Ren didn't know how to find something that was supposed to find him.
The old man's words echoed in his head like a quiet whisper. "It'll find you."
That didn't help much. But it made something inside him feel ready.
He spent most of the day with Sora again. They didn't go anywhere special. Just walked through the quiet parts of the village. The old shrine road. The dry well. The rice field path that hardly anyone used anymore.
They didn't say much.
But they both felt it.
The mark on their hands had started to itch. Not in a painful way—more like it was pulling. Like it wanted to point somewhere. But it didn't know where.
"I thought powers were loud," Sora said at one point, as they sat near a broken statue under a willow tree. "Flames, swords, thunder… big things."
Ren nodded. "But ours… it's like a whisper."
"Yeah," she said. "But it's still calling."
---
It was near sunset when it happened.
The two of them were heading back toward the village, taking the forest path instead of the main road.
That's when they saw it.
A step.
Just like the one Ren had seen at the temple.
Only this one was in the middle of the woods, half-buried under fallen leaves.
It glowed faintly. Soft gold. Warm. Like a small light in the dark.
Ren stepped toward it without thinking.
"Wait," Sora said. "Let's do it together."
He nodded.
They stood side by side and stepped onto the stone together.
The world blinked.
---
No wind.
No forest.
Just… white.
A space without end.
Ren turned and saw Sora beside him. Her eyes wide. Her mouth slightly open.
This time, the space wasn't empty.
Above them floated dozens of books. Some open. Some sealed shut. Some slowly turning pages on their own. They hovered in place, glowing softly. Weightless. Peaceful.
Below them was a platform made of glowing symbols.
Ren looked down and saw his own name.
But it wasn't complete.
It had the first part: Ren.
Then… blank space.
Sora's side showed the same. Her name had only the first part: Sora.
Then empty.
"I guess we have to finish it ourselves," she whispered.
Then came the voice.
Soft. Ancient. Not male or female. Just calm.
"Name not given. Name chosen. Step forward."
A single path lit up between the two of them. A small bridge, floating between the glowing books.
They looked at each other.
Ren reached out his hand.
Sora took it.
They walked forward.
---
At the end of the path was a pedestal.
No book this time.
Just an orb. Clear, floating, and pulsing softly.
Inside it swirled shapes—like memories.
Ren saw flashes.
A boy, alone in the rain.
A girl, standing in front of a cracked mirror.
A bell ringing in a field of fog.
A clock with no hands, stuck in time.
And then... the orb stopped.
A scroll appeared above it.
Slowly, the scroll unrolled, revealing new words:
"To take the Second Step is to see what others cannot. You now hold the Sight."
"But be warned: what is seen cannot be unseen."
The scroll vanished in a wisp of light.
Ren looked at Sora.
Before he could speak, the orb shattered.
Light burst from it—blinding, but soft.
Then…
Darkness.
---
Ren gasped.
He was back in the forest.
Breathing fast.
He looked down.
The mark on his hand had changed.
The book was now open wider. And above it, a small glowing eye had appeared.
He turned to Sora.
She had it too.
"The Sight," she whispered.
They looked around.
And that's when they saw it.
In the trees, just beyond the path, was something they hadn't noticed before.
A figure. Not fully there. Like mist shaped into a person. Watching.
Its face was blank. No eyes. No mouth.
Just smooth.
But it wasn't moving.
It was frozen. Like a memory.
Ren stepped closer.
"It wasn't here before," he said.
Sora stared at it. "No. We're seeing it now because of the Sight."
Ren took a deep breath.
"What is it?"
"I don't know," she said. "But I think we're supposed to."
---
That night, Ren couldn't sleep.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw that figure.
And the voice.
"What is seen cannot be unseen."
He sat up in bed, looked at his hand.
The mark glowed gently in the dark. Like it was alive.
He whispered, "What do I do now?"
The mark didn't answer.
But somewhere far away, in a room lit by candles, the old man sat at a desk.
He had been watching.
The moment they touched the orb, he had felt it.
He opened a drawer and pulled out an old letter.
It was addressed to someone with no name.
He hadn't read it in years.
He opened it now.
Inside, the letter said:
"When the Second Step is taken, the world will turn its face. The eyes will open. And the silence will break."
The old man sighed.
"Looks like it's time again."
He closed the drawer.
And stood.
---
The next morning, Ren and Sora met at the temple steps.
They didn't talk much.
They just sat together.
And looked out at the village.
Everything looked the same.
Kids running.
Merchants shouting.
Wind passing through the trees.
But they knew it was different now.
They could see things others couldn't.
Whispers in the air.
Flickers in the corners of their eyes.
Shadows that didn't belong.
"I think we're changing," Sora said quietly.
Ren nodded. "Yeah."
They sat there for a long time.
Then Sora said, "Do you feel like... something's watching us?"
Ren didn't answer.
Because he felt it too.
---
Behind them, carved into the side of the bell, something new had appeared.
A symbol.
The same eye from their marks.
And it was glowing.
---
To be continued...