Hokori led his family to another dark forest. Yukino felt chills down her spine along the way. She heard the ominous caws of Coelestian warbirds again; it sounded like a viral outbreak in a movie. Because of that, she trembled.

Tokino held her close. “Don’t worry, honey. Your uncle knows what he’s doing.”

“H-How do you know that?” she looked up.

She smiled and sighed. “I’ve traveled here before. I used to train with Hokori and his old friends.” Her eyes lowered. “Sadly, I don’t know where Farkas or Paulie is now. They never contacted me….”

Yukino felt sadness in her “heart” much more intensely than she realized. Her heartrending emotions could lead twenty to suicide. On the verge of tears, she held her mother tight. She appreciated it immensely and smiled again.

Haruto followed behind Hokori. Once again, he could not find the right words to tell him. He wanted to cheer him up badly. Curiously, he heard him whistling a happy tune. It sounded familiar to him: “Beautiful Boy” by John Lennon, his father’s favorite. He wondered if Hokori’s dad played it during his childhood as well.

Kakunō accompanied Kenkō again, who sweated bullets and hyperventilated. Memories came back to haunt her as they jogged her mind. “I hate this… I hate this. I hate this…” she rambled internally.

Five minutes later, they arrived at their destination. Haruto stood surprised, as it was the “playground” he found earlier via another path.

The place had an empty, ghostly feel to it. It was clear it got abandoned for decades. Rust and foliage were abundant. “Welcome to my old base, guys,” Hokori presented. “This takes me back all the way….”

Yukino saw a deep ditch that stretched kilometers away. Long, steel spikes laid below it. She expected tires hanging on ropes at the top, but there were none.

Tokino stepped in. “Looks scary, doesn’t it, honey? The goal was to channel magic beneath your feet so the spikes won’t stab you. For your uncle, he walked over them like they were nothing.” She closed her eyes and giggled.

Kakunō found a merry-go-round that was bigger than most. He curiously pressed a button nearby. It made it spin so fast that the afterimages of the horses moved quickly as well. The grating noise made everyone except Hokori cover their ears. “Sorry…” he turned it off.

Haruto saw a tarnished copper robot from afar. As he approached it, the automaton’s eyes scanned his body. It formed two swords from its hands, but it moved shakingly. Still, it copied his techniques at 100% accuracy.

For Kenkō, she found no curiosity over the place. She sat on a bench and continued sweating and hyperventilating. “I hate this… I hate this. I hate this…” she rambled once more.

Hokori stood at the center of the place and yelled for their attention. They quickly walked toward him, even Kenkō.

He chuckled. “Neat spot, amirite? My old fam here used to eat lowland troll kebabs after training. Also…” He turned to Yukino. “…don’t go to that running oval, kiddo. Giant cleavers will hammer down on ya.” As he warned, a dove got bisected by the mentioned tool. It appeared out of thin air.

Haruto moved in front. “Hokori… What is this place?”

He sighed deeply with his eyes closed. “Memories, boy… You guys weren’t the first ones I told to live a damn good life. I shared my passion with others before.” He walked from afar and raised his fist. “Now, it don’t mean nothin’ no more.” He delivered a right cross. It decimated a large area into barren land.

Haruto shielded his eyes alongside everyone else. He walked closer. “W-Why’d you do that!? H-How could you—”

“Severing some ties, boy. Past behind me and whatnot. The thing is, tho, I need to make some apologies.” He walked past everyone. “Follow me again.”

They traversed through another forest. This time, the golden sunset shone through the trees. They grew taller than skyscrapers. Yukino heard the beautiful songs of needle-beaked sparrows. However, it brought back memories that made her tear up.

Tokino sweated bullets even more than Kenkō. She knew where Hokori led her family. “Breath… Breath….” No matter what, her heart did not rest.

They arrived at a cemetery lost through time. The foliage here was worse than in the “playground.” Angels decorated the golden gate. A plaque nearby read: Pacem inveniant in secula.

Tokino would not dare step inside the place. “Go with your father, honey. I’ll be staying here,” she told Yukino.

Haruto turned to her. “What’s wrong? Does this place give you horrible recollections? I’ll hold your hand if you want.”

She shook her head. “No thanks… I-I don’t deserve to go inside. My heart can’t take it. Follow them, I insist.”

He understood her feelings and held Yukino’s hand. She looked back at her mother with worried eyes.

Tokino only gave her a smile and a wave.

The rest of the family followed Hokori behind. The cemetery gave them feelings of melancholy—filled with innumerable graves stacking twenty meters high. It looked more like walls enveloping them.

At the end of the cemetery lay four mausoleums. It had ornate designs more fitting for royalty. Gold names adorned its top: Joseph, Mary, Jacob, and Esau.

The family saw plaques placed in front of each mausoleum. They even had self-portraits that never faded. Yukino looked at two graves in particular. Their faces gave her the same loving feeling she got from her parents.

Hokori pulled out objects via blood runes. They were letters instead of flowers. His family assumed this was the first he had done this, as only bouquets decorated the mausoleums.

