*Hideo*

I sighed as Eiichi ran off. Wished that I could've done more for him. If my town didn't need fixing, I would've volunteered to train with him.

"Please keep an eye on him," I said, turning to look at Sabine.

Sabine smiled. "Was planning to anyways."

"Do you like him?" I asked, crossing my arms.

Sabine's cheeks turned bright red. "I... Well, I'm not sure. I barely met him, so it might be a little too early to say. But he is important to me."

How lucky, Eii has a girl who cares for him that much. Here I thought she was simply another of his flings.

Wonder if I would ever find someone who cared for me the way she cared for Eiichi.

"Why are these tents here anyway?"

"Oh, yeah. You guys who went to Xeleria don't know." I lowered my head. "My town got destroyed."

She gasped. "By who?"

I turned my back to her. "A certain pesky fox."

Sabine gasped. "Another one?"

I shook my head and walked on ahead. "No, it's the same one it seems."

"How? Didn't your brother take him with with him?"

Inlowered my head. "I thought so too. I'm still not sure how he made it back, but maybe it's a blessing in disguise."

"A blessing? Oh, I get it. If Satoru is alive then there's a chance that Dan made it out too!"

I nodded. "Yeah. I need to find out where he is, but to do that, I have to locate and capture Satoru first."

"Do you think you'll be able to do it?" Sabine asked, running over to me.

"I'm much stronger now and have a ton of new tricks too. I think I'll be able to take him down."

"No. I meant hold back."

My eyes widened. She had a point there. Would I be able to stop myself if I met him?

I sighed. "I'll try. Plus, killing him would mean letting him off easy."

"Hideo, don't talk like that. Seeking revenge leads one down the path of darkness. Don't walk the demon road. Both your cousin and Eiichi could barely come back from it and that thanks to the help of others."

"I'm not dumb to let myself become a demon."

Sabine placed a hand on the center of her chest. "Demons aren't dumb. They find ways to worm into a persons heart, even making their victim think they're in control when in reality they are not."

I lowered my eyes. "Maybe you're right, but I can't bring myself to forgive him for what he did."

"No one is asking you to forgive him. Just, don't drown in your rage or you'll become blinded by it."

I laughed and turned around. "Hey, I have better than twenty-twenty vision!" I pointed at my eyes.

Sabine smiled. "At least you can joke, must mean you haven't been submerged completely."

I snickered. She reminded me a bit of a mom.

She patted me on the shoulder. "Just be sure to keep your head above water." With those words, she walked in the direction Eiichi had gone off to.

Eiichi sure is lucky to have a level-headed girl like her by his side. Wonder if we could find out more about her by learning how Satoru escaped from the pit.

I headed back to my dad's tent. Dad was busy drawing up a layout of our town while the twins talked in another corner. Alex slept on Cami's lap with his baby blanket wrapped around his shoulders. The kid must've still been exhausted from the long trip yesterday.

"Brother," Camila said. "What's wrong? You seem sad."

"I learned that Eiichi's dad died."

Dad put down his pen. "Sir Eiji? How?"

"It's a long story. Also, your nephew and niece returned, so it seems they didn't backstab us this time."

Dad laughed slightly. "Thought you would be more shocked to see them."

I averted my gaze. "I still hate them. If they mess this up then I'll end them myself, regardless of blood connections."

Dad lowered his head. "Hopefully, it doesn't come to that."

"Didn't Reno knock you out back in the palace?" Amun asked.

"His djinn did." He reached for his head. "It's odd, but it reminded me of someone I knew."

"Really? Who?" I asked.

"My older brother," Dad responded as he picked up his pen.

"You had an older brother?" Kiara asked as she walked in with Silas in tow.

"Yeah, his name was Alabaster, just like Reno's djinn. Though, that wasn't the only reason he reminded me of my brother."

"How come we haven't heard of him?" Amun asked.

"W-we didn't hear about our aunt until recently either," Cami said.

