Chapter 2
Silence hung heavily between them, broken only by the faint whisper of the wind outside. Finally, Oda broke the stillness, his voice firm:
“Moryo…?”
Moryo slowly lifted his head, his icy gaze piercing through Oda. His response was calm yet filled with defiance:
“I hear you.”
Oda clenched his fists, as if the words he was about to utter weighed heavily on his tongue. He then asked firmly:
“What brings you here?”
Moryo didn’t hesitate. He met Oda’s sharp eyes with his own, his gaze like a blade. At that moment, Hyona approached silently, stepping between them, observing in silence.
Moryo’s reply was cold, devoid of mercy:
“Mr. Oda... I’ve come to destroy the Raipozi Clan.”
Oda’s eyes widened in shock, while Hyona’s expression briefly faltered before regaining its composure. Moryo stood his ground, his eyes reflecting unyielding determination, his face as if carved from ice.
Taking a deep breath, he continued in a quieter voice, though it brimmed with conviction:
“Master Sbyam once told me that the true reason behind the emergence of monsters lies with the higher authorities. By that, I mean... the Mana Organization and the three clans.”
Oda stared at him in disbelief, struggling to process the words. Hyona, who had been silently observing, suddenly spoke, her tone cold, her eyes burning with resolve:
“So am I!”
Oda turned to her in shock, but she continued with unwavering calm:
“Moryo... I’m with you. Let’s annihilate the Raipozi Clan together!”
Oda’s eyes trembled for a moment as conflicting thoughts clashed in his mind. He murmured softly, barely audible:
“What are you saying…?”
Gathering himself, he spoke in a voice tinged with unease:
“You both realize this, don’t you? This is an incredibly dangerous move! You’ll become direct targets of The World Sages!”
Moryo remained steadfast, his features frozen, betraying no emotion. Silence filled the air for a moment before it was pierced by Suero’s words, creeping into Moryo’s memory like ghosts of the past.
Suero’s voice, trembling with sobs, echoed in Moryo’s memory:
“I couldn’t… I couldn’t protect anyone. Spailo wiped out everyone, and I… I just stood there watching. Mr. Veb… Baysal… everyone…”
Tears streamed down his face as he hugged himself tightly, his body seemingly unable to bear the weight of the pain.
“I kept justifying it to myself… I thought if I stayed alive, I could protect others. But…”
His voice broke into a wail, raw and piercing, like a wound bleeding into the emptiness of the desolate station:
“But I did nothing! I just watched… I’m completely useless. Why am I even alive?! I should’ve died!”
Moryo snapped back to the present, carrying the weight of those memories like a heavy burden. His voice was cold, but beneath the calm exterior lay the faint echo of restrained fury:
“It’s been a year since that incident. My entire crew was annihilated because of the war between the Rizsius organization and the sorcerers. We are not puppets of the Mana Organization!”
He turned and began walking steadily toward the door, his final words leaving no room for argument. Without hesitation, Hyona followed him, her steps firm and unwavering.
Oda remained frozen in place, his gaze unsettled, as though searching for meaning amidst the chaos. He murmured in fear:
“The Ronda incident...? Could this really ignite a world war?”
He watched Moryo and Hyona’s backs as they disappeared, the sound of the door closing behind them reverberating through the house, leaving Oda alone in the empty room.
He sank quietly into his chair, but his mind was trapped in an endless whirlwind of thoughts. He muttered to himself, his voice barely audible:
“What will they do when they realize we’re the only ones left living in this ruin?”
His thoughts churned and collided, his face a canvas of anxiety and tension, as though something monumental was looming just beyond the horizon.
—
In one of the clan’s houses, Nicola stood before the small room’s mirror, having exchanged his formal sorcerer attire for simple, everyday clothes. He gazed intently at his reflection for a moment before shifting his focus to a photo frame resting on a nearby wooden table. The picture showed Nicola as a young boy, standing beside a little girl with a warm smile. His features softened into a bittersweet smile as he picked up the frame, speaking softly:
“My sister… did you know? Very soon, I’ll be an official sorcerer protecting humanity.”
His smile faltered briefly, and his voice grew tinged with melancholy as he added:
“Even Mom will be proud of me when she sees me graduate… but… my graduation day would’ve been complete if you were here. But they… they took your life.”
He gently ran his fingers over the surface of the photo, as if trying to relive the memories it held, before carefully placing the frame back in its spot. With steady steps, he left the room, his smile lingering faintly on his face.
Outside, his mother, Berrina, was busy setting plates of food on the wooden table. He turned his head toward her and saw her smiling at him softly. She glanced at him and said:
This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.
“My son?”
He walked over to her, kissed her forehead lovingly, and then sat down on a chair, asking:
“Hasn’t Dad returned yet?”
Berrina sat across from him and replied:
“He should be back any moment now.”
