New Spark

 "So you can't provide any useful information at all?" Haku leaned back, stretching her stiff limbs, and then regarded the boy with boredom. "Why's your face so dirty?"

Ren instinctively touched his cheek, expecting to feel the dried mud from yesterday's chaos. But his fingers came away clean. Haku watched his face with intense curiosity, a strange mix of excitement and wonder in her crimson eyes—like a child discovering a new animal.

"Never seen anything like this?" Ren gestured to his face. Haku shook her head, slowly.

"These are freckles. Kind of like your stripes."

The oni girl's face lit up. "Really? I've never met anyone who looked like me! Here, there are only orcs and a few boring-looking humans. Good job, Ken!"

She cheerfully patted Ren's head, making him feel even more like a pet.

"That's not my name."

She ignored him and walked out of the attic room.

Haku gave Ren a tour of the castle. They started at the grand entrance hall, where the walls were complete with paintings of unknown landscapes and children's drawings alongside them. A crimson carpet stretched beneath their feet, bordered by thick potted plants, and tall windows filled the space with light. Dozens of people passed through, stealing glances at the red-haired oni and her strange new companion as they descended the stairs.

Their next stop was the kitchen, where they lingered longer than necessary because Haku insisted on sampling every dish. The cooks groaned but said nothing. Judging by their expressions, they were used to it.

Across the hallway was the waiting room, featuring deep red couches that looked incredibly comfortable and a polished piano in the corner, ready to entertain the guests.

The council room's door was between twin staircases leading to the upper floors. The kingdom's leaders planned their battles here—against unknown enemies. 

Haku barely peeked inside before turning away, mumbling. "I'm not dealing with this while Master's still missing."

Ren had already heard the staff whisper the name "Mage." This mysterious figure was the kingdom's most powerful mage and leader, despite the lack of an actual king. Haku held him in deep respect, but whenever she spoke of his disappearance, her voice hardened.

They ended the tour in a sprawling library on the first floor. Haku left him there, and Ren didn't mind. He was, in fact, grateful. Something was soothing about the rows of leather-bound books, even if he couldn't remember if he liked to read or not.

He tore through several volumes, desperately hunting for keywords: Mage. Outsider. Technology. What he found was the world's skeleton.

He chose a picture book that looked short enough for a quick crash course, just something to get a sense of the past. Ren flipped through the pages. The earliest illustrations depicted bright, cheerful figures side by side, quickly giving way to sinister, dark silhouettes that loomed and crawled across rooftops. The cheerful history lesson turned into a warning: an adultless world was a perilous one. He set the child-safety tips aside and reached for heavier volumes.

The world, he learned, was a fractured place. It now held two major kingdoms: the elves' Ivory Concord and the orcs' Ebony Vow. Both names stirred something faintly familiar in his memory. They were once part of a single nation, now only remembered as the Old Kingdom, shattered by a bloody betrayal. That day became known as the Shattering. The word itself felt cold and heavy in Ren's mind, a sense of betrayal he didn't recognize but somehow understood.

Society was divided into two main castes: warriors, who fought up close with physical weapons, and mages, who cast spells from a distance using only their hands. In theory, they worked best together. In practice, Ivory Concord had more mages, while Ebony Vow relied heavily on warriors.

He pushed the history books aside and reached for others. Now, he was curious about magic—mainly since he wasn't meant for swords. There were fewer books about magic. Most were half-destroyed or vague. But one message was consistent across them all: "Magic cannot be learned." And some beginner's guides suggested meditation to awaken latent power—something about "chakra gates," which I had no idea what that meant.

"What are you doing?" 

Ren flung himself back as a red-haired head loomed over his shoulder. 

"Looking for books about magic."

"Why? You can't use it anyway," Haku dismissed, but Ren insisted.

"I like to understand how things work."

"Sounds boring. I'd rather show you how to swing a sword," Haku pivoted toward the door in excitement.

"Not interested. But didn't you say your Master was a mage—"

Haku's glare slammed into him mid-sentence. He paused, uncertain why she got so mad. He'd clearly hit a nerve simply by touching on the subject of his disappearance. Since her eyes looked like they were killing him, it was highly probable. He hadn't meant to offend. 

"Look, Haku… I don't know your Master, and I have no idea what your relationship was like. I can't even remember the people from my own life. I want to understand what's going on here—because everything's new to me, and I need to make sense of the world around me."

She didn't answer. But something in her expression softened. She turned away and held the door open for the blue-haired boy.

They stepped into the courtyard in silence. It was even more beautiful than the halls: pale stone paths crisscrossed between lush gardens, fountains shimmered under the sun, and every corner was dotted with benches and tiny animal statues. The air, heavy with the scent of blooming flowers and damp earth, was utterly still. The only sound was the constant, soothing trickle of water from the fountains, making the quiet feel endless.

The peace didn't last. Some girls whispered nearby.

"What's she even doing here?"

"I don't know. Since the Mage vanished, she's gone crazy."

Ren glanced sideways at Haku. She showed no reaction.

"You always get mad so fast. Doesn't it bother you what they say?"

She looked up, indifferent. "Why should it? I'm the only oni here. I don't fit in. Never did."

As much as she wanted to hide it, Ren could hear the sadness beneath her words, and he didn't want to press her further.

But she continued, "They think I'm crazy for not killing you. Some say you're a spy. But I know people—I'm a great judge of character."

She straightened her back, a proud smirk tugging at her lips. Ren thought she was naive, but he kept that to himself.

Just then, a girl sprinted across the garden—a tall orc with grey skin—and behind her, a cloud of black smoke that writhed like a living thing. A suffocating stench of burnt metal and smog instantly hit their noses.

Haku's eyes narrowed. She dashed forward, grabbing a broom from beside a fountain.

Ren followed the noise toward the town square—only to find chaos. People were running, screaming, their hands thrown up against the rampaging flying pigs that crashed through stalls and knocked over carts. The square was a disaster of overturned tables and smashed produce. Haku was desperately trying to stop them. Her improvised weapon, though blunt, seemed surprisingly effective, swiping the creatures out of the air and momentarily grounding them. But there were too many; for every pig she downed, two more shrieked past her head, their enormous bodies battering the walls and sending dust and debris everywhere.

Ren watched, frozen. The noise was deafening, yet he couldn't move. He couldn't help it. Something inside him craved the rush—any new experience to anchor himself with. This pure, primal terror was the most real thing he’d felt since waking up.

"Get out of the way!" Haku yelled, her voice strained.

He turned—just in time to see a pig's enormous, drooping tongue flying at his face. He raised a hand on instinct—

A sudden tingling shot down his arm, like static crackling under his skin. It wasn't painful, but it took his breath away. Then, a blue spark burst from his fingertips, blasting the creature into a wall.