The sound of footsteps echoed through the stone corridors of Yamihana Academy, a school where both ordinary students and secret descendants of legendary bloodlines walked the same halls. The bell rang softly in the distance, but the campus was far from its usual chatter.
Every hallway buzzed with whispers—about the boy who had appeared in the news. The one who had slayed over a hundred zombies with nothing but a sword. His photos had gone viral. People spoke his name with awe.
Kai Hitari.
Some called him a hero. Others, a monster. But none truly understood the weight he carried—the legacy burning inside him.
Kai walked quietly through the main courtyard, his eyes distant. Though people looked at him with fascination, he didn't look back. He wasn't here for glory. He was searching for the truth… and answers about the sword, the gate, and his father's fate.
From a nearby bench, Herin Rai watched him with conflicted eyes. Her notebook rested on her lap, filled with pages of stories—some real, some imagined. But now, it held something else: a glimpse into Kai's past. She had been gathering fragments about him for weeks—out of curiosity at first, and later… something deeper.
She had tried to talk to him. To understand him. To get close. But Kai was like a mountain—distant, cold, and burdened by storms.
Still, today felt different.
---
"Hey… Kai," Herin called, stepping into his path.
He stopped.
She took a breath. "You've been avoiding everyone. I don't care what they say about you—I want to understand. Please. Talk to me."
Kai studied her for a moment. Her eyes were sincere. Not fearful or curious, but worried.
"I don't know what you're trying to get out of this," he said quietly. "My life isn't a storybook. It's not a tale you write in your notebook."
Herin hesitated. "I know… I tried to turn it into one, but I realize now, it's not just your story—it's your pain. I read about the Crimson Veil. About the sword… Tenrai. It belonged to your grandfather, didn't it?"
Kai's fists clenched.
"Yes," he finally said. "And my father died for it."
---
They sat together on a stone bench beneath a tall silver-leafed tree, one of the oldest in the academy. A soft breeze blew, rustling its branches as if listening to them.
Kai began to speak.
"My grandfather built the Crimson Veil world—not just as a barrier, but as a stronghold. It was the only way to keep the creatures from escaping into our world. He poured everything into it… his power, his soul, even his final breath."
Herin listened silently.
"After he vanished, my father inherited Tenrai—the sword that held back the darkness. And one day… the gate opened. My father went in to seal it. He took warriors with him. Her father too… Rekha's father. They never came back."
"I know," Herin said gently. "But you… you carry Tenrai now."
Kai nodded. "It came to me. As if it chose me."
---
Just then, a voice interrupted them. It was Rekha Hitari, Kai's childhood friend and one of the few who knew the full truth. She had a scroll in her hand, ancient and bound with a crimson seal.
"Kai," she said, breathless. "The gate… it's stirring again."
He stood immediately. "What?"
"I've been feeling it all week," Rekha said. "The seal's energy is weakening. Creatures might return. We need to be ready."
Kai turned to Herin. "You asked why I'm always alone. Why I carry this sword. This is why. I don't have time for school, or romance, or even peace. The veil never rests."
But Herin stepped forward, her voice firm. "And do you think you'll win this war alone? If your father couldn't do it with a hundred warriors, what chance do you have without allies?"
Kai paused.
"I don't want to lose anyone else," he admitted. "I've already seen what happens when people get involved in my life."
Herin looked at him, eyes bright. "Then let us choose. I want to stand beside you. Not because I pity you—but because I believe in you."
---
That night, Rekha opened the scroll beneath the glow of moonlight. It contained the final words of Rael Hitari, written in magic ink that only bloodline descendants could read:
"When the gate awakens, the Veil shall thin. Only the heir of Tenrai shall decide its fate. Trust in those who walk beside you—not for their power, but their hearts."
Kai touched the scroll. It shimmered, glowing in crimson and silver light. Tenrai pulsed at his side.
A decision had to be made.
He would not run. Not again.
---
Two Days Later
The trio stood in the underground chamber beneath the academy—the secret sanctum where the old guardians once trained. Rekha had unearthed the ancient entrance after her father's death. They called it The Hollow Forge.
Rekha had spent years unlocking its secrets. Now, with Kai and Herin beside her, they prepared to awaken it.
As the three of them placed their hands on the central pedestal, the stone beneath them rumbled. The seal recognized Kai's bloodline—and the sword he carried.
The chamber lit up.
From the darkness emerged three spectral warriors—echoes of the past.
They were spirits from the first generation of Veil Keepers.
One of them stepped forward, looking directly at Kai.
"Bearer of Tenrai," he said in a voice like thunder. "You stand where your ancestors fell. Do you seek to finish what they began?"
Kai nodded solemnly. "Yes. I want to end this war. Not just delay it."
"And these beside you?" the spirit asked.
"My allies," he replied. "My strength."
The spirit raised his sword. "Then begin the Trial of Echoes. Only those whose hearts are true may face the Veil."
---
Over the next several hours, Kai, Herin, and Rekha were tested—physically, mentally, and spiritually. They faced illusions of fear. Shadows of their past. Visions of failure.
Kai saw his father again—in his final moments, reaching for Tenrai as darkness swallowed him. Herin saw herself alone, abandoned by everyone she trusted. Rekha saw her father impaled, whispering secrets she never understood.
But they endured.
Together.
---
As dawn broke, the final seal shattered. A new path revealed itself—a mirror gate, hidden deep beneath the city, where the Veil's energy bled through into the mortal world.
Kai stood before it, Tenrai glowing in his hand.
"I'll go," he said.
Herin touched his arm. "We'll go."
Rekha stepped forward. "We're with you. Always."
For the first time, Kai didn't resist.
Maybe, just maybe… this was how heroes were born.
Not alone.
But together.