Chapter 16 :

Episode 4 : The Katana (4)

"Could you stop calling me that?" Mirai complained from being called a ‘Prodigy’ while focusing on healing JoonChul.

"Why? Don't you love that nickname?" Raiden raised a question.

"W-Well.. Only big sister could call me that..!" Mirai almost lost concentration when she answered.

"Oops. You need to focus more." 

"You're so annoying!" She pouted.

He chuckled softly before speaking in a serious tone. "Let's discuss about our captain's katana when you're done." 

Seeing that Raiden had gone serious, Mirai replied back while giggling. "You're childish yet sometime scary when you get serious."

"The same goes for you, Mimi." Raiden smiled. "Plus somebody gonna be the smart one here since big sister isn't with us."

"Huh!? I'm smarter than you!" Mirai argued during which completely lost her focus on recovering JoonChul.

"Nope, I am!" He pointed his thumb to himself as he claimed. 

"Who said you could be the smart one?!" She angerily asked.

"I did!" 

Their argument went on without pausing for a breather, however they didn't start a fight because this time, they paid attention to the unconscious JoonChul, resting on the ground.

———

A day had passed and JoonChul had shown no sign of waking up once.

It caused uneasiness to rise inside Raiden who was watching over JoonChul.

Mirai finished checking on JoonChul's condition before informing Raiden. "He's fine, Rai."

"..." He was silent for a moment when he turned to look at her. "I'm not worried about his recovery.." 

"Hm? What is it then?" 

"I failed as a teacher.. I couldn't protect him." 

"Oh my.. Aren't you the smart one? Why are you being depressed right now? Hehe." Mirai didn't mean to sound rude, instead she was trying to cheer up Raiden.

"I would have defend him better if it weren't for the ‘limiter’!" He clenched his fists furiously as he bawled, electricity could be visible from the figure of the enraged Raiden. 

Mirai fluttered her fan gently, making her undone hair float upward which led to its being tied into a bun hairstyle by utilising her silky strings.

She spoke with a bit of annoyance. "Yeah.. it is the reason why I couldn't extract the souls like I used to."

"How much time does that soul need to finish its possession?" Raiden directly stared at Mirai's eyes when he asked.

"I can delay it with my skill but I don't know how long he will last if I am not around." She folded her fan to softly tap her shoulder with it.

A slight pause of silence occured when Raiden took his time to come up with an idea. Then he finally spoke. "Mimi, could you do me a favor?" 

"Oh? What might that be?" Mirai grew a little curious about Raiden's sudden request since she saw how silent he was a second ago.

Raiden laid his eyes on the throne in which led Mirai to figure out what he was thinking.

"No." She narrowed her eyes as she denied.

"I was just looking." Raiden chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck.

"Just spit it out." 

"Sorry.. I forgot." 

Mirai exhaled a long sigh as she thought. ‘I can easily tell you're lying, idiot.. your habit of scratching your neck when you lie still remained after all these years...’ 

Even though, she knew, she chose not to care and changed the subject.

"Rai. Can I eat all those squids?" Mirai used her fan to point at the cocoon filled with cooked squids that she left at the entrance yesterday.

"But those are for my student." 

"He won't wake up for a few days."

Raiden trusted Mirai's statement to the fullest so he had no suspicions in her. "Well.. you can eat them but save some for me." 

"Hai!" She swiftly ran to get her food, leaving Raiden alone with JoonChul. ( ‹ Hai ›, Japanese word for yes/okay. )

‘Still as energetic as ever.’ Raiden thought, smiling pleasantly before switching his gaze to his surroundings.

The hallway, looking extremely timeworn and dilapidated after the battle against the soul, still had a throne left intact. It was the work of Raiden, he made sure not to let a single strand of hair to touch the throne when he fought the soul. 

‘I can defend a furniture but not a human? I'm pathetic.’ He gritted his teeth when he was blaming himself.

Raiden lowered his gaze to see his unconscious student. Now a little calm, he bent down to have a closer look of JoonChul's face. 

Soon after, he pondered. ‘A face that looks as villainous as my captain, makes me think I failed to protect ‘him’ again..’

He grabbed hold of JoonChul's body before carrying him to the throne. As he walked, he frowned ever so slightly from every steps he took to get to the throne.

———

After a short time, Raiden arrived next to the throne and laid JoonChul on it, then tapped his student's forehead.

[‘Takumi Raiden’ has activated the skill, ‘Connection’ Lv. ???.]

[A new link has attached itself to the ‘Last’ player.] 

Raiden observed JoonChul sitting on the throne when he finished using his skill and knelt before him. 

"Even though he's just someone else and not my captain.. I can't help it.." Raiden admitted sorrowfully. 

"I agree with you.." 

Raiden was surprised when he heard the familiar voice and glanced to the right to find Mirai kneeling as well.

"Heheh. I can't let you mourn over our captain." Mirai giggled, trying her best to be as cheerful as possible. 

"Yeah, you're right." He smiled at her, but she knew it wasn't a smile of happiness. 

She held his hand, giving warmth to it. "Rai.. I know you miss our captain.. but that doesn't mean you can be a crybaby." 

"How many years has it been since we lost captain? I can't hardly remember his voice.."

"It was 300 years ago, Takumi." 

"Thank for reminding me... Huh?" Raiden rose up to look around, trying to find where that mysterious voice echoed from, but there was no one there.

Even Mirai was left puzzled by that long forgotten voice and nervously said. "T-That.. that was Captain's voice!" 

They stared at each other startlingly before both of their eyes soon landed on the man who was sitting on the throne.