit into the demon's flesh, drawing dark blood.
But that was all.
The cut wasn't deep enough. The demon was already regenerating. Unless its head was severed, it wouldn't stop.
Kagerou's gaze returned to the woman.
Her spirit was remarkable… yet her body told a different story.
He watched as the demon lunged again, its wounds already knitting back together. If this continued, she would lose, that much was obvious.
And yet…
Even as death loomed inches from her throat, she didn't waver.
Her arms trembled, her breath was ragged, but her eyes... Those eyes burned.
There was something in them Kagerou hadn't seen in years.
Something that stirred the quiet ash in his chest.
That look... The look of someone who wants to live.
The same look his mother once had.
The memory resurfaced, the face of his mother, her strict yet gentle voice echoing faintly in his mind. Kagerou remembered it again, the memory he had tried to bury, not because he wanted to forget, but because he wished to keep it pure… untouched by time and pain.
He sighed softly, his eyes closed.
Then-
*Clang!*
The sound snapped him back. His eyes opened to the sight of the woman on the ground, trembling, blood running down her arms.
Her breathing was ragged. Her hands were shaking as she tried to lift her katana again.
But even then… those eyes.
They hadn't changed.
That same look, stubborn, desperate, alive.
Kagerou's curiosity stirred, a faint flicker of something long dormant.
He wanted to know.
He wanted to ask.
... Why?
His form blurred, melting into the mist that clung to him. For a heartbeat, he became one with it... weightless, unseen.
Then, in the next instant, he reappeared, standing between the woman and the demon.
The demon's claw descended.
*Clang!*
Kagerou's hand rose lazily, his kisaru meeting the demon's strike with a sharp metallic ring.
Smoke coiled around his arm like living breath.
The demon's eyes widened in disbelief.
Kagerou's expression was calm, almost bored, as his silver ash gaze met the creature's.
He had no intention of letting it touch her.
He needed this woman alive.
He needed to hear her answer.
... What makes her want to live that much?