Kyoto.
A city ancient and sacred, where the clash of gods and mortals once carved the rivers with fire and whispered prayers into cherry blossoms. Now, beneath its peaceful façade, the shrine atop Mount Kurama trembled—its foundations warped by something older than the oldest shrine maiden could recall.
Rei Kazenari stood atop a ruined torii gate at dawn, his cloak billowing in the biting mountain wind. The golden feather Suzaku had given him glowed faintly in his hand, pulsing in rhythm with the hidden gate buried beneath the Imperial Shrine.
Behind him, Mireille checked the stability of their spirit resonance barriers, while Noira scanned the area with a narrowed gaze. Eirenne knelt on the old stones, fingers tracing the bloodline sigils left by generations of Himejima priests. Rias stood apart with Akeno, both cloaked in spiritual wards, their presence sanctioned only through fragile cooperation.
"So," Rei murmured, "we meet the Heart and Oath trials here."
Karasu's voice echoed faintly. "You will not face them with power. These are not battles of strength. They are tests of self."
Rias spoke first. "The Oath Trial is layered beneath the Flame Cavern. No one has entered since the Age of Collapse. And those who tried never returned."
Akeno added, "It's protected by something that doesn't just see your sins. It feels them."
---
The descent into the Flame Cavern began at high noon.
Steps carved into obsidian rock led them downward, the heat intensifying with each layer. Glyphs of divine and demonic nature pulsed along the walls. As they reached the inner sanctum, the path split in two.
Gabriel's voice crackled through the resonance relay. "Rei. The Heart Trial requires you alone. You may take no pact. No ally. Only yourself."
Rei nodded. "Understood."
Noira grabbed his shoulder briefly. "Don't get erased."
He smiled faintly. "I'll come back. With more than just answers."
And so they separated—Rei stepping into a veil of searing gold, while the others remained in the mirrored chamber.
---
The Heart Trial.
Rei walked through a field of memory.
A thousand moments played around him. His birth. His first death. His first kill. His first lie. His laughter with Mireille. The blood on his hands after Eirenne's first fall. The moment Noira looked at him not as a leader—but as a man.
And then: a mirror.
It reflected nothing.
Not his form.
Not his soul.
Then, a voice:
"You bear fragments not meant for a single heart. You forge harmony in a system born from division. Who are you to do so?"
He stepped toward the empty reflection.
"I'm not trying to become what came before," he said. "I'm becoming what they couldn't."
The mirror cracked.
A flame burst from within—and wrapped around him like a crown.
> [Trial of Heart: Passed. Resonance Field Stabilized. Flame Layer 8 Activated. Access to Origin Flame: GRANTED.]
---
The Oath Trial.
At the same time, in the cavern's core, the others faced their own storm.
The chamber had twisted. Shifting roots of light and shadow bound the floor, forming a circle of judgment. At its center sat a spirit knight—tall, armored in ash and gold, a blade of promises piercing the stone.
"You who walk beside the flame," the knight intoned, "will you bind your will to his? Not by loyalty—but by truth?"
Mireille stepped forward. "I've followed Rei through ruins and stars. Not because I was told. Because I chose to."
The knight turned to Noira.
She sneered. "He's not perfect. But he never pretended to be. That's why I trust him more than angels or kings."
Eirenne knelt, her voice soft. "His flame gave my soul a name. That is my oath."
The knight rose.
"Then you are more than followers. You are fragments given form."
With a surge of blinding light, the Oath Blade shattered—its shards embedding into their spirits.
> [Trial of Oath: Passed. Spirit Pact Upgrade Engaged. Synchronization 61%. System Core Access—Expanded.]
---
The trials complete, Rei emerged once more.
He now bore a new mark over his chest—a glowing sigil in the shape of an infinity flame, flickering with layered resonance.
Karasu whispered in reverence. "The Eighth Flame accepts you. You've crossed the threshold. You are no longer the system's vessel. You are its catalyst."
Rias stared in awe. "What have you become?"
Rei looked to the rising moon.
"Something they can't erase."
And far above, as Kyoto's wards trembled, the EXE signal pulsed across dimensions—reaching corners of the multiverse long thought sealed.
Something else had noticed.