In the Academy as Sukuna

"A mother's heart is fierce yet fragile, a shield of love standing guard against the darkness within."

.

As Sukuna fought against the demons in the frontlines, it was a peaceful day in the city, his parents relaxing in their third mansion in the outskirts.

The sun cast long, warm, orange rays, casting long shadows of trees on the grass.

Amara was sitting on a chair on the border of the garden, her legs crossed neatly. Her eyes were fixed on the figures of Eiji and Elara, who were in the middle of the garden, training.

Sounds of grunts and groans were clearly heard, Elara struggling to keep up with Eiji, his harsh training taking a toll on her.

Amara's mind, however, was somewhere else. She couldn't shake off this feeling of unease... a feeling that something might soon be happening.

(POV: Amara)

My gaze was fixed on the figure of Elara, her body quickly yet tiredly dodging Eiji's blows, sweat dripping from her face to the ground.

I couldn't help but smile. She had grown a lot since the first day... at an incredible pace too.

I extended my hand, my finger grabbing hold of a small cup which I brought to my lips, taking a sip of the coffee in it.

At first, I was against Sukuna's decision to adopt her, both because she didn't look worthy, and because he was quite young for a child.

However, her talent...

Elara ducked, her head barely dodging the incoming swing of the sword, grazing her hair.

...her talent with weapons was incomparable. In other words, she is extremely useful.

On Eiji's face was plastered a huge grin, one which I hadn't seen on him for a long time.

He was thoroughly enjoying himself.

I hadn't seen that expression since... that day...

My free hand went to my forehead, my eyes shutting tightly as a memory resurfaced into my mind, a headache incoming.

.

I opened my eyes, and what I saw made them widen.

Burning trees, burning houses, burning people... It was as if I was living that day again, as if it was happening all over again.

My hands were planted on the floor, forcing the fire to spread far and wide, engulfing the whole village in its fury.

I looked down, my eyes landing on my own hands, trembling uncontrollably. I remember. That day, I was scared... no, I wasn't scared, but nervous, and I knew that it was necessary.

My gaze drifted upwards, meeting a dark, almost evil silhouette. He was the love of my life, Eiji, dancing around in the fire with a grace that seemed to draw me towards him.

His actions, however, were more gruesome than graceful.

He ran around the place, his hands moving around with practiced strokes, killing people with ease, devouring their souls without delay.

My eyes roamed around, the memories of the day clearer than ever.

I almost felt a pang of sympathy as I looked at a woman, buried under a roof, trying to pull herself out.

Her son was staring at her, tears running down her face as he panicked, his whole body trembling in fear.

My brows furrowed. At that time, I felt nothing for her, but now that I am a mother myself, I couldn't help but feel... sad. She must be the most difficult decision of her life to leave her son to suffer alone in such a world.

My heart beat faster as I saw the boy turn around, his eyes shut tightly as he forced himself to run with his trembling legs.

The mother's mouth opened, blood dripping from between her teeth. She used her last bit of strength to shout a few words.

"Run away, Ryogaku!"

My eyes widened, the world around me morphing back into the present as I felt a painful burn.

My eyes darted to my hand, which had been shaking. I had spilled a bit of coffee onto it from the cup I was holding. I quickly placed the cup down, wiping the liquid with my clothes.

I leaned back, my breathing ragged as I stared out into the sky. My hand went to my forehead, gently rubbing it, trying to ease the pain.

I couldn't hear what the mother said clearly, and it had always been bothering me... I feel that it is something very... very important.

The headache slowly subsided, and I decided to put the matter away for now, my gaze drifting back to Elara.

Elara had gotten more confident. At first, she was weaker mentally than physically, but we made sure to break her emotional walls down, the method doesn't matter.

My eyes drifted upwards to the sky again, I didn't know what to look at anymore, I was confused. A sigh escaped my lips as I gazed upon the beautiful white clouds floating around.

Sukuna.

My son, his face never left my mind, the maniac that seemed to have inherited everything from Eiji.

I couldn't help but chuckle at the thought, my mood gradually getting better. They were similar, almost too similar.

My laughter died down, but a small smile persisted on my face.

I wonder how he's doing, if he's safe, if he's... happy.

The demon invasion had put us on the edge, especially after Sukuna willingly went to the frontlines.

My eyes glinted with a concern deeper than any other. He was someone I would give my life to save.

My fingers grabbed hold of the cup again, which hit my lips gently.

I took a sip of coffee. It was delicious, it's bitter yet sweet taste flowing down my throat.

However, suddenly, I felt... weird. I was an uneasy feeling in my heart, my breathing getting slightly uneven as I put my cup down on the table.

However, my eyes widened as I noticed something. My hand was trembling.

When was the last time this happened? When was the last time I was... scared?

My gaze traveled over to Eiji, who was still completely engrossed in the training, sweat flowing down his cheeks as he swung at Elara relentlessly.

