Ryu frowned as his Skill [Shadow of One’s Self] activated. The familiar relief it had used to bring was no more. The devil was immune to its power now. Ryu was left nothing other than a weaker version of himself under the Skill’s power. It seemed to be all he would need, however. He had long grown used to the devil, and he found hell had no punishments his mind could not summon on its own.

This is weakness. Ender did not spare him his sneer, coating his words with every ounce of disdain he could muster.

Aye, it was weakness and comfortingly so. With strength came the urge to use it, and any of Ryu’s hesitancy to indulge the urge had grown weak under the lashing of his Shard Twin’s tongue. Better to not have it all, even if it was only held back by a dismissable wall.

“I can’t show the Aristocracy my true strength. They already have a Ranker of their own, and another will turn the other forces against them instead of the Flock.” He thought the words for Ender, but he knew the demon had little care for logic. His words were more of a balm for his own worries in the end.

Ryu looked at the palatial buildings around him from his spot on the pristine cobbled path. Where the Enchanters’ Guild compound looked like an elegant bunker, the houses in front of him looked to be competing for the most unique architecture. While most of the buildings in the Sixth had the same carved stone exteriors, anyone with the wealth to hire a Master Class builder could alter their home to meet their own sense of taste. The wealthiest district of the Premier Aristocracy’s territory was full of such… unique tastes.

On one side of him, he saw a manor with a porch of marble pillars secured behind a low stone wall. On his other side, a noble had elected to build a sleek tower of steel and glass that seemed to scrape the sky above. Enchanted carriages rattled down the street in front of him, some even crafted to look like Old World automobiles, and yet for all these interesting things, Ryu had eyes only for the building in front of him.

The keep sat in the middle of an artificial pond. It was raised on a bed of stones, its seven stories growing smaller as they went up. Its eaves were gently curved, and the tiles extended far past its gables. Ryu skipped across the stones scattered across the pond to the red and gold castle.

He was dressed in plain, familiar clothes he had not worn for some time. The sleeves of his black silk shirt ended in white cuffs, and its slight collar rubbed against his neck in an irksome way. Across his back, the symbol of House Ishida was in white stitches. A servant stopped him at the stairs leading up to the keep.

“Good evening, milord,” an older servant in official robes said. His eyes glanced at the curved sword and scabbard at Ryu’s side. “Might I tell the lords who is visiting?”

“I assume Ishida Haru is still lord of this house?” Ryu said, trying to ignore the discomfort he felt. His attachment to these people had faded long ago, and it felt both right and wrong to come back.

“He resides in the First Ring, still, but yes, he is our lord.”

“Then tell them the son of Lord Ishida has arrived.” Ryu’s expression was impassive.

The servant frowned. “Do you have any proof of this claim?”

“Have you no Lineage Stones?” Ryu asked.

The servant gave in after a moment, giving Ryu a bow and leading him up the stairs to the keep. Their shoes were exchanged for soft slippers, and he was led through a series of sliding doors to a group of people sitting on cushions and watching an enchanted crystal’s projection of a duel.

“Milords,” the servant said with a bow. “We have a guest, one who claims to be the son of Lord Ishida.”

One of the group stood, giving Ryu a searching look. He was a man of average height and build with long brown hair that was tied back into a tail. “And has his identity been verified?”

“No, milord.”

“Inosuke, hand me a Lineage Stone,” the young man said. The nobles of the First Ring had dealt with spies long enough to have developed a solution for testing bloodlines, and the best way to do so was a Lineage Stone. It looked like a small stone bowl, and the young noble sliced his palm above, letting his blood drip into the basin. His nod to Ryu after was his only invitation.

The dagger parted Ryu’s skin with ease. His blood dripped into the Lineage Stone, and with a speed almost too fast to see, his blood merged with the young man’s.

“Direct relative,” one of the women said, her painted face placid as the pond outside.

“Ryu?” the young noble asked, trying to calm the turmoil on his face.

Ryu bowed. “I am Ishida Ryu, son of Haru.”

All the nobles in the room bowed, going much deeper than his own. The elderly servant had retreated out of the room, and Ryu was left with the awkward gazes of his relatives. Family. The word felt strange to him after all these years.

