The next morning, I woke up because something cold hit right in my face. "...What the hell?". I started looking and found Mira standing near the doorway with a snowball in her hands.

"You finally woke up, Ren." she said grinningly.

"I was asleep, your attack woke me up."

"You looked like you were meditating though." Mira said, tilting her head slightly.

’She must be talking about cultivation.’ "Yes, I was meditating."

"Ohh.. What a boring thing to do. Let’s play Ren." Mira threw the second snowball which directly hit my forehead.

SMACK.

"...You little demon. Come here."

"Ehehehe.... You can’t catch Mira." Mira burst into laughter and immediately ran outside before I could catch her. I stared at the open doorway for a few seconds before sighing.

The moment I stepped outside the cabin, the cold wind of the winter season brushed against my face. Snowfall buried most of the bloodstains left behind from the Fallen attack, but the village still carried the scars of that battle..

Villagers were moving through the snow roads carrying wood and tools to repair the damaged structures. Mira stood beside a wooden fence while hiding another snowball behind her back and approaching me. "...Don’t, I can already see it"

"What are you talking about?" Mira feigned ignorance.

"You know exactly what I mean."

"How did you know? Is it because you’re strong? I hid it properly though." She started swaying her tail slowly while thinking hard.

"You don’t need to know kiddo." I flicked her forehead lightly.

She clutched her forehead and a second later she threw the snowball at me. "You meanie, why did you hit me?"

"...I regret saving you. Should’ve let the fallen taken you.". I said removing the snow from my face.

"Hmph!" She humphed and left.

"...haha. What a funny kid." Several villagers laughed quietly after hearing us.

I brushed the remaining snow from my clothes before noticing Korin near the northern barricade. The giant demon stood alone with a spear in his hands while snow slowly gathered around his feet.

Even from here, I could tell his wound still hadn’t healed properly. Blood stained the bandages wrapped around his stomach, but the idiot continued training like nothing happened.

BOOOOM.

The strike exploded through the air hard enough to scatter snow everywhere nearby. Not bad he’s improving. Demonic energy wrapped around his body differently compared to mana users from the Empire. Like a beast forcing the world itself to acknowledge its existence.

"You’re going to reopen your wound again," I said while stopping beside him.

Korin didn’t stop moving. "So? That doesn’t mean I should stop training."

"Lyra will be mad at you again for not resting." Korin’s hand stopped and glared at me.

"She won’t know about it if you don’t snitch on me."

"...why should I help you." I said.

Korin finally lowered the spear before glancing toward me sideways.

"You wouldn’t if you are a man. Snitching is a job for the women." If he mentions it that way, I can’t snitch on him.

"Alright, you win."

"You’ve changed Ren. I can tell you’ve become strong." That caught my attention slightly.

"...oh. You can tell?"

"Your presence feels more refined now. Before, you felt sharp." Korin slowly pointed the spear toward me. "Now it feels like there’s something within you that is waiting to devour everything."

"Don’t worry, it won’t devour you."

Korin suddenly tossed a wooden sword toward me. "Fight me. I want to know how strong you are now."

I caught it instinctively before raising an eyebrow. "...You’re injured."

"This much is nothing to a warrior like me."

I stepped forward anyway. The moment I raised the sword, Korin attacked immediately.

BOOM.

The force behind his strike made my arms vibrate slightly even after blocking it. "...Were you trying to kill me?"

"If I wanted that, you’d already be dead."

"How arrogant. You need to be taught a lesson."

Korin attacked again. Unlike human spearmanship, demon combat focused far less on elegance and more on overwhelming force. Every movement carried brutal intent behind it.

I sidestepped another strike before thrusting the sword toward his shoulder. Korin knocked it aside before slamming his elbow toward my ribs. I barely blocked in time. "Too slow," he said.

"I’m just trying not to seriously injure an already injured opponent."

"Excuses." Our weapons clashed repeatedly while snow scattered around us. Nearby hunters eventually stopped working just to watch the fight. Mira loudly cheered whenever I landed a hit on Korin.

One hunter eventually looked toward her in confusion. "...Why are you supporting the human so much?"

"Because he’s funny and..." Mira stopped for some time before continuing. "He’s also the hero who saved my life."

"Well... fair."

After another exchange, Korin suddenly stopped attacking and lowered his spear.

"You’re adapting to my movements. That’s the marking of a genius."

I blinked once. "Thanks for the compliment but don’t forget we are in middle of a spar."

For the first time since I met him, Korin actually laughed properly. His eyes slowly drifted toward the northern side of the village. Toward the graveyard where his son rested.

Korin shook his head. "Let’s continue our spar later."

I didn’t say anything and just nodded. Night arrived quietly. Most villagers stayed indoors while orange lanterns flickered behind windows. I sat near the fireplace admiring Eclipse. Lyra sat across from me before speaking quietly. "Is something bothering you lately." 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Many things bother me." The system warning still lingered inside my head. The Fallen King has become aware of your existence. ’I need to gain strength fast so that I can kill him.’ "...I’ve been thinking about leaving soon," I admitted.

Mira immediately looked up. "...Leaving? Why can’t you just stay here with me and mom."

"I can’t stay here forever Mira. I have a family in the human lands." I replied. Mira lowered her gaze and her eyes started to turn a bit watery. "We can be your family too. Are you leaving cause we are demons?"

"...No. I don’t have that mindset anymore."

"Then can’t you stay a little longer?"

How was I supposed to explain this properly? Because eventually the system would drag me into another nightmare? And staying here would bring danger to the village.

"There are things I need to do. I will return again when I’m done with those chores." I smiled.

Mira looked unconvinced. "Words are meaningless. How can I trust you?".

"I, Ren Valecrest, swear on my name that I will return." I swore on my name. That somehow convinced her.