The wind in the hills whispered softly, untouched by the screams and cries that echoed in distant cities. Sparrows chirped, a few lazily flying between tree branches. Prayer flags fluttered weakly — their colors faded, but their message still held on: peace.
The hill district wasn't just far from the city — it felt like it belonged to a different world altogether.
High above, where trees clawed into the sky, a large, broken tree stretched its limbs. At its peak, sitting still as a stone, was a boy.
Leoran.
Black hair, front-mullet cut, long robe fluttering with the breeze — something between a warrior's uniform and a traveler's protection.
His legs dangled loosely. His eyes stared down at the district below. His face was blank — not in peace, but in exhaustion. Like his thoughts had replayed the same memory a thousand times.
The streets down there were empty. No kids playing. No footsteps.
Just the weight of fear.
But it wasn't the demons alone that made people hide.
It was what came after. The consequences of surviving.
A sudden flashback
It began quietly.
A plate of warm food in front of him. The scent of herbs and boiled rice.
A woman leaned forward — her face gentle, her eyes kind. Covered in a full traditional robe, only her hands and smile peeked through. She wasn't rushing. She wiped his face softly with her sleeve.
It was the kind of moment children carry for life.
A memory that felt like home.
A pure scene — like the world only contained a mother and her child.
But peace is a fragile thing.
In a blink, everything changed.
The fire came. So sudden, it felt like the sky cracked.
Screams replaced birdsong.
The walls began to melt.
And then she came — a girl-shaped nightmare.
Her body was cloaked in dancing flames.
Her smile — stretched, cruel. Lips pink like a child's toy.
She didn't walk. She glided. And when she grabbed Leoran by the collar, her fingers were hotter than steel.
His mother didn't scream. She moved. Fast.
She grabbed him and ran. Her feet didn't care about glass or debris.
She didn't even look back.
We begin mid-escape — chaos behind, hope ahead, but only silence in her eyes.
The night was thick with smoke.
The ground cracked beneath her feet as she ran, barefoot and bruised, holding her child tighter than life itself. The world behind them — burning. Trees howled. Buildings collapsed. And somewhere deep in the fire, that demon girl with the smile of a doll followed without ever running. She floated through the flames like a shadow made of heat.
Leoran's mother was barely holding on.
Blood dripped from her arms. Cuts from shattered glass stung her sides, but she didn't flinch — not even once. Her only fear was him — her son. Just five years old. His tiny arms locked around her neck, face buried, sobbing with the kind of terror a child should never feel.
His voice broke:
"Mama… it hurts…"
She couldn't answer.
Her breath came out ragged. Each step was slower. Her legs — trembling. Every time her foot hit the ground, it felt like walking through fire. But she didn't stop.
Not until the river.
It stretched wide and endless — cold, dark water swallowing the horizon. A whole city long.
She stopped. Looked to the left — only fire. To the right — black void. Behind her…
The demon.
Floating closer. Clapping, almost mockingly. Pink lips curled in a smile that didn't match the eyes — hollow, mad, starving.
Leoran's mother stepped back. Her arms quivered.
She whispered something into the air. A soft chant — barely audible. Her communication chakra flared — a last message to the higher-ups.
But before the light could reach them —
Snap.
The demon girl sliced the connection mid-air with her finger, like cutting string.
Silence again.
She looked down at Leoran. His cheeks were raw with tears.
Her hands stroked his face — gentle, trembling.
She smiled — broken, soft, like glass holding back a wave.
And then…
A claw ripped through her stomach.
The demon reached through her from behind — not with a roar, not with a scream, but with a giggle.
She gasped.
Blood gushed out, warm and endless. Leoran's eyes widened. He tried to scream but no sound came out.
The demon's hand curled.
Fingers around something soft. Something still beating.
His mother's heart.
The demon pulled it out slowly, watching her fall to her knees. Her arms let go of Leoran, but even as she collapsed, she used the last flicker of life — the final spark of her power — to trigger the teleport seal.
A burst of light surrounded Leoran.
And then — silence.
Her body hit the ground just as he vanished.
All that remained was a body, a smile, and a burning sky.
The demon licked the blood off her fingers and whispered:
"Mothers are always too soft."
⸻
[PRESENT – Back on the Tree]
"Ouch."
Leoran groaned in pain as something smacked his forehead.
A flying emblem hit him square between the eyes.
"You old fart, what you doing? Huh?!"
Kenren adjusted his coat and leaned his back against the same tree.
"Officials want you part of the unit. They sent today's official notice for participating in the unit league."
"Whoa — people are dying and they're organizing leagues? Shouldn't they already have superheroes who can go against them? Why they need more, huh?"
He wasn't excited. Not scared.
Just… bitter.
Because deep inside, he still blamed all the higher-ups.
Not the demons.
Them.
"You know, Leo… life is really unfair. The moment you wish for something, the next moment you lose it. Like fate's just playing with us."
"I don't believe in fate," Leoran replied.
"If the fate you're talking about leads the innocent to death, then I don't want any part of it.
Are you saying my mother died because of fate?
No. It was because of the greed of those higher-ups."
He turned away, walking slowly.
"It's not that I don't wanna help… I just don't feel like doing it."
Kenren didn't argue. He stayed still. Then softly said:
"When we possess something extraordinary… things never stay the same.
We end up tangled in things we don't want.
You don't have to join.
But if you have the ability to change something… do it.
Your mother didn't have that power.
And still… she made a change."
He smiled gently.
Leoran's eyes, cold and blank, flickered.
Something shifted inside.
Just a little.
He didn't say anything back.
But something had already changed..