"Okay! So I'm not going to use my Blessing," Nathan declares, hands on his hips.

Raiden gives him a dry smile. "You're bragging about your physical prowess yet again, eh?" He touches the jewelry adorned on his left earlobe. "Answer my call, Cypress."

His silver cross earring flashes bright and transforms into a broadsword. A single thorny vine erupts from the rain-guard of his sword and spirals up the blade. He tightens his grip and takes a stance.

"Remember to focus," Nathan urges, raising his fists in a combat position. "Don't limit yourself. Don't be afraid to hurt me, and . . . don't expect me to treat you kindly either."

Raiden gives a rueful smile. "I got it." He takes a deep breath and turns off the divine power of his Blessing.

The thorny vine that encircled his broadsword's blade vanishes, leaving the pitch-black blade naked and menacing.

Nathan had asked him to train with him half an hour after their breakfast, per Raia's request, which didn't surprise him in the least. Raia is undoubtedly a better fighter than him. What he lacks that she possesses is concentration. During their fights with the demons, Raiden was nothing more than a burden to her. She had to suffer because of his carelessness. He did nothing but upset her.

But he can't dwell on that.

To keep up with her, he must improve himself. They will be a permanent team. That's why he can't make the same mistake twice. If he does, he will not only disappoint Raia and the Order, but he will also fail as a savior.

I already took my resolve: to save and destroy souls.

Raiden's golden eyes light up with a spark of fire as a sense of determination rises within him.

The goal of this training is to strengthen his concentration and focus. To achieve a promising result, he must eliminate the root of his weakness.

Raiden must learn to control his emotions.

"Also," Nathan adds, raising one finger. "Try summoning vines even if your blade is in use."

Raiden, of course, must also sharpen his Blessing.

"Sure thing," Raiden answers, and they pounce on each other.

***

Raiden drops his broadsword to the concrete floor and a loud metallic clank resounds throughout the room. He lets out a huge sigh and slumps to the ground, leaning his back against the sturdy wall. Sweat beads on his brow as he catches his breath. His white button-up shirt is drenched in perspiration.

Nathan succumbs to the same condition, collapsing to the ground. As he breathes heavily, his muscles flex and stretch, and sweat drips down his bare chest. He has bandages wrapped around his body in various places, and there's a fresh cut across his chest. Similarly, Nathan's powerful kicks and punches have left Raiden with bruises.

It is the third day of their training. They've been up for five hours today, with no breaks. Raiden had been dragging Nathan from his bed at two a.m. every day to train with him, and the half-asleep Nathan would groan until Raiden summoned his Blessing, at which point Nathan would finally wake up. Nonetheless, Raiden appreciates his friend's perseverance. Likewise, Nathan admires Raiden's determination.

"I guess training with me is a wise option," Nathan says, beaming. "I can tell you've improved."

Raiden cracks a grin. "Well, I wouldn't expect anything less from such a promising Apostle."

Nathan wiggles his eyebrows. "I like the sound of that."

Laughter erupts from their mouths.

"So," Nathan says after a few moments of silence. "You're still looking for them?"

Raiden gives a small smile. "Yes, I am." His voice is barely above a whisper. "Milan is helping me with it."

Nathan's brows puckers. "Milan? As in Milan?"

Raiden shoots him a look. "Who else?"

"Well, I'm a bit surprised. He is one of Bishop Galbraith's personal staff. Isn't the Bishop going to notice something?"

"Don't worry, brother won't suspect a thing. And I trust Milan."

Nathan stares at him for a few moments before speaking again. "Why not ask the bishop himself?"

A pang of guilt and shame sweeps over Raiden. He narrows his eyes. He feels bad for keeping things from Cyrus, but his overpowering desire to know the family he has forgotten leaves him with no other choice.

"I already asked him before, but he never responded," Raiden says quietly. "He once told me to forget it because it's pointless."

Silence fills the room, and the temperature takes a sudden nosedive.

"It could be because Bishop Galbraith is trying to imply . . . " Nathan blurs the end of his sentence, as if unable to continue speaking.

Raiden tightens his jaw. "I know. But I still want to know who they are. I want to remember . . . what I've forgotten. Even if I'll never meet them, visiting their grave will suffice."

Nathan's features darken with sympathy, and he lowers his head.

