The sanctuary was silent, save for the gentle rustle of leaves brushing together in the forest wind. Shafts of golden light pierced through the canopy, bathing Rei in dappled sunlight as he stood barefoot on the grassy clearing.

  His hands gripped a makeshift sword just a slender twig reinforced with vines, its ends fraying slightly from hours of repeated motion.

  Thwip

  The twig sliced through the air. Rei’s form was solid. Stance stable, arms aligned but his brows furrowed with every swing.

  Ariel watched him nearby, lounging on a floating patch of glowing moss like it was a reclining chair. Her six leafy wings were tucked behind her back, and a subtle smile played on her lips.

  Minutes passed in quiet rhythm: Rei swinging, Ariel observing.

  Then suddenly, Rei stopped mid-swing.

  He turned to her, sweat streaking down the side of his face. “Why am I doing this? Why are you just… making me repeat the basics?”

  Ariel’s smile widened. She let out a burst of laughter, melodic and almost childlike, clutching her stomach as she wiped a small tear from the corner of her emerald eye.

  “Oh Rei,” she said, floating a bit closer. “You're asking *me* why you’re swinging a sword?”

  “…Yes?” Rei replied, uncertain if he’d just walked into a trap.

  “Let me ask you something, then.” She twirled a strand of her white-green hair around her finger. “Why are you swinging it?”

  Rei blinked.

  At first, a dozen answers piled into his head. To get stronger, to keep up, to protect people, because Raphael said so, because he has to. But none of them felt… right. Not quite.

  “I don’t know,” he muttered. “I guess… I just thought that’s what I’m supposed to do.”

  Ariel’s expression softened. “It’s easy to forget the why when we’re so focused on the what.” She pointed at the twig. “Everyone swings their weapon for a reason. Not because they have to but because something in them tells them to. Desire. Conviction. Purpose.”

  She paused before stepping closer, her tone gentle. “So when you fight, Rei… are you doing it out of necessity? Or is something else driving you?”

  Rei lowered his eyes. He thought back to every battle, every moment he raised a blade, not just against riftspawn, but even in training. The first time he stood against Aiden. The night Kristine called him Suki. That moment Raphael told him he wasn’t his father.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  All those moments lit a fire in him.

  “To prove myself,” Rei finally said.

  Ariel’s smile grew more genuine. “Good.”

  She hovered beside him, placing her hand over his and guiding the twig to a resting position in front of him. “Then that is what you focus on. Every swing. Every step. Let it carry that desire without judgment or fear.”

  She stepped back. “Now again. Clear your mind. No more ‘what ifs.’ Just your purpose.”

  Rei nodded quietly and resumed the motion.

  Thwip

  The twig hummed through the air once more.

  Again and again

  Each swing felt lighter. Not in physical weight, but in clarity. His muscles relaxed, yet his focus sharpened. No more hesitation. Just the rhythm and that single burning truth:

  To prove myself.

  Then—

  CRACK!

  “AH—!” Rei yelped as pain jolted through his back.

  He staggered forward, clutching his side. Turning around, he saw Ariel holding a long vine, now stiff like a whip. She rested it casually over her shoulder like it was part of her wardrobe.

  “What the hell?!” Rei snapped.

  She gave him an innocent shrug. “Improving your concentration.”

  “That’s not how that works!”

  “It is if it works,” she said lightly, already twirling the vine again. “In battle, you’ll face more than just your thoughts. You’ll be tired. Hurt. Distracted. But your blade can’t stop because of that. You need to keep swinging.”

  Rei’s eye twitched. “So what? you’re just going to whip me every time I lose focus?”

  “Exactly,” Ariel beamed.

  Before he could protest, she cracked the vine again, this time narrowly missing him. “Back to it!”

  The next few hours became a personal nightmare.

  Rei swung.

  CRACK!

  Rei faltered.

  CRACK

  He gritted his teeth. Focused.

  To prove myself.

  CRACK

  Sweat poured down his face. His shirt clung to his back, streaked with dirt and tiny welts. His arms trembled, but he refused to stop. Not until he collapsed.

  Which he eventually did.

  Face-first.

  “Ugh…” he groaned into the grass.

  “Break time?” he mumbled, cheek pressed to the earth.

  “Denied,” Ariel said sweetly. A faint green light glowed from her palm as she waved it over him. Warmth washed through Rei’s limbs, healing the bruises across his back and shoulder. He blinked, feeling the pain fade unnaturally fast.

  “Up. Again.”

  “You’re a sadist,” Rei muttered, slowly sitting up.

  “I'm your trainer,” she replied, as if it were the same thing.

  They continued until the sun began to sink beyond the trees, painting the sky with streaks of burnt orange and lavender. Fireflies had begun to dot the air by the time Ariel finally said, “That’s enough.”

  Rei didn’t even respond. He collapsed once more, lying on his back as he panted for air.

  “...Is this what training is going to be like for the next two weeks?” he asked between breaths.

  “Yes!” Ariel chimed cheerfully, her wings flaring slightly in the twilight.

  Rei groaned louder this time. “This is going to kill me.”

  “No, no. I’ll heal you before that happens,” she said with a wink. “But things are going to get harder. Mentally, physically, spiritually.”

  Rei rolled his head to the side and squinted at her. “Thanks for the pep talk.”

  She laughed, floating closer and offering a hand. “Come on. Time to head back.”

  Rei grabbed her hand, hauling himself up with a grunt.

  A low growl echoed through the clearing.

  From the shadows of the nearby trees, a towering creature emerged.

  Leo

  Bearing the muscular form of a lion, but with the hooved legs of a deer and a thick reptilian tail. Sharp ridges lined the tail’s spine, and a pair of curling ram horns adorned its feline head. Its fur shimmered with patches of scales, catching the moonlight as it stepped forward.

  Despite its monstrous appearance, Leo's eyes were calm, almost gentle.

  “He’ll take you back,” Ariel said. “He knows the way.”

  Rei blinked at the beast. “He’s not going to eat me, right?”

  Ariel tilted her head. “Not unless you swing that twig at him.”

  Rei slowly stepped up beside Leo. The creature crouched slightly to match Rei’s pace, its horned head brushing past tree branches as they walked.

  “...I’m going to regret this tomorrow,” Rei muttered.

  Leo huffed softly beside him.

  As they passed beneath the canopy, stars began to shimmer overhead, casting faint reflections on the dewy grass. The forest around them rustled with life but Rei was too exhausted to care.

  He didn’t know what awaited him tomorrow.

  Only that it would hurt.

  A lot.

  But for once, he understood why he was doing it.

  And that was enough.

  [End of Chapter]