I wanted to call him, I wanted him to take me in his comforting embrace, to calm my troubled heart.

Elara dodged to the side as he swung, his sword immediately turning and going towards her.

Elara, however, was completely calm, her hand gracefully moving to the side, parrying the incoming blade, before landing a solid punch to Eiji's chest, making him stumble backwards.

She had landed her first hit.

Eiji's grin widened, his hand throwing the sword to the ground as he clapped.

"You did it," he said, his grin fading, turning into a proud smile.

Elara grinned, falling to the grass with a thud, her chest rising and falling rapidly.

"Well, Amara—" He turned to me, wanting to say something, but suddenly, his eyes widened. He immediately shot towards me, his expression a mix of concern and fear.

I was confused, my eyebrows rising as I looked at his urgent movements.

Before I could say anything, I felt something flow down my chin... blood.

My head slowly moved down, my eyes widening as I saw my situation.

I was impaled, a huge sword going through my body, leaving from my abdomen, entering from my back.

A pain assaulted me... an overwhelmingly unbearable pain that tore through my nerves.

It feels like I am being stung... it burns... it hurts.

My vision started to go blurry, my voice trembling as I tried to call him, but no words came out, only groans. I felt like I was floating, my consciousness fading away as I felt my body falling.

I could hear faint noises of a fight as I landed on the ground with a thud, my vision slowly going dark.

I didn't even have time to cast healing magic, my body held together only by the instinctive, automatic healing my body was doing unconsciously.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, faint voices calling me, shouting my name with all their strength.

I wanted to get up... I won't die... I can't... not now...

The figure of the crying woman buried under the roof floated in my mind again... I realized, I was in the same situation.

Tears fell from my eyes. I won't leave my son alone in this world like she did... I want to be with him... I don't want to die.

My consciousness faded away, my body falling limp to the floor.

What happened next is something I have no idea nor recollection of... but there was something in my mind... something keeping me alive.

.

.

.

(POV: Aiden Arceid)

"How unfortunate," I muttered, my voice echoing in the empty room which was my office.

I was gazing out of the window-wall, my eyes roaming around the horizon as I took in the chaos.

The demon invasion reached its 'climax', they sent a huge army to attack the human world.

The frontlines were a catastrophe, hundreds dying within minutes.

Demons even reached the outskirts of the city, the massacre getting closer to the capital.

The walls in construction around the city, however, actually helped, contrary to my expectations, which decreased the deaths quite a bit.

"However." My whisper rang out, my finger tapping the armrest rhythmically as I closed my eyes gently. "Amara."

Sukuna's family... his mother, was injured, quite badly at that.

A sigh escaped my lips. He would be quite troubled... angry, even, if he finds it out.

My eyes opened again, my gaze drifting to the beautiful evening sky, clouds floating around like foam on water.

Sukuna was injured too, fighting the demon invasion.

A small smile crept onto my face... Sukuna was not good with long battles... this information was quite important to me.

"Ren Killes," I muttered, my expression turning impassive again as I thought of the boy, who was a promising subject.

He had been growing at a quick pace, keeping up with Sukuna in the battle, as Eleanor told me.

It is hard to figure out who wins in a fight.

However...

I got up from my seat with a loud exhale, taking support of the armrest as I moved my chair back to its position near the table.

...they're still far from reaching me.

I slowly walked towards the door, my sharp footsteps echoing in the confines of the bright room, illuminated my the rays of the evening sun.

The attack had ended, the people were safe... but little did they know.

My lips curled up, forming a devious, almost maniacal smile as my footsteps paused.

Little did they know... the demons were only testing the waters.

My footsteps continued, my arm extending as I reached the door, hovering over the doorknob.

Little did the demons know, however, that this 'testing of the waters' wasn't enough.

I slowly turned my expression back to normal, a polite smile on my face.

If the people in hiding came out, the balance of sides in this war will surely change.

I grabbed the doorknob tightly, rotating it with a high-pitched sound as my smile, polite and comforting, widened.

On the other side, a man stood, his face unexpressive, his posture lazy, his eyes slightly drooping, covered partially by his unkempt black hair that fell down to his face.

"Please sit," I said, moving out of his way, pointing to the couch near the middle of the room.

He simply nodded, slowly walking over and sitting down, his gazed fixed on me.

I closed the door without making a sound, unhurriedly walking to the couch, sitting right opposite to him.

This man looked quite weak as he leaned back on the couch, his gaze, uncannily apathetic, fixed on me.

Don't judge a book by its cover.

"Why have you called me here?" His voice rang out, quite high-pitched for a grown man, yet very soft-spoken too.

My smile only widened, my eyes staring into his as I leaned forward. "I've wanted to have a talk with you for quite a while..."

My elbows rested on my knees as I saw a flicker of intrigue in his eyes.

"...Mean."