"That's because he thought she was de... Wait, you have a dead brother too?"

"Too? Dan's not dead yet," Silas said.

Amun sighed. "I'm just keeping my expectations low. Usually you're the same way. What happened to the realist Silas?"

Sy looked down. "I'm not sure. Guess I just don't want to think the worst."

It was the same for me.

Kiara patted him on the back. "There, there."

Amun took a deep breath and got up. "I know that you want him to be safe, but holding on to a false hope will hurt us. Dine already said that an abysmal is more likely to survive because of the core. Which is something we lack."

Silas nodded. "I know."

"Actually, we might not," Dad said, continuing to stare at his layout.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "We aren't abysmals. We angels have no cores."

"True, but my dad has some Kyuu Seishinian in him. Similar to abysmals, they have a core. A specialized form of their magicum organum, the organ which grants them the ability to store mana in their bodies."

"Not sure if that can save him," Dine said as she took control of my sister's body.

"Why not?" Amun asked.

"Dan's body might not survive."

"Say, Dad, who is our grandfather's dad?" Kiara asked.

"Huh? Why ask that all of a sudden?"

I know your grandma was the former queen of Kasai no Ki, but I've never heard a thing about our great grandfather. Plus, Zafir said we smell a bit like demons."

Wait, that meant his uncle was the latest king of Kasai no Ki. That made him... Koukyuu's and Maki's cousin.

Dad's eyes stayed still as we waited for him to say something.

"You know something we don't, right?" Silas asked.

Dad sighed. "All I know is a rumor from long ago. It's said that my paternal mother married a quarter-demon." His eyes shifted toward Alex. "It's said that's whom those with white hair in our family get it from."

"So that means that Alex likely got his hair from him."

Dad nodded. "Correct."

"C-could you tell us more about uncle?" Camila said, fidgeting. She seemed uncomfortable about the subject.

"At one point, he wielded the sword that Serrano does now."

"Uncle was one of the Seven Knights?" I asked.

Dad lowered his eyes. "Yeah, but for some reason he was erased out of history. Takeshi is regarded as its 7th wielder, not its 8th."

I grabbed a hold of Donato. "So, that means he's the predecessor of the creator of the five weapons."

Dad snickered. "Yeah, kind of a strange twist of fate that the heir of my brother's weapon would kill my father and push back against my uncle. Then again, so was Sir Eiji being there when I reunited with my sister whom he separated me from."

"If he hadn't done that then she probably wouldn't have kidnapped Dan. That guy sure caused a lot of trouble," Silas mumbled.

"Don't look for more people to blame, Sy," Kiara said, shaking her head.

"He is right about him starting some of the chain of events. Looking at it, a lot of things were working against us. Chains of misunderstandings and of fear."

"Yeah," I said, keeping my head low. "The one we should focus on is that fox. He's a bigger danger than that former rebel leader and her kids."

Dad smiled. "You've grown more than in terms of height."

My face heated up. "Thanks, I think," I mumbled.

He laughed. "It was a compliment. That said, you could do with some more before you're ready to become the next duke of these lands."

"I'll become a better leader," I said with a stern look.

He ruffled my hair. "That's the spirit, sport!"

Ki and Cami giggled. Amu glanced at Sy who was looking down.

"Something the matter, Silas?" I asked.

"Are you really Hideo?" he asked, raising his head.

"Huh?"

"Hideo was an immature kid who would often who go into tirades about beating up this or that person."

I leered at him. Was that really how I used to be?

"Yeah, he is very different. Though, I like this Hideo better," Amu said, smirking.

Was that a compliment or not?

Dad laughed. He rolled up his layout of our town and stood up.

"D-Done?" Cami asked.

He nodded. "Yeah. Naoru's survey map helped a lot. Took only a few extra touches."

"Where is that guy anyway?" Silas asked.

"He went to procure materials along with the rest of my team," I said.

