The truth

"Kikei Jigoku is the name."

I repeated the name for Otto. His whole complexion was stiff.

"So, he finally returned. That accursed monster."

Otto spoke as he looked at me with a depth that seemed to pierce my soul.

"Ehh. What do you mean by monster?"

Annie addressed both Otto and me as she spoke.

"Can you clarify which type of monster it was? Was it a good or bad one?"

Aaron spoke after Annie finished her sentence. I was confused because Rowan never mentioned Kikei being a monster.

"I'm really confused."

I uttered as I looked at him.

"Allow me to share the history of Synthex and Senexus. As you may be aware, Synthex now primarily comprises Nexus guards. However, in the past, it was home to various races, including elves, dwarfs, and humanoid monsters. Despite occupying distinct territories, all the races coexisted peacefully."

"What does Kikei being a monster have to do with this?"

I cut Otto off as I wanted to know about kikei, not Synthex or Senexus.

"Hear me out first; I'll continue with the story."

He replied to me, to which I seemingly nodded.

"Alright, So, as I was saying, Although Synthex had many races in it, someone had to be in guardianship of the place. As you might be thinking, the nexusguards were in the guardianship of the place. The queen of Synthex had recruited a group called the Black Rose. A group of strong individuals who were with the queen at all times. They were the strongest Nexus guards of the time."

We all kept on hearing him out. But the topic of Kikei never came up. So I just let him continue.

"The leader of the Black Rose was Kikei Jigoku, and despite their appearance as guards, they were ruthless monsters. Kikei was an evil genius with a desire to annihilate both Synthex and Senexus. He was a hybrid of a human and a crier, possibly a former nexus guard who had transformed. It remains a mystery how he underwent this transformation, but what is certain is that he succeeded in his mission to destroy both realms. He was regarded as the most powerful individual."

"So, basically, Kikei was an evil mastermind who destroyed both realms."

Annie spoke, breaking the flow of the story. Otto only nodded, but one thing was confirmed. Otto was someone more mysterious than I initially believed.

"Kikei was known for his incredible strength, but it came with a catch: he was still mortal and would eventually succumb to time. He had yet to conquer another realm, with the earthly realm being his ultimate goal. Unfortunately, his body couldn't handle the immense power he possessed, and he was apprised to transform into a nexus soul. He hoped that someone would take him up and enable him to carry out his plans. Now, after several centuries have passed, Kikei has returned."

"Wait, did you say he turned into a nexus soul? How is that even possible?"

I asked as I shot up. I was surprised about everything going on. What did he mean by destroying the earth? I had so many questions.

"It has been said that someone aided him in achieving a higher level of existence as a soul, but he killed anyone who dared to challenge him. He even killed his comrades from the Black Rose. However, there were still survivors. He was unable to defeat the queen because she was too powerful to imagine. He eliminated all other races except for the criers and nexus guards, who were mostly humans. Eventually, Synthex was resurrected, but the remaining survivors from other races united and waged war against the guards. Unfortunately, fate was on the side of the guards, and they emerged victorious. Synthex suffered greatly at the hands of just one individual, Kikei, who spared the criers but destroyed the entire Senexus."

Otto continued, but I was scared for those around me. I was the one who had Kikei as my nexus soul.

"So, what about Nova, then?"

Annie asked Otto, to which he just smiled.

"There's no need to worry about Kikei because Nova is the perfect candidate to control him. If Nova couldn't keep Kikei in check, he would have already taken over."

As I gazed off into the distance, Otto's words echoed in my mind. Although I was aware of the safety of those around me, the weight of what I had just heard was substantial.

Suddenly, I was surrounded by darkness. I had an idea about where I was.

"It looks like you know the truth now."

Kikei was sitting on a throne that was made out of corpses when he spoke. I stared dead into his eyes. It was full of malice.

"Don't worry; even if you manage to keep me under control, I'll find a way to escape soon enough."

He waved his hand as the scenery changed, and I was back in reality.

"Otto, Is it possible for Kikei to take over me?" 

I asked as I looked at Otto.

"Yes, it might be possible, but I find it difficult to happen."

He spoke as he got up.

"Alright, enough chit-chatting. Let's get back to training now. And Nova, don't worry. He isn't in full power yet. After all, he needs to obtain his nexus blade to regain his old powers."

Otto spoke as he put his hand on my shoulder with a faint smile on his face.

"Ok, thank you."

I spoke as I walked towards the open ground. I came here to train.

"Ok, I came here today to train, but in the process, I've learned something big."

Annie spoke as she took her daggers out.

Otto got to the middle and took his longsword out.

"As of today, Annie will be my only disciple."

"Huh? What do you mean? What about us?"

"Yeah, what about me?"

Aaron spoke as we both glared at Otto.

"Nova, Aaron I tend to use the same weapons as Annie. I can only effectively train Annie. But I'll show you guys the fundamentals first. Not to fear."

"Ok."

Both of us replied in unison.