“Greetings to you, Ryu. For as long you stay here, my sword, my honor, and my loyalty will be yours,” the young man said, falling to one knee. The others did likewise, and Ryu held back a sigh. Too used to following fools, his family.

“I appreciate it, but you have no need to fear. I don’t want to take anyone’s command. Please, introduce yourselves. I’ve been away from the family too long.”

The man looked like he wanted to argue for Ryu to command, but he stopped himself, his averages features slackening into a smile. “Too long, cousin. I know I speak for everyone when I say it’s nice to see you once more. As for introductions, I am Kaito, son of the Warden of the East Mountains. Beside me is Insosuke, one of your father’s samurai,” he said, gesturing at the shorter man. “As for the others, Den is the granddaughter of Elder Natsu, and Emiko is our House’s Sword Initiate. My brother Asahi is part of our contingent as well, but he is with our forces on the front lines.”

Ryu offered them all a bow. Den was a small woman, making even the short Inosuke look tall, and her cheery smile and soft features did not suggest a fighter. A mage or even a diplomat, then. Still, like Inosuke and Kaito, she seemed pleased to see him, if a bit surprised. The face of the other woman in the room, Emiko, was unreadable to him, however. He gave her a closer look out of the side of his eye.

Emiko was a tall woman with black hair and a lithe frame. Looking at her, Ryu remembered Kaito’s introduction of her. The Sword Initiate. It was no secret that he had once held the same position. Did she fear his presence then? No, her sharp features suggested another possibility. Haru had taken the position from one of his illegitimate children and given it to another. The others’ glances between them only confirmed his suspicion. Emiko was his bastard sister.

“If you would like to join us,” Kaito said, “we were watching this week’s duels from back in the First, milord. Or if not, the servants are undoubtedly setting up your quarters right now.”

Ryu thought for a moment and then nodded. “Don’t worry about the milords and sirs and all that. I’ve never been much for formality. Watching duels sounds good. Care to tell me a bit about the House’s current state while we’re at it?”

Kaito seemed to relax, and the small group went back to sitting on the cushions on the floor. “Definitely, although I’d be remiss if I didn’t ask where you’ve been. The House only ever received rumors. I think I even heard once you had opened the Gate to the Fifth Ring!”

Ryu smiled. In truth, he had opened the Gates to the Fifth and Sixth. “Well, I’m not sure if it’s that interesting, really. I wanted to travel the Rings, and so that’s what I’ve done. Lots of fighting, too, if I’m honest.” He was not sure if he had the heart to openly lie. He was not here to take advantage of anyone, least of all his family. His goal was to simply put himself in the war effort against the Bugs. Lucius’s plan was important, too, he guessed.

Inosuke smiled. “Fighting, eh? Any stories?” The short man had close cropped brown hair, and from the scars on his face, Ryu imagined he was no stranger to fighting.

“A few, maybe,” he said. As if talking about any of his experiences would not leave him in a cold sweat. Ryu was not a man for talking, and violence, he had found, was not worth including in the few words he did share.

“I’ll have to hear those sometime,” Inosuke said, watching the two men duel on the crystal’s projection.

Kaito was similarly distracted. “Den, care to tell Ryu about the House? You’re more updated than I am at this point.”

Ryu did not take their distraction as an insult. In fact, his eyes were drawn to the duel as well, though he doubted they shared his melancholy at the sight. Den, however, sat up straighter at her name.

“Is there anything specific you’re interested in hearing?” she asked Ryu, her dark hair pulled into a tight bun.

“Umm… How’s Jinn doing?” he asked. It was no secret that Jinn had raised Ryu, although Haru had told the court this was to keep him from growing up under the scrutiny of being heir. It was a rare practice but not unheard of.

“Your uncle? He’s doing well. Two summers ago, he adopted a child, a small boy. He spends most of his time at his estate, however, and he’s no longer very active at court.”

“Don’t mind Den,” Kaito said with a wave. “A diplomat through and through. She can memorize just about any name, but her evaluation of one’s situation depends entirely on how active they are in politics or what the rumor is about them.”

