The trail connecting every estate was made of pebble stones. Some people hated those stones for pressing against their feet. Loter somewhat liked them, although he would much prefer flying since he was not a sports guy in general.

However, Hiroku alarmed him not to because his flying ability was tied to his invisibility, and it might have been rude to hide on others' property. Obviously, Hiroku did not know what Loter had done yesterday, and there was no way Loter would disclose it.

The two arrived at the estate specifically for training at around nine a.m. They had already told Ramiron they were going to visit other estates, so she had to deal with lunch and dinner by herself. Loter questioned Hiroku why he hid the duel part from her, and Hiroku explained he did not want to distract her from her meditation.

From outside, the wall of this estate was identical to Yotan's and the one Loter visited yesterday. However, the gate was much lighter and smaller.

After walking in, Loter realized it was just a plain square with stone-paved ground and a big equipment shed in the corner. The place was not exactly an estate but, more precisely, a training field.

"This place is big," Loter said as he crouched down and rubbed his palms on the ground.

"Yes," Hiroku answered without much emotion, standing before Loter. He took a glance at Loter. Before he could look back toward the front, he turned around entirely. "What are you doing?"

"I'm touching the ground."

Hiroku rolled his eyes, saying, "I'm asking why."

"Oh, it feels funny."

Speechlessly, Hiroku looked at Loter's semi-serious face, and Loter blinked his innocent eyes.

The two just stood there for a moment with cicadas' chirping and the scraping between Loter's hands and the ground.

Why is he staring at me? Is it because he does not know what I mean by "funny"?

"By 'funny,' I mean the ground is not as rough as those stones in the wild and is not as smooth as marble or glass. It is vaguely between smooth and rough that you can't really decide if it should be counted as rough or smooth."

Hiroku pointed over his shoulder and asked, "How long will this take? When can we get back to the sparring?"

"Oh, anytime. Do you want to do it now?"

"Yes. That's why we are here."

"Okay, yeah, sure." Loter stood up and wiped off the dirt on his white hoodie. He followed behind Hiroku.

They walked closer to the center of the square quietly. There was a dilute awkwardness and unease in the atmosphere ever since this morning. Even as oblivious as Loter could sense its presence.

After Hiroku stopped at an arbitrary position close to the center of the square, Loter raised his two fists, getting into his fighting stance. Yet, Hiroku just asked, "What happened, Loter?"

"What?" Surprised, Loter loosened his hands.

Hiroku crossed his arms before his chest, faced away, and turned back. His upper ponytail swayed a little. He had no obvious expression outside a faint knit in the brows, but a clear concern was in his voice. "What's wrong? You are normally very expressive of your emotions. You've been acting…" Hiroku paused to find a word and continued, "Dull this entire morning. You did not even smile or laugh when you were patting the ground. I know it's an indication of sadness. Where does it come from?"

Loter scratched the back of his head as he tilted his head down. His face looked evidently troubled. He said, "I don't know how to say it."

"Take your time."

"Will you scold me?" Loter lifted his head up a bit to inspect Hiroku's face. Unsurprisingly, there was nothing to be found.

"No, I know how bad it is to scold someone when they are telling you a secret. It's going to make that person less capable of opening up. I've done research about it. I promise I won't."

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"Alright." Loter took in a deep breath and said, "I went to see Tori again."

"And you asked her if she knows how you can help her?"

"Yeah, how do you know?"

"It's something you would've done. Did she say no?"

"It's complicated." Loter took a second to process his thoughts and proceeded, "Because we were in a very public place, I had to share my invisibility with her. When we shared invisibility, we could detect each other's emotions, and I detected that she lied to me when she said there was nothing I could do."

"It's probably very dangerous, and she doesn't want you to take that risk."

"At least she can tell me that. She just ran off like last time. I feel like she doesn't trust me."

"That was the second time you two met. It wouldn't make sense for her to trust you."

"Yeah, so I'm thinking I should show her my abilities so she has a reason to trust me."

"..."

"..."

"It's your decision to make."

"Do you support me, though?" Loter's brows raised, and there seemed to be something glowing in his eyes. He gazed at Hiroku in melancholy and a weak sense of hope.

