Middle Aushin Court - Palace entrance

An extensive royal carriage followed by several knights is warmly applauded by its people, it is their king and queen who are leaving.

You can hear some of the citizens wishing the young prince Akai luck, others blessing him, the same affection for Akane is not noticed.

“My queen, if I may, I would like to speak with you a little.”

Says Sakai approaching the window of the royal carriage.

“What Sakai tells me, what ails you… I notice that you've been restless for a few days.”

Sakai looking down at the floor with an expression of concern alert Hadassa.

"Hadassa... please keep an eye on this man who accompanies the king, this Yami... I've never seen him before... he's different."

The woman in an expression of surprise wonders.

"Ohh... you're right I don't remember him either, how did he become a sakura knight anyway?... what happened to young Regulus???"

Quickly Sakai starts to look at the carriage in front where that rider called Yami is driving it.

"I don't know either my queen... all I know is that this man hides something, you feel it too, don't you??"

Looking forward through the small window inside the carriage, the young woman observes the man with long, curly hair from behind.

“Now that you mention it…yeah…I sense something different about him. Maybe my gambit can help me reveal what he hides from us!!”

Hadassa then fixes her gaze on Yami, and with a serious look her veins close to her eyeballs become thicker... her eyes that were a light green color are now in an almost golden yellow tone, her eyes shine brightly.

“Gambit - Instinct”

In the same instant that Hadassa uses her gambit towards Yami she puts her hands under her eyes, panting she says.

"Hmmfff... he... I couldn't see anything... it's like there's nothing... a child??, I don't understand."

Worried Sakai grips his horse's reins harder calling the queen by her name.

Soon the guards around Sakai stopped the queen's carriage to help her.

"What's going on here Sakai??... what's up with her??"

Sakai with a scared expression is not sure how to answer his king.

"She... I don't know for sure Akarus, she was suddenly exhausted."

When looking to the side of Akarus a little behind the same Yami looks at him with a cold and sinister look. Sakai feels like he's being watched by a monster, Sakai tenses up in a cold sweat.

"Sakai, listen to me pull yourself together right now it's an order from your king, you will stay here to take care of the kingdom in my absence, I want my wife to be at rest too can you do that for me??"

Akarus asks with a serious expression. Sakai composing himself says with a loud and firm voice.

“Of course, my king, I will protect the kingdom and its queen in your absence.”

Putting his hand under Sakai's shoulder Akarus faces him.

“I count on you, my friend… I will leave with you six of the twelve sakura knights in order to protect the kingdom in my absence.”

Already calmer Sakai with a smile answers his friend.

"No need to worry, I'm not the king's hand for nothing."

Putting his hand on his chin in a huge laugh Akarus responds.

"Hahahha... I'm glad to hear that my old friend, I have no doubt the kingdom will be in good hands during my journey to the hashira's tower."

In the background the little boy Kaido runs towards his father.

“Daddy, aren't you coming??”

Putting his hand behind his head and scratching it, Sakai responds with a small smile.

"Your father needs to stay... without the king here I am the one who must protect the reign, one day you will understand the weight of being the king's hand and the importance that title carries for our family."

Clearly disappointed in the response Kaido grunts.

"Always the same thing... always this business of titles and duties."

Kaido keeps walking forward ignoring his father who tries to reach him by extending his hand, but unsuccessfully with a sad expression Sakai lets his son go to the carriage that would take him to the tower.

“Don't worry my beloved, I'll take care of him… I know your trainings will help him pass this test.”

Says Kanami coming from the same direction that Kaido came, in order to enter the wagon he entered.

"Hmmf... then it's harder to be a father than to protect an entire kingdom you know."

Holding her daughter Yuna in one arm Kanami gives a little laugh and gives her husband a kiss placing her other hand on his chest almost as if she were stroking his chest saying goodbye to him.

Blushing Sakai was clearly not expecting this kiss. Before she enters the carriage, she interrupts Sakai's stray thoughts by saying.

“I hope I don’t get summoned!!”

Turning to her, with a wide smile.

“Hamnn…you know very well I never needed to summon you, my queen.”

Taking a strand of her hair from under her face and tucking it behind her ear, Kanami retorts.

“I know my king, O great lord of strategy Sakai the invincible!!”

She ends up laughing at her own phrase.

East Abarum Territories

A vast army comes all in rows awaiting the Dragon King's command.

An older-looking, slightly out-of-shape man with a short tail and smaller horns approaches the imposing King Catra.

