The orange glow of fire fills the downtown of Kawazumi. Noreyu looks over the scene from the rooftops, taking in the aftermath of the battle.

Blood and destruction surround the wrecked bridge on which his friends fought desperately to defeat a monster. The smell of sulphur hangs in the air as a brigade of firemen fights to extinguish the flames born of Fumito's onslaught of burning punches.

Noreyu drops down onto the destroyed street, creating a current below his feet that pushes him upwards just before he touches down for a safe landing.

As he gets closer to the scene, the heat in the air begins to feel oppressive. Still, he continues, until he stands next to someone in a police uniform.

"Yo, Masako! I'm here!" Noreyu calls out, looking at the policewoman.

The one standing next to him is Masako Hata, the chief of police in Kawazumi. A golden badge on her forest green uniform and the large 375-magnum revolver on her hip signify her rank. Only the most trusted and capable officers are entrusted with one of these, as they are among the strongest firearms in existance.

"It's good to see you, Noreyu. I hoped you'd come," Masako's worried face softens slightly at Noreyu's arrival. She steps to the side, letting Noreyu take in the whole picture of the destruction.

"So Takuan did all this? Really?" Noreyu's eyes wander across his wrecked surroundings.

"She did," Masako responds hesitantly. "Who else in Kawazumi could cause this much destruction?"

"Me, for example." Noreyu takes a step forward, inspecting the debris on the street. As his eye scans the rubble, faint white swirls of energy become visible around the area. "There are traces of Light energy... So it really is her, huh?"

Masako walks in front of Noreyu, blocking his view of the bridge. She turns towards him with a serious expression. "I know you're trying to protect her, but this is getting out of hand. According to an eyewitness, two kids who tried to fight her got killed in an explosion. No traces of them have been found."

"Fumito and Hirisu?" Noreyu thinks, looking past Masako. "That explains the flames."

Despite the nature of this information, Noreyu seems calm, almost relieved.

"I get what you're saying, Masako," he says. "But Takuan's not at fault for this."

"I know!" Masako almost yells, clenching her fist. "But as frustrating as it is, she's the one who caused this destruction! We can't let her go free!"

Noreyu shakes his head, looking at Masako with a hint of annoyance. "I've told you many times. I'll find a way to control that monster inside her. I promise."

Masako, clearly losing her temper, throws a punch towards Noreyu's face. He effortlessly dodges the attack by moving his head to the side.

"You've been saying that for, what, half a year now?" Masako shouts. "Every fucking week, we have to clean up a mess like this! It's a miracle that this is the only time someone died!"

Noreyu slowly pushes Masako's outstretched arm away, staring into her eyes. His vision is distorted by the heat.

"Nobody died today either. I can guarantee that."

Her frustration brewing even more, Masako tries to say something, but Noreyu interrupts.

"Give me one more chance, Masako. I promise you, that thing, Lightside, won't hurt anyone again."

"What's one more chance gonna do?" Masako yells. "Why do I have to rely on your empty promises?"

"Because you have no other choice."

Noreyu's Demon Eye flares up as he looks at Masako for one more second. The only sound is the crackling of the flames. Sweat runs down both of their faces. Noreyu turns, breaking the stare, and rushes off towards the bridge.

A few minutes earlier, right after the battle, Hirisu is tending to Fumito's wounds. They're both still under the bridge where they fought the girl.

Said girl is unconscious on the grass next to the two, lying in the shadow of the bridge. Hirisu's Aqua Focus Burst knocked her out almost instantly, forcing the Light eye to close.

When compared to the monster she was before, her expression almost seems peaceful, her eyes shut and her mouth tense, but closed. Her hair, which was fully white while fighting, has reverted to its natural black with only a few occasional white strands mixed in.

"She wasn't herself," Fumito said to Hirisu, right after the battle. "I can tell. Something about that Demon Eye is making her go crazy."

Hirisu is unsure of how true those words are. But looking at the girl next to them, it really is hard to tell that she was the monster they fought.

As a small beam of sunlight hits her face, the girl opens her eyes. "Where... am I?"