Raiden clenches his hands, his chest wrenching inside him. Even though he is aware of this, he has not given up hope. Somehow, he believes that his family is still alive - that his parents are still alive and well somewhere out there.

Because he must or he'll never know himself.

The door swings open. Raiden and Nathan leap to their feet, taken aback. They stare as Sunshine strolls into the training room. She tosses them each a bottle of cold water, which the bone-tired boys empty in one gulp.

Nathan gives a sigh of pleasure. "I never imagined you could be useful at times, Sunshine."

Sunshine glares at him. "Put your shirt on."

Nathan arches an eyebrow. "Does this bother you?" He jabs a finger at his chest. He has a sly grin on his lips and a mischievous glint in his eyes. "Well, I know you have a crush on me, so I understand."

Sunshine's lips twitch with contempt, a line etched between her brows. "Shut up, dummy. Nobody will like an idiot like you."

Nathan chuckles as he picks up his shirt from the floor and puts it on, his grin widening as he casts a teasing glance at Sunshine.

Raiden lets out a sigh. "You're teasing Sunshine again."

Sunshine looks away from Nathan and crosses her arms. "Anyway, I'm not alone, so fix yourselves."

Raiden and Nathan's brows furrow in confusion. They turn their heads and their eyes widen. Standing in the doorway is no other than the grim-faced girl.

"Raia?" Raiden blurts out. He rises to his feet.

Raia gives him a sidelong glance before sauntering into the room, her face unreadable. Silence pervades the room as a result of her presence alone, as if the icy aura coming from her is capable of freezing anything in her path. Nathan, too, has fallen silent. He straightens up and looks at Raia. Surprisingly, there's no hint of mischief on his face.

When Raia reaches the far corner of the room, she turns around and looks at Raiden. She closes her fist around her silver cross pendant.

"Answer my call, Raphael," she utters, and her flaming longsword appears - but, to Raiden's surprise, the holy flame surrounding the blade vanishes. The torchlights glisten on the long silver blade as she aims it at him.

"Kara." Her deep voice cuts through the silence.

Is she going to . . . Raiden doesn't finish his thought. It takes him a few tense moments before he finally finds the voice that has frozen since Raia's entrance.

His lips slowly curl into a smile. He bends down and takes up his broadsword, the divine power still inactive, and points it at her.

Nathan and Sunshine lean against the wall, anticipating the impending battle before their eyes.

"Show me what you're capable of." Raia's prosaic voice reverberates around the room, her glacial gray eyes boring into his blazing golden ones.

"I'll show you that the coward from yesterday no longer exists," Raiden declares, his lips set in a determined smile. He senses a fervent emotion raging within him, one that provides him with strength and power. One that promises him victory.

Let me show you what I've learned from my mistakes.

"I will defeat you," Raiden adds before launching himself with his sword held high.

Raia raises her longsword and deflects his attack without blinking. Raiden smiles and leaps backward as she lunges at him, thrusting her longsword forward to his midsection, her gaze cold and merciless.

Raiden dodges her cold-blooded attack with a pounding heart.

Damn! She's really scary. Was she really going to stab me if I happen to fail that escape?

Raia quickly shifts her position and swings her sword left, taking advantage of his momentary shock - but Raiden jumps, terrified of being stabbed or even cut in half. He pushes himself against the wall to gain momentum.

The sound of blades clanging fills the air as Raiden and Raia erupt into a full-fledged sword battle, sparks flying everywhere as their swords collide in midair.

Raia's exceptional swordsmanship demonstrates her two years of training under Apostle Simon. She can deflect each of Raiden's blows with ease and without blinking, and she would never hesitate to launch an attack whenever the opportunity arose. Raiden, on the other hand, has no intention of losing. His three days of training with Nathan paid off. Nathan is undoubtedly faster than her and equally aggressive, so he must know how to deal with her.

She doesn't show hesitation. I should treat her the same way.

Raia advances again. Raiden ducks beneath the gleaming blade, narrowly avoiding his tragedy by a fraction of a second. He rolls forward. Once he regains his footing, he spins and aims a thrust at her back. But Raia immediately turns her body. She alters the trajectory of her sword and parries his attack, her calm expression remains unbroken. Their gazes lock, then she flips her weapon in a reverse grip and slams the pommel into Raiden's side, hitting his ribs. Raiden gasps in pain. Now that she has the upper hand, she swings her foot and kicks him hard.

