Itsuki stood at the edge of a rocky cliff, gazing down at the sleeping city below. The night wind whipped through his cloak—cold, biting—but not as cold as his thoughts. Ever since the last signal from the Third Gate, the power within him had begun to shift. It was no longer wild and chaotic like before. Now it felt structured, but foreign. As if another part of him had awakened and started to take control.
Footsteps approached. Reina stood behind him, silent.
"Akito and Miru managed to stop Yurina," she said at last. "But they know it's only a delay."
Itsuki didn't turn around. "She's calling me. I can feel it. Night after night, in dreams, she's waiting. And I've started to hear her."
Reina stepped beside him. "Are you afraid?"
"I'm not afraid of Yurina. I'm afraid of myself." He clenched his fists. "The closer I get to the Third Gate, the blurrier the line between me and... the Black Emperor becomes."
Reina sighed. "That's why you have to go. To the Valley of the Last Light. There, you'll meet the keeper of the final seal. If you pass the trial… you'll know who you truly are."
Itsuki finally looked at her. "And if I fail?"
She looked into his eyes. "Then you won't come back as yourself."
---
Meanwhile, beyond the veil of the world, Yurina stood in a dark space with no sky. Before her, four shadowy figures hovered—formless, yet pressing with immense power. The Four Shadows had fully awakened, and they were waiting for one thing: the return of the Black Emperor in a human body.
"You've opened two gates, Yurina," one of them murmured. "Your time is nearly up. If the legacy doesn't awaken on its own, we will take the body by force."
Yurina lowered her head. Though she still had free will, she was now bound. Deep inside her heart, a sliver of hope remained—that Itsuki would choose a different path. Even though she knew, the final battle was coming, and no one could escape it.
---
The next day...
Akito, Miru, Reina, and Hana gathered in the meeting chamber of an ancient shrine. On the table lay an old map showing the spiritual world and the real world, now beginning to overlap.
"We're running out of time," Hana said. "If Itsuki reaches the Third Gate, he might stop all this. But if he doesn't… this world will be consumed by spirits."
"And you think he can face his own mother?" Akito asked sharply.
"He doesn't have to face Yurina," Reina replied. "He has to face something far worse. Himself."
At the summit of Mount Kiyura, Itsuki arrived before a great stone gate covered in moss and silver mist. Above it, carved in an ancient language:
"Those who enter here will never leave as mere humans."
Without hesitation, he pushed the gate open. A blinding light greeted him. The air shifted. This was no physical world—it was an inner realm. A world shaped by undeniable truths.
And in the middle of it stood a figure that froze him.
Himself.
But older. Calmer. Darker.
The figure looked at him and said, "I am you—the one who chose to become the Black Emperor."
Itsuki gasped. The encounter he'd avoided all this time had finally come. And there was no turning back.
---
Two Fates, One Soul
The sky of that inner world churned, cycling between blood red and deep black. The ground beneath Itsuki's feet felt hollow, as if it could collapse any second. Before him stood the other version of himself—with glowing golden eyes and an aura like silent flame.
"I am the end of all your choices," the figure said, his voice deep, layered like two voices in one. "I was born from every rage, fear, and doubt you've ever had. I am the Black Emperor in your own form."
Itsuki clenched his fists, heart pounding. "If you're part of me, why do you want to destroy the world?"
The figure gave a faint smile. "Not destruction. Liberation. This world is fragile, full of lies and pretense. Our power can reshape it—without pain, without death, without deception. But the old world must vanish first."
Itsuki stepped forward, defiant. "You sound just like the Shadows."
"Because they weren't wrong," he replied. "They were just too early. Humanity failed to maintain balance. Now, you have a chance to fix it. But to do that, you must let go of your humanity."
Suddenly, the world around them began to shift. Buildings crumbled, seas of blood rose from the ground, and in the sky, faces from the past appeared: Hana, Reina, Akito, even Yurina.
"They're all burdens. Memories. Wounds. Let them go and become perfect."
Itsuki shook his head, eyes trembling. "They're not burdens. They're my reason to keep going."
The Black Emperor raised his hand. Thousands of shadows surged from the ground, forming an army in seconds.
"Then prove it. If you're strong enough, defeat me—and I'll disappear."
The battle began. Itsuki charged, his hands ablaze with dark energy he now wielded without fear. Shadows attacked from all sides, but he cut them down one by one. His body moved with purpose—not just from power within, but from every memory, sacrifice, and scar he carried.
The Black Emperor joined the fight. Sword met sword, light met force, and with each clash, the inner world cracked more and more.
Finally, Itsuki drove his hand into the figure's chest. Energy surged. Memories flashed—his childhood, his mother's smile, the day Akito betrayed him, the moment Hana first reached out.