She looks around to see Hirisu and Fumito who are sitting on the grass quietly. Both of them are covered in wounds and blood.

"Oh hey, you're awake!" Fumito suddenly says, startling her a little. "I was getting worried!"

"You... I... Did I..." the girl tries to speak, but her voice fails. She can't pull her mind away from the wounds across Fumito's body.

"It's fine!" Fumito assures her. "Everything's alright."

Suddenly, the girl sits up, her expression horrified at Fumito's words.

"No!" she yells. "No, it's not alright! I... I almost killed you!"

"I said it's fine." Fumito stands up, walking carefully towards the girl. He's still a little shaky from the wounds.

He reaches out his hand towards her with a carefree smile on his face. "Do you think you can stand? Come on, I'll help you up."

The girl ignores his hand, instead pushing herself up on her own. "I'm fine..." She looks down to the grass, trying to avoid Fumito's friendly gaze. Her mind races, thinking about the battle, the wounds she inflicted, the damage she did to the town... and most of all, that stupid face looking at her.

One thought towers above all the others. "Why is he being so kind?"

Fumito tries to approach her again, but she shuts him off immediately. "Leave me alone! You're supposed to hate me!" she yells, hiding the tears in her eyes.

"Why should I hate you?" Fumito responds, his tone oblivious, yet kind. "You didn't do anything, did you?"

"But... I..."

Overwhelmed, with the tears now streaming down her face, the girl tries to run away. She doesn't get far though before Hirisu steps in her way.

"It's fine if you don't want our help," they say. Their face is serious, but their voice gives away a layer of concern.

"Stop it!" the girl shouts, trying to push Hirisu away. But she can't bring herself to do anything, so her hands only hover over Hirisu's body. "I hurt you both so much!"

"If you want to apologize, just do one thing for me," Hirisu continues, acting as if they didn't hear anything. But on the inside, they feel like they understand her pain, just a little bit.

"Please, can you tell us your name?"

The girl immediately stops at Hirisu's request. Why would they want to know who she is? Why would a stranger care about her name?

"I'm..." Her voice gets shaky as she speaks, as if she's hesitant to say it. "My name is... Takuan."

"Takuan!" Fumito says, walking up from behind her. "That's a nice name!"

"You... think so?" she quietly asks.

"It's nice to meet you, Takuan," Hirisu says. "Does that name... mean something to you?"

Takuan takes a step back, caught off guard by Hirisu's words.

"I'm sorry," Hirisu immediately adds. "I shouldn't have said that."

Suddenly, a boisterous voice interrupts from above. "Hey, would you look at who it is?"

A small group of teenagers, a few years older than Fumito and Hirisu, stand near the burning bridge. They look down at the group below.

"Yo, Smallflame! What are you doing down there!" One of the boys, with neatly kempt blond hair, yells down at Fumito, tossing a small pebble at him. Fumito, visibly annoyed, looks up at the group.

"What do you want, Ishumai?" Fumito shouts at the boy, throwing the stone back, which just barely misses his glasses.

"I told you, it's Ishuma! I - shu - ma!" Ishumai shouts back. His face immediately turns bloody red, about to jump down until another boy, with short dark silver hair, holds him back.

"C'mon, man. It's not worth losing your calm over that idiot," he says, pulling Ishuma back by the shoulder.

"You're right, Kento," Ishuma says, though his irritation remains clearly visible. "Anyways, Fumito! What are you up to down there?" He looks at Takuan, and the wounds covering her body. "Have you resorted to beating up little girls now?"

"He's not completely wrong," Hirisu whispers quietly, so that Ishuma can't hear them.

"But I guess you can't even do that right, eh?" Ishuma continues mocking Fumito, whose face is starting to get red too. It blends in nicely with the blood.

"Ishuma, we should get going," a blonde girl sitting on a roof above the group interjects. "That guy's here."

"Bye, loser!" Ishuma laughs as he starts to walk away. "Try picking on someone your own size next time! An ant, maybe!"

Just as the group disappears into another street, Noreyu appears on the destroyed bridge, looking down through the hole in the middle.

