Days passed quietly after the invitation. The wind carried warmth again, brushing through Ethera's recovering fields and whispering through the broken treelines beyond the village. Kiyoshi's mornings were now marked by the sound of motion — his, graceful and steady, as he trained beneath the rising light.
He had grown sharper—his control cleaner. The air obeyed him, swirling to his gestures like it recognized him again.
Celosia often watched from the fence nearby, half amused, half entranced. There was something different about him now — not just his strength, but his calm. It was the same man who had stumbled into their lives with empty eyes… yet now, a faint light seemed to stir behind them.
"Careful," she called, teasing lightly. "You're starting to look confident."
He smirked faintly. "You say that like it's a bad thing."
"It usually means you're about to break something."
He chuckled — a sound that was still rare but real — and let the wind dissipate around him. The sun caught the edges of his hair, glinting silver. For a moment, he almost looked at peace.
Almost.
But when the wind faded, something else lingered — a faint shimmer in the air, like embers that refused to die. Celosia frowned. It vanished before she could speak, leaving only a flicker of unease.
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Later that evening, Kiyoshi stayed behind after the others had left. The wind was restless tonight — louder, heavier. His mana pulsed beneath his skin like a heartbeat out of rhythm.
He drew a slow breath, raising his hand. Focus. The current obeyed, spiralling around his arm, smooth and seamless—until it wasn't.
Pain lanced through his chest. The air twisted, heat surging from deep within. For an instant, wind and fire collided, and the world snapped.
The ground erupted in a gust that burned instead of breathed. Red light flared, consuming his vision. He tried to suppress it—tried to control it—but the more he fought, the wilder it grew. His veins felt aflame. The mana inside him screamed to be free.
Then he heard it—soft, distant, but terrifyingly familiar.
A whisper.
You remember, don't you?
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"Kiyoshi!"
Celosia's voice cut through the storm. She rushed into the clearing, hair whipping in the chaotic air. His aura was a blaze—wind tearing around streaks of crimson flame, searing the ground in violent arcs. He was kneeling, eyes wide with pain, body trembling as mana cracked through him like lightning.
"Don't—!" he tried to warn, but she was already there, dropping to his side.
Her hand met his arm — and a shock ran through them both. The force nearly threw her back, but she held on, teeth clenched, trying to reach him through the storm.
"Listen to me!" she shouted. "You can control it!"
"It's not— it's not listening!"
"Then listen to me!"
Her mana flared instinctively, weaving into his chaos — light against the firestorm. For a heartbeat, their energy clashed… and then began to sync. The flames wavered, the wind calmed, the storm's edges softened.
When the light finally faded, the two of them collapsed together onto the scorched earth. Kiyoshi's chest rose and fell in shallow breaths. Celosia's hands trembled, still faintly glowing.
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It was dark when he woke again. The training field was quiet, the stars faint above the smoke. Celosia sat beside him, her cloak draped over his shoulders.
"How long…?" he rasped.
"Since sunset," she said softly. "You scared the life out of me."
He managed a weak chuckle. "Sorry."
She looked at him — really looked — and the fear in her eyes was more than just worry. "That wasn't just mana," she murmured. "It hurt you. I could feel it."
Kiyoshi turned his gaze to the blackened soil. "I thought I had control."
"Maybe it's not about control," she said. "Maybe it's about… remembering what's inside you."
The silence stretched. Wind drifted faintly between them again — this time cool, gentle, untainted.
He flexed his fingers, staring at the faint glow beneath his skin. "When I reached for the wind," he said quietly, "it reached back."
Celosia tilted her head. "And what did it say?"
Kiyoshi's eyes flickered, reflecting the moonlight.
"That it remembers me."
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To be continued…