Three weeks have passed since they had left from Caelondis. Stars filled the sky, glowing brilliantly beneath a full moon that gazed down upon them.
Renzo stretched his arms toward the heavens, then rolled his shoulders, loosening up after a two-hour training session aboard the ship.
Meanwhile, Zay sat below deck in what they had begun calling the Library of True—the bottom of the ship, lined with shelves of books, barrels and a single, sturdy table.
He had already sifted through half the archived tomes, searching for anything remotely useful. With a quiet sigh, he closed yet another book and slid it into a growing pile of discarded volumes.
'Is there really nothing important here?' he wondered. Rising from the chair, he reached for another book and resumed his quiet reading.
Above, the moonlight swayed gracefully across the calm surface of the Akser Seas. Renzo stood on the deck, watching the gentle waves, his mind drifting back to the events in that strange sequence. He bit his bottom lip.
He knew torture was the only way to get actual answers—but something about it gnawed at him. Something he couldn't shake. He hadn't looked too closely at Zay during the moment, but when he did… it almost looked like Zay was enjoying it.
There was something off.
Something he couldn't quite name.
'Was that… really my brother?'
He stared into the ocean, at the shimmering reflections of stars and moonlight, lost in thought. Then, looking down, he noticed a school of fish swimming alongside the boat—and for a moment, he smiled.
As the seconds stretched into minutes, Renzo closed his eyes and simply listened to the sound of the quiet sea—the gentle movement of waves—and felt, in some small way, at peace with the world.
He opened his eyes, grabbed a fishing rod they had on board, baited it with worms, and cast it out into the ocean, infusing it with aura so the line would follow the ship's drift.
He felt a bite.
Renzo began reeling the rod in quickly, pulling against the direction the fish was trying to flee. He leaned back, grunted, and fought against it.
The fish struggled hard, thrashing through the water. Renzo's feet slid slightly as he braced himself, holding his ground while continuing to reel it in. After a few minutes, he hauled the fish over the railing of the ship, and it dropped onto the deck with a thud.
Renzo looked down at it, catching his breath.
'A Cloudfin Snapper,' he thought, recognizing the distinct silvery-blue scales that shimmered faintly like starlight under the moon. Its fins were long and feathered at the tips, drifting slightly even out of water, and its eyes glowed faintly with a bluish hue—an odd trait common to deepwater fish that fed near Aura currents.
It was heavier than it looked, and probably one of the rarer catches this far from shore.
He smiled at the fish as he couldn't believe he caught one, this far out.
For two more days of sailing through the open seas, the two brothers continued training their aura. Zay heard a faint click and opened his eyes from meditation.
[Congratulations. You have been promoted from Unsealed → Initiate Aura Core Rank.]
Zay exhaled and stood up, clenching his hand as his aura erupted around him, enveloping the entire ship. Violet aura whipped against the waves, lashing through the air.
The aura gradually faded into a thin layer around his body.
Renzo heard the same click and saw the message appear as well.
[Congratulations. You have been promoted from Unsealed → Initiate Aura Core Rank.]
The two brothers stood together, their eyes locking onto the distant land ahead.
"There it is… Mivor. The continent of Arbiters," Zay said with a smirk, surprised by how close they already were to the shore.
Zay rushed back to the control room and lowered the ship's aura fuel. The vessel slowed until it came to a stop at the shore—there were no docks on this continent.
He grabbed the mask he had obtained from the second sequence and looked down at it, remembering what Zeke had said. He shrugged and slipped it into his coat before walking out of the control room. Making his way through the hallway, he exited onto the deck.
He slammed the door shut behind him, and the two brothers walked to the bow of the ship, then jumped off onto the soft sand. The sand crunched beneath their feet as they moved forward.
"Where the hell are we even going?" Renzo asked, glancing around before turning his gaze ahead, spotting large trees in the distance.
"The main capital of Mivor—Ruvy."
Renzo shrugged, and they continued walking until they reached the forest.
Zay glanced up at the trees and smirked as he felt a slight trace of aura and raised his hand in front of Renzo to stop him.
Two figures suddenly dropped down from the trees.
One was dressed in mismatched colors—red and purple—with a long blue cape draped from his shoulders.
The other wore a midnight-blue leather tunic, black leggings, and white sandals. He landed lightly, the grass crunching beneath his feet, a black mask covering his face. His hand hovered near the hilt of a dagger strapped at his waist.
"Who the hell are these bastards?" Renzo muttered, red aura flaring around him in a thin, volatile layer.
The one in mismatched colors laughed wickedly, his aura flaring pink as he raised his fists—clearly favoring hand-to-hand combat.
Zay said nothing, but his gaze sharpened. He analyzed their stance, the way their aura moved, the confidence they held. These weren't amateurs.
The man in midnight-blue drew his dagger and shifted into a low, agile stance before charging forward.
The caped one followed, pink aura trailing behind, moving to flank.
Zay reacted instantly. He met the dagger-wielder head-on, his glove clashing against the blade. Sparks flew. The masked man's eyes widened as the dagger failed to pierce the glove's surface.
Before Zay could press the advantage, the caped attacker leapt overhead, diving in with a powerful downward kick.
Renzo was already there.
He shot up into the air, intercepting the kick with a counter-kick of his own. Heat surged from his leg on contact—The caped man grunted, stumbling on the landing as if his veins had caught fire.
The man in midnight-blue instinctively backed away from Renzo, glancing toward his partner's faltering stance.
Zay saw the hesitation and took it.
Violet aura exploded around him as he surged forward. The masked attacker raised both arms to block the incoming strike, focusing all his aura into his arms—expecting a punch.
Zay feinted at the last moment, slowed his approach, and drove a knee upward into the man's exposed gut.
It connected—hard. Aura-enhanced, the knee shattered his breath. The man choked, saliva flying from his mouth before he collapsed to the forest floor.
The caped fighter didn't wait. He launched a fast, aura-fueled punch toward Zay.
Zay ducked under the blow and returned one of his own. But this man was clever—he caught Zay's fist midair and pivoted into a kick.
Zay moved fast, his other hand glowing with aura as he caught the kick. Neither held on long—they disengaged, circling, measuring.
'Damn it… they took out Mio. Do I really have to do this?' the caped one thought, sweat forming on his brow. 'We were told not to let anyone on the island for the next month. So I guess… I have to kill them.'
He readied himself as Zay and Renzo prepared to rush again. But something felt off.
Zay charged, aura burning in his limbs—but the caped man blinked for a second and only saw Zay chargin.
He leapt into the air, trying to land on a tree and his eyes widened.
Renzo dropped down from the trees above, aura swirling around his fist. It ignited into a violent flame as he slammed it into the man's face.
The masked attacker hit the ground with a dull thud, instantly unconscious.
Both enemies lay unconscious on the forest floor.
Zay looked down at the midnight-blue masked one, reached down, and pulled the dagger out from his grip.
He examined it for a moment, then took his sheath and placed it in his black coat.
Without a word, Zay grabbed one of the two and slowly dragged him toward the shore.
Renzo stood still, the cold ocean water biting at his legs, staring at the remaining body. He hesitated for a heartbeat—then, without thinking, grabbed it and dragged it after Zay.
'Why?'
He didn't have an answer.
Side by side, they tossed the bodies into the sea. Zay didn't look back. His gaze stayed fixed ahead, like he had already discarded them in his mind.
Renzo found himself watching the corpses sink beneath the waves, something gnawing at his chest. He opened his mouth to speak—then closed it.
Zay was already walking away, boots soaked, dripping trails behind him.
Renzo sighed and followed, the question rising again.
'Why am I still following him?'