**

Aaron and I were only left to spar with each other after we both concluded our instruction in the fundamentals of soul emanation. We discovered several practical applications for soul emission, such as utilising it as a laser beam or Ki blast type, and many others in which a person could come up in an instant.

"Are you ready to spare Aaron?"

"Of course."

He replied to me as I got ready. I got my sword from you while he got his dagger out rather than his guns.

"Are you so confident in yourself that you can use a dagger to fight me? It's going to be harder than that."

I taunted him, to which he just chuckled to himself.

"If I used a shotgun, you'd be finished in seconds, so I'd rather fight you with my dagger. After all, I can fight at any distance I want and with as many enemies as there are. But since it's you, I might use my guns."

He continued babbling, so I immediately jumped in his direction.

I punched him in the solar plexus, but he easily avoided it. That didn't disturb me. He abruptly vanished from view and reappeared behind me. Before he reached me, he sliced repellant through the air with his dagger.

I slashed at him while blocking the blow with my katana.

He felt the blade strike his flesh, but he used the dagger to deflect the blow. I went forward to stab him to break up the battle, even though I had just sent him flying back. I was simply too powerful for him. He crashed against the ground as I pounced upon him.

"Look, I told you, you need to use your guns."

I bragged while I put my sword in his throat.

"It's not over yet."

He suddenly shot a beam towards my stomach. I was quick enough to get away from the shot, but it still hurt my body. I shot backward as my wounds started to heal.

"Damn, no wonder you are considered smart."

I tried to slash my sword at him, but before I knew it, Aaron pulled out both of his weapons and opened fire on me. So I used my sword to block as much as I could. A few of them managed to hit me.

I, however, wasn't the kind to give up that lightly. I cut while slicing at him at high speed. I checked to see if my attack had been successful. I mean, I was more agile than any newbie, after all.

"You stumbled. You underestimate how strong I am.

Aaron spoke as he had a huge grin on his face. He had managed to dodge the attack using his guns.

"How'd you do it?"

I asked in awe. To which he just smiled.

"I'll tell you after I finish this spar."

He spoke, making me remember that we were sparring rather than fighting.

"Right, I'll finish it quick, don't worry."

I held my blade and scabbard in my hands and rushed forward. I swung my scabbard at him. Aaron parried my scabbard swing with his hands after I did. He then sprang into the air and fired a few shots at me. But before he could react, I had already ended the fight by disarming him and pinning him to the ground.

"Do you give up now?"

I asked him as I gave him my hand.

"How did you disarm me in a matter of seconds? How fast are you?"

Aaron spoke, to which I just chuckled.

"If you didn't know, I have the potential to be the fastest guard."

I spoke as I helped him get up.

"But anyway, how did you dodge that attack of mine?"

I asked him as he dusted his clothes.

"It's simple, frankly. I just used soul emanation as a barrier to stop the attack from going through my body. You could say, I used soul emanation as a medium to evade the attack."

"Forget all that; you're damn smart, dude."

I told him. I was surprised by his high adaptability and IQ. He had already learned how to effectively use soul emanation. I was at a loss for words.

"Yeah, yeah, but in the end, you won."

He looked away as he put his gun and dagger back in their respective places.

"Nice fight, guys."

Otto suddenly spoke out of nowhere.

"Did you watch the whole spar?"

I turned to him and sat down on the ground.

"Yeah, impressive feats from both of you guys.

Otto spoke as he came up to us.

"So, what level are we on?"

I asked him with a smug look on my face.

"Low knight level for now. Don't forget that you guys are still newbies."

He replied, making the smug look disappear from my face.

'Haa, and here I thought I was strong.'

I spoke to myself.

"What about me?"

"High knight,"

Otto answered Aaron.

"What? How? I just beat him. How can he be higher than me?"

I exclaimed loudly as I was shaken by what I just heard.

"Nova, just because you beat him doesn't mean you're better than him. You didn't show the feats he did with soul emanation."

Otto explained, which I understood. But I knew all of them undervalued my battle IQ.

"Ok, I get it. But where's Annie?"

I asked Otto as I stared into the distance.

"I've decided to take her up as my disciple. So she won't be training with you guys."

"Why? What about us? What will we do?"

Aaron asked Otto, as I wondered the same thing.

"You guys have to figure that out by yourselves."

He answered back to us.

"This is too much; I'm leaving. I'll go train by myself."

I spoke as I left the training ground.

"Wait, I'll come with you too."

Aaron followed me as we exited the training grounds.

"Guys, I'm sorry."

Otto had a wry smile on his face. I put my hand on it to inform him that it was okay. We left the training ground, and I went back to my house.

**

I returned home after parting ways with Aaron.

crackling--

I heard a weird noise in my room. So I headed up to my room. I opened my room door and entered.

"Hello, Nova Carnegie."

_________________________________________

1. Soul emanation can be used in many ways. It works as you imagine. You can make shields, barriers, blasts, and whatnot.

__________________________________________