Young Master | Nishimura Riki

"Teach me how to fight."

The words fell from her lips like a whisper against dusk-
soft, unyielding, laced with a flame she didn't yet know she carried.
Riki froze.
Not because of the plea,
but because of the weight it suddenly bore.

It wasn't the first time he'd heard it.

Once, in a time blurred by memory and pain,
those same words were spoken-
not by her,
but by someone whose fire once lit his world,
whose name he no longer dared to speak aloud.

And now, standing before him,
was a shadow of the past wrapped in new skin.
Different face.
Different voice.
But the echo was undeniable.

The air between them grew heavier-
not from her request,
but from the memories it stirred.
Could he go through it again?

Yet even with his heart weighed by ghosts,
he couldn't look away.
Because in her-
there was a spark.
And it was familiar.