Haka crouched among the remains of the Remnants, his eyes gleaming as if the world around him had suddenly vanished. His hands moved deftly, brushing aside torn fabric and bloodstained soil, searching for anything that could still be salvaged.

A dull silver ring.

A bent metal coin.

A small necklace with a chain on the verge of snapping.

One by one, he gathered them and neatly arranged them in his palm.

The corner of his lips lifted into a faint smile—far too bright for a scene like this. As if he were uncovering buried treasure, not the remnants of lives that had long since ended.

“Hmm… these aren’t bad,” he murmured in satisfaction, weighing the coin between his fingers. “If we sell them, this should last us a few days.”

Aisha glanced at him briefly before checking another area, moving quickly without saying much. Kiyo, on the other hand, stood a little farther away. His gaze lingered on a pair of badly damaged shoes—before he quickly looked away.

Kiyo swallowed and cautiously approached one of the shattered bodies.

“We’ve done this so many times, but it still gives me chills.”

“What’s so creepy about it?” Haka replied casually, still focused on the coin.

“This is just ordinary scavenging.”

He paused, then smiled with clear satisfaction.

“Oh, this one’s an old coin. From about fifty years ago.”

“Ordinary to you!” Kiyo snapped, his brow twitching.

“These are corpse items—C-O-R-P-S-E! What if the original owner haunts us?!”

“Kiyo, ghosts aren’t real,” Aisha replied calmly from the other side, still focused on her search.

“But lost souls are real, so ghosts should be too, right?” Kiyo shot back weakly.

“Hey,” Haka pointed at him, finally turning.

“You’re seventeen. Stop acting like a five-year-old.”

Kiyo sighed heavily in defeat. The unease still lingered, but he forced himself to comply, searching through the area in hopes of finishing quickly and leaving as soon as possible.

To Haka, these items were nothing more than hunting spoils—legitimate income.

But to the others, no matter how many times they did this, it still felt like handling pieces of lives that never made it home.

Aisha brushed aside the ragged cloth around one corpse’s hand. The hand was nearly skeletal, skin dried and peeling, yet a gold ring still sat neatly on its middle finger. Its surface was dull—but almost flawless.

Her blue eyes lit up as she held it toward the sunlight filtering through the leaves.

“This ring… it’s still in really good condition.”

Haka glanced over, casually stuffing his findings into his jacket pocket.

“Take it,” he said.

Aisha blinked. “Huh?”

“If you like it, keep it,” Haka shrugged.

“We’ve got plenty of other things to sell.”

She hesitated, fingers tightening around the ring—then her eyes sparkled again.

“Really?”

“Really.”

“Thank you, Haka!” Her smile bloomed as she held the ring closer.

From behind them, Kiyo stared in disbelief.

“Wait… that came from a corpse, right? Is that really okay?”

“The things we sell will be used by other people anyway,” Haka replied calmly.

“What’s the difference?”

He turned away first.

“Let’s head back.”

Haka walked ahead. Aisha followed, her smile still lingering.

Kiyo adjusted his glasses, still hesitant—and a little confused—before trailing after them.

---

They left the southeastern forest, following a narrow path naturally formed between the trees. The sunlight grew warmer as the canopy slowly thinned.

Just before they fully exited the forest, Kiyo suddenly stopped.

“There are berries here.” He adjusted his glasses, inspecting clusters of small, dark fruits growing wild near the path.

Aisha rushed over and crouched beside him.

“Waaah, they look fresh!” Her eyes sparkled. “Let’s pick them!”

“We can’t waste free food,” Kiyo added earnestly, already plucking a few.

Haka watched from a distance. His brow furrowed briefly—a flash of concern he quickly masked with irritation.

“If you get poisoned, don’t come crying to me,” he said dismissively, waving a hand.

“Don’t be like that, Haka,” Aisha giggled, her hands full of berries.

“We used to do this all the time when we were kids, remember?”

Haka stiffened. He turned sharply.

“Yeah—and that’s why I’m traumatized!”

He pointed at them.

“We picked poisonous berries once, and I had a stomachache for two whole days!”

Aisha laughed softly.

“Well, we were really young back then.”

“That’s not a defense,” Haka grumbled, turning away. He shoved his hands into his pockets and walked ahead, stomping lightly.

Kiyo watched Haka’s back for a moment before looking at Aisha.

“So… how long have you two been together?” he asked quietly.

Aisha smiled gently.

“A long time.”

Kiyo blinked.

“We’re both Curse Magic users,” she continued softly.

“So… we only had each other.”

Ahead of them, Haka walked the path with light but tense steps, occasionally kicking pebbles as if venting frustration he couldn’t voice.

“Idiots…” he muttered.

“Wild berries in a forest that was just swarming with Remnants, and they pick them without thinking.”

He clicked his tongue.

“Do their survival instincts only work when Remnants show up?”

His hand slipped into his jacket pocket, checking his spoils—ancient coin, silver ring, small necklace. All still there.

Then—

“Hey, kid.”

Haka stopped.

He turned slowly.

Three men stood before him. Their clothes were worn, a mix of leather and thick fabric. Their smiles were wide—too wide.

“Walking alone?” one of them said cheerfully, in the tone adults use with children.