Nicola smiled warmly and remarked:
“As you know, clan duties never end.”
Berrina chuckled lightly, teasing:
“You cheeky boy! Telling me that?”
Nicola grinned and laughed softly, his laughter quickly joined by his mother’s. Suddenly, his laughter faded as he gazed deeply at her face while she laughed. It was as if this fleeting moment was something precious, something he never wanted to lose. Thoughts began to swirl in his mind as his inner voice whispered:
“We never lost our smiles… no matter the sorrows. We always knew nothing was worth stealing our joy. But…”
He continued to quietly watch his mother while his thoughts churned:
“When the hired killer Smart came, he took my little sister from us. Was her life really worth nothing more than a handful of coins?”
He was pulled back to reality when his eyes met his mother’s. She continued to smile at him warmly and said:
“Let’s eat!”
Nicola smiled faintly and joked:
“As you command, my queen!”
They began eating together while the television played a family program in the background. In that moment, despite the pain weighing on their hearts, the warmth of family seemed enough to create a brief, peaceful reprieve.
—
In the streets of the Raipozi Clan, Moryo moved cautiously across the rooftops. His footsteps were light, and his eyes meticulously scanned the ground below with vigilance. He kept to the shadows, leaping gracefully from one roof to another, but the growing crowds in the streets beneath him were hard to ignore.
“The streets are packed! This will be a problem,” he thought, his sharp gaze following the movements of the people below.
Behind him, a low voice called out, barely above a whisper:
“Oi, Moryo!”
He suddenly halted atop one of the roofs and turned to look behind him. There, Hyona was skillfully jumping from one rooftop to the next, quickly catching up to him.
“So, what’s the plan?” she asked, her tone eager yet cautious.
Moryo let out a faint chuckle, his expression cold as he stared back at her and replied:
“Plan? There won’t be a plan.”
Her features froze for a moment, confusion spreading across her face.
“What? How are you planning to fight the Raipozi Clan?” she asked, concern clear in her voice.
Moryo continued moving forward without pause, his voice unwavering as he responded:
“I didn’t come here with a plan. I came here to annihilate the entire clan. I don’t need to hide, and there will be no exceptions. Everyone will die.”
Hyona sighed, her expression wary as she lowered her voice and asked:
“What? Even the innocent?”
A heavy silence fell between them. Moryo turned his gaze toward her, his eyes cold and unyielding, yet he said nothing. Without another word, he turned away and leaped to the next rooftop. Hyona stood there for a moment, her cautious eyes fixed on his retreating figure. Then, she followed after him, leaping from roof to roof, struggling to match his increasing pace.
---
In the streets of the Raipozi Clan, Goki walked calmly through the quiet alleys, his sharp eyes observing every detail around him. The golden streetlights cast a warm and peaceful glow over the scene, blending with the comforting murmur of the residents. His steps were steady, but an underlying tension gripped him, his gaze darting toward every faint movement.
Suddenly, his attention was drawn upward as his eyes caught movement across the distant rooftops. He froze in place, his expression hardening with a mix of surprise and unease.
“What…?” he muttered to himself, watching a figure move deftly across the rooftops with unmatched agility.
As the figure grew clearer, recognition struck him like a bolt of lightning, and his expression darkened, his eyes flaring with suppressed rage.
“Moryo Smart!?....” he murmured, his voice low and heavy. Memories began to surge, pulling him into a storm of emotions he had long tried to bury.
---
Flashback (The Past):
The night was pitch black, a suffocating silence draping over the surroundings like a heavy shroud. In a remote, desolate field, Goki was bound by glowing white magical chains, coiled tightly around him like merciless serpents. His face was streaked with blood, and his eyes brimmed with a mix of fear and fury.
In front of him stood Smart, a mocking smile plastered on his face. Just a few feet away, a little girl named Asma stood bound by the same chains, her small frame trembling as sweat poured down her terrified face.
Smart’s smirk widened as he spoke, his tone dripping with mockery:
“Oi, Clan Leader!”
Goki said nothing, his burning glare fixed on Smart, the fury in his eyes barely masking the fear gripping his heart.
Smart continued, his voice carrying a casual menace:
“Aren’t you going to tell me where the power ‘Obliteration’ is?”
Goki roared back, his voice defiant despite the chains constricting his every movement:
“I’ll never tell you about such a power, you scum!”
Raising an eyebrow, Smart shifted his gaze toward little Asma, whose silent sobs only seemed to amuse him further. With a slight tilt of his head, he replied mockingly:
“Really?”
Turning his cold gaze back to Goki, his smirk faded into a chillingly neutral expression:
“Are you sure about that? You won’t tell me?”
Goki’s voice trembled slightly, but his determination didn’t waver:
“I won’t tell you! That technique is too dangerous! I don’t know your intentions, and I don’t care! You won’t have it!”
