The Final Farewell

The wind blew fiercely that morning.

The branches of the trees swayed beneath its force, and a few leaves were carried through the air before falling onto the ground. Birds perched on the branches, pigeons soared high in the sky, ants moved between the cracks in the earth, and fish swam deep beneath the sea, far away from everything happening on the land.

The world had not stopped.

Nothing had changed.

But for Gensu...

Everything was coming to an end.

He stood before the headquarters of Kyoketsu no Hikari.

The place where everything had begun.

The place he had once entered with nothing.

No name.

No power.

No purpose.

And now, he was standing before it for the last time.

Gensu remained motionless.

He could not take a single step.

His eyes remained fixed on the door.

As the seconds passed, memories began flooding into his mind.

He remembered the day he had first come here.

He had been weak.

Lost.

He had not known where to go.

Then Thalen had appeared.

The man who had never asked about his past.

Who had never demanded that he prove his worth.

He had simply opened the door for him.

Given him a place to sleep.

Taught him.

Trained him.

And in a way Gensu had only understood when it was already too late...

He had protected him.

An image of Thalen passed through his mind.

Then another.

And another.

His laughter.

His voice.

The way he spoke.

The way he stood before danger as though it meant nothing to him.

The man who would insult evil without hesitation, then turn around the next moment to protect the weak.

Gensu lowered his eyes.

His feet felt too heavy to move.

At that moment, Ivo climbed down from his white horse.

He approached him by a few steps.

He stood beside him and looked at the door.

Then he looked at Gensu.

"Are you going to keep staring at the door?"

Gensu did not answer.

He slowly raised his head.

"Should I go inside?"

Ivo continued looking at him.

"That's your decision."

Gensu gave a faint smile that carried no happiness.

"I don't know if I can."

Ivo said nothing.

He simply remained beside him.

Long seconds passed.

Then Gensu took a deep breath.

And stepped forward.

One step.

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Then another.

Until he reached the door.

And opened it.

---

Everyone was there.

The members of Kyoketsu no Hikari.

The students.

The fighters.

The people he knew.

And those he did not.

They were all looking at him.

No one said anything.

Their eyes carried anger.

Sadness.

Fear.

And judgment.

But Gensu did not look at any of them.

He stepped inside.

One step.

Then another.

He only wanted to reach Thalen.

Suddenly...

A can struck the ground beside him.

He stopped.

He turned.

There was a small child.

One of Kyoketsu no Hikari's students.

His face was red from crying, and tears streamed endlessly down his cheeks.

Gensu looked at him.

He knew him.

Nero.

Gensu had seen him several times at the headquarters.

But the child no longer looked at him the way he once had.

His eyes were filled with hatred.

He shouted:

"You bastard murderer!"

The entire place fell silent.

The child took a step toward him.

"You killed him!"

His voice trembled.

"You killed my brother!"

Then he began crying harder.

"Bring him back!"

Yuris grabbed the child by the shoulders.

"Come on, come on, Nero... stop crying."

But Nero struggled against him.

He fell to the ground.

He struck the floor with his hands as he screamed:

"You killed him!"

"You devil!"

Gensu did not move.

He remained standing.

His hair covered part of his face.

He did not answer.

He did not defend himself.

He did not say that what had happened was not that simple.

He did not say that he had never wanted it.

He did not say that he regretted it.

He simply looked at the ground.

"Gensu..."

Someone called his name.

But he did not turn around.

He walked past them.

He continued forward.

Every step was harder than the one before.

He could hear their whispers.

But he could not make out the words.

He no longer wanted to understand.

He only wanted to reach one room.

Thalen's room.

He entered the hallway.

His steps became faster.

Then faster.

Until he began running.

He no longer cared who saw him.

He slammed into one of the walls.

He fell.

He placed his hand against the floor.

He stood up immediately.

Then continued running.

His heart was pounding violently.

Until he reached the door.

He stopped.

His hand slowly rose.

It remained suspended above the handle.

For several seconds...

Then he opened the door.

---

Thalen was there.

Sleeping.

Lying on the bed.

His body did not move.

His breathing was calm.

But his eyes remained closed.

Lost in his coma.

Gensu entered.

He closed the door behind him.

Then approached.

One step.

Another step.

Until he stood beside the bed.

He looked at him.

He said nothing.

His eyes moved to the bandage covering Thalen's face.

That bandage had become part of the image of Thalen in Gensu's mind.

It was not merely a piece of cloth.

It was a symbol.

A symbol of the man who could stand before a villain and humiliate him without fear.

Then turn around the very next moment and protect someone weak.

The man who had always seemed impossible to break.

And now...

He was lying there, unable to even open his eyes.

Gensu extended his hand.

He stopped before touching him.

Then lowered it.

"You..."

His voice came out weak.

"Even now..."

He swallowed.

"You're still protecting me."

Ivo entered the room quietly.

He leaned against the door and folded his arms across his chest.

He continued looking at Gensu.

He said:

"That's what he always did."

Gensu raised his eyes.