He sat on the ground. “I hope they’re proud of me, guys. I wrote about my experiences with y’all.” He sighed. “Sorry what I did to ya, boy. I now see why Hagel loves the taste of revenge.”

Haruto walked closer. “But I don’t understand… I thought you wanted to murder—”

“None of those Novusian bastards knew where the CEO was. Another told me they’d carry on their plans no matter what I do. I don’t want their city’s people on my bad side.” He stood up and turned to his family. “Move back, y’all. It’s gonna be embarrassing….” He looked back at the mausoleums.

A while back, Tokino’s reluctance waned over time. She was so anxious to even walk to the gate closer. Yet, her feet moved on their own. At that moment, all she wanted was to reconcile with her longtime brother. It ached her heart that she only remembered him recently.

She saw the grave of Ingrid’s husband: Ofen Milch. She instantly recalled the taste of his homemade apple pie. Walking past more graves, she remembered the joyful laughs of the children she played with in the village. At that point, her ducts could no longer hold back.

Tokino stopped in her tracks over what she saw and heard.

When Hokori told his family to move back, he walked closer to the mausoleums. The golden sunset permeated the cemetery. Its rays shone through the graves’ self-portraits.

Hokori took a deep breath. “Hello, everyone… It’s been some time. Three years, was it?” He sat down. “Yeah… I should’ve visited more often. But I never forgot your warm hugs. In fact, I feel it now….”

Yukino began the waterworks and sobbed on her father. Even the others could not help but shed sorrow. Before their tearful eyes, they saw Hokori perform dogeza. Haruto covered his mouth and held back from sobbing.

Hokori took another deep breath. “I’m sorry!! I’m so sorry, everyone! I couldn’t save our home. I’m weak. I’m so fucking weak!” He began speaking Japanese. “Mother! Father! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry! I’m sorry!!!”

Hokori bawled like never before, still performing dogeza. Haruto and Kakunō sobbed. The former held Yukino close, and the latter did the same for Kenkō. The two sisters bawled as well.

Behind them, Tokino’s sorrow ached the most. Her heart felt like it got ripped to shred a million times. Yet, she sobbed quietly, not wanting to disturb her grieving family. She flash-stepped back outside in tears. Haruto turned around as he heard the rustling of grass.

Tokino ran to the only place she could think of that gave her sanctuary: a millennium-old church. She hid at the bell tower. She wanted no one to hear her crippling sadness.

She sat by a wall and remembered what she had forgotten. Leuchten called her “Cool Sis” and regularly teased her. She even recalled the monster that brutalized him.

She remembered a friendly couple that offered her dinner at their cozy cottage. At the dining table, she laughed with the savage commoner. He smiled intently and lent her a fistbump. “Whaddaya say, kid? Wanna live a damn good life with us?”

“Sure! I’m ready for anything!” She smiled back and giggled.

After some bittersweet recollections, Tokino went into a fetal position and sobbed further.

Downstairs, the priest prepared for a mass gathering. Novusian brigade mages knocked on the church’s doorstep. They barged in when he insisted they were not welcome. Unfortunately, his words fell on deaf ears.

“Easy there, you old geezer,” one of them said. “We’re here to remove your establishment. You can build a new one in Coelestis. If I were you, I’d choose the easy way.”

The priest grunted and stood his ground. “Of what God gave you the right to erase their sacred house here!? What God ordered you to destroy our beautiful homes? You lot are sinners before their watchful eye— Aaaaagh!” He experienced a hefty dose of electrocution via Runic Art.

The other mage kicked the unconscious priest out of the way. “Sure is a ‘lovely’ place here. I can see rats scurrying about,” he looked around.

His comrade turned to him. “And that’s why it’s still a net gain for us. Sad as it is, Alessandro Inc. lets us afford food on the table.”

Tokino dried her eyes and listened to the two below. As they conversed, one revealed that the CEO was a woman. “What!? No way. How’d you know that?” asked the other.

He chuckled. “I used the old glass trick on a locked door at the village head’s home. For some reason, she decided to stay there. I even got to know her name, and I was in for a shock.”

“What is it? Tell me.” He raised an eyebrow.

“Airi Hakkyō (発狂愛莉). Yeah, I know. Somehow, the ‘Guillotine of Hiver’ didn’t kick the bucket, after all.” He shrugged.

His comrade exclaimed in shock again. They turned to more casual topics, with one about comparing apples to oranges. “No, you dumbfuck. The other one tastes better!” It quickly devolved into a heated argument.

Suddenly, they felt another form of heat, and it was unbearable. The two mages lay on the floor and screamed over the searing pain. They felt as if the sun roasted them alive. Eventually, they fell conscious as well.

Back at the bell tower, Tokino’s magical pressure did not turn off for a second. It affected more mages outside. Many vomited.

She breathed heavily with her teeth clenched—and repeatedly clawed at the floorboards. Fingernails tore off, yet she continued deeper. Her voice turned hoarse. She still cried, but now of unquenchable rage. “You bitch… You ugly bitch! Why didn’t you fucking die?!!”

As this story went, it shall rest for now. Here, we explore another sorry child’s past—one that bred peerless anger within her soul.