The scene opens in the forest, a week after their first investigation in the same area.
Ryo stood quietly, eyes fixed on Ruri. His expression was distant, troubled, and even. A quiet sadness rested behind his gaze.
Reina (spreading out the map, speaking with focus):
"Alright, is everyone ready? This is our second time investigating this place, but this time, our objective is different. We're heading deeper into the forest to gather more detailed clues and information."
He points to a marked spot on the map deep within the dense, shaded area.
Koharu (quietly, a hint of anxiety in her voice):
"Do we really need to go that deep? That area feels… wrong."
Reina (nodding firmly):
"It's necessary. If we want answers, we have to go where the incidents actually occurred. That's where the truth is."
Around them, the other members continue chatting and preparing in the background. There's a subdued tension in the air.
Ruri glances around as they walk, the trees closing in thicker than before. She slips a hand into her pocket, checking on the charm inside. It's warm again, faintly pulsing.
Ryo watches her out of the corner of his eye. His gaze softens, but the sadness lingers. His shoulders seem heavier now.
The scene shifts to a memory one week ago.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The room was quiet, filled with the soft sound of a kettle hissing in the corner. The light was warm, dim cast from a single hanging lantern. A teacup clinked gently as Miro poured himself a drink, the steam rising slowly in the still air.
Ryo stood near the door, tense. His arms hung at his sides, hands clenched tightly. His eyes were sharp, demanding answers.
Ryo (controlled but intense):"What's the connection between that accident and this mission? Tell me the truth."
Miro doesn't answer immediately. He stirs the tea slowly, watching the ripples in the cup. Finally, he exhales and takes a slow sip before speaking.
Miro: "The monster that attacked your hometown… it was born near the Mountain of Spirits. Created by spiritual pressure from sorcery long forgotten."
Ryo's brows furrow. His voice tightens.
Ryo: "...You're saying that place was the origin?"
Miro (nodding slowly): "Yes. The creature was only middle-grade, but its abilities were too rare, too refined. It wasn't natural. It was... shaped by the mountain's energy. That place doesn't just contain spirits, Ryo. It creates them."
Ryo steps forward, eyes locked onto Miro. He leans on the table with both hands, voice rising slightly.
Ryo: "So there are more like it? Even stronger?"
Miro (taking another sip, setting the cup down):"Much stronger. And worse, our scouts found something else. A dark particle residual, but unmistakable. It matched the energy of the Lord of Darkness..."
Miro folds his hands in front of him on the table. His voice remains calm, but there's weight behind it.
Miro: "You weren't sent here randomly. The higher-ups chose you."
Ryo (brows knitting): "The higher-ups?"
Miro: "You've already met the reason. Ruri."
Ryo straightens, stunned. His expression shifts from confusion to something colder.
Ryo: "Ruri? What about her?"
Miro (quietly, leaning back in his chair): "She was born with an immense spiritual presence. Unnatural, almost. And... she's bound to something ancient. An entity that's trying to take over her body."
Miro looks toward the steam rising from his cup. His voice softens.
Miro: "It can't possess her directly, but it reaches her through her dreams. We call it The Veil-bound Curse."
Ryo's eyes widen slightly. His shoulders tense again.
Ryo: "A curse…? And you want me to bring her closer to that entity?"
Miro picks up the cup again, but doesn't drink. His expression is unreadable.
Miro: "Yes. She must reach the center of the mountain. That's where the entity resides—and where the seal must be re forged."
Ryo: "You want to use her?! As bait?! She was already targeted, how can you say this is right?"
Miro sets the cup down more firmly this time. A long silence stretches between them.
Miro: "Ryo... she's the key. Without her, we have no chance of stopping what's coming."
Ryo (quietly, backing away slightly): "No. No, I won't. I won't be part of this. I decline the mission."
Miro watches him. His eyes are tired now. He looks down at the cooling tea, fingers loosely curled around the cup.
A beat passes before he speaks again.
Miro (softly): "Ryo..."
Ryo looks at him, eyes burning.