This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

"Noreyu!" Fumito shouts up at his friend, smiling. "What were you doing? You missed all the action!"

Noreyu leaps down from the bridge, landing safely in front of Fumito.

"I was still at school," he explains. "Masako called me over, said something about a big explosion."

"Chief Hata did?" Fumito looks up at the hole in the bridge, then back at Noreyu. "I guess we did mess this place up a bit, huh?"

"Not as much as you messed each other up. I've never seen you this bloody."

Noreyu inspects Fumito's wounds, concerned about his friend's safety.

"Don't worry about it!" Fumito quickly brushes off Noreyu's comments, trying to change the subject. "I'm perfectly fine, as usual!"

"Uh..." Takuan whispers to Hirisu. "W- What was that about just now? Who was that guy?"

"I don't know, some weirdo. Probably from a higher grade," Hirisu whispers back.

Noreyu looks past Fumito, noticing Takuan.

"Takuan, are you okay?" Noreyu immediately asks. "Did Lightside-"

Takuan looks down to avoid Noreyu's eyes. He cuts himself off mid-sentence, sensing her pain. "I... can imagine what happened. I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me, Noreyu," Takuan quietly responds, her voice barely a whisper. "I hurt your friends."

"That doesn't matter," Noreyu says, trying to catch a glimpse of her face. "It was Lightside, not you."

Noreyu tries to reach his hand out to Takuan, but she quickly turns away. Her body is shaking, and although Noreyu can't see her face, he can clearly tell that she's crying.

"Do you two... know each other?" Fumito asks, speaking in a more quiet tone than usual.

"Kind of," Noreyu responds. "I've been trying to keep Lightside under control for half a year now."

He leans in to whisper into Fumito's ear so that Takuan can't hear him. "The police are getting impatient. If something like this happens again, they'll throw her in prison... or worse."

"What?!" Fumito shouts, ignoring all attempts at secrecy. "They can't do that! She's not-"

"Shut up!" Noreyu quickly interrupts, hinting a glance at Takuan behind him.

Fumito calms down, trying to lower his volume. "So... what should we do?"

"I don't know..." Noreyu admits. "Well, I have one more idea. Not sure if it's gonna work though."

After talking with Fumito and Hirisu for a little while, Noreyu walks up to Takuan. He sits down next to her in the grass, watching the debris float in the river. She is still avoiding eye contact with him.

"Hey, Takuan? Do you... maybe want to hang out with us for a while?"

__________

Insight: Energy Production

When a human first awakens a Demon Eye, it is their only internal source of energy. However, soon after their eye first awakens, the rate at which it produces energy exceeds its capacity, and a new organ is formed in the back of the skull – the Energy Core. This core then takes over the eye's role to produce and store energy, which it distributes to the body through the Energy Veins.

__________

The sunlight shines through the yellow leaves of the maple trees as Noreyu and Hirisu wander through the town's riverside park. Following close behind the two, Fumito is chatting with Takuan.

"She's getting along with Fumito, isn't she?" Hirisu notes, looking back at the two.

"I guess so, yeah. That's good," Noreyu responds. "That's good."

"You're still worried about her, right?" Hirisu asks. "You mentioned what the police chief told you earlier. I'd be worried too."

Noreyu's eyes wander across the colorful fields planted on the sides of the dirt path. The scent of various flowers fills the air, carried by the spring breeze.

"Well, yes," he finally responds. "I haven't gotten closer to getting rid of Lightside at all. I can't prevent it from taking control again."

"I just remembered..." Hirisu says, looking at the group behind them. "Earlier today, you told me that Fumito was the third strongest in the town, right? Is Takuan above him?"

"Hmm... Well, I didn't count Lightside in. It operates without any control or strategy at all, so I wouldn't call it strong as a fighter. It's more like a bomb."

He pauses, his mind wandering as he watches the clouds in the sky. "Takuan does have another Demon Eye, but I don't think I've ever seen her use it."

