Chapter 3:
Night had already fallen when Shiro left the temple.
The world was quiet.
No footsteps followed him.
No presence lingered behind.
Only silence.
He walked without looking back.
Not once.
His mind was not empty.
It was searching.
The truth.
Hours passed.
The sky shifted slowly, darkness fading into a dull gray.
Shiro did not stop.
Ten hours later he saw it.
Far in the distance, a mountain.
Not natural.
Something stood upon it.
Structures.
Broken frames. Wooden posts. Hanging remnants.
A training ground.
Shiro stopped.
For a moment.
A thought crossed his mind.
Should I go back…?
The temple.
Layla.
The past.
Silence.
Then another thought replaced it.
I've already come this far.
He moved forward.
The air changed as he approached.
Sharper.
Heavier.
Then someone stood there.
A woman.
Red hair moved slightly with the wind.
Her presence alone felt… grounded.
Stable.
Her eyes landed on him immediately.
She had already noticed him.
She stepped closer.
Slowly.
Confidently.
"Boy… what brings you here?"
Shiro looked at her.
Calm.
Direct.
"I want to understand more."
A pause.
"And become stronger."
Then "My name is Shiro."
She studied him for a moment.
Then smiled faintly.
"Leonoré."
A short silence.
"That's a beautiful name," Shiro said.
She raised an eyebrow.
A small smirk appeared.
"You've got manners."
Shiro stepped forward slightly.
"Please… train me."
Leonoré didn't answer immediately.
Her gaze sharpened.
"Do you even know what you're asking?"
Shiro didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
A pause.
She let out a small laugh.
"Why not."
She turned away slightly.
"But don't expect much."
Her voice lowered.
"No one ever stays long."
Shiro's eyes didn't change.
"I'm not like the others."
A brief silence.
"I will stay until the end."
Leonoré glanced back at him.
"The end of what?"
Shiro answered quietly.
"A promise."
A moment passed.
Then—
she laughed.
"Good attitude."
She stretched her arms slightly.
"Alright, Shiro."
"Come."
Her expression shifted.
Serious now.
"We start today."
She stepped in front of him.
"Hands up."
Shiro raised them.
"Again."
He adjusted.
"Higher."
She moved.
Fast.
A strike.
Shiro reacted too late.
Impact.
His body shifted.
Adjusted.
"Too slow."
Another strike.
Then another.
For two hours
it continued.
Strike after strike.
Movement after movement.
Shiro fell.
Stood up.
Adjusted.
Repeated.
His breathing grew heavier.
But his movements
sharper.
Leonoré watched closely.
"Again."
No hesitation.
Time passed.
Then
she stopped.
"Lunch."
Shiro paused.
For the first time
something like anticipation appeared.
They sat.
Simple food.
Rice.
Pork balls.
Shiro ate.
Slow at first.
Then faster.
Leonoré watched him.
"You learn fast."
Shiro looked up.
"Thank you."
Silence followed.
Then training resumed.
Days turned into weeks.
Weeks into months.
A year passed.
Shiro changed.
His movements precise.
Balanced.
Controlled.
Attack.
Defense.
Awareness.
Everything refined.
Leonoré pushed him further.
Harder.
Faster.
At some point he began to see it.
Movement before it happened.
Weight shifts.
Intent.
He dodged.
Effortlessly.
Even fast objects projectiles
became readable.
His perception had evolved.
At the end
Leonoré stood in front of him.
Arms crossed.
"You're strong."
A pause.
"The first one who didn't quit."
Shiro lowered his head slightly.
"Thank you… for everything."
A rare silence.
Then she reached into her pocket.
A necklace.
Simple.
Yet… not entirely.
She held it out.
"Take it."
Shiro looked at it.
Then at her.
"Why?"
She shrugged.
"Just take it."
He accepted it.
A brief moment passed.
Then
he turned.
"I've lost much."
A pause.
"But I've also gained."
He looked at the necklace.
"You taught me a lot."
Leonoré didn't respond.
But she was smiling.
Shiro walked away.
The wind moved slightly.
He held the necklace in his hand.
Thinking.
Where to go next.
Then
a memory surfaced.
Layla.
"100 kilometers from the temple… there's a city. Tokyo."
Shiro stopped.
Then a faint smile appeared.
"I went in the right direction."
Relief.
A rare feeling.
Then it happened.
Pain.
Sharp.
Violent.
His head split with pressure.
Images forced their way in.
Fragments.
Voices.
Something wrong.
Shiro's vision blurred.
His body lost balance.
The world tilted.
Then
darkness.
He collapsed.
What happened to Shiro