"If I must be Emperor, then I will be one with a human heart. And I will choose a path that doesn't require destruction."
The figure stared at him, then smiled. "I see now. I finally understand." He dissolved into light. And the inner world collapsed in silence.
---
In the real world...
Itsuki awoke in the Valley of the Last Light. No blood, no wounds. But he knew—he had changed.
On his arm, a new symbol burned—the mark of the Black Emperor, inverted, symbolizing free will.
Hana and Reina rushed to him. "You did it!" Reina cried.
Itsuki stood slowly. "The Third Gate hasn't opened yet. But I'm ready."
In the distance, lightning split the sky—a sign that Yurina and the Shadows had begun to move.
And the final battle was coming.
Silence cloaked the northern highlands, a place known as the "Mirror of the World." Here, legend said, the last Black Emperor hid something—something only his true successor could reach.
Itsuki stood on the cliff's edge, flanked by Hana, Reina, and Akito—now fully back on their side. Below, eternal mist slowly swirled, concealing the entrance to ancient ruins untouched for centuries.
"The Third Gate will open here," Hana whispered. "And if it does, the spirit world will merge completely with the human world."
"Yurina will come," added Akito. "And she won't be alone. Three of the remaining Four Shadows will come with her."
Reina looked at Itsuki. "So what is the final legacy? What are we really looking for?"
Itsuki closed his eyes. In his mind, the voice of the Black Emperor—what remained from their battle—whispered softly.
"If you reach my final place, you'll find a choice. I can't stop fate, but I can give you a chance to reshape it."
They descended into the mist. Step by step, the ruins emerged: engraved black stones, fallen pillars, and in the center—a glowing altar marked with symbols of both blood and light.
As Itsuki approached the altar, the ground trembled.
From the fog, a deep voice echoed.
"My legacy has finally arrived."
A spectral figure appeared—majestic and terrifying. Cloaked in imperial robes, his face was like a mask: half-human, half-spirit.
"I am the first and last Black Emperor. The one who united the human and spirit worlds—and the one who destroyed them."
Reina and Hana prepared to fight, but Itsuki raised his hand. "He's not an enemy. Not anymore."
The Emperor's spirit gazed into him. "Power won't save you. Only choice will. My final legacy is this—the Divider of Worlds. With a single word, you can close the gates forever… or leave them open and become the bridge."
"But if I close it," Itsuki muttered, "the good spirits who've helped us will be cut off too."
"Correct," said the Emperor. "But if not—you'll be at war forever."
Before he could reply, the sky ripped open. Yurina descended through the dark heavens, flanked by the Three Shadows.
"ITSUKI!" she cried, her voice laced with spirit-world echoes. "The time has come. Hand over the legacy—or watch the world drown in darkness!"
Itsuki gripped the symbol on his arm. The altar before him glowed. Everyone held their breath. A decision was about to be made—and everything would change forever.
The sky tore. Shadows from the spirit realm spread like toxic mist around the altar. Yurina stood at the center—no longer the mother from Itsuki's fading memories. Her eyes glowed violet, her hair floated like smoke, and behind her stood the three Shadows—faceless, pure black forms standing as eternal sentinels.
"The legacy is not yours, Itsuki," Yurina said. "It belongs to our blood. To those cast out, discarded, and locked between worlds."
Itsuki stood firm, light from the Emperor's mark illuminating his face. "If it really is ours, then why use it to destroy?"
One of the Shadows floated forward, halting mid-air.
"Because destruction is rebirth," it hissed. "Only by erasing the boundary can a new world be born."
Reina drew her sword. Hana began chanting a spell. Akito clenched a talisman and muttered, "We can't beat them if the gate fully opens."
Yurina raised her hand.
The sky above the altar began swirling like a vortex. Voices from both worlds cried out—screaming, laughing, weeping. The Third Gate began to open—slowly, but surely.
"Your choice, Itsuki," Yurina said. "Seal the gate and save the human world, but lose all the good spirits. Or open it completely and let chaos become humanity's new home."
Itsuki looked at the altar. Two symbols were etched on it. One: a closed eye—the Gate's Closure. The other: an open eye—the Union of Worlds.
And in his mind, the Black Emperor whispered again.
"Not all darkness is evil. Not all light is salvation. But your choice will become the new law of this world."
Suddenly, Yurina stepped forward. "Or… there's a third path. Let yourself become the Gate. Let your body be the eternal bridge."
Itsuki trembled. If he chose that path, he would become a living portal—his soul slowly burning as the link between two worlds. The world wouldn't collapse, but he would no longer be human.
"Decide now, my son," Yurina said, approaching. "Before it's too late."
Time froze. Reina looked at him. Hana held back tears. Akito clenched his jaw. And Itsuki stepped slowly toward the altar.