Episode 3 — The Siege of Flames.
The night no longer carried peace.What had once been a house filled with lanterns and the quiet joy of two newborn sons now burned beneath a storm of fire.
The proud Renzai estate groaned as stone cracked, tiles shattered, and pillars crumbled. The earth itself trembled under each incoming blast.From the shadows of the night descended an army clad in steel.
Their armor bore the mark of an old enemy Kaien had crushed long ago, yet vengeance had rekindled their courage. Like vultures circling the dying, they swarmed upon the burning palace.Inside, Ayame — Myra to her husband — clutched both cribs as if her frail arms could shield them from war itself. Her eyes brimmed with tears."Kaien…!" Her voice broke into the chaos. "They'll break through!"Kaien stepped forward.
The loose folds of his robe clung to his frame as his muscles tensed. His aura, once calm, now flared like a gathering storm.
Turning to his wife, his gaze softened even as fire burned in his eyes."Hold them close, Myra," he said, voice steady as iron.
"Protect their light. I will hold the darkness back."She tried to speak, but the wall behind her burst open before the words left her lips. A warrior crashed through, his fist glowing with murderous intent.Kaien moved before breath could be drawn.
His fist met the intruder's jaw with the force of a thunderclap. Bone shattered. The man flew backward, smashing through three pillars before his body dissolved into dust and silence.Kaien exhaled slowly, his knuckles still sparking with power. "You dare touch my family?" he said. Calm words, yet beneath them roared a fury older than empires.
The ground quaked. Dozens more warriors descended, their boots slamming into the soil as they encircled the estate.
At their head stood a man clad in crimson armor, eyes alight with cruel satisfaction."Kaien the Fist," the leader sneered. "The retired lion finally bares his claws. Tonight your bloodline ends."Kaien's aura ignited, burning gold.
Cracks spidered through the ground at his feet. He lifted his fists, wide stance unshaken."Tonight," he answered, his voice low and steady, "you learn why the lion still rules the wild."And then he vanished.One heartbeat he was still — the next, his fist buried itself into the leader's gut, the sound of impact ringing like a temple bell.
Warriors rushed to surround him, but Kaien was already in motion.He unleashed his Heaven-Breaking Fist — a storm of strikes so fast they blurred into afterimages. Each punch detonated like a cannon, each kick split the air like thunder. Bodies were flung aside, armor crumpled, walls gave way.
Above, another wave of enemies gathered, hands raised, energy blasts forming in the sky.Kaien bent his knees. His aura condensed, fire spiraling into his right arm until it shone like molten gold."You want to burn my home?" His voice shook the heavens. "Then taste the fire of my wrath — Blazing Lion Cannon!!"His palm thrust upward.From his hand roared a lion's head made of fire, its mane blazing, its jaws devouring the night sky.
It swallowed the enemy blasts, then the warriors themselves, before bursting into a pillar of annihilation that lit the heavens like dawn.The earth quaked under the brilliance.
Inside the nursery, Myra crouched over the cribs, shielding them with her body. "Stay safe," she whispered to her sons, tears falling onto their blankets. "Please… my children…"But fate was merciless.The ceiling groaned. A beam collapsed. Rubble and dust rained down upon Shin's crib. Myra screamed, diving forward, but the smoke blinded her."Shin!!"Kaien's head snapped toward the cry. His blood turned to ice. With a roar, he ripped through enemies in his path, tearing them apart with bare hands. He carved his way back inside, his aura scorching a trail through the chaos.
The nursery lay in ruin. Myra knelt amid the wreckage, clutching the silver-haired twin. Shiro still breathed, his cries piercing the din. But Shin's crib lay buried beneath broken beams and stone.
Kaien froze. His hands trembled as he lifted debris, splinter after splinter, stone after stone. He searched desperately. But beneath the rubble was no child. Only silence."No…" Myra sobbed, rocking Shiro in her arms. "It can't be… Shin…"Kaien's vision blurred.
His chest constricted as if bound by chains. His soul, tempered by centuries of battle, faltered for the first time.Then rage consumed him. His head tilted back, and he roared — a roar so fierce the estate itself trembled. His aura exploded outward, golden fire scorching the air."I WILL KILL YOU ALL!!"He became fury incarnate. His fists shattered bones, his kicks broke spines, each strike carving bloody craters into the earth.
Warriors screamed and fell in droves before his wrath.Yet even Kaien knew the tide would not end."Myra!" she screamed, clutching Shiro. "Kaien—we must go! If we stay, all of us will die!"Grinding his teeth, Kaien tore open a path with raw destruction.
He gathered his wife and remaining son close, then surged into the night, the burning estate collapsing into ash behind them.
As they fled into the wilderness, Kaien's heart broke. Blood dripped from his clenched fists as he swore his oath to the stars."Forgive me, my son. If the heavens stole you from me… then I will burn the heavens too."But neither Kaien nor Myra knew the truth.
In the ruins they left behind, a faint glow stirred beneath the rubble. Shin's tiny body shimmered with light, his eyes opening for the briefest of moments.
A mark glowed upon his skin — ancient, otherworldly.And then, in a blink, he was gone.
Not dead.
Not destroyed.
Only vanished.