Zeto

The morning lesson shifts into a short paired exercise. Desks turn, notebooks open, and the teacher moves between rows while Janet studies the instructions with careful concentration.

Marie, a young adult woman with warm brown skin, vivid orange hair, and striking red eyes, approaches their desk with her notebook held against her uniform.

Marie’s sharp attention settles on Janet, taking in the unfamiliar way she holds her pencil and the slight delay before she turns the exercise page.

Cold Yuichi keeps his voice calm and places his notebook between Marie and Janet’s unfinished work, quietly shielding the transfer student from further scrutiny.

Marie relaxes and turns her notebook toward Janet, accepting the explanation. The teacher pauses nearby, and several students glance over after the exchange draws attention.

The teacher taps the desk once, reminding them to return to the exercise. Marie accepts Janet’s presence, but the room now knows Cold Yuichi is watching over her.

A sharp phone ring cuts through the classroom, audible only to Cold Yuichi and Janet. Janet’s silver eyes widen as she reaches into her pocket.

Janet grabs Cold Yuichi’s sleeve and pulls him from the desk. Their sudden departure draws confused looks from Marie and the nearby students.

They race through the halls and out past the school gates, Janet following the ringing signal while Cold Yuichi keeps pace beside her.

They reach a city avenue where traffic crawls beneath gray buildings. At the intersection, a towering shadow-black Pinno looms unseen by ordinary pedestrians.

Cold Yuichi and Janet arrive directly before the creature. His shoulder burns from the sprint and the force of Janet’s pull, but the Pinno is no longer beyond their reach.

Cold Yuichi steps in front of Janet, placing his body between her and the towering Pinno. His borrowed black-and-white uniform forms around him in a rush of cold air.

A long sword ignites in his hand, its blade engulfed in fierce orange flame. The sudden heat scorches his palm, leaving a sharp burn across his grip.

The Pinno recoils from the fire, its massive shadow warping across the avenue. Cars continue crawling past, their drivers blind to the threat towering beside them.

Janet moves behind his shoulder, powerless but alert, while the flaming longsword crackles louder. The Pinno lowers its huge body and lunges toward them.

Cold Yuichi swings through the Pinno’s lunge. A crescent of orange fire tears across its shadow-black mass, forcing the towering creature backward as sparks scatter over the avenue.

The Pinno’s counterblow catches Cold Yuichi before it collapses. The impact drives him across the pavement, pain flashing through his burned hand and battered shoulder, but he stays conscious.

The enormous dead soul buckles beside the intersection, its warped body losing shape. It slumps into unconscious stillness, smoke-like darkness pooling beneath it while unseen traffic continues past.

Janet rushes to his side and stops just short of touching him, powerless hands hovering near his injured shoulder. Her silver eyes track the fallen creature, then the sword.

The avenue tilts beneath Cold Yuichi. His injured shoulder gives way, the flaming sword sinking with him as the surrounding traffic blurs into distant noise.

His awareness drops through a field of dark glass and settles in a silent realm beneath an ember-colored sky. The longsword stands upright before him, flames burning without heat.

A tall young adult man steps from the fire, his form edged in orange light. Black hair lifts like smoke, and glowing red lines mark his arms like cracks in metal.

The blade spirit, a human man with a lean build, a sharp-featured face, and a fitted black coat places one hand against the burning hilt. The sword answers with a low metallic hum, while distant flames reveal countless paths crossing the black horizon.

The ember sky ripples around Cold Yuichi. When his fingers tighten near the hilt, the blade’s heat surges through his injured hand, deepening the burn.

Red cracks brighten along Renga’s arms. The burning sword remains planted between them, and a clear image forms in its flames: Janet standing behind Cold Yuichi while unseen danger closes in.

Cold Yuichi holds out his hand, staring at Renga with determination and a quiet smile. The ember realm brightens around the gesture.

Renga takes his hand. The burning sword dissolves into red sparks, and the heat withdraws from Cold Yuichi’s injured palm without erasing the mark.

Red lines spread from their joined hands across the dark glass beneath them. The image of Janet sharpens, then expands to show the crowded avenue beyond her.

Cold Yuichi’s awareness surges back on the avenue. Flaming spiritual energy engulfs his body, and the fallen Pinno rises before him, its shadow twisting toward Janet and the unseen traffic.

The sword reforms in his burned hand. Renga’s name glows along the blade as orange fire roars over the steel, scorching Cold Yuichi’s palm and sleeve.

Cold Yuichi drives himself upright and cuts through the Pinno with one flaming slash. Fire tears across its immense body, breaking the dead soul into collapsing black ash.

The Pinno finally dies, its remains evaporating before they can reach the street. The blow leaves Cold Yuichi’s hand blistered and his shoulder shaking beneath the uniform.

Janet steps close, scanning the gray buildings while cars continue past, unaware. Far above the avenue, a pale point of light appears between rooftops and begins descending.

The flame collapses inward at once. The black-and-white uniform fades into Cold Yuichi’s school clothes, and the sword dissolves into sparks sinking beneath his skin.

Cold Yuichi runs with Janet beside him, shoulder aching and burned hand clenched carefully. They cut between buildings, cross the street, and reach Kurichi Highschool without being stopped.

They slip through the school gates and rejoin the morning flow. Ordinary students pass around them, unaware of the battle, while the pale light above the avenue vanishes behind the rooftops.