The Tale Of Xavier (PT 5)

Ten YeaRs Later

Year 197
Month 1

Xavier Nara (19)

Mr. Manji smiled faintly.

“Alright… I think you’re ready, X.”

X bowed his head respectfully.

“Thank you, Master.”

Mr. Manji shook his head.

“No. You are the master now.”

He placed a hand on Xavier’s shoulder.

“I pass down the title of Sword Master to Xavier Nara. What took me years of blood, sweat, and tears… You achieved it in just 10.”

X smiled softly as he raised himself up.

“That’s only because I had the best teacher. I couldn’t have done it without your guidance, Master.”

Mr. Manji laughed.

“Now go! Complete the task ahead of you. You’ve shown me that you’ll use this power for good.”

A cold breeze flows into the room as Manji talks.

“But before you leave. I have one final request.”

Xavier straightened himself.

“What is it, Master?”

Mr. Manji’s expression slowly darkened as the room got colder.

“YeaR 97. Month 3. At the time, I was working as a blacksmith in this same village. Wasn’t nearly the size that it is now.”

A faint smile appeared as he kept speaking.

“One evening, while cleaning up the shop. I noticed it was getting darker than usual. So I stepped outside to see what was going on. The moment I walked out… Demons flooded from a massive portal in the center of the village.”

Xavier scratched his head in confusion, but Mr. Manji kept going.

“And then. A demon, unlike anything I had ever seen, stepped out. The world itself fell silent. No people, animals, even Mother Nature, were hushed.”

Mr. Manji’s eyes closed. Reliving the day that changed his world.

“He pointed directly at me and simply said…”

“Come.”

“I was terrified. My life could’ve ended right there. But I walked over anyway.”

Mr. Manji shivered as the wind brought in snowflakes.

“At that point, all I could think about was my family… My friends… Everyone I loved.”

“As I stepped into arms' length, he raised his hand as I closed my eyes and accepted death.”

A pause.

“But instead, he patted me on the shoulder.”

Xavier, further thrown for a loop, starts to stand and closes the windows into the dojo.

“He said… Don't be so tense! I’m not here to kill you guys yet.”

Mr. Manji’s voice lowered as his eyes opened.

“I just have a few questions. Depending on your answers decides what comes next. So what do you say, young man?”

“I agreed.”

As the last window closed, the room became dim. Xavier went around once more to light the candles.

“His first question. Where are we?”

“I told him he was in a small village in the country, East City, about a week from the Capital.”

“Then he asked. Will humans fear demons? And if they do. How will they react?”

With the room lit and warming up, Xavier sits back down in front of Mr. Manji as he continues.

“I answered honestly. If demons suddenly appeared everywhere, like you just did. People would panic and fight back. War.”

Mr. Manji looked down at the palms of his hands.

“Then he asked me the final question. Do you think all demons are bad?”

Xavier stayed silent, eagerly waiting for the answer.

Mr. Manji sighed.

“I thought about that question for a long time. If I lied, we were dead. If I hesitated, we were dead. There was no perfect answer.”

He looked up at Xavier and clenched his fist.

“So I told him the truth. When I first approached you, I was terrified. You could’ve killed me instantly. But you didn’t.”

Manji looked deep into Xavier’s eyes as he continued.

“You spoke calmly. You treated me like a person. That alone showed me that not all demons are evil.”

“That’s called being human.”

Xavier quietly listened.

“The demon laughed and responded, “Nice answer. For that… You live.”

Mr. Manji’s expression hardened.

“And then he cut my right arm off.”

Xavier’s eyes widened slightly.

“I screamed in pain.”

“But then he told me I had a rare bone-eating disease in my right arm.”

Mr. Manji looked down at his right arm.

“He cut off his own arm. Placed it against mine and began speaking some strange demonic language.”

“The next thing I knew, I had a new arm.”

Xavier stared at his Master’s arm in disbelief.