“That’s dangerous, you know.”

Haka tilted his head, assessing them quickly. The smell of iron, sweat, and old blood—he knew it well.

“My friends are behind me,” he replied lightly, a faint smile on his lips.

“What do you need?”

The tallest man chuckled.

“Relax. We’re just… interested in what you’re carrying.”

Their gazes fixed on Haka’s jacket pocket, completely unapologetic.

“Antiques, right?” the man continued.

“You’re lucky to find treasure out here. Stumbled onto something nice?”

“Oh?” Haka raised a brow.

“Not really. Why?”

“A kid like you shouldn’t be carrying valuables,” another man stepped closer.

“It’s dangerous. Just hand them over. You can keep the rest of your ‘treasure.’”

“Oh, you’re going to hold onto them for me?” Haka’s smile widened slightly.

“How kind.”

The bandits laughed, clearly mistaking him for a bold but harmless kid.

“Smart mouth,” the tall one said, patting Haka’s shoulder.

“Come on, hand it over and we—”

Smack.

The sound was sharp and dry.

Haka’s smile vanished instantly.

His hand moved first—slapping the man’s arm aside and driving his elbow into his jaw. Bone cracked audibly as the man staggered backward and collapsed.

“What—!”

The second bandit didn’t finish before Haka closed the distance. His fist slammed into the man’s abdomen, just under the ribs. The man choked, breath knocked out of him, before Haka twisted and threw him down cleanly.

The last one stepped back in shock.

“H-Hey, wait—!”

Haka was already in front of him.

He grabbed the man’s collar, yanked him down, and drove his knee into his face without hesitation. Once. Twice. The body went limp before hitting the ground.

Silence.

Haka stood in the middle of the path, breathing steadily. No magic. No aura. Just trained movement and efficiency.

He glanced at the three bodies, then clicked his tongue.

“If you want something,” he muttered coldly,

“try being smarter about it. And I’m not a kid.”

His hand returned to his pocket. He turned toward the forest.

Aisha and Kiyo rushed in moments later, alerted by the noise. Their eyes widened at the sight—Haka standing calmly among three men sprawled on the ground, groaning in pain.

One clutched his stomach, gasping. Another held his jaw, groaning softly. The third hadn’t even risen, barely moving.

Haka stood straight.

His clothes and hair were almost untouched—just a bit of dust on his shoes and reddened knuckles. His expression was flat, far too calm.

“Haka, what happened?!” Aisha cried.

“They tried to steal our stuff,” he replied simply.

Kiyo studied the men.

“Bandits?”

“Exactly,” Haka said.

“Stupid ones who thought they could trick a nineteen-year-old.”

“Is it really okay to beat them like that?” Kiyo asked worriedly.

Haka shrugged.

“They’re just Neutral Magic users. No problem.”

Then—

One of the bandits growled and tried to rise, cursing loudly.

“Damn brat!!”

He raised his hand—and stones and pieces of wood around them lifted into the air.

All three turned as debris began flying wildly.

“Look out!” Haka pulled Aisha and Kiyo back as rocks and wood crashed down.

“What…?” Aisha frowned.

The bandit stood hunched, head lowered. The mana around him twisted unnaturally.

“I’ll use it… just for a moment…” he muttered. His trembling hand clutched a strange black object.

As if responding, abstract lines on the object glowed red. The air grew heavy. His muscles tensed as red veins spread across his neck and face.

“What is he doing?” Kiyo asked nervously.

One of the other bandits began to rise.

“H-Hey!” he shouted. “Are you insane?! You can’t use that—!”

He cut off abruptly.

His body was hurled violently into a tree, then fell limp to the ground.

Haka stared. Aisha covered her mouth. Kiyo swallowed hard.

“What… are you?” Haka demanded.

The bandit snarled. The mana pressure intensified, choking the air. Stones and branches spun chaotically around him.

“Take cover,” Haka said firmly.

“Neutral Magic shouldn’t do this. We don’t know what’s happening.”

They hid behind trees, watching the rampaging bandit.

“They’re supposed to be Neutral Magic users, right?” Aisha whispered.

“He shouldn’t be able to control objects like that… or throw someone without doing anything.”

“If it were an anomaly like Kiyo’s magic, maybe,” Haka narrowed his eyes.

“But this…”

“It feels like another mana,” Kiyo added quietly.

“Almost like Curse Magic.”

“Yes,” Haka breathed. “Very close.”

They watched in silence.

The bandit took a step—then suddenly froze.

“W-Wait… stop! I haven’t done anything yet!” he screamed, clutching his own throat with one hand and the black object with the other.

A sickening cracking sound echoed.

His body convulsed, his scream turning into agony.

They could only watch, helpless and confused.

With a final shriek, the bandit collapsed. His body lay twisted, joints bent unnaturally, skin blackened as if burned.

Silence returned to the forest.

“H-Haka?” Aisha whispered.

Haka stayed still—then stood and cautiously approached the body.

“Haka, what are you doing?” Aisha asked, following with Kiyo.

Haka crouched and picked up the strange black object near the bandit’s hand.

“I think we need to take this,” he said.

“Wait—what?”

Haka looked at them both.

“Fudo might know something about it.”

***