The two arrive at a bench by the river, where a large maple tree provides some shade. "Is she worried that Lightside will take over if she uses her Demon Eye?" Hirisu asks as they sit down on the side of the bench.

"That might be it, yeah," Noreyu responds as he sits down next to Hirisu. "Although she never really had a reason to use it in the time I've known her."

"But, Noreyu!" Fumito suddenly shouts from behind, rushing up towards the two. "Then, who's the guy you're counting above me?" he asks as he swings himself onto the bench. "It's not Ishumai, is it?"

Noreyu chuckles at the thought. "Well, you've never beaten him, have you? But no. The strongest in town is-"

"Of course it's me!" someone suddenly shouts. Fumito looks around for the source of the voice and soon spots Ishuma approaching from the other direction. "I'm far stronger than you!"

"You want a fight?!" Fumito jumps up from the bench, startling Takuan who sat down next to him. He leaps over the bench and lands in front of Ishuma.

"You want me to beat your ass again?" Ishuma laughs, approaching Fumito slowly. He pretends to crack his knuckles and opens his Demon Eye. Flames emerge around his fist as he rushes at Fumito, who himself has already conjured his own fire fist.

Noreyu turns around, looking over the rest of the bench. "They're going at their nonsense again," he comments casually. Ishuma hears his comment and throws an angry glance at Noreyu, but chooses to ignore it as he clashes fists with Fumito. More flames emerge from both their fists, but the larger cloud of flames clearly comes from Ishuma's side.

"Is he scared of you because you could beat him?" Hirisu asks, also watching the battle with Noreyu. "I mean, there's no way he's stronger than you, right?"

"Well, in terms of raw energy, he outmatches both me and Fumito," Noreyu says, then pauses. His casual expression turns into a grin. "He's just quite stupid."

"So he doesn't know any strategy?" Hirisu thinks out loud. "Then why can't Fumito defeat him?"

Ishuma starts releasing a large wave of fire directly from his eye. Fumito tries to push the flames back with some of his own, but is quickly overwhelmed.

"I'll take you down!" he yells as he tries to create as many flames as possible.

"Why is he just... going along with it?" Hirisu questions, looking at Noreyu confused.

"It's a contest of strength. That's all it's about," Noreyu responds, casually letting his arm hang over the back of the bench. "Look, it's about to end."

Despite his best efforts, Fumito's flames are overtaken by Ishuma's. He falls to the ground, exhausted.

"That's the best you got?" Ishuma laughs. "You're even weaker than last time!"

Fumito tries to get up, but he's too exhausted to move. He stares at Ishuma, frustrated.

"Are you not gonna do anything?" Hirisu asks as they watch Ishuma tower over Fumito.

"He knows what will happen if he goes too far," Noreyu says with a hint of seriousness. "Don't tell Fumito, but I've beaten him up many times."

He smiles, looking at the two. "Besides, even if he's an annoying bastard, he's a good rival for Fumito. Ishumai's the main reason Fumito trains as much as he does... aside from me, of course."

Unnoticed by the others, Takuan slowly approaches Ishuma and Fumito. Her hair covers her eyes as she stares at Ishuma. A dark glow shines through the black hair, where any white strands are now absent.

She sees Ishuma hover his foot over Fumito's face, as if threatening to stomp on him, and starts running at the two. Noreyu notices her when a swirl of energy appears around her fist, but it's too late.

"Hey, what are you doing, girl?" Ishuma says. But the confident sound of his voice quickly disappears as he notices the intensity coming from Takuan's energy.

"You... Leave Fumito alone!" she shouts as she throws a punch directly at Ishuma's face.

His glasses shatter into bits as he is thrown against a tree. He spits blood as he collides with it, and drops into the flower field.

"Wha... What was that for?!" he yells at Takuan, trying to hide the panic in his voice.

Ishuma struggles to get up as Takuan slowly walks towards him again. A white glow shoots out from her eye, cutting through the air. The white streaks don't just return, they take over most of the black. The spring breeze stops blowing.

Immediately, Noreyu's expression turns serious. He leaps over the bench and runs towards her before she can reach Ishuma. "Takuan, stop!" he shouts, his hand instinctively reaching out towards her. "Can't you feel it?"

