Ryuko sat in the farthest corner, arms crossed, face unreadable.

  His mind pyed through each of his battles—his kills, his failures, his growth.

  The st few months.

  Ren. A fight where he should have died. A fight where, for the first time, he felt the thrill of a real battle.

  Tenzan. The realization that raw power wasn’t enough—that even with Erebus, he was still just another piece on the board.

  Watari.

  His lips curled slightly.

  “That bastard still pisses me off.”

  Watari had been the first person in years to actually surprise him.

  To break his void, to push past the yers of darkness Ryuko had built around himself.

  He thought Ren was the interesting one.

  But it was the kid the whole time.

  And now?

  The kid wasn’t even here.

  A part of him was irritated about it.

  Another part of him… slightly respected it.