x
Kenji woke to the soft rustle of fabric and the faint scent of morning dew. As he opened his eyes, he found Miyuki and Satsuki standing at the foot of his bed, both calm yet composed. Miyuki wore a subtle smile, her pale complexion catching the sunlight streaming through the room’s window. Satsuki, on the other hand, stood tall with her arms crossed, her piercing gaze fixed on Kenji, as if assessing his every move.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYZzv1hRGlO
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZCPZ0XMfJ9
“Good morning, Master Kenji,” Miyuki began gently, bowing slightly. Her voice was soft but carried a certain warmth. “We hope you rested well.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXMh9aiRyvJ
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFsm75GmpSf
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzP3vDWGiYI
Kenji blinked, still adjusting to the morning light. “Who... are you?” he finally asked, his voice faint, but curiosity laced his tone.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAzZ5KLTMYz
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv1t2Wc51VU
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw8Y7hGz93U
Miyuki exchanged a glance with Satsuki, who gave a slight nod, signaling her to continue. “Allow us to formally introduce ourselves. My name is Miyuki, and this is Satsuki. We are your appointed guardians, sent to protect you.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcPXRHz3Okz
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1MguIDiYMb
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPoZVUy4Ria
“Guardians?” Kenji repeated, frowning slightly. “Sent by who?”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRnnFWOHPv
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBr13fyJSnW
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPLJwAd9aMu
Satsuki stepped forward, her tone more direct. “Your mother entrusted us with your safety, but for now, you don’t need to worry about the details. There’s someone important waiting to see you.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIUdeejyK1n
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjed0PzTcWl
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjg0ESupJ9I
Kenji hesitated. These two women spoke with such certainty about things he couldn’t understand, yet their words stirred something within him—a faint flicker of something he couldn’t place.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWnNmFCLrQJ
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmY6tdwKIDl
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhVYSbn9rNc
Miyuki offered a reassuring smile. “We will explain more in time. For now, please follow us.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTVSS0p82h9
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡURyUGSRkqG
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8uj61cX16a
With that, they turned and began walking toward the door. Kenji followed in silence, his mind racing with questions he wasn’t sure how to ask.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIDT5DftRUZ
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQkUXX5nNlH
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKZEzHRmUgZ
As they stepped into the corridor, the atmosphere seemed to change. The air grew still, almost reverent, as they approached a large set of ornate doors at the end of the hall.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ58LLCXB1Wn
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq8JjocjerH
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmmnxZgSgF6
“This way,” Miyuki said, her voice softer now. She glanced back at Kenji. “The person inside has been waiting to see you for a very long time.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8We9hq8qPn
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHiW2c6oXum
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsJoVbRzVn6
Kenji nodded, steeling himself as the doors slowly creaked open, revealing a grand chamber bathed in a silver glow. At the far end of the room stood a regal figure, her presence commanding yet serene.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjEjJlEV3Ox
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiUJPA5A33i
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSgd5CkL4Hm
“She’s your aunt,” Miyuki whispered before stepping aside to let Kenji through.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmCBzCwWtOm
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWWzzQHzWVF
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlLxSFoWJ1g
Kenji stepped into the chamber, his heart pounding as his gaze met the woman standing before him—a woman whose very presence seemed to radiate familiarity and mystery all at once.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvWXE6uJ98v
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsaIqWV2tUO
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCl7KovdVGm
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5S1ImQ6uLm
Kenji sat silently across from his aunt, her silver hair catching the soft glow of the light filtering through the vast hall of the Moonclan headquarters. Her presence was commanding, yet there was a warmth in her gaze that softened the harsh truths she was about to unveil.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQJ72pUx7CP
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0kwucwfKyU
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdP9s8ORPDI
She began by revealing the connection she had to his mother. “Kenji,” she said, her voice a blend of sorrow and determination, “I am Sora, your mother’s sister. And there is much you need to know about who you are and the world you live in.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW241Eho8BU
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEQRPaacsFn
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWJZM9MSd2r
Kenji remained still, his mind clouded with questions as she continued. “After you were born, your mother brought you to me in secret. She knew there were those who would stop at nothing to end your life. You see, Kenji, the gods decreed long ago that no union between members of different clans was to be allowed. Your existence... breaks that sacred law.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEpzDFulPUY
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrEbouElbMx
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFwf17Qpx9a
The weight of her words hung heavily in the air. Kenji’s thoughts spiraled. He hadn’t even known he had a mother until recently, let alone that his very existence defied the gods themselves. “Why... why would they try to kill me?” he asked, his voice barely above a whisper.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzKHcVORnR7
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡka5biqO0Ax
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmzw9EHS1YJ
“Because the power you carry, Kenji, is unique,” Sora replied. “You are a child of both the Shadow Clan and the Moon Clan. It’s a power that could either unite or destroy. And that terrifies them.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSwSXY2F2IB
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFQ04bM2mOT
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHgJ3fZUDk1
She leaned closer, her expression darkening. “But there’s more you must understand. The world you see today, with its cities and technology, is not how it always was. A thousand years ago, humanity lived in harmony with the five clans, each blessed by a god who gave their clan a unique power through an eternal contract. Your Shadow Clan, for example, was blessed by the God of Night and mastered the manipulation of darkness and shadows. My Moon Clan, blessed by the Lunar God, thrives under the moon’s glow and wields healing and physical strength unmatched at night.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgPZjgH74S4
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1MMoa4BVg1
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJG7GRdcdUu
Kenji listened, his mind racing to grasp this overwhelming information. “And these gods... they’re real?”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAizkBtsPPa
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN5sRtBx6Fn
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGNqSxf1MBh
Sora nodded. “Very real. But there was a sixth god, a being of chaos and destruction. This god refused to live in harmony and sought to dominate the others. Its clan was not human like the others but creatures born of darkness, residing beneath the earth. A great war broke out between the sixth clan and the other five. For centuries, blood was spilled until, at last, the five gods sacrificed their strength to seal the sixth god away.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXZR5Dj1Bdg
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjTS87HP9OF
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4z1lCwcFyb
Kenji leaned forward, intrigued despite himself. “What happened to the sixth clan?”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3uJbgwmAaG
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFQFLLxr3U5
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJtLrfAaVio
“No one knows for certain,” Sora said. “They vanished when their god was sealed. But recently, traces of their existence have begun to resurface. Creatures thought to be extinct have been sighted, their presence faint but unmistakable.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTrTlDnKuYC
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkxJjmEuXta
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyCXcy74sZC
Kenji’s heart pounded. Could the attacks on him in the hospital be connected to these creatures?45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD9gPefKPQY
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXBrwXzX3Wj
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKurvmBabbm
Sora’s gaze softened as she placed a hand on his shoulder. “You’re beginning to understand, aren’t you? The war might be stirring once more, and you, Kenji, are at the center of it all. Your mother entrusted me with your safety, but the truth is, even I don’t know the full extent of your importance. What I do know is that you must be prepared, for yourself and for the world.”45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ99q05JtyYb
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz6ZDW14fR3
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡB5RcAylXdw
Kenji sat back, trying to process everything. The gods, the clans, his mother’s sacrifice, it all felt too surreal, yet a part of him couldn’t deny the pull of truth in her words. For the first time, he began to understand that his life was not just his own. There was a legacy, a history, and a danger that he had no choice but to confront.45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡa3eg5wRGNT
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡreaqYDci1x
45Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PNy2fgGAf
As the sunlight illuminated the room, Kenji clenched his fists. He didn’t fully comprehend his role in this ancient story, but he knew one thing for certain: his journey was only beginning.
