The Thorned Path

"A path of thorns is the only road that leads beyond the pain."

— Letter from Hotaru no Yakusha

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The trail before Shindō was narrow and cruel,

lined with jagged thorns that tore at flesh and spirit alike.

Each step was a test, a choice between pressing forward or surrendering to the pain.

The forest around him seemed alive with malice,

its shadows crawling like serpents, whispering of failure and death.

---

Yuuki walked beside him, unwavering,

her blind eyes fixed on a horizon only she could see.

"Sometimes," she said, "the path is not meant to be walked easily.

It is meant to break us… so that what remains can be stronger."

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Shindō's hands ached from the barbs that tore his sleeves and skin,

but he gritted his teeth and kept moving,

each wound a lesson, each scar a story etched into his flesh.

The thorned path was a crucible—

and only those willing to bleed could emerge reborn.

---

At the path's end awaited a choice—

one that would shape the fate of not just Shindō,

but the entire world caught in the shadow of Hotaru no Yakusha.