[World Zero, Hanakawa Village, 768 years since The Great Uprising]
Nestled behind two towering mountains lay the quaint, peaceful village of Hanakawa. The sun descended between the peaks, illuminating the rows of fashionable wooden houses and shops that lined networks of dirt roads. Further beyond both the mountains and Hanakawa, bright, dancing rays of yellow and orange glimmered atop a massive lake.
Two young boys raced along the outskirts of the village, play-fighting, as vibrant sparks of mana outlined their bodies with each blow. With blue and green wisps of energy concentrated around his right fist, the younger of the two recklessly charged forwards in an attempt towards a final blow. Grinning, the older boy wrapped both his arms in a similar glowing energy, only his was silver, and effortlessly parried the charge, causing the younger boy to stumble backwards onto the ground.
“Oh, come on! It’s not fair! Why are you always the one to win?”
“Settle down, Kaito. It's just a matter of experience, I’ve been going on missions with mom and dad for over a year now”
The older of the two, Kouki, had recently turned 14, one year older than the required age to participate in excursions against the corruption. Kaito, on the other hand, was 12, one year too young to participate. Nevertheless, he still enjoyed testing himself against his older brother, even if he lost every single time.
“That’s not what I meant… Why are you the one who gets such a powerful aura? I mean, the power of steel is pretty much unbeatable!”
“Listen, mom and dad have told you this many times before already, your aura has just as much, if not more potential than everyone else’s. Heck, your spirit aura is just as rare as dad’s is, and he’s leader of the village guard!”
“Rare? Yeah right. All I can do is make myself a little faster and a little stronger, that’s nothing compared to what you guys can do. I mean, I can heal minor wounds… But that's lame! I wanna be on the front lines fighting!”
A figure emerged from a door a few houses down, waving at the two boys.
“C’mon back in, you two! It’s about time for bed!”
Kouki reached out his hand, helping Kaito up off of the ground, and the two began dusting themselves off.
“Coming, Dad!”
Kouki turned back towards Kaito.
“Trust me, you’ll find value in your aura once you have enough experience, call it a big brother’s intuition”
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