Guy might've been rude, but he was reliable. He reminded me a little of Hyosetsu. Wonder if I could ever be as reliable as those two and the princess.

"H-he's been working tirelessly," Cami said as she patted Alex's head. "I worry Nao will get sick."

"Nao?" Amu asked.

Cami's face turned pink. "M-My nickname for him."

"Rather cute for a guy like him," Kiara said, huffing.

"He's not that bad," Silas said. "Feel like I understand the guy."

"Both of you are edgelords, that's why."

"What? I'm not an edgelord!"

Dad bonked Sy lightly on the head with the map. "Don't argue you two. We have a city to fix."

Silas grumbled. "Why didn't you hit Ki? She started it."

Dad gave him a stern look, causing him to freeze.

"F-fine. Let's go fix the town."

"Wakey, wakey, Alex," Ki said, rushing over to him.

Alex rubbed his eyes. "Mommy?"

"M-mom isn't here," Cami said, laughing.

He rubbed his eyes. "I miss Mommy. She always makes me a warm glass of milk."

"You sure are a groggy, kid," Amu said, laughing.

"Mom does make him a glass of milk, though," Ki said.

I ran ahead of them and gasped as a white haired girl walked into the tent.

"K-Koukyuu," I said. My face heated up as I stood a few inches away from her.

She stepped back. "Hideo?"

I smiled. "Yeah, it's me. Surprised to see me?"

"You grew a little," she said, raising her hand a bit.

I laughed awkwardly. "Yeah, I did. Think my mom might've been right about me being a late bloomer!"

She laughed. "That so?"

I nodded, perhaps a little too eagerly.

"Why are you here, Koukyuu?" Amu asked as she stepped out of the tent with the others.

"You know each other?" I asked.

"A bit. She spent the night at our place before heading to the palace with Dad and Dan."

"Yeah, she slept on your bed," Silas said, snickering as my face turned redder.

That explained why my pillow smelled so good when I returned for the funeral.

"Why did you chose to sleep in my room? We have guest rooms."

"You had the second biggest room and a very soft bed. I did ask, your mother let me."

"Mom did?"

"Yeah, she said you probably wouldn't mind a girl sleeping in your room."

My face turned more crimson. "Mom!" I shouted.

"There's the old Hide!" Ki said, laughing.

Amu sighed. "Guess Dad was right about having to mature some more."

"Shut up you two!" I yelled, spinning around.

"What brings you here?" Alex said, running up to Koukyuu. The kid sure got to the point.

"I came to see if you needed help with reconstruction. Yuko, Onami, Tetsuya, Takuya, Serrano, Setsuko, Kohri, and my brothers want to join in too."

Cami smiled. "T-that's good. Nao won't burn himself out."

"That guy sounds a bit like Dad," Amu said, staring at him. "Mom has to force him to take breaks from whatever he's doing."

"Yeah, it's a wonder he paid us attention while working on his map," Ki said.

Dad rubbed the back of his head and laughed. "Yeah, my condition sometimes makes me lose track of everything else."

"Condition?" Koukyuu asked.

"He's autistic. Hide and Dan are too," Amu said.

I turned my head away. Why did she have to mention me? Now she won't want to interact with me. Not that I had a chance to begin with.

"I see," Koukyuu said. "Wonder if my older brother has it too. Sometimes he is so engrossed in his work that one has to come up with distractions to get him to rest."

Dad laughed. "Shin'en? Yeah, we are similar. How was he?"

"Good. He is hold the fort back in Xeleria. Hopefully, nothing major happens while we're gone. Though, I'm sure that Zydeco will take care of them if they do."

"Aww, seems she has a boyfriend already," Ki whispered into my ear.

"What do I care?" I asked, stomping away. Zydeco wasn't her boyfriend, but I knew that Koukyuu liked him. Not that an awkward guy like me had any chance with a pretty girl such as her to begin with.

**Solar Note: Thoughts? Theories? Predictions?**