The Ashen Dominion

Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar walked back to the Silver Place where they stayed with their arms and legs completely numb.

Their shirts were soaked in sweat. Their footsteps were heavy.

The guard escorting them was already frowning.

"You three gonna move or what?"

He was clearly annoyed.

But the three of them didn't even bother responding. They were just too tired. Just groaning, dragging their feet, barely walking in a straight line.

"Ugh…"

"Kill me already…"

"Who told us to train like that again…?"

"That's you, dumbass."

Edmar snapped weakly, shooting a glare at Viktor who was about to collapse.

Viktor chuckled between gasps of air.

Kaiser didn't say anything. He just kept walking at his own pace, arms hanging low, body stiff like a board.

Luckily—

The Silver Place wasn't too far from the training ground.

Just around the corner, a few mins of walking, then straight into the hallway.

And finally—

They stood outside the gate of the Silver Place.

The same familiar guard was there. He saw them coming from a distance and had already opened the gate before they reached it.

"Looks like you all just came back from hell."

He said that casually as he stepped aside.

The three didn't respond.

They didn't have the strength to.

So with blank faces and half-dead eyes, Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar stepped inside.

They didn't talk to each other.

They didn't look around.

All they wanted was to go to their room... and pass out.

Though—

"KAISER!"

"EDMAR! VIKTOR!!"

Three familiar voices suddenly called out to them.

Leo, Niko, and Yuwa.

The three of them rushed toward them with wide eyes.

Leo was holding a paper, he can read. Yuwa looked like he hadn't blinked in a while. And Niko was trying to catch his breath as if he ran the entire way here.

They stopped right in front of the three.

Their expressions? Urgent.

Edmar narrowed his eyes a bit.

"...Why do you guys look like that?"

He asked casually, though his tone made it clear he didn't want to deal with anything right now.

Without wasting a second—

Leo immediately raised the paper he was holding.

And shouted—

"THE FIRST [ORGANIZATION VS ORGANIZATION] MATCH IS IN THREE DAYS!!"

"..."

"..."

"..."

All three—Kaiser, Viktor, and Edmar—paused.

Their blank eyes widened just a little bit.

Though, because they were too exhausted... they didn't really react that much.

"Huh… is that so?"

Edmar mumbled.

"No way we're fighting first, right…?"

Viktor asked slowly, his brows furrowing.

Leo shook his head fast.

"No, no, we're not. I just saw the lineup. We're not listed for the first match. Thank fate."

"...We would've been too unlucky if that happened."

He added with a sigh of relief.

At that—

Viktor also sighed.

"Good… that's good…"

Edmar nodded along.

Kaiser just blinked slowly.

He opened his mouth. And calmly spoke,—

"Then… we'll just watch and see what happens in three days."

He looked at the three in front of him.

"In the meantime, don't panic. We just need to keep on training."

"That's all we can do."

Leo, Niko, and Yuwa blinked.

They were expecting a more intense reaction.

But all they got… was calm nods and lazy replies.

Edmar stretched his arms with a groan.

"Guess it's really happening, huh?"

"Looks like it."

Viktor muttered.

Then—

Without waiting for any reply, Kaiser started walking again.

Edmar and Viktor followed beside him like zombies.

Tap. Tap. Tap—

Leo, Niko, and Yuwa just stared at them, completely confused.

"...The hell?"

Leo muttered.

"...Did they hear what I said?"

"They heard you."

Niko replied, adjusting his glasses.

"They're just… probably tired."

"Yeah… probably."

Yuwa nodded along, still watching their backs as they walked away.

(They're right, on mark.)

The three slowly disappeared into their room.

No words.

No complaints.

Just that heavy, dragging walk of dead men.

*****

Inside their room—

Edmar collapsed

Face-first onto the bed.

"Ughhhhhh…"

He let out the longest groan he could manage.

Viktor next, after entering his room—

He kicked his boots off, threw himself onto the hard bed, and didn't even bother fixing the blanket he landed on.

Kaiser was last to arrive in his room. He had trouble opening his door because he has no energy in his arms anymore.

He walked over to the chair in the corner of the room, sat down, leaned back—

"..."

And closed his eyes.

Complete silence filled the room.

For a whole minute. Just silence.

Then he opened one eye.

"My head and body hurts... My muscles are throbbing like crazy."

He mumbled before forcing himself to move again to go in his bed. He just sat down because he can't go on anymore earlier.

But once the pain of his body dulled—just slightly—he forced himself to stand again.

Slowly.

He wobbled toward his bed, dragging one leg more than the other. His shoulders twitched. His hands felt swollen and bleeding a bit. But still, he moved.

And finally—

THUD-

"Oof..."

He dropped himself onto the bed with a heavy thud.

