What even am I anymore?
I used to be a student. A Hyakuren member. Someone who was supposed to protect people, fight evil, uphold honor. A real golden boy with a purpose. Now? I'm just a guy who got locked up for trying to save someone, escaped prison thanks to a witch with a floral flair, and dragged the whole clan into being labeled criminals. A rogue.
I try to laugh at that, but it doesn't come out. Not even a breath. Guess the fire in me's still burning, but quieter now. Lower. Smoldering.
Arisu…
She's the reason I did all this. The reason I lost everything. And yet, I don't regret it. Not one bit. If I had to do it again, even if it meant ending up in the same cell with the same hopeless heart, I'd still scream her name until someone heard. She deserves more than silence. More than lies.
And there's the clan.
No matter what the world says about us now, I know one truth that won't change—the Hyakuren clan always stands by its own. We don't just share a name, we share burdens, scars, and stupid inside jokes that don't even make sense outside our walls. They fight when I can't, patch me up when I'm bleeding, and yell at me when I'm being an idiot. That's loyalty. That's family. And no label—hero, rogue, criminal—can take that from us.
Then there's my old world.
My school. Ren, Daichi, Hina, Yuki…
I wonder… do they think I transferred? Vanished? Died?
Will I ever see them again?
Will I ever be just a student again?
…No. That life's behind me. What lies ahead is something else entirely. I don't even know what to call it. A path? A battlefield? A trap?
But I do know this: I'm walking it. No matter what's waiting on the other end.
I'll fight. Not for the government. Not for the law. Not even for the clan name.
I'll fight for what feels right.
Even if we're called villains, even if they paint us as the worst of the worst—I'll keep going.
For Arisu.
For the Hyakuren.
For myself.
The fire's still burning. It might be quiet, but it's still here. And it's mine.