Small white sparks began to dance across Smart’s hand as he slowly directed his focus back to Asma. His voice grew quieter, his tone icy and detached:
“I want the technique of time… and power 'Obliteration' as well. I will wipe everything from this world.”
Goki snarled, his voice filled with rage:
“You can’t do that, you wretch! The World Sages will put an end to you!”
Laughing loudly, Smart shook his head, his voice dripping with mockery:
“Oh, really? You shouldn’t talk so big when you’re in this position.”
With a calm yet sinister air, Smart placed his hand gently on Asma’s head. His voice dropped to a chilling whisper, as if he were speaking of something insignificant:
“My technique is called ‘Contract.’ I can impose rules on anyone I choose.”
The white sparks intensified, crawling from Smart’s hand onto Asma’s head. He whispered again, his voice colder than ice:
“The choice is simple… death… or death.”
In an instant, a horrifying explosion echoed through the field as Asma’s head burst apart, spraying blood high into the air. The crimson mist coated Goki’s face and body, falling like a grotesque rain.
Asma’s lifeless body crumpled to the ground, motionless like a discarded doll. Goki remained frozen, paralyzed by the unspeakable horror before him, his eyes locked on his daughter’s bloodied, lifeless form.
Smart stood beside the corpse, his cold gaze meeting Goki’s despairing one. Without a trace of remorse, he spoke in a voice devoid of emotion:
“You sent that Shikigami to my home. You brought this upon yourselves.”
Without another word, Smart turned and walked away, leaving Goki alone amidst the devastation. Goki’s screams of anguish were silent, his body trembling under the weight of his shattered world.
—
In the Present…
Moryo moved with unmatched precision and agility, leaping from one rooftop to the next as if he were a shadow chasing the darkness. His steps were silent, but his cold, calculating eyes missed nothing in his surroundings. Suddenly, a flash of light streaked from his right, moving toward him with the speed of lightning.
Moryo didn’t flinch. Instead, he turned calmly toward the flash, his icy gaze fixed on it. Just before the spark could reach him, he unleashed a burst of green magical energy, enveloping the flash and freezing it mid-air, suspended as a glowing orb of light mere inches from his face.
At that moment, Hyona appeared beside him, her expression a mixture of shock and disbelief as she witnessed the display of his abilities. She couldn’t hide her astonishment. Moryo, unfazed, caught the suspended light with his fingers and, with a measured motion, directed it toward the ground.
The spark shot downward, colliding with the bustling city streets below. The resulting explosion was devastating: flames erupted in every direction, consuming everything in their path. Bodies were hurled through the air like ragdolls, and stones scattered like bullets. The agonized screams of the townspeople filled the air as chaos engulfed the city in an instant.
Moryo descended from the rooftop with a chilling calmness, his movements indifferent to the destruction he had left behind. His piercing gaze was now locked on a man standing firmly in his path. It was Goki, who stood in silence, his presence heavy with hostility.
The silence between them stretched, a palpable tension hanging in the air, until Moryo broke it with his sharp, cold voice:
“Who are you? Are you one of the clan leaders?”
Goki didn’t respond immediately. He stood still, his eyes locked onto Moryo, as if weighing his options. Moryo spoke again, his tone now edged with aggression:
“If you are, then your goal is to kill me.”
Goki remained rooted in place, his expression as dark and unyielding as stone. After a moment, he finally spoke, his deep voice dripping with hatred:
“You’re Moryo Smart! There’s no way I could ever forget that name.”
Moryo’s eyes narrowed slightly as he tried to discern Goki’s intentions through his stern demeanor. Goki, however, gave him no time, his voice trembling with barely contained rage as he continued:
“I will avenge my daughter! I will kill Smart’s son!”
The words hit like a blade, but Moryo’s response was devoid of any emotion:
“What do you know about my father?”
Goki took a deliberate step forward, closing the distance between them until they were face-to-face. The silence between them grew heavy, the air charged with tension, as if any movement could ignite an explosion. Then Goki’s voice rose, sharp and commanding:
“What are you doing here?! You know you’re in the heart of the clan, yet you dared to show yourself. You’re a condemned man!”
Moryo smirked mockingly, his voice cutting through the thick atmosphere with a nonchalant tone:
“I’m here to annihilate you, one by one.”
Goki’s expression hardened further, his voice growing sharper:
“Just like your father! But you know that once you do, you’ll become a target for the World Sages themselves!”
For a brief moment, Moryo’s features shifted, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his face before he smiled bitterly. Then he uttered words that sent a chill through the air:
“I don’t care. I care about nothing.”
The silence that followed was suffocating, but neither of thembroke eye contact, their gazes locked in an unspoken challenge. Everything pointed to an imminent confrontation, the tension building to a breaking point, promising an explosion that would shake the very ground they stood on.
End of Chapter.