Hiroku did not answer straight away. He faced aside and then back. He dodged the eye contact and looked back with his knit growing tighter. Eventually, Hiroku said, "I want to, Loter. I really want to support you."

A bitter grin emerged on Loter's visage. He replied, "Thank you, Hiro. I feel much better now."

"And I hope that's enough."

Despite Loter's full-hearted participation, he could not help Hiroku much. First, Hiroku's cousins were probably going to fight him with magic, and Loter could not even fight outside of melee range. Second, even when it was up close, Loter could not actually spar with Hiroku since his attacks were too much for Hiroku.

In the end, Loter could only play dummy and let Hiroku practice his combat skills without pushback. It was obvious this kind of training was too insufficient for them to spend a day on it.

Hiroku called an end to it before lunchtime. Loter rushed to the shed in the corner after getting Hiroku's permission. He enthusiastically opened the thin gate. Sunlight shone through and illuminated most of the shed, casting a shallow shadow in corners.

Racks of various wooden weapons and wooden armor stood against the walls. Every single set of armor was fully painted, with their small metal bits glinting. Rows of halberds and swords varied in shape and length.

Loter picked up one from the closest rack. It was like a trident with the central tine much longer than the side ones. Somehow, the head of this Habanese wooden trident was actually heavier than its pole, like a real weapon.

Loter ran in circles and poked the empty air repeatedly, battling against his imaginary enemy, a hostile army of Habanese ninjas. Loter had done this several times when he was in Cavium. His subjects changed from knights to gangsters to villains to aliens and more. Normally, children play this game with their friends and quit it after kindergarten. Not really surprisingly, Loter did not do both.

"Kayama's artisans made these toys by wrapping wood outside metal blades," Hiroku said as he came into the big shed.

"Wow." Loter held the trident upright. "So it is the traditional way of making practice equipment."

"No, our artisans invented this kind of stupid thing in the modern time just for the aesthetics." Hiroku walked before the racks and lay a hand on one of the wooden swords. "They could use the plastic ones on the market. Those are so much better. They just have to waste time on wrapping wood on metal."

"Are you sure they aren't just unaware?" Loter asked, putting the trident back on its rack.

"Yes, I'm sure. Male Kayamas above a certain age limit are allowed to use smartphones. They know the outside world exists and view it as a corrupted place. That's why they disdained me and my branch so much. Yotan at least knows to hide his contempt," Hiroku elaborated calmly. He was just describing the reality he knew, and Loter understood he was not seeking pity.

"That's why they want a duel with you?" Loter watched Hiroku still facing the wall and touching the weapon.

"No, that's my decision. I want them to shut their damn mouth. I want to show them that their precious magic is not as invincible as they thought."

Loter did not respond immediately. It was his first time seeing Hiroku actively wanting to achieve anything. Yet, there was something else out of place that gave Loter a weird feeling.

Invincible? That's never the case.

"But, didn't Ramiron already defeat Kirane? If they offer to cure Ramiron, that must mean they know what happened. If they know what happened, they know Ramiron defeated Kirane. Also, Ramiron can't be the strongest person in the world. It is impossible for them to believe their magic to be invincible." Loter took a step closer to Hiroku. "You don't need to take this fight. There is nothing ambiguous to prove."

"It's not that simple, Loter." Hiroku turned around, facing Loter. His visage was still listless. "Ramiron is not a Kayama. I am. It must mean something to them if a side branch outcast like me defeats some peers in the main branch." He sighed.

Loter, still did not think Hiroku could prove anything since Kirane was younger and stronger than him, decided not to push further. "I will be with you and provide emotional support." Loter put a hand on Hiroku's shoulder and gave him a wide smile. The smile was not natural, but it was not forced either.

"Thank you, Loter. I wish you luck in convincing Tori." Hiroku returned a small yet genuine grin while pushing Loter's hand off himself.

"Also, another thing." Loter pointed at the armor racks. "Can we try to put them on and spar with the wood weapons? I know it's not going to help, but the thought of doing it just popped up in my head, and it feels so fun."

Hiroku chuckled. "Sure."