**(Yuu POV)**

When I left the pub, I went towards the cliff. I had killed someone! Someone was actually dead. What should I do? If they found me, I would meet my parents. Maybe I should let them find me.

Am I wrong? If I get killed, then I will meet them. Wait, if I jump off that cliff, I will get redeemed even faster. Let's do it.

1-2-...

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," a voice said. "It's not your fault; they insulted your dead parents. Of course you killed them; I would do the same. I agree with you, this was unacceptable."

I turned around. I was white as a sheet of paper. Who was this man? How did he know what I had done and why?

He wore a black cloak, so I could only see his chin. Who is this man?

"I think you are lying to yourself. You want to live; your desire to live and avenge your parents is stronger than your desire to die and meet them," he said.

"How do you know?" I asked.

"You killed that man, yet you still haven't killed yourself."

"!?!..."

"If you want to avenge your parents, I have an option for you. There is a boy who survived the betrayal and headed north. A few weeks ago, he started crossing the Wyvern Mountains. Go find him and ask him to join his group."

"What am I going to get from that?" I asked.

"Exactly what I promised you already: revenge... and justice."

"Who am I looking for?"

"Look for a boy called Mochizuki Naruhito," the man said and turned around to leave. Every step he took froze the ground for a few seconds. "Tell him Hanzō sent you," he called as he waved his hand, revealing a white katana with some mysterious writings on the sheath.

That's how I heard about the lord and decided to head north—by a shadow... a shadow who apparently could freeze the ground with every step.

I took a horse the next morning and headed north through the main road. I thought it would be too dangerous to cross the Wyvern Mountains like the young lord, but I understood why he would do it. They checked who went north through the main road.

I wanted to reach the exit of the Wyvern Mountains before the lord would come out, so I rushed north. It took me three months with minimal stops, even traveling at night sometimes. I hadn't done anything wrong—or so the guards thought—and I passed the checkpoints to go north. I was excited but also afraid. What kind of lord would he be? Would he follow his father's footsteps, or would he mimic the new monarchs? The thought troubled me throughout the entire trip.

I always doubted my decision to come here, and I found out I was right when I met Megumi and Aiko. They told me that Naruhito was thought to be dead. I was devastated when I heard that. I abandoned my life and made that trip for what? I tried to kill myself a few times, but I could never bring myself to do the final act. I am a coward.

**(Midori POV)**

I saw Naru lying on the ground, not moving. He had placed his sword on his chest and was crying. I talked to him, but my voice couldn't reach him. I spoke even louder, but still, nothing.

I looked up.

I saw a girl; she was talking to Naru, but I couldn't hear her voice. What was going on? Why was no one hearing me, and I couldn't hear them?

I walked towards the girl and kept talking. She didn't seem to hear or see me, so I tried to hold her hand, only to see my hand go through hers. "What?" I cried.

What is going on? Why can't I touch her? I thought.

Then I tried to touch Naru. Fortunately, I could touch him, but he didn't seem to realize I was there.

I fell to my knees and started crying. What was going on? Why was Naru unable to hear me?

Naru fell down, as if he had been knocked over. When he opened his eyes, I was the happiest person in the world. Naru was alive; he could hear and see me. He only said one word:

"I passed."

~~

"So, Naru, what did you see on that trial?" I asked as we walked further into the chambers.

"It was a creature that attacked me, and it..." He stopped. He stopped again. What is going on since the trial started? Since we got here, I feel like time doesn't pass at all, and he has become cold and expressionless. I'm worried about him; that is not normal. What should I do?...