"Dammit," Raiden groans as he slides down the wall. At the very least, she didn't stab me.

Raiden's eyes widen upon seeing Raia approaching him again. He gathers himself quickly and throws himself to the side as Raia swings her longsword downward.

This fight is dragging on. Let me put an end to this right now.

"Raia!" Raiden yells as he rushes toward her.

Raia takes a defensive stance and raises her sword, her listless gaze fixed on him. As he draws closer, Raiden jumps and positions his sword for a downward strike - but it's all a bluff. Raia, as expected, leaps backward to avoid his impending attack.

Raiden grins. "Cypress!"

A thorny vine encircles the blade of his sword. He tightens his grip on the hilt and asks his Blessing for more power. Multiple vines spring up from the blade's base and span across the room, wrapping around Raia. He swings his weapon and slams her into the wall using the vines.

Raia lets out a wince, which he tries hard to ignore.

"W-whoa!" Nathan blurts out. His jaw nearly drops to the floor. "You did it, Kara! Damn, that's my apprentice!" He pumps his fist in the air.

Raiden smiles and looks at Raia, who is still entangled in the vines on the wall. She raises her head and meets his eyes. Her face, to his surprise, isn't as cold as it usually is. Instead, she's looking at him with astonishment. Of course, she doesn't expect Raiden to perform a skill he hasn't done before.

Raiden approaches her. "I won," he says, a soft smile clinging to his lips.

His Blessing reverts to the form of an earring. Raia's feet land on the ground with a dull thump as the vines that had encircled her vanish. She stares at him for much too long, causing Raiden to break out in cold sweat. He gulps, expecting to see her gaze turn cold. But it doesn't. And for a moment, he catches a gentleness in her eyes.

His stomach does a somersault as he feels an unexpected warmth tickle his insides. His breath hitches, finding himself stunned, unable to look away. For a fleeting moment, he has the urge to reach out his hand and touch that gentle face of hers. But then Raia blinks, and that look in her eyes vanishes as quickly as it appeared, her face resuming its cold and disinterested expression. Her shoulder brushes against his arm as she walks past him, and her sword vanishes from her grasp and reappears as a necklace.

Raiden blinks. He watches her walk away, a sliver of disappointment on his face. He won't deny that he hoped to hear at least one word from her about his progress. But that's Raia, and he should know better than to expect anything like that from her. However, he can't brush aside his frustration.

I just can't understand her!

But then Raia pauses in the doorway.

"I look forward to working with you," she says in a low, almost gentle voice without a glance and then closes the door after her.

Raiden's eyes widen and his lips part in astonishment. It's not what he expected, but it's still a compliment! Those few words from her are enough to brighten his day. Three days of intense training may be too short, but they are not a total waste. He had previously been training himself to at least master his Blessing, but with Nathan's help, the outcome is far superior.

"Thank you," Raiden whispers, staring at the closed door, hoping that his words reach Raia.

"Damn, Kara! That was incredible!" Nathan exclaims and smacks Raiden's back, breaking the stillness.

"Yeah, that's amazing!" Sunshine praises.

Raiden laughs. "Thanks. I just got lucky though. I doubt she'd be defeated so easily. I believe she lost on purpose."

Nathan squints his eyes and puts a hand to his chin, adopting a thoughtful pose. "Yeah, that's what I'm thinking as well. I think . . . she saw something in you."

Raiden cocks his head. "Saw something?"

"I hate to say it, but I guess I'm going to agree with Nathan this time," Sunshine says. "Raia appears to have seen something in you, such as determination. She could see how adamant you are to improve yourself."

Raiden's lips form a gentle smile as he feels a solemn sense of happiness.

I hope so.

I want to improve so that I can fight alongside her without being a burden.

"But I owe this to you, Nathan," Raiden says, a look of gratitude on his face.

Nathan grins. "Told you I'm the best." He then glares at Sunshine when she snorts.

"Anyway, let's go to the kitchen and get our breakfast," Raiden says, breaking up a fight that was about to break out between the two.

"But I won't deny that I was nervous the entire time, praying inwardly that you'd still be alive after the fight," Nathan states, scratching his temple, and the three of them burst out laughing.