TENZEGEN CLAN'S MANOR

KIZUKI CITY, ROJAS COUNTRY

SHOTO CONTINENT

A burst of mocking laughter stopped the two pairs of feet. With their hunched backs against the group of young masters, the tattered gray-colored kimonos of the two were a stark contrast to the clean and embroidered clothing of the other kids.

The young girl with shoulder-length frizzy black hair tugged the corners of the young boy's worn-out kimono. In a small voice, she said. "Let's go."

The young boy, who was sporting a black eye on his left eye, hummed as he nodded his sweat-covered head. His lips were too torn to utter a single word.

"Hey!"

The twins were about to step away from the playground where they were forbidden to even look when Shuya's back was hit by a ball.

"!!!" Due to the impact and Shuya's small stature even for a twelve-year-old kid, he fell face flat on the ground. The dishes they were holding shattered before him.

"Shuya! Watch out!" Compared to Shuya, Saya was good with her reflex. With her wit, she knew by a first glance that Shuya would suffer a wound or two should he land on the ground where the shattered dishes lay. On instinct, Saya pulled Shuya's left arm, rendering her to lose balance in the process.

"Saya!" A horror-filled gasp escaped Shuya's chapped lips as he slumped on the ground. Shuya's breathing became labored as his vision blurred. Upon seeing Saya's bloodstained arms after she crushed on the ground right after she pushed him away, Shuya was submerged in his mental demons once more.

'It should have been me! That blood is supposed to be mine! The pain should be mine, not Saya's!' Dark thoughts filled Shuya's mind as his shaky crystal blue eyes dimmed.

Saya scoffed, pulling Shuya from his dark-filled stupor.

"Crybaby." As if nothing had happened, Saya stood immediately. She was about to reach her right hand toward Shuya when she realized that both of her palms were wounded. "Oops!"

She wiped off the blood on her dirtied kimono before reaching out toward Shuya once more. This time, a set of dimples appeared on each side of her thin cheeks as she smiled brightly at him – like always. "I promised you, right? I will always protect you while Father is working. Come on and get up, crybaby."

'Saya's smile is contagious,' Shuya thought. For him, Saya was like the sun and the moon. Without her, he was sure that he would have been lost a long time ago in this wretched manor.

Too shocked after seeing a bloody scene, the young masters behind the twins erupted into tears. This had drawn the attention of the servants around the area.

"Young Masters!"

"Hurry! Call the physician for the young masters!"

"Young Masters, please don't cry. Tell us what happened, please?"

One by one, the servants, who ignored the twins' predicament, surrounded the bunch of crying kids. Shuya and Saya could not blame the maids. After all, the group of kids was the confirmed talents of the prestigious Tenzegen Clan. In short, they were the next generation of grim reapers of the clan.

The formidable Tenzegen Clan was one of the few hidden clans in the Shoto Continent. The United Grim Reapers Association (UGRA) treated the Tenzegen Clan highly simply because this clan had produced astounding grim reapers over the years. Grim Reaper was a title given to the rare individuals who were gifted with affinity to chaos.

And in the ongoing 100-year war between the last of the human race and the monsters called Chaos Grims, every child with a high affinity for chaos was treated as treasure by the UGRA. The bunch of kids who were crying right now was the prime example of UGRA's prized children.

"Shuya," whispered Saya as she held her twin brother's hand. "In the count of three, run back to our secret hideout. And remember, don't you ever look back."

Shuya recognized this tone. Saya would only use this on him whenever she would think of something dangerous for herself while ensuring that he would be safe. Heart pounding, Shuya swatted Saya's hand away from his. Shaking his head vehemently to express his distress, tears started to swell in his crystal blue eyes.

"You are such a crybaby," Saya murmured, "Just don't cry later on, alright? I will be holding your hand the entire time. I promise. You won't be alone."

Together, the twins linked their hands as they waited for the resounding voice of the Tenzegen Clan's patriarch – their grandfather.

         TWO BUNDLES OF NERVES HUGGED each other as they remained slumped on the wooden floor with their heads hanging low from fear. One was shaking while the other one was stiff as ice.

Even with his eyes closed, Shuya Tenzegen could still feel the heated glares from the dozens of pairs of eyes around him and his twin sister. Shrinking more onto his twin sister's embrace, like always, Shuya's small hands gripped Saya's shirt as if his life depended on it.

Shuya felt Saya's hand on his head, the comfort she would always give him whenever he would feel that the world was going to devour him whole. Like magic, the trembling of his shoulders significantly relaxed and his breathing had calmed down a notch.

'It is okay. Saya is here with me! We will be alright. A couple of whip marks and a night without supper, which is the usual they would give us. It is okay. I am not alone!' Shuya's mantra inside his chaotic head separated him again from the real world.

While Shuya curled himself onto Saya, the latter one heaved a breath of relief after feeling her younger twin relax against her. With a sharp pair of golden eyes, she stared at the imposing man sitting at the highest podium in the pillared hall – the bane of their existence, Jiro Tenzegen.

"It is my fault that the young masters cried. My twin is innocent," Saya spat without batting an eye. Her unwavering gaze still connected to his right golden eye.

Jiro Tenzegen's gruff and commanding voice echoed. "You could have been a good seedling in this clan. Pity that you both are born useless like that son of mine."

Saya's grip around Shuya's hand tightened. No matter how used she was, she could not stand it if the clan insulted her father. 'If only... If only I have an affinity with chaos, I could have protected Father and Shuya from this vile clan!'

"F-Father! Please spare my children and punish me instead!" A gentle yet broken voice resonated from the hall's entrance.