The Blue Eyed King of Kuoh

Eyes full of Kindness

Two Years Later...

Now 13 years old, Rune's life had become much more hectic. At his own insistence, after spending 3 days to convince Grayfia to agree, he had begun training from early morning to mid evening. To the point where he barely had any free time otherwise. Though he was forced to take at minimum 1 day off every week so as to not destroy himself. The one aspect of his life that he refused to change however, was the time he spent with Rias.

Even if less than before, he refused to sacrifice their friendship for the sake of training. Something that made Rias endlessly happy to see. Especially once she made the discovery of Anime and manga, something she forced Rune to watch/read with her. Though hesitant in the beginning due to his preference to read mythological texts, he eventually warmed up to it. Specifically, when he discovered a manga called "Berserk". He felt like he could somewhat connect with the story more so than other fantasy types. Though he did also become a fan of "Samurai X" and "Hajime no Ippo". He figured it was simply because these characters were able to overcome their own differing challenges through various methods. Whether it be anger and strength, skill and cunning, or sheer determination and unwavering resolve.

Deciding to find inspiration in the world of fiction as well as mythological heroes, he began to think about his own situation regarding the unknown period of when his quest would be due to begin. Regardless, he was appreciative of Rias for introducing him to a new world of inspiring characters. Though he was quite surprised that the character "Himura Kenshin" was based on the actual historical Hitokiri by the name of Kawakami Gensai. Though their lives were quite different, the similarities in character after the warring periods remained. This led to further interest in Japanese history, specifically regarding known warriors and tactics.

Due to this now shared interest in Japanese culture, Rias was decided to learn their language alongside Rune as another form of shared interest. During this time, his training steadily began to bare fruit in some unexpected ways. For one, instead of becoming the most comfortable with a weapon like a sword, or simple steel gauntlets for brawling, he felt oddly at home with a spear in his hands. A weapon he did not expect to enjoy using quickly became his favorite, taking to it like an infant with their favorite blanket. It felt...comforting to the boy, like home.

This did not go unnoticed by Grayfia, and she decided to speak with Sirzechs in order to prepare a gift for the young boy. While that was being prepared, Grayfia began taking him on trips to the human world in order to learn survival skills all across the European forests, as well finding someone to teach him how to sail a small 1 man ship, how to navigate using the stars, hunt, etc. 

It was after returning from a 2 week long training trip that, after seeing Rune be tackled by Rias upon walking in the Gremory estate, Venalana brought up the idea of a small vacation for the two of them. Though she said it was supposed to be a reward for their hard work in studying/training, Grayfia immediately picked up on the real reason why. However, she decided to play along and help Rias "Get her man" as Venalana would often say. 

This was due to both women noticing how Rias' affections towards Rune seemed to take a more romantic turn. Something the young girl herself seemed to be unaware of, as she was still trying to understand her feelings on the matter. Though, it would seem Rune has been too preoccupied with his training to properly notice the difference in Rias' behavior. If someone didn't know any better, they'd likely paint Rune as the "Dense" type in this regard. However, everyone who knew Rune would disagree. Hopefully all the free time spent with Rias would help him realize this.

With the vacation readily accepted by the two, they began preparing for their 1 week long trip to the human world. Japan specifically, at Rias' insistence of course. While the children were preparing to leave however, Venalana had pulled Grayfia aside for a private conversation.