The woman smiled. “If I recall correctly, you were grateful for my presence when you forgot the name of the Earl of Lancaster,” she said.

The two started to bicker, and though Ryu wanted to know more about the House, he let his eyes wander to Emiko. The woman met his gaze with a stiff nod. That was going to be an awkward conversation. He did not think either would want to embrace their familial bond as half-siblings, but well… It was kind of hard to ignore the fact he had a sister.

“Emiko,” Ryu said. “How long have you been the Sword Initiate?”

“Seven years.” Her back was straight as a board, and her hand seemed to reach for a hilt that wasn’t there.

“How’d that happen?”

She frowned. “Lord Ishida found me practicing with the blade under one of his guard’s. I guess he found me suitable.”

Inosuke grunted. “Suitable? By the gods, woman, no need to play modest. We all know you’ve a hell of a sword arm,” he said with a smile. He seemed unaware of the tension between them. “Should’ve seen her yesterday. Killed damn near a dozen Bugs on her own. Probably be Master Class in a year.”

The woman seemed undisturbed by the praise. “Do you plan on fighting with us, Ryu?” she asked. Her dark eyes looked eager, the only expression of life on her face.

The others quieted to hear his answer. He watched the two men fight on the projection, one backing up the other. After his actions at the Enchanters’ Guild Compound, he would have been happy to never pick up a weapon again, and yet, he knew his answer. “I do.”

“Are you registered?” Kaito asked.

“I don’t think so.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do tomorrow, if you’d like. Have to be registered to fight for the Aristocracy, though you’ll just be assigned to our forces. Bureaucracy, I guess.”

They continued to watch the fights until time for dinner, but Ryu found himself engaging in their conversations less and less, realizing why he had avoided ever coming back home. His House prized honor and fighting above all. Honor was useless to Ryu, and violence… Well, it no longer excited him as it once had. What joy was found in taking from the world?

“Milords, dinner is ready,” a servant said, entering the room with a bow.

Hours had passed, and Ryu had managed to learn a little about the House. It seemed Haru was now the strongest leader in the Red Sun Faction as a whole, but it was a throne built on the backs of a bed of snakes, the other Houses still resistant to falling under his rule. Still, all the warring states of the First Ring were in a tenuous peace under the banner of the Premier Aristocracy, each more intent on competing with the forces of the other Rings than each other.

The dining room was an opulent thing, the paper doors sliding open to reveal a large room with a cherry wood floor. Hundreds of enchanted paper lanterns hung from the ceiling above, clustered together like packs of warm, orange stars. The paper doors that stood in place of the room’s walls were covered in paintings of hills and forests he recognized from House Ishida territory.

The seat at the head of the table was reserved for the Elder that accompanied the Ishida delegation, but seeing as the man was with Kaito’s brother and the soldiers, his seat was left empty. Ryu chose a seat at one edge of the table that allowed him to see most of the room.

Steaming plates were sat in front of them, and Ryu was glad to see that at least dinner might be spent in silence. Then he looked up and realized the rest were waiting for him to eat first. Damn traditions. He inclined his head to the servants waiting by the doors, rubbing his hand on the warm towel left for that purpose. Then he ate. Gods, but did he hate all the ceremony.

After the meal, a servant led him to a grand set of rooms on one of the higher floors in the keep. He ignored the temptation to explore all of the rooms held behind the sliding doors, instead choosing to sit on one of the white mats in his empty training room. Haru would receive word of his presence here, and that was a conversation Ryu was not keen on having. For all his reservations about violence, he would never forget his promise to kill the man. It was a vow made by a child maybe, but his feelings about the man had not changed in the past ten years. He was afraid if he met the man again, one of them would die.

His father was the least of his problems, however. Ryu’s mind was ravaged by the past week of little sleep, less patience, and overwhelming sorrow. He was without his love, and he had tied his little remaining will to live to a man who switched faces almost daily. No, Ryu had a multitude of problems, a symptom he attributed to being alive, yet it was not these problems that burdened him so. It was the growing weariness in heart, his reluctance to continue being the man he was growing with the day. Life had little care for a man’s reluctance, however, so he stood, drawing the one-edged sword from his side.

It was time for Ryu to become reacquainted with the blade.