Chapter 1

The morning sun crawled through the cracks of his window, casting dim light upon a room that felt as lifeless as its owner. A bed — unkempt. A sword — leaned against the wall, untouched by excitement or purpose. The air was stale. Silent. Suffocating.

His eyes opened. But they did not see.

He rose from his bed, his body moving on instinct — not desire. His messy black hair fell over his hollow light purple eyes, but he did not care enough to fix it. He walked to the kitchen, prepared a stale meal, and ate it without thought. It tasted like ash in his mouth. It always did.

Wake up. Eat. Take a quest. Complete it. Go home. Eat. Sleep. Repeat.

That was his life now.

He strapped his katana to his waist and left his home without a second thought. The village was bustling, filled with adventurers of all kinds rookies filled with dreams, parties planning their next adventure, and merchants bargaining with customers. But none of them existed in his world.

His world was gray.

"Yo! The strongest adventurer himself!" someone called. A younger adventurer, full of life. "Any big quest today?"

"No." His voice was empty, devoid of care.

The adventurer laughed awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable by his hollow response. "Haha… yeah, I guess you don't talk much. Anyway, good luck out there, man!"

He didn't respond. He simply walked toward the guild.

The guild hall was lively. Cheers, laughter, and excitement filled the air. None of it reached him. He approached the request board and scanned it.

Hunt down an A-rank beast terrorizing nearby forest. Reward: 30 gold.

He grabbed the paper and brought it to the receptionist.

"Ah… you're taking another one?" she asked, her voice hesitant. "You know, you could take a break. Maybe… enjoy yourself?"

He said nothing.

The receptionist sighed, stamping his request. "Alright… stay safe."

Safe. He almost scoffed at the word.

The forest was deathly quiet. The air was thick, suffocating, but he felt nothing. Only his task. Find the beast. Kill it. Go home. Repeat.

Hours passed before he found it a massive, grotesque creature, fangs dripping with saliva, claws large enough to tear a man in two. An A-rank beast.

He drew his katana, not out of excitement or determination, but obligation. The beast roared. He didn't flinch.

Kill it. Go home.

Just as he stepped forward he heard it.

A scream.

His head snapped to the side, and there a young boy, no older than ten, stood in front of his childhood friend, arms stretched out, shielding her from the beast.

The beast lunged.

MOVE.

His body acted before his mind did. One second he stood still the next he was in front of the boy, his katana slicing clean through the beast's skull. Blood sprayed, but his focus was on the boy.

The boy was trembling, yet he never moved away from the girl. Even in the face of death, he did not abandon her.

…Protect.

Something stirred within him. A flicker. A long-forgotten feeling. What is this…?

The girl sobbed, clutching her friend. "Y-You saved us…!"

The boy, however, did not cry. He simply stared at his childhood friend and whispered, "I promised I would protect you… no matter what."

I promised…

The words stabbed through his chest like a hot iron. His vision blurred not from tears, but from something breaking inside him. Something that had long been buried.

Without a word, he turned and walked away, his katana still dripping with blood. His hands trembled, his heart ached, and his mind screamed.

As he began to walk further away, he heard hurried footsteps behind him. The boy was following him.

"Wait!" the boy called out. He stopped but did not turn. The boy finally reached him, out of breath, clutching his childhood friend's hand. "Thank you… for saving us."

Silence.

The boy hesitated, his hand clenching tightly. Then, gathering his courage, he finally spoke. "Can you… train me to be strong like you?" He froze. He didn't reply. Instead, he simply turned his back to the boy, his voice cold and detached. "Go home. It's dangerous out here." The boy hesitated but eventually nodded, taking his childhood friend's hand and walking away.

He watched them leave, his chest heavy. But he ignored it — like he always did. 

Complete the quest. Go home. Repeat. He found the beast's corpse, still warm from his earlier strike. Without hesitation, he carved out the core proof of his kill and wiped his blade clean. The walk back to the guild was silent. The events of earlier lingered in his mind, but he forced it down. Like always.

He reached the guild, stepping through the noisy hall without a word. Approaching the receptionist, he placed the beast's core on the counter. "Another one done?" she asked with forced cheerfulness.

He nodded. "Reward." The receptionist sighed, counting the gold. "You know… you really should rest once in a while. You can't keep going like this." He said nothing. Just took the gold, turned around, and left.

As he was on his way to find a place to eat, he noticed the boy again running toward him. The boy was panting, yet his determination was evident. Once he reached him, the boy didn't hesitate. "Please… train me. I want to be strong like you so I can protect everyone I care about."

He stared at the boy, his expression unreadable. For a brief moment, the flicker of something long forgotten appeared within him. But he crushed it just as quickly. "You don't want to be like me, kid," he finally spoke, his voice cold and empty. "Go home. Forget about this."

The boy clenched his fists, his eyes burning with determination. "No! I saw what you did back there you saved us! I want to be like that to protect everyone I care about!" His dead eyes stared at the boy, but deep inside, something gnawed at him. He wanted to walk away just like always. But his feet… wouldn't move.

"…Go home," he finally muttered. And without another word, he turned his back and walked away, leaving the boy standing there, desperate and confused. But the next day, as he left his home for another quest, he saw the boy again.

"Please! Train me!" the boy begged, his voice firm despite the rejection from yesterday. He didn't answer. He simply walked past the boy like he wasn't there.The next day the same thing. And the day after that. Every time he stepped out, the boy was there, waiting. Every day, the boy begged him to train him, and every day he was met with silence.