“The demon smiled and said, “You’re all fixed up now. Give it a few days, and your body will adjust.”

Mr. Manji’s expression slowly darkened again. His head fell as his knuckles turned red.

“But then he looked at the city and said, “Your answers saved you. But some of the other humans made different choices. So I’m going to kill everyone here. Except you.”

Xavier reached out and put a hand on Manji's shoulder.

“I begged him to spare my family. But he refused.”

Mr. Manji raised his head and stared tiredly into Xavier's eyes as he spoke.

“He looked me directly in the eyes and said…”

“I’m not here to befriend humanity. I’m here to conquer this world.”

Xavier remained silent.

“I asked him why. He seemed like a genuinely good person.”

“And the demon just laughed.”

“Humans are so easy to fool. This may actually be easier than I thought.”

Mr. Manji’s voice trembled slightly.

“Then he gave the order.”

“Kill every last person here. Leave only this man alive!”

The wind banged against the windows as the winter storm picked up.

“I swore to him that day. I don’t care who you are or where you came from. One day, I’ll make you pay for this.”

‘And if I can’t. I’ll pass my will onto someone who can!”

Xavier dropped his arm back down to his side and stood up as Mr. Manji continued.

“Then that demon told me something I’d never forget!”

“Power is the only thing that matters. Or so I thought. I sought power to surpass my limits. But no matter how strong I became. There was always another wall waiting for me. I searched endlessly for an answer. Until the day I took the head of the old Demon King.’

Mr. Manji stood along with Xavier, grabbing his hands.

“He told me that seeing the demons celebrate. Hearing their screams of joy and finally feeling relief. Made him realize something. Power exists to create change. And if my power can change every situation.”

Manji squeezes Xavier's hands.

“Then I will always stand at the top. Without limits.”

Mr. Manji looked directly at Xavier.

“All I ask of you. Make a change greater than that demon!”

Xavier threw Manji’s hands away and raised his voice.

“Why didn’t you tell me sooner?! We could’ve done something! TOGETHER!”

Mr. Manji shook his head.

“No. You were far too weak back then. And now I’ve grown too old.”

Manji smiled faintly.

“But you now possess the tools needed to become something greater.”

“That demon believes power exists only to maintain control.”

“He’s not entirely wrong. But he’s not right either.”

Mr. Manji pointed toward Xavier’s heart.

“True strength is using your power to make others stronger too.”

Xavier bowed deeply.

“Yes, Master. I accept your request.”

Mr. Manji smiled proudly.

“Good. Now come here. I have one final gift for your journey.”

He turned and walked to the front of the dojo.

“It’ll be a long road ahead. But I believe in you like my own son.”

For a brief moment, he pictured his real son in his mind.

Mr. Manji approached the ceremonial blade and picked it up.

He turned and called Xavier over and spoke.

“This is the finest blade I’ve ever forged! It was crafted using a carbon-chromium alloy, along with being tempered with the blood of that demon.”

X slowly unwrapped the covering.

A dark yellowish-red blade shone.

Mr. Manji spoke proudly.

“It was made to endure until the very end.”

Xavier's eyes began to water as he carefully gripped the blade.

“I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done for me.”

“Nine years ago… you listened to my story.”

“You took me in. You trained me.”

“You helped me master the sword.”

He raised the blade and slid it across the palm of his hand.

“My journey may be over, Xavier, but yours is just beginning.”

Xavier covered the sword back up and spoke from his heart.

“I’ll carry on your teachings and continue the path you entrusted to me.”

As Xavier prepared to leave, he looked back one final time at the small home he had lived in for nearly a decade. Along with the dojo, with countless hours practicing and studying the blade.

Memories flooded his mind as he wiped the tears from his face and turned forward.

Then his thoughts shifted toward Jack.

For ten years…

That man had continued manipulating women, creating children, and slaughtering them simply to test their strength.

“I’m only a few steps away now…”

“Just wait, Mr. Nara.”

“Your death is near.”