Time seemed to freeze. Kane, Bokar, and Gako stood still as the brazen wind blew. Their hair fluttered, so too the leaves and grasses.

Gako broke the silent and yelled, “Stop that, uncle!” He reached for Bokar’s hand, but he was blown away with a push.

“Stay back, kid. There are some questions I must ask.” Bokar gawked back at Kane. “Who, or rather, what are you exactly? Are you a demon that possesses the real Kane?”

Kane maintained his usual demeanor. Inside, he searched every nook and corner of his brain. What is the best possible answer? As he looked at Bokar’s red eyes, the killing intent gushed into him. The old man was dead serious, which meant a wrong answer equaled a chopped head. Running away wasn’t even an option. His equipment suggested that he was a seasoned fighter. The outcome would be obvious.

Why did this even happen in the first place? Kane recalled every moment after he met Bokar. Did he make a mistake somewhere? No, he never showed off and kept everything in moderation. Even asking him whether he could become his apprentice shouldn’t have been too suspicious. It should have only been a mere child curiosity. What about his fight against the monsters? It was likely that anyone other than Bokar would see him as a prodigy at most rather than being possessed by someone.

Unless the man in front of him had sharp intuition, too sharp that he could even deduce Kane’s state correctly. He had no doubt that whether he held back or not would yield the same result.

“What do you mean about being possessed by a demon? I’m still myself,” said Kane with a shaky voice. It was a risky move to lie, but he still bet on it because he had no other way.

Bokar gritted his teeth. He pushed the blade in a little bit deeper; Kane’s blood dripped from his neck then to the cold steel. “Don’t lie to me!”

“I’m not lying! Why do you accuse me like that?” Kane could guess why Bokar was hesitating: the man still had some doubts.

Bokar twitched. His grip became stronger. “Why? Because everything about you is unnatural. You seem to hide something behind your attitude, words, even your expression. You’re really different compared to you 2 years ago when I last saw you. As if you’re a different person…”

Bokar’s last sentence petrified Kane. Was his cover blown? he asked himself as his heart palpitated. Then, Bokar continued asking, “Tell me, Kane, how did you use your vis?”

“Vis? You mean the weird aura I released before? It was just an intuition,” said Kane.

“Hmph! Even the most genius prodigy would take more than six months in order to properly use them.”

Kane now realized his mistake. He shouldn’t have gotten carried away and used his vis to finish off the bear. Such a big blunder for a reincarnated master.

There was no other way than playing dumb. Admitting the truth right now would only result in death. And thus he said, “You’re right. I wanted to keep this a secret but I guess I have no choice. I started learning it a long time ago.”

“Long time ago?” Bokar contorted even more.

“I mean since I was eight years old. I swear that I’m not lying.” Kane gazed at the old oni’s eyes. He referred to his previous life so technically it wasn’t a lie.

“Then, where did you learn this?”

“From my father, of course.”

Bokar began to sweat. His sword trembled but the grip was firm. His eyes narrowed. He raised the sword quickly.

“Ahhh!!!!”

He swung his scimitar at the nearby trees on his right. The slash cut and fell several large trees with ease. Kane could see Bokar’s fierce aura surrounded all over his body.

Kane noticed that the vis and his killing intent faded away. Was he successful at convincing Bokar?

“You’re not a demon after all. Sorry that I’ve doubted you.” He then looked to his right. “And you too Gako. I hope I didn’t push you too hard.”

Kane furrowed his brows. A mere apology definitely would not suffice for threatening to kill him. He asked, “If I was lying, would you have really killed me?”

“I would only kill you right when your form starts changing. In my experience, a demon will reveal his true form when they’re in danger. Again, I’m sorry to put you in that situation,” said Bokar. His tone was unconvincing, and Kane sensed a little hostility.

Kane now understood what was behind Bokar’s accusation. He also wondered if Bokar was delusional, but when he thought about it again, his statement was true. Kane too had occasional encounters with real demons, and they’d had that behavior.

After he walked away from Kane, Gako approached him. “Are you okay, Kane? Ah! Your wounds…” He noticed the bruise and his bleeding neck.

Kane covered the slit and hid his bruised arm. “I’m fine. This is nothing, really.”

“That’s right Kane, those wounds are minor but you should treat them. Here,” said Bokar in the distance. He tossed a glass bottle that contained green liquid while carrying the monster corpse with his left arm. Gako stared at him filled with amazement, but he avoided looking at his eyes.

Kane caught them and inspected it. “What’s this?” He actually knew it but he still asked anyway to prevent Bokar becoming suspicious again.

“A healing salve. Just apply it to your injuries.”

Kane wanted to talk, but Bokar interrupted. “I know you’re definitely angry right now and you think that I still haven’t apologized properly, but I can explain that. Meet me in my shop tomorrow morning, if you want to.” He then left the two as he walked away while dragging the bear.

Suddenly, he stopped and said, “Also, I’ve accepted you as my apprentice so don’t worry about gathering the other materials. Goodbye, you two.”

Gako gazed at the Bokar’s shadow that slowly disappeared in the horizon. “That uncle Bokar… What’s up with him? I’ve never seen him like that.”

“Do you know Bokar’s background, Gako?” asked Kane as he rubbed the healing salve on his injuries. The bruise became smaller but still visible and the slit on his neck stopped bleeding.

“I remember that Bokar settled here seven years ago, I think. I heard that when my dad and he were talking. He was some sort of a hunter, never staying in one place. Really nice back then, though we rarely met. And he wasn’t violent and cruel.”

“I see,” said Kane, disappointed. He shouldn’t expect a child to know much about Bokar.

Gako nodded. “Yeah. Normally, Deven didn’t allow outsiders to live here, but both of your dad and uncle are okay.”

“Why is that?” asked Kane.

“Uhh… I think they once saved the village from a terrible monster. It’s a well-known story,” answered Gako.

Later, they walked to Deven by following the scratches on the trees. The sky was already orange when they arrived. Almost nobody was around at this time. Kane and Gako parted ways and went to their own homes.

Kane entered his house and put his bag on the dining table. He poured out what was inside. Many kinds of herbs and plants piled onto the surface.

“Time to make the basic strength potion,” he said after counting all the ingredients.

Since his father was gone for a while, he decided to use this opportunity to make them. Unlike advanced potions and beyond, any equipment could be used, including basic kitchenware — though that would lower the potion’s quality.

In the kitchen, there was a metallic pot placed near the wall, right in line with the kitchen door. When Kane finished preparing the ingredients, thus he boiled some water in the pot. While waiting for the water to boil, he chopped all of the herbs into small pieces. Just as the bubbles were rising up to the water’s surface, Kane put them into the pot then stirred it with a spatula.

In a minute, the water became as yellow as lemon peels and exuded a faint pungent aroma.

“Now, it’s time to put this.” Kane sprinkled teal blue minced leaves into the pot.

As the ingredients entered the pot, the entire liquid became orange colored and glowed. This was even noticeable while in the dark. All the plants were dissolved in the liquid.

After Kane put out the fire, he closed the pot with a lid. Next, he brought it to his room and stored it in his cupboard. The size of the pot was small enough to fit in.

“Although the ingredients were not of the best quality, I managed to brew a rather good quality potion. Still, I could’ve done it better if my skill wasn’t too rusty.” Kane nodded in satisfaction.

Kane lay on the bed, recalling the event this afternoon.

“Fortunately, Bokar didn’t question me further, otherwise the situation could’ve been disastrous.” Kane was relieved that his prevarication was successful. His secrets were safe despite the fact that he had revealed some of his past life to others.

Staring blankly at the ceiling, he muttered the following words.

“Should I kill him?”