Ryo: "That night... I thought you saved me. But you didn't, did you?"
Miro meets his gaze, then nods slowly. He lifts the cup, takes one final sip, and sets it down quietly.
Miro: "No. I just gave you a weapon. You've been saving yourself ever since."
Ryo didn't respond. His jaw was clenched, eyes dark with disappointment, confusion, even heartbreak. He stepped back from the table, his hands trembling just slightly at his sides.
Ryo (quietly):"...I trusted you."
He turned, walking toward the door with heavy steps. As he reached for the handle, he paused for the briefest moment, as if wanting to say something else, but then he opened the door and stepped out. The door clicked softly shut behind him.
A long silence fell over the room.
Then
A soft rustling in the far corner.
From the shadowed edge of the room, where no presence had been sensed, a figure emerged: an old woman, her steps graceful and deliberate despite her age. Her silver hair was tied back loosely, and she wore dark ceremonial robes marked with ancient symbols.
Her presence was silent but suffocating like the weight of the past itself had stepped into the room.
???:"You never change… do you, Miro Shinkazura?"
Miro didn't flinch. He remained seated, his eyes still fixed on the cold tea in front of him. But his voice was calm as ever.
Miro:"Hoshiguma Yae... So you were here."
Hoshiguma Yae (smiling faintly): "I've been here the whole time. Watching. Listening. That boy has heart, but heart doesn't bend fate."
Miro finally raised his eyes to meet hers. The tension in the room shifted subtly. It was like two forces older than the current conflict had begun speaking again, ghosts of an era long past.
Narration (soft, reflective tone):
Miro Shinkazura. Once a nameless apprentice wandering temple ruins…Now, a name carried only in whispers among the old circles of sorcery and sword. A Master Swordsman. A Second Circle Sorcerer. But more than any title… he was the one who created the Sovereign Blade.
A flicker, A young girl's laughter in a field, a white ribbon in her hair. The memory blurs.
The technique wasn't forged in glory. It was born from desperation and grief. His younger sister, Shino, once gentle and bright… was consumed by a spirit too powerful for her to bear. She became a curse, a twisted remnant of sorrow and rage.
Another flicker, Miro kneeling in a ruined shrine, his sister's cursed form screaming as she rushes toward him, her body no longer hers. His blade glows. He's crying. And he swings.
Miro created the Sovereign Blade for her. A blade that could pierce not flesh…But memory. A weapon that could reach into the soul, restore a sliver of what was lost And give it peace.
Her final smile was brief, flickering like a candle's last breath before she fades into light.
He gave her peace. And he never forgave himself for it.
Hoshiguma Yae (stepping forward slightly): "You carry that blade like it's redemption. But you and I both know fate doesn't care how sharp your sorrow is."
Miro (barely audible):"...I made it to save one soul. And I've used it to bury hundreds since."
His hand curls into a fist on the table.
The Sovereign Blade does not leave scars on the body. But on the soul of its wielder…It carves deep.
Miro:"...So it's true. You've already set it in motion."
Hoshiguma Yae (nodding, turning away slightly): "Yes. The charm I gave to the girl Ruri long ago. It's already active. It's drawing spirits to her... slowly, gently. They follow her like moths to flame. When the time comes, when the monster girl tries to possess her."
She raised a hand and softly snapped her fingers.
Hoshiguma Yae: "The process will begin. The spirit of the monster will be sealed within Ruri."
Miro (coldly): "And the spirit of the young girl who was taken…?"
Yae's eyes turned to him. Sharp. Ancient. Indifferent.
Hoshiguma Yae: "She'll become a lost soul... or worse, food for the cursed spirits of the mountain. Either way, her fate is sealed."
A silence heavier than any before fell.
Miro turned his gaze back down to the table. His voice, when it came, was a whisper more to himself than to anyone else.
Miro: "...I can't believe I've done this."
But Hoshiguma was already walking away. Her footsteps didn't echo. She vanished into the dark corner from which she came, leaving the room colder in her absence.