The young master's words could not be refused.
Gotoh only felt a warmth in his heart. He said nothing, nor was there any need to. He would repay him only with loyalty.
He took out a pen and paper from his pocket and began to copy. Roy paid him no mind, took Yukibashiri from the sword rack, and pushed the door open to leave.
Destination: the training room.
At six in the morning in November, the sky had not yet brightened. Lamps were still lit on the walls of the long corridor, their flickering light causing the young man's shadow to sway along with them. Roy enjoyed the fresh air blowing from the mountains. At a certain moment, his eyes shifted, gazing far ahead.
At the end of the corridor, Zeno emerged from a corner, walking towards him with his hands behind his back. Following him was Tsubone, carrying two large suitcases.
"Grandfather." The young man stopped to salute.
Zeno leisurely came to a stop in front of him, looking him up and down. "Roy, you've gotten taller."
From [Constitution: 11] to [Constitution: 71], an increase of sixty points in just a few short months could no longer be described as progress; it was a leap.
"It's gotten colder recently, so I've been eating a bit more."
"Mmm... it's about time to pack on some fat for autumn." Zeno patted his arm. "There is no father who does not wish for his son to be well. I am very gratified that you have been able to change."
"Everything is for the sake of moving forward," Roy said calmly.
Zeno couldn't agree more. "In this, you are stronger than Silva was as a child."
"Was he stubborn too?"
"Stubborn, him..."
"Ahem.." A light cough rudely interrupted the conversation between Zeno and Roy.
After Tsubone, another man walked out from the corner. He had a tall, imposing figure with knotted muscles. Even as winter approached, he still wore a sharp, black combat suit. His signature silver hair hung down to his waist, and his face always wore a serious and stern expression. He strode over, as still as a deep pool, as towering as a mountain.
He stopped in front of Roy.
Looking down at him, he asked, "The sun... is that your answer?"
He was supposed to go on a mission with Zeno this morning. When Gotoh's call came, the man was silent for a long time...
"Yes, and it is your answer as well." Roy lifted his chin, his gaze like a torch, and said sincerely, "I just feel that Father is sometimes too cold. If I could make you feel what warmth is, I think... I would be very happy to do so."
"You really have changed."
"Father taught me well."
Silva was left speechless by his words. He looked deeply at the young man, not knowing what to say, and simply turned to leave. Behind him was...
...Zeno, shaking his head with a smile.
"Hehe... practice Ren well. Let your grandfather have a look when the time comes."
The "One Kill a Day" emblem on his chest lifted a corner in the wind. Zeno patted Roy's shoulder and followed after him unhurriedly... Tsubone, carrying the suitcases, gave Roy a slight nod.
She walked straight past him... Just as the red sun began to rise, shooting out ten thousand rays of crimson light and dispelling the darkness, Roy watched the two successive heads of the Zoldyck family leave, a cloak of morning glow at his back.
'Contemplate... first observe, then think. Go through drawing from, imitating, and creating, to awaken a Ren unique to oneself.'
Combining the many understandings of Ren from his father and great-grandfather, Roy pushed open the door to the training room, took the poison, and began to practice his sword in the sunlight. He continued until the poison took effect, then had Luke carry him into the garden to face the sun and sunbathe.
"What is he doing?" Illumi followed him in and witnessed everything.
Luke was carrying a shovel, originally preparing to dig a pit. It was useless for the moment, so he just shook his head to indicate he didn't know.
In his opinion, the young masters of the Zoldyck family were all a bit crazy. Although he didn't understand, he respected it.
"Young master, it's your turn... still the 'lethal dose' today?"
Illumi: "..."
"...'Half-lethal' will be fine."
His great-grandfather had just called him into his room and told him to go pay respects to Grandpa Zigg in the afternoon... He didn't want to appear before his ancestor in a wretched state.
And so...
On this slightly cold afternoon, in the garden in front of the Zoldyck family's old castle, three people lay in a row.
One had his hands crossed over his abdomen, peacefully sunbathing. One was on his stomach with his butt in the air, his state of life unknown. And another was buried in a pit with only his head showing, a sun umbrella held over it...
It presented a twisted yet harmonious picture, until... it was shattered by two figures, one after the other.
As the sun began to set in the west, sensing the weakening sunlight, Roy opened his eyes and stretched comfortably. As usual, he got up and walked towards the basement.
Hearing the movement, Illumi recovered and regained feeling. He leaped out of the pit, shook the dirt off, and followed Roy towards the basement.
"Are you also going to pay respects to grandfather?" The two noticed each other at the same time, spoke at the same time, and then fell silent at the same time.
One on each side of the path, hands in their pockets, neither touching the other...
"Tap... tap..."
Two sets of footsteps echoed in the long corridor. At a certain moment, Illumi spared a glance from the corner of his eye to peek at Roy. Seeing him looking straight ahead, minding his own path, he said calmly, "I won't take your things for free."
The training methods for the Four Major Principles recorded in Silva's notebook were indeed what he desperately needed, especially since he had successfully learned Zetsu a few days ago but was still clueless about Ren. It was undoubtedly like receiving a pillow when one was sleepy.
