Point of View: Hajime
Morning sunlight streamed through the tall windows of the mansion, casting golden rays across the polished wooden floor. Hajime walked slowly down the hallway toward the reinforced basement, where Issei's training would resume. Beside him, Kuroka stretched with a feline yawn, her bare feet gliding silently over the floor.
"Nyaa~… this early?" she asked, rubbing her eyes while staying close to her beloved.
"The earlier we start, the faster he learns. The world waits for no one—least of all fools who sleep too long," Hajime replied with cold pragmatism.
Issei was already waiting for them, still bearing the marks of the previous session. There were dark circles under his eyes, but his shoulders were more squared. There was something different in his gaze: a faint but present focus.
"Ready?" Hajime asked.
"I am," Issei answered without hesitation. Pain seemed no longer a burden—it had become a cruel, necessary teacher.
The training resumed, more intense than before. Hajime unleashed beams of pure magical energy, forcing Issei to react on instinct. He had to feel the pressure, live on the edge. Only then could his Sacred Gear's true potential awaken.
"Boost!" The ruby on his gauntlet gleamed, and Ddraig roared within his soul.
"Don't just release power. Use it with purpose. Boosting strength is useless if you don't know how to apply it," Hajime instructed, projecting illusions of enemies around the boy.
Issei attacked, dodged, misjudged, fell, and got back up—all under Hajime's relentless gaze and Kuroka's silent watch.
Point of View: Kuroka
The nekomata sat on a high beam, legs crossed, nibbling an apple. She observed Issei the way one watches a storm forming—beautiful, violent, and unpredictable.
"He's starting to find rhythm…" she murmured, tossing the apple core aside. "But he still doesn't know what to do with it."
"He's still raw," Hajime replied. "But the metal's hot. The only question is whether it'll shape or crack."
"You talk like a blacksmith," Kuroka purred, gliding down to stand near him. "But I know you're looking at more than just power. You're testing his heart, nyaa~."
"The heart is a warrior's foundation. Without it, any strength collapses."
Point of View: Issei
With his lungs burning, Issei dropped to his knees once again. Ddraig murmured in his mind, instructing, judging, provoking.
"You're starting to remind me of my former wielders… but you're not there yet. Enduring pain isn't enough. You have to make it your ally."
Issei clenched his fists, blood trickling from his cracked lips. It was hard to understand why Hajime was so ruthless—until he realized that, for the first time, someone was doing what no one else had ever done for him: preparing him to survive.
"One more time…" Issei growled as he stood. "I'm still here!"
Point of View: Hajime
Hajime didn't answer with words. He simply raised the level of the training. More runes lit up. The gravity increased. A sphere of compressed energy materialized in front of Issei, forcing him to use the Boosted Gear's amplification with precision to avoid being crushed.
Kuroka watched with the most serious expression she had ever shown. Even she—used to Hajime's extreme methods—knew this level was beyond normal.
Then Issei roared. A flare of red and green burst from his body, and Ddraig howled within his mind. For the first time, the energy didn't respond like a beast broken by force—but like a temporary ally.
"Well done," Hajime said, allowing himself a faint smile. "Now we're getting somewhere."
Point of View: Rias
Across town, Rias Gremory felt the magical disturbance like a sharp breeze in the middle of a summer heat. Her eyes narrowed as she cast another tracking spell.
"That power grows clearer each day… and more dangerous."
Akeno, standing beside her, nodded.
"We still have no reason to interfere. But soon, we may have to."
"Soon…" Rias echoed, her crimson eyes fixed on a single rune: Hajime Nagumo.
Point of View: Kuroka
Later that night, Hajime and Kuroka lay in bed together, as they had every night since she'd come to live with him. Her head rested on his shoulder, her tail lazily swaying beneath the covers.
"The boy took a step today. A big one," she murmured.
"He'll stumble again. But he's walking. That's what matters."
"Nyaa~... you're walking too, Hajime. But down a path no one else can see."
"And that's how it must be. For now."
Kuroka closed her eyes and purred softly.
"When war comes… I'll be at your side. Always."
Hajime didn't reply. But his arm wrapped around her waist, firm. A silent promise between two survivors.
To be continued...