Face to the ceiling. Arms out like a broken puppet.

He stared blankly at the cracks on the stone above him.

The throbbing in his arms pulsed harder now that he stopped moving. His chest was tight from all the strain. Every breath was a little harder than the last.

But his eyes?

Calm. Still focused and driven.

"...Even if it hurts like hell."

He muttered softly.

"We're gonna do it again tomorrow."

Because today—

Today they got closer.

Even if it was just a fraction.

Even if it was barely anything.

They reached them.

Even just for a second, they stoop up against the monsters like Brock, Khan, and Jin.

Well, not really stood up... But for Kaiser, who was just a frail kid when he got here—parrying Brock's greatsword earlier was a big thing for him.

'Even though he took my kick with full force like it was nothing.'

He thought to himself.

But with today's sparring match—

He saw that it was possible. His boredom eased up a bit.

"..."

Kaiser closed his eyes and let that thought inside his head.

(He just took a short nap, he would still need to meet Rai later for his daily protein, after all.)

*****

Across the wall—

Edmar was still staring at the ceiling too.

One arm over his forehead.

The other hanging off the bed.

His shirt was stuck to his chest from sweat. His hair clung to his face. His lips were dry.

"...Kaiser is getting stronger... He's catching up to me. What a monster."

He whispered to himself.

He remembered watching Kaiser against Brock earlier. That parry.

Brock's movements were still faster. Still sharper. But Kaiser didn't back down.

He kept swinging. Kept dodging. Even landed one clean blow—the kick.

Kaiser didn't win, obviously.

But in a sense, it wasn't a loss either.

"...Bastard's scary when he's quiet."

Edmar chuckled under his breath.

Kaiser doesn't say much, he just trains all day and acts like everything is normal all the time.

Then boom—he's already like that.

It's not like Edmar is slacking off... It's just that Kaiser's growth speed is better than him.

He's more talented, in short.

"Meh, whatever."

Edmar turned his head a bit, wincing at the tension in his neck.

And he thought about Viktor too.

"That one is crazy too... He'll become a monster as well."

Even though they were all beaten bloody today. No one quit.

No one even thought about quitting.

"...Alright then."

Edmay forced himself to sit up, every muscle in his back screaming at him.

He ignored it.

Grabbed the water jug by the bedside.

Took a long drink.

"We'll keep going."

Then he muttered that. Edmar started meditating.

Though, he got out of his room later on for some reason.

(Rest, man.)

*****

Viktor had already passed out for ten minutes.

But then he woke up suddenly.

"—Agh!"

He winced.

A sharp cramp in his side forced him upright. He grabbed his ribs, groaning.

"...Oh fuck... is this what death feels like?"

His whole torso felt like it was punched by a beast.

His vision blurred from how fast he sat up.

But even through the pain—

He smiled.

"Worth it."

He flopped back down with a hard thump.

And just stared at the ceiling for a while.

Didn't think. Didn't talk.

Just… breathed.

He remembered the spar with Jin.

"...We're getting close."

Viktor mumbled.

...

...

*****

A few more minutes passed.

Not a word from any of them.

The quiet between their walls felt... earned.

Like silence was the only reward their broken bodies would accept right now.

Then—

Knock. Knock.

A soft knock came from Viktor's door.

"...What now…?"

He groaned.

The door creaked open a little.

Edmar peeked in.

He didn't say anything at first.

Then, quietly—

"You alive?"

He asked, checking on Viktor.

Viktor raised one hand like a weak thumbs-up.

"Barely."

Edmar nodded.

"...Cool."

And left.

He didn't bother checking on Kaiser.

He already knew.

That guy was too stubborn to die.

*****

Kaiser woke up, he's now lying with his eyes open again.

He stared at the ceiling for a few more minutes.

Then he turned over slowly, resting on his side, one arm under his head.

He could hear faint footsteps outside his room.

'Edmar probably.'

Maybe checking if anyone died from overexertion.

Kaiser smiled faintly.

"I'm alive!"

Then he exclaimed.

"I KNOW, SHUT UP!"

Edmar responded from outside his room.

Edmar then went back to his room after that to rest again.

*****

Outside their rooms— The open area of the Silver Place was quiet.

Swoosh~

A soft breeze passed through the gaps of the metal bars.

Moonlight spilled across the floor outside the cell.

And three rooms, side by side, stood silent.

All of them lit only by dim candlelight and the soft rhythm of sleeping breaths.

Kaiser.

Edmar.

Viktor.

Tired. Battered. But unshaken.

Resting now.

(Kaiser already met with Rai, their meeting today didn't even last a minute.)

Because tomorrow—

They would train like idiots again.

And the next day.

And the next too.

Maybe even forever they would be like this.

But for now—

They're just resting.

They earned it.