Two moons had passed since the ship bled.
Now it was quiet.
Mostly.
Yumi and Riku worked the deck under the hot sun, dragging dried bodies by their ankles, scrubbing the last of the blood off the floorboards with saltwater and thick brushes. Their hands were blistered, red and raw, but neither dared complain.
High above them, stretched across a wooden throne of crates, rope coils, and soft furs stolen from the captain's quarters, lounged the killer of the god-beast.
Me.
Half-naked. Half-drunk. Fully king.
Meat juice soaked my beard. I howled with laughter as I tore into a slab of preserved pig. I had a wine jug in one hand, a fish in the other. I'd dipped the fish in the wine for flavor.
"Yuuumiiii!" I bellowed. "Wiiiiine!"
She jumped.
Riku dropped the bloody mop head he was using and stood still like a rabbit scenting a wolf.
Yumi approached, steady as ever. She was used to my noise now. Used to the blood. The sharp grins. She'd stopped flinching weeks ago.
She poured wine into my jug like a proper servant girl. But her eyes said otherwise.
She watched everything. Learned everything.
Just like I did.
I couldn't say full sentences yet.
But I had words.
Objects.
Tools.
Commands.
I'd learned what sails were. Masts. Rudder. Anchor. Bow. Stern. Deck. Captain's quarters.
I knew the names of rooms and ropes and weapons. I could call for fire. Water. Knives. Barrels.
Every day I pointed at something and barked until they named it. Until I learned it.
Every night I sat Yumi and Riku down and made them teach me more. I demanded knowledge like I once demanded meat.
Riku hated it. He never hid it.
Yumi tolerated it. She even smiled sometimes.
But neither of them ever said no.
One hot afternoon, I sat cross-legged in the captain's chair. It fit me now. I'd ripped the arms off. Carved new grooves with my own claws.
Maps were spread before me. Lines and circles and words I couldn't read. Marks that looked like claws dragging over paper.
Books too. Big and bound in leather, filled with markings like ants marching in spirals.
I grunted and slammed my hand down.
"What?"
Yumi looked up from where she was coiling rope nearby.
She knew what I meant.
She stepped in, wiped her hands on her skirt, and started explaining. Slowly. Carefully.
"This," she said, tapping the big map, "is the world."
I squinted.
She pointed at the endless blue around it. "Ocean."
I nodded. Knew that one.
"This..." her finger tapped the largest landmass. "Nihon."
Her eyes flicked to me. "Our home."
I leaned forward. Interested.
She started pointing to dots. Lines. Symbols.
"Cities. Clans. Capitals."
The words didn't make sense. Didn't matter.
I listened.
I remembered.
Every sound.
I tapped my chest.
"Me. More?"
She blinked.
I repeated, tapping my chest, then the map. "Me. More?"
Her brows knit. She understood what I was asking.
She hesitated.
Then nodded. Slowly.
"Yes. Many more."
I leaned back. Grinning.
"Like me?"
She froze.
Just for a second.
Her lips parted.
Riku's voice snapped across the room before she could speak.
"Don't."
I looked over at him.
He stood in the doorway, face pale, arms crossed.
Yumi frowned. "He deserves to know."
"He's not one of us," Riku said. "He doesn't need to know anything."
I didn't understand the words.
But I understood the tone.
Fear. Anger. Defiance.
My smile faded.
Riku turned to Yumi. "You're being stupid. You know what the stories say. What happens when an immortal rises. You think he's going to save us? He'll eat us."
"He already saved us," Yumi snapped. "He could've eaten us, but he didn't. That matters."
"It doesn't!" Riku hissed. "You think he's a hero? Look at him! He's not a man… he's a monster wearing skin!"
Yumi stepped forward, voice rising. "Then maybe the world needs a monster!"
I'd had enough.
I stood.
And I threw the knife.
THWUNK
It hit the wall between them, sinking deep into the wooden frame.
Silence.
Both of them froze.
I pointed at Yumi. Curled my finger.
"Come."
She came.
Not slowly.
Not in fear.
She knew better than to make me wait.
I pointed at the map.
Pointed at myself.
Then tapped the continent again.
"Me. Others?"
Her throat bobbed. Then she nodded.
"Yes. Others."
I tapped again.
"Strong. Like me?"
She took a breath.
Then nodded.
"Stronger."
I growled low.
Then she smiled… smug, not cruel.
"You're immortal," she said.
I didn't know the word.
But I would.
She pointed to my chest. "You don't die."
I laughed.
I pointed to my skull. Shook my head.
"No. I Die."
She blinked.
I pointed again. "Die. Many Die. Back."
Her mouth parted. Shock. Then fascination.
"You die… and you come back?"
I nodded.
She sat down.
Spoke slowly. Softly.
"I read stories... old ones. About immortals. Born when a god-dragon awakens. You grow stronger with each kill. You heal. You feed on power."
I tilted my head. Curious.
"You've probably already unlocked your second Dragon Point?"
I grunted. "Point?"
She gestured to her body.
Head, chest, limbs.
"Dragon Points. The Ryuten. Inside. Power."
I frowned. Then nodded.
I felt something shift after the last beast.
She kept talking.
"Immortals are born when the world is ready to change. That's what the monks say. When an immortal wakes, it means a clan will rise… or fall."
Riku's voice came from the door, bitter and low.
"Fairy tales."
Yumi turned.
"They're patterns. Warnings. The scrolls said that the last time an immortal was born, three cities were wiped out. Two clans destroyed. The war lasted thirty years."
Riku scoffed. "We're not in stories, Yumi. We're in hell. He's not your friend. He's just waiting to kill us."
He glared at me.
"And he will."
I looked between them.
Then walked to the wall and yanked the blade free.
They flinched.
I didn't throw it again.
I just sat down.
And grinned.
Yumi approached. Hesitant.
I held out the blade. Flat palm.
She took it.
Her fingers trembled slightly.
She looked me in the eye. "You've... changed?"
I tilted my head. "Change?"
She nodded. "Stronger?"
I leaned in. "Yes. I… die. Come back. Many time. Stronger. Everytime."
She smiled. "Then maybe that's your gift."
I bared my teeth. "Gift?"
"Each immortal gets a gift from their god-dragon." she tried to explain. "You grow stronger because you die. You learn faster. Maybe that is your gift."
She was right.
I was not like the others.
I was not born stronger.
I earned it.
One death at a time.
I stood tall.
Clenched my fists.
And growled.
"I die. I come back. I learn. I kill. I eat."
I pointed to the map.
"To them."
Yumi looked at the continent.
"You want to fight them?"
"No."
I shook my head.
"Eat them."