“My king, I Laikos commander of the troops present myself to you, I have already traced the portals from here to the territories that encompass Aabilion. We are ready to march!”

Without turning to the small man at her side Catra responds in a firm and loud voice to her troops present there.

“Prepare yourselves men because today we are going to war!!... today we are going to recover what was taken from us centuries ago... the right to continue living. Give me your hearts and in return I will give you the freedom to see your fruits grow.”

And in a deafening scream he completes.

“GIVE ME YOUR HEARTS AND I WILL GIVE YOU VICTORRRYYYY!!!”

As in praise all the Draconian men and women present their shout in fervor, urged on by their king no one there has any more doubts in their hearts.

“Tamatsu give the order to Akeno, tell her she can advance in the vanguard.”

The man then quickly withdraws from there.

Soon after, the troops begin to walk towards a portal that opens slowly, while their king watches them from the top of the hill that had just given his speech.

A few meters away, Tamatsu meets Akeno on a small mound with small crosses buried under the ground.

“The time has come Akeno… you will be sent in the vanguard, you know what your role is now, don't you?”

Getting up from there leaving a small bouquet of flowers next to the simple wooden cross she responds.

“Yes… revenge!!”

Putting his hand to the side, still with his back to Tamatsu, a spear materializes in his hand.

"It's time to return in kind what was taken from us!"

In a very quick movement, she turns to Tamatsu throwing her spear to the sky with so much force and speed that it practically disappears leaving only the trail of wind behind, right after Akeno with her spear disappears little by little as if the spear pulls her towards him, the last thing Tamatsu sees before Akeno's entire silhouette disappears is her gaze...a look of anger and anguish.

Meanwhile, the entourage of the human kingdom departs towards the tower of the hashiras near the territory of Arbun, to the north being more precise the tower is in Assix, a part of the north, but there are no orcs in that territory, most likely due to the presence of the wise Hashiras and the Babelesque tower as the ancients call it.

In the royal carriage, King Akarus is accompanied by his two sons and the new sakura knight and apparently royal bodyguard Yami.

With a bored face, Akane catches Akarus' attention and then questions him.

"I had no reason to come take this stupid test, especially now that Mom won't be there for me!"

Looking at the little girl Akarus softly puts her hand on her head saying.

“Hahaha… my dear I will be there for you, i will look forward to the outcome of your classes.”

Letting out a light sigh Akane whispers softly.

“Deep down, you only care about the result of Akai.”

Akai with an analytical look at the situation next to him says.

“You may not even like this kind of Akane class regime, but this is how our traditions have worked for centuries and breaking them now would be very irresponsible, especially for the two of us who are royal children.”

He completes it with his index finger pointed up and with a very serious look.

The pale knight, with icy eyes and apathetic expression, just watches those two small beings talking to each other, but something catches his attention, and he finds himself looking to the side as if sensing something coming from the carriage a little way behind them.

In that carriage there is a simple coachman who carries three passengers, Kanami, little Yuna and with her head in her lap her son Kaido who is sleeping soundly, but his expression is abnormal... it seems to be a nightmare.

The little boy comes across a door, a large black door full of ornaments with reliefs, it is as if these adornments showed several small drawings of what appear to be humanoid beings, there are seven in the door and above each one of them there is a name , but Kaido can't read what's written, it's as if his vision fogs up when he tries to see what's there better. Suddenly Kaido freezes in fear and looking to the side he sees himself, but he sees himself in a different way, his other self, he has a devilish face, as if he were a demon, a salivating beast that yearns for a new victim. Immediately Kaido wakes up in despair being helped by his mother who is very scared with Kaido's fright and fear reaction.

“What's up son, are you okay??...you're sweating too much, was it a nightmare??”

Kaido, putting his hand under his breathless face, tries to answer the question.

"I don't know... hhammf... I don't know..."

Trying to look for logic in the current situation Kanami tries to calm her son by saying.

"Calm down Kaido, you just have to be nervous because the test is approaching, that's normal, don't be so tense, lie down here again, I'll stroke your hair."

Kaido, still hesitating thinking about what he had just dreamed, unable to look for an answer to that nightmare, he puts himself back in his mother's lap, trying to find comfort and calm in his heart.

In the distance, on a hill close to the human entourage, a hooded figure follows the movement of carts and carriages on horseback on the road, the person seems to be watching attentively the cart where the Kaido boy is located, apparently just like Yami, this person also felt something coming from that wagon.