"I told you, it was a gift from Father." Roy knew Illumi was talking about the notebook and didn't hold back his words, emphasizing it once more.
The young man with the vacant eyes didn't care at all and stubbornly insisted, "You gave it to me, so it's a gift from you."
'In any case, it's something you handled...'
"As you wish." Roy quickened his pace, too lazy to argue with him.
Seeing this, Illumi used Rhythm Echo to chase after him, even getting a step ahead of him to arrive at the basement and see Scarface and One-Eye.
"Young master."
"Young master."
Scarface and One-Eye bowed in salute. Roy arrived a moment later and gave them a slight nod.
So, the question was... who would go in first?
Illumi glanced at Roy.
Taking the lead, as Scarface and One-Eye pulled open the security door, he went in first.
And then... not two seconds later, he came out, leaning against the wall, his legs trembling.
"One point five seconds." Scarface pressed the stopwatch and exchanged a look with One-Eye before pulling the security door open again...
This time, Roy went in, and Illumi came out. The brothers passed each other, neither looking at the other...
"Get down!"
Deep in the passage, the airtight door opened, a tentacle shot out, and coiled around Roy, pulling him into [re: Dead Man's Game].
It was the familiar shout and the sand worm's Ren. Roy relied on changing the shape of his Nen, erecting a "Nen shield" in front of him. He survived the first wave of impact from the sand worm's tail whip and once again successfully caught Zigg's attention.
"Whose child are you? Your Ren training isn't bad... Watch out, the big one is coming!"
The sand worm dove low to the ground, beginning its second wave of attack. This time, Roy silently visualized the sun in his mind, imagining its scorching heat, its blinding light, its unbearable glare. Under the immense pressure, the milky-white "Nen shield" began to show specks of red.
The red specks emanated wisps of heat, burning the air. Zigg suddenly felt a bit hot. He erected his own "iron shield" in front of him and turned to look. The red specks had connected into patches, radiating heat in all directions. The moment it came into contact with the sand worm's Ren, it burned it to nothing!
Zigg's eyes flashed, and he blurted out, "The True Meaning of Fire?"
"No, it's the sun... the True Meaning of the Sun..."
[Hint: Nen's quality transformation has been activated...]
[Note: "The True Meaning of the Sun," Current Level: lv1 (1/100)]
[Manifestation: Scorching. (Note: The host can attach the scorching property to their Nen to achieve the effect of burning the opponent's aura)]
"Bzz... bzzt..." Firelight lit up... The waves of aura and wooden planks flying towards Roy were burned to ashes.
This time, the young man lasted for two and a half minutes, his disadvantage being... insufficient aura of his own!
"Impressive. It's a pity you're still young, and your understanding of your visualized object is too shallow. Otherwise... you might have had a hope of surviving."
"BANG!" The landing craft was bitten to pieces by the sand worm. A flying piece of the ship's railing came crashing down, piercing through Roy's "Nen shield"... In his fading consciousness, Roy seemed to see Zigg's regretful expression. Then, his vision went black, he completely lost consciousness, and was disconnected from the game.
And... this time Roy couldn't return to his Sea of Cognition. He only felt the world spin, and when he opened his eyes again, he had been sent back to reality by the tentacle... He was standing outside the airtight door, dazed, a pot of the yellow chrysanthemums he had brought earlier beside him.
'So overpowering!'
The sun cannot be looked at directly. Attaching the scorching property to his aura consumed a huge amount, even devouring the little bit of Nen he had reserved for entering and exiting the Gate of Cognition... Used well, it was a sharp weapon... used poorly...
"...it's a burden."
Exhausted, an indescribable fatigue, feeling as if his body had been hollowed out. Roy stood at the door, taking a long while to recover before he gradually regained his senses and willed his legs to move, walking towards the passage opening.
One step... two steps... he walked very slowly... very carefully... When he reappeared...
Illumi, along with Scarface and One-Eye, looked over. The latter two held a stopwatch and announced a number: "Two minutes and thirty-one seconds."
'Looks like I lost again...' Illumi put his hands behind his head and ran them through his hair.
The young man had thought that learning Zetsu would allow him to catch up to his older brother, but in the end... his big brother was still on the other side of the river, while he was still in it. No matter how he reached, he couldn't seem to touch him...
Illumi watched Roy quietly for a long moment, then turned and left desolately...
A gust of wind blew, swirling the withered leaves... Roy followed him out of the basement and returned to his own bedroom. He took out the notebook Silva had given him and placed it next to Zigg's notebook, comparing them carefully...
After a long while, looking thoughtful, he picked up a pen and wrote a sentence on a blank page: "A red heart towards the sun..."
Sun Breathing was created because of the sun. His Nen used the sun as a reference point to condense and form Ren...
All roads lead to one.
"Questioning the heart"... "Questioning the heart"... As long as the sun does not go out, his heart will not be extinguished...
Roy closed the notebook. Never before had he had such a clear understanding of the path ahead...
When lost... he only needed to follow the sun's guidance!
T/n:
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