Takuan stops, trying to grasp at her left eye. A bright white glow pulses across her face.

"Don't panic, Takuan," Noreyu says quietly, trying to calm her down. He puts his hand on her trembling arm. "I'm here. Take a deep breath."

While Ishuma manages to flee from the scene, Hirisu and Fumito rush to Takuan's aid too, steadying her shaking body.

"I... Thank you..." Takuan struggles to control her hectic breathing. Noreyu and Hirisu carefully help her walk back to the bench.

"I'm... sorry," Takuan says as she sits down. Her breath is slowly returning to a steady, normal pace. "I shouldn't have..."

"It's all fine. Just focus on yourself," Noreyu says. "Don't let it take control."

Hirisu sits down on the bench again as well, next to Takuan. "Does it react to strong emotions?" they ask, concerned.

"No, I... I think I just lowered my guard," Takuan responds. "I... I need to suppress it. I have to."

"All the time?" Fumito asks, standing behind the bench, despite his exhaustion. "That drains a ton of energy, doesn't it?"

"I guess so... But it's all I can do." Takuan's head sinks down in frustration.

"If you need help, just ask!" Fumito says with a huge smile on his face. "We're friends now, right?"

A beam of sunlight shines directly on the group through the massive maple providing shade around the bench. The leaves flutter in the wind as Takuan slowly opens her mouth to respond.

Unbeknownst to the group, there's someone else listening. In the crown of the maple tree, a figure cloaked in black looms above the four of them. An assassin.

"This mission's gonna be harder than I thought," he thinks. The leaves brush across his shaded face, masking his identity. "I didn't expect there to be so many kids with Demon Eyes in this town. There were five of them just now," he counts, recalling Fumito's encounter with Ishuma.

He takes a kunai out of his cloak as he looks at Noreyu's nape. "It's a clean shot from here. With anyone else, I'd go for it." He spins the kunai around his finger as he watches the group.

"But this Noreyu... He's aware of his surroundings. The way he took the thug out yesterday, and his fight with that other guy earlier. He's no easy target."

He silently leaps through the trees, gaining distance between him and the group. The only sound he makes is the rustling of the leaves when he jumps through them, which is easily explained as the wind. "I'll have to call in reinforcements. I'm starting to get why the boss wants him dead."

An hour later, Noreyu and Hirisu are at the university's grand library. Both are walking through hallways surrounded by towering oak bookshelves. They are looking through a long row of books, labelled by a sign above the bookshelf as "Demon Eyes and supernatural forces".

"Is this the one, Noreyu?" Hirisu asks, holding a large book with a red cover. "It says something about... Ultimates."

"Yeah, that's what I need," Noreyu responds, taking the book from Hirisu's hands. "An in-depth research on energy and Ultimates."

The same figure from earlier is watching from atop the massive bookshelves, which stretch over ten meters in height, all the way to the ceiling of the tall corridors of the library. "No way," he mutters to himself. "He's after them too? So that's why the boss was so concerned."

But when Noreyu opens the book, the assassin's eyes widen in surprise. From his spot on the bookshelf, he can just barely make out the words of the first sentence.

"That... can't be a coincidence, can it?" he thinks.

He jumps down on the other side of the bookshelf, startling a group of students. Through the fire exit, he quickly makes his way outside.

"There's no way..." he thinks, his mind racing. The world seems to distort around him as he runs. "I didn't even realize before... But his name, it's..."

The assassin stops himself and comes to a standstill in the middle of the road.

He stares up into the sky as his hood falls off his head, blown away by the breeze.

"This goes a lot deeper than I thought," he realizes, running his hand through his chaotic hair. "Why him? What involvement does the boss have with-"

He cuts himself off. A dark cloud on the horizon stands out in the otherwise clear sky.

"Something is about to happen. I can feel it," he thinks out loud.

The first sentence in the book reads as follows: 'Back when the world had no form, the primordial energy was split into pieces by the First Archdemon, Noreseus.'