"Protect everyone."

Gensu looked back at Thalen.

"How did the letter reach you?"

Ivo answered:

"He gave it to me himself."

He paused.

"He said he had a student he wanted to protect."

Silence.

"He knew that if he fell into a coma, the council would take you."

Ivo looked at Thalen.

"That was the only thing stopping them."

Gensu remained silent.

He raised his head toward the ceiling.

"Oh..."

The word barely escaped his lips.

"So that's how it was."

He remained still.

One second.

Two seconds.

Then a tear began to fall.

He did not try to wipe it away.

Another followed.

Then another.

Gensu quickly lowered his head, as though trying to hide his face.

But it was too late.

The tears began to fall uncontrollably.

A sob escaped him as he tried to suppress it.

He covered his mouth with his hand.

But he could not stop.

He sat beside the bed.

"He wasn't just my teacher."

The words came out broken.

"He wasn't..."

He raised his eyes toward Thalen.

"He was like a father to me."

Then he added in a shattered voice:

"And I couldn't even say goodbye to him."

Ivo did not answer.

He simply remained standing.

Outside the room...

The wind continued to blow.

---

Hours passed.

When evening came, Gensu was in his room.

He packed his belongings.

He did not have much.

Some clothes.

A few small things.

And objects he had kept despite having no value to anyone else.

He placed the last item inside his bag.

Then looked around the room.

For the last time.

He opened the door.

Levi was standing outside.

"Gensu."

Gensu raised his eyes toward him.

But he did not stop.

He moved forward.

Levi stood in front of him, blocking his path.

"Move."

"Come on, man."

"I'm not in the mood."

Levi remained where he was.

"I don't want anything from you."

Gensu looked at him.

"Then why are you standing in front of me?"

Levi lowered his head slightly.

"All I want..."

He paused.

"Is an apology."

Gensu did not answer.

He stared at him for several seconds.

Then approached him.

He placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Live a long life, Levi."

Levi's eyes widened slightly.

But Gensu walked past him.

He did not look back.

And left.

---

The sky was dark when Gensu reached Nairobi's grave.

He stopped before it.

He remained standing for several seconds.

Then took out a flower and placed it beside the grave.

He sat before it.

"I'm back."

He smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry it took me so long, Nairobi."

Silence.

He looked at the name engraved before him.

"I came to say goodbye."

He lowered his head.

"You won't see me again."

He remained silent.

There was no one to answer him.

Only the wind.

Gensu raised his eyes toward the photograph placed beside the grave.

He stared at it for a long time.

Then said:

"I wish I could have seen you again."

A small smile appeared on his face.

"But it seems this world doesn't like happy endings."

He stood.

He brushed the dust from his clothes.

Then looked at the grave one last time.

"Goodbye, for now."

He turned around.

And walked away.

---

When he reached the gate, he found Ivo waiting for him.

He was sitting atop his white horse.

He looked at him.

"Finished?"

"Yes."

Ivo looked toward the headquarters behind him.

Then said:

"Aren't you going to say goodbye to her?"

Gensu understood who he meant.

But he did not answer.

He turned around.

He climbed into the carriage.

He sat inside.

He said nothing.

The carriage began to move.

Ivo followed beside it on his horse.

With every meter he moved farther away from the headquarters...

Gensu felt as though a part of him remained behind.

He looked through the window.

The headquarters grew farther away.

Then smaller.

Then it nearly disappeared.

And in the final moment...

He saw something.

He froze.

Yuna was sitting on the chair where they used to sit at night when she could not sleep.

That chair.

The place where they had talked about so many things.

The place where they had laughed.

The place where Gensu had stayed beside her on some nights without saying a word.

But she was not alone.

Kenji was beside her.

The two of them were laughing.

Happily.

Gensu's breath caught for a moment.

He did not feel anger.

Only...

Sadness.

A deep sadness.

Perhaps this was better for her.

Perhaps he should have left.

Perhaps there was no longer a place for him among them.

Gensu lowered his eyes.

But Yuna raised her head.

She saw him.

Her eyes widened.

She quickly stood up.

"Gensu!"

She began running.

The carriage slowed for a brief moment because of the road.

"Gensu!"

Her voice drew closer.

But he did not turn around.

"Gensu!"

Gensu raised his hand.

He placed it against the window.

He could have opened it.

He could have called out to her.

He could have said just one word.

But his hand remained still.

The carriage continued moving.

The distance between them grew.

Yuna stopped running.

She remained standing where she was.

Watching the carriage disappear into the distance.

Then she whispered:

"Gensu...?"

There was no answer.

The headquarters disappeared behind the trees.

The road vanished.

And her voice disappeared.

Gensu closed his eyes.

And in that moment...

There was nothing left waiting for him behind.

He opened his eyes.

He looked at the road ahead.

His new journey had begun.

And he did not yet know...

That the place he was heading toward was not merely a new home.

It was the home of a family that had spent thousands of years preparing to kill the thing living inside his body.

Kaizen.

The King of the Yami.