Finale Chapter 5: The Day the Moonlight Wept

Kizawa and I continued our training, but now it had a desperate edge. It wasn't a game. We knew what was lurking in the shadows. We patrolled the edges of the woods, taking down the occasional low-level demon that strayed too close to town. They were nothing like the goblins at the shrine, more like rabid animals, but they were a threat nonetheless. We were a good team. Kizawa's solid, defensive style was the perfect shield for my swift, aggressive attacks. My golden fire was appearing more frequently now, easier to call upon, though it always left me drained.

My parents must have noticed the changes in me. The new calluses on my hands, the way I'd scan a crowd, the exhaustion I couldn't always hide. Or maybe they just felt the shift in the air, the same way I did. The feeling of being watched was constant now. The barrier around our house felt like it was humming with strained energy.

One cool autumn evening, a few months after our first hunt, my parents sat me down. The usual jokes and smiles were gone. Their faces were grim.

"Mizuki," my father began, his voice heavy. "There are things we should have told you a long time ago."

My heart hammered against my ribs. Finally.

"Your mother and I… our family… we're not ordinary people," he continued, his eyes meeting mine. "We are part of a long line of guardians. Protectors."

"Protectors from what?" I asked, though I already knew the answer.

"From them. From the demons," my mother said softly. She reached out and took my hand. "That power you feel, the golden light in your hair… it's our legacy. It’s the power of the Moonlight Phoenix, a spirit that has bonded with our bloodline for generations, choosing one in each generation to be its vessel."

It was a lot to take in. A spirit? A vessel? It sounded like something from Kizawa's manga.

"The seal my grandparents mentioned," I stated, not asking a question.

My father nodded grimly. "Centuries ago, our ancestors sealed away a powerful demon king. An immensely powerful, legendary-class demon. But the seal has weakened over the generations. And now… it's close to breaking. The demon's minions are drawn to your power. They want to stop you, to kill you, before you can reach your full potential and reinforce the seal."

"Your grandparents wanted to hide you, to suppress your power, hoping it would keep you safe," Mom added, her voice thick with regret. "But we see now that was a mistake. Hiding won't work. You need to be trained."

A wave of relief so intense it made me dizzy washed over me. The lies were over.

"We're going to take you somewhere safe," Dad said. "A hidden sanctuary where you can learn to control your abilities without fear. We'll leave tonight."

I felt a surge of hope. A new beginning. I was scared, but for the first time, I felt like my family and I were on the same side. I asked if I could call Kizawa, to tell him I'd be gone for a while, but they said it was too risky. "No one can know where we're going," Dad insisted. "We'll be back for him, I promise."

We packed quickly, taking only the essentials. As we got into the car, I saw my grandparents standing in the doorway, their faces pale under the porch light. They didn’t look relieved. They looked terrified.

We drove out of the city, heading toward the mountains that loomed in the distance like sleeping giants. The mood in the car was tense, but it was a hopeful tension. Dad was explaining the basics of channeling my energy, while Mom told me stories of our ancestors. For the first time, I felt proud of the fire inside me.

We were on a winding mountain road, the moon a bright silver disc in the inky sky, when it happened.

The temperature plummeted. A thick, unnatural fog rolled across the road, swallowing the moonlight. Dad cursed and slammed on the brakes.

The car skidded to a halt. In the eerie silence that followed, a figure materialized from the fog in front of us.

It was tall and slender, wearing the tattered robes of an ancient priest, but no human had ever moved with such silent, predatory grace. It had no face, just a smooth, porcelain-white surface. But I could feel its gaze on me, ancient and full of hate. It was nothing like the mindless creatures we had fought before. This was an Elite, a being of intelligence and immense power.

"He found us," Mom whispered, her voice trembling.

Dad didn't hesitate. "Mizuki, get out of the car. Run into the woods and don't look back! We love you!" he yelled, kicking his door open.

Mom turned to me, her eyes filled with tears and fierce love. "Be strong, my Moonlight Phoenix. Survive." She shoved a small, ornate dagger into my hands - not the practice one, but a real, gleaming blade. Then she was out of the car, her crescent blades already in her hands.

My parents stood between the car and the faceless demon. They were magnificent. They fought with a desperate, beautiful synergy, their weapons a blur of silver under the headlights. But the demon was on another level. It moved like smoke, dodging their attacks with contemptuous ease. It didn't even have a weapon; it used its bare hands, striking with a force that sent shockwaves through the air.

I was frozen in the backseat, my father's command to run forgotten. I couldn't leave them.

The demon backhanded my father, sending him flying into the side of the mountain with a sickening crunch. He didn't get up.

"NO!" Mom screamed, lunging at the creature with a desperate fury.

It caught her by the throat, lifting her off the ground.

That's when I finally moved. A scream of pure, unadulterated rage tore from my throat. The golden fire erupted from me, shattering the car windows. I scrambled out, the dagger Mom had given me clutched in my hand.

But I was too slow.

With a flick of its wrist, the demon snapped my mother's neck. Her body went limp. It dropped her to the ground like a broken doll.

Then, it turned its blank face to me.

The world shattered. Time stopped. All I could see were my parents, lying broken on the asphalt. The hope, the love, the laughter of my entire life-extinguished in an instant.

The demon took a step toward me. But before it could reach me, the ground shook. The car, its engine still running, teetered on the edge of the cliff. With a final groan of twisting metal, it plunged over the side, taking me with it.

The last thing I saw before the darkness swallowed me was the faceless demon, standing at the cliff's edge, watching me fall.

I woke up in a sterile white room that smelled of antiseptic. My arm was in a cast, and my head throbbed. My grandparents were there, their faces looking a hundred years older.

"There was an accident," my grandpa said, his voice a hollow shell. "A terrible car accident. Your parents… they didn't make it, Mizuki."

The lie was back. But this time, it was the cruelest one of all.

I didn't cry. I didn't scream. I just stared at the white ceiling. The happy, go-lucky nine-year-old girl named Mizuki had died on that mountain road with her parents. In her place was something new. Something broken and cold, forged in grief and rage.

I was the Moonlight Phoenix. And I would have my revenge.