MORNING – AFTER THE BATTLE
The arena lies in ruin. Ash and cracked stone. Survivors gather in quiet circles. Healers work tirelessly. Shin-Ri rests on a wooden stretcher, his body wrapped in cloth.
Sylden stands at the center, arms crossed, his blade sheathed in light.
SYLDEN:
Swordboys. Listen well.
Everyone goes still.
SYLDEN:
You are no longer children with blades.
Yesterday, a soul-thief entered your ranks. A 3rd-tier threat.
It was drawn here... by something.
A low murmur spreads.
SYLDEN:
You chase titles.
But this world is changing.
And those who swing without wisdom... will die blind.
LATER – TRAINING FIELD
Kazu spars alone, violently. He slams his blade into a wooden dummy until it splits.
KAZU (to himself):
Shin-Ri got in the way again...
Always in someone else's spotlight.
Riku and Maen walk by. Kazu steps into their path.
KAZU:
Why do you all orbit around him?
He lost. He almost got us killed.
RIKU:
He fought when others ran.
MAEN:
You think you're better because you won a duel?
Kazu steps forward. Riku steps in front of Maen. Their eyes lock—tense.
KAZU:
Maybe I'll cut through both of you next.
SUDDENLY – KAZU'S FOLLOWERS SURROUND THEM
Three masked students from Kazu's camp draw short blades. They step forward threateningly.
RIKU:
So this is your pride, Kazu?
Kazu smirks but says nothing. The followers move in—
DAISO (O.S.):
That's enough.
Daiso appears, arms folded. His presence silences the field.
DAISO:
Attack them again... and I'll consider it treason.
Swords are earned. Not ganged.
Kazu scoffs and turns away.
KAZU:
Tch. Cowards and corpses...
He walks off. The tension fades—but Riku stays alert.
ELSEWHERE – SYLDEN AND GOJIRO TALK
On a quiet cliff above the field, Gojiro pours tea. Sylden stands with arms behind his back, watching Shin-Ri from afar.
GOJIRO:
You watched the boy, didn't you?
SYLDEN:
He rushed into a fight he couldn't win.
But his blade... trembled with more than fear.
GOJIRO:
His past cuts deeper than most swords.
He fights with ghosts behind him.
SYLDEN:
Then you must prepare him.
Because they're starting to wake up.
Gojiro raises a brow.
GOJIRO:
They?
SYLDEN (softly):
The ones who come when the sky cracks...
He walks away, leaving his words hanging.
EVENING – CAMPFIRE
Shin-Ri sits with Riku and Maen beside a fire. Daiso joins them, holding a thin journal.
DAISO:
You want to know what it's like beyond Swordboy?
MAEN:
Please...!
DAISO:
Painful.
Lonely.
And worth every scar.
He opens the journal. Inside—maps, names, strange sketches of monsters that look stitched from shadows.
DAISO:
At 2nd Class, you fight warriors.
At 3rd, you fight things no longer human.
Some you can't even see until they speak.
SHIN-RI:
Then why keep climbing?
DAISO:
Because we're the only ones who can.
They fall silent—awed and uneasy.
SUDDENLY – DAISO'S EYES FLASH
A strange silver glow flickers in Daiso's eyes—only for a second.
Maen gasps. Riku freezes. Shin-Ri notices.
MAEN:
Your... eyes...
RIKU:
That glow. What was that?
DAISO (firm, but distant):
It's nothing.
Just a reminder... of what I've seen.
He stands and walks off into the dark.
SHIN-RI (V.O.):
He looked calm.
But his shadow was trembling.
NIGHT – SHIN-RI LAYS AWAKE
He stares at the stars through the wooden roof.
SHIN-RI (V.O.):
The path is steeper now.
Every step forward feels colder.
But I won't stop.
Because something is watching us...
And I need to meet it... blade first.
TO BE CONTINUED...