"Why do you keep asking me?" he finally broke the silence one day, his voice devoid of any warmth. The boy looked at him, determination burning in his eyes. "Because you saved us. And I know… you can make me strong enough to protect everyone I love."

He wanted to tell the boy to give up. That strength only brought emptiness. But he couldn't bring himself to say it. Instead, he simply repeated what he always did. "Go home. It's dangerous out here."

And just like before, he walked away, pretending that the boy's plea didn't stir something deep within his how chest. But as he stepped deeper into the forest, he realized the boy was still following him. The sound of hurried footsteps behind him did not stop.

"Go home," he said coldly, not even bothering to look back. "No! Please… I want to be strong like you!" the boy pleaded, his breath heavy from trying to keep up.

He stopped in his tracks, his grip on his katana tightening. "You're going to get yourself killed." The boy didn't flinch. "Then teach me how not to." Silence lingered between them, only broken by the rustling leaves and distant howls of monsters. For a brief moment, he almost considered it. Almost.

"…Go home," he repeated, his voice colder than before. Without another word, he stepped forward, allowing the shadows of the forest to swallow him whole leaving the boy behind once again.

But as he walked away, the boy clenched his fists, his voice cracking. "I WON'T GIVE UP UNTIL YOU ACCEPT ME AS YOUR STUDENT!" 

The words pierced through him but he didn't stop. He kept walking. Don't look back. Don't care. Forget it. Moments later, the boy's voice echoed behind him, quieter but unwavering. "I'll keep coming back… every day… until you say yes."

He gritted his teeth, his grip on his katana tightening. Foolish. Minutes passed. Silence. Good. He gave up. But then The scream. And he knew it was the boy.

The scream cut through his chest like a blade. His legs moved before his mind could register it. Trees blurred past him as his grip on his katana tightened. His heartbeat which had long felt like a dull thud now pounded against his ribs. "Please… don't let me be too late." Then he saw it. 

Pinned against a tree his back pressed hard against the bark, his small body trembling. Standing before him was another A-rank beast larger, more feral than the last. Blood coated its claws, and its fangs dripped with saliva. The boy's eyes were filled with terror but he didn't run. Even as the beast inched closer, the boy raised his fists, ready to fight. With nothing but his bare hands.

"Why… why aren't you running…?" The beast lunged. "MOVE!" Before the boy even realized it, a streak of silver flashed past his face and blood sprayed everywhere.

The beast's head didn't even have time to turn before the katana sliced clean through its arm, severing it in a single motion. A monstrous shriek erupted from the creature, but the man didn't flinch. His dead, hollow eyes locked onto the beast like a predator. The boy gasped. "Y-you…!" But he didn't speak. His body simply moved.

The beast, despite losing an arm, roared in rage and lunged again. Without hesitation, the katana slashed once, twice and the beast's leg detached from its body. It collapsed, writhing in agony. But he didn't stop.

Cold. Unforgiving. His blade carved through the beast's neck in one clean motion, severing its head. Blood sprayed, painting his face but his expression didn't change. Not even a flinch.

The boy stared, his mouth agape, his entire body trembling. "You… saved me…again" The man didn't respond. He merely wiped his blade against his sleeve and turned his back. "Go home." The boy, still shaking, stumbled forward. "But—"

"I said go home." His voice was colder than ice. Tears welled up in the boy's eyes, but he swallowed them back. "I… I just wanted to be strong like you…" He froze 

For a brief moment, something inside him cracked but he forced it down. Without another word, he walked away, his blade still dripping with blood. "Wait!" The boy stumbled to his feet, his voice cracking. "Please! I-I know you told me to go home but I won't!" He didn't respond. He just kept walking.

The boy's voice wavered, but his determination didn't. "I don't care how many times you tell me no — I'll keep coming back until you train me!" His footsteps slowed. "I… I don't want to be weak anymore. I want to protect the people I care about. Even if it kills me I want to be strong like you!"

He could hear the boy sobbing behind him, his voice cracking with desperation. "Please… I don't have anyone else to turn to…" His grip on his katana tightened. His body refused to turn around his mind screamed at him to leave it be. To walk away like he always did. To not get involved.

But his feet didn't move. A heavy silence hung in the air before he finally exhaled — cold, empty, and resigned. "Tch…" Slowly, he turned around. His dead, hollow eyes locked onto the boy, his voice colder than ice. "Fine." 

The boy's breath hitched. "W-what…?" 

"I'll train you." 

The boy's face lit up. "R-really?!" "But let me make one thing clear, kid." His tone sharpened like a blade. "I'm not going easy on you. I'm not your friend. I'm not your mentor. I'm not someone you should look up to." 

The boy froze, his smile fading. "If you think I'm gonna coddle you or praise you forget it. You'll suffer. You'll bleed. And you'll regret ever asking me to train you." His voice was cold, but his words were sincere. "If you can't handle it leave now."

The boy hesitated. His hands trembled. But then — his jaw clenched. "I-I don't care…" He narrowed his eyes. "What?"

"I don't care how hard it is! I don't care if you make me suffer! I'll take it all of it! As long as I can become strong enough to protect the people I love I'll do whatever it takes!"

Silence.

He stared at the boy that same fiery determination burning in his eyes, the same kind he once had long ago. And for a moment… a flicker of something long forgotten scratched at his hollow chest. 

But he crushed it. "Tch… your funeral, kid." He turned away. "We start tomorrow. Don't be late."

The boy smiled through his tears. "Yes, sir!" But deep down he already knew. He wasn't doing this for the kid. He was doing this because, for the first time in years… …He wanted to feel something again.