A/N: Hello everyone, I took a long hiatus and took some time to plan out the future of WDYSIYM and to clear up my vision for it. Here we begin chapter 6.1 right after Villain's Dignity, for a quick recap. Chapter 5, Villain Dignity explores Otto's conflicting state and explains how Firstborn's power worked and what it offered Otto, after that, some talk between Fu Hua before Seto asks Otto to train him.
Chapter 6.1: Towards a Nebulous Future
"Could you please, train me as a warrior?" Seto pleaded as he bowed towards Otto in a respectful manner.
The sudden request made Otto flinch in surprise as he turned towards the black-haired youth. He had a good guess as to why the young man would suddenly ask this only several days after his close friend's unfortunate passing.
"You feel that you are lacking?" Otto questioned with a solemn gaze. He wasn't prepared to take on a new disciple, nor did he believe the young man possessed the talent.
"...Yes," Seto admitted with a regretful tone as he remained still.
"...You are already doing a lot for your friends. I think you do not need to be burdened by anything else." Otto replied with an understanding tone.
"...No. I still need to do more." Seto argued with a pained tone that seemed as if he was about to crack open.
"It's about Raiden isn't it?" Otto questioned with a sigh of concern. He hadn't known the young man for a long time, but his request to become a better fighter only implied back to the same tragic event. It was understandable. They did not even have the proper time to mourn their losses. The air in the camp was heavy and dark, and although the survivors were still recovering, many were still in a dazed state as if they were stuck in an eternal nightmare. They did not talk to one another and only responded for a brief moment before going back to themselves. Those who were fortunate to be left untouched by the attack were still concerned for their friends and helped console them.
"We're all too weak..." Seto then explained as he felt his heart drop to the bottom of the abyss, his breath was breaking apart like there was always a hole inside himself every time he breathed in, and it always made him want to just crumble down and scream into the air when he breathed out. However. He had to hold strong. The nameless street needed him.
"You simply faced an opponent no humans could've faced." Otto reasoned, trying to free the young man of his guilty conscience for something that was not his fault.
"That's what I always believed." Seto then retorted as he stood upright and gazed down at Otto with powerful determination. It reminded Otto of himself, the look of a pathetic being who desired the strength to change the world.
"Raiden... he always stood in front of everyone. He created the nameless street in order to protect those who were left behind. He would always tell me that I wouldn't have to worry about a single thing because he was there." Seto then explained as he began to trail off.
"But now he isn't anymore." He concluded.
"I became complacent. I only did the minimum. I believed that things could return to normal. Nameless street would one day be what I'd call home."
"...I can't be like that anymore." Seto then explained. "I won't be able to go on if I have to watch another person perish before me."
Silence overtook the air as Seto finished his words and waited for Otto's answer with anxiousness and a shaky expression. He was not used to asking for help. Let alone from a new face like Otto. But he didn't have any other choice.
Otto closed his eyes for a moment and thought it over. He knew that the young man was desperate for strength, but how could he tell him that no matter how strong a human was, it wouldn't matter to a Honkai Beast?
With a grim expression, he turned his gaze back towards Seto and gathered the strength in his voice before replying.
"You don't have the talent," Otto answered with a heavy tone.
Seto flinched and furrowed his brows. "What do you mean...?" Seto questioned in shock and disbelief.
"You don't have the talent, you cannot become a warrior." Otto then repeated.
"...Why not.? Am I incapable..? How could you tell?" Seto argued with a desperate tone as he tried to convince Otto otherwise.
"It's complicated... Do you know about Schicksal... Valkyries, or the Honkai?" Otto then questioned as he sighed heavily and prepared to explain to Seto that not everyone could fight against the Honkai.
"...I know what the Honkai is, it is the thing that destroyed our home." Seto then answered as he looked at Otto attentively.
"Honkai is an energy that follows the laws of thermodynamics and it exists everywhere on the planet." Otto then began to explain. "This energy is dangerous to humans. Think of it as radioactive energy. If it was just the energy alone, then it would not be harmful. However... once enough energy condenses, it creates what you call a Honkai beast." Otto then explained.
"And this is the thing that attacked our camp?" Seto questioned.
"A manifestation of it." Otto then corrected. "The Honkai can manifest in many forms, natural disasters, diseases and then the Honkai beasts. For example, the Black Death was a Honkai infection that plagued most of Europe in the late 14th century." He then explained.
"...What does this have to do with my talent.?" Seto then asked with a confused tone.
"There are a select few who are born with the ability to adapt to Honkai energy. They can tolerate Honkai energy much more than the average humans." Otto then explained.
"...And I'm not one of them..." Seto then concluded as his gaze turned down towards the ground in a disappointed manner.
"Fighting an Honkai beast will allow Honkai energy to seep into you. That energy will kill you immediately." Otto then affirmed.
"But... even so... I'd still have the power to protect nameless street, won't I?" Seto then asked as he gazed back up. "I don't care if it kills me, If I can protect them at least once then it's all wor-" Seto compromised but was interrupted by Otto.
"That's not all. There are people who can adapt to this energy in their body and use it as a power to fight the Honkai." Otto then retorted. "Schicksal, the secret organization behind the protection of humanity enlists these individuals and trains them to fight the Honkai."
"Which means. No matter how much you train, unless you can wield Honkai energy in your body. You cannot fight Honkai." Otto then concluded.
Seto then looked stunned as his eyes widened, his mouth dropped agape at the conclusion that he was just simply born untalented.
"There's nothing I can do to make up for it...?" He asked, still desperate for some sort of affirmation.
"No. You need Honkai energy inside of you." Otto then retorted in a harsh and cruel tone.
Seto remained silent as he tried to come up with any more ideas but he knew that Otto's point was clear. He won't be able to fight to defend his people. He then bit his lips in anger and frustration.
"I don't care." Seto then replied in a frustrated tone.
"Set-" Otto tried to reply but stopped as he sensed that the young man had reached his breaking point.
"I don't care how weak or untalented I am. I believed I was talentless, I didn't give it my all and this is what happens." Seto then retorted angrily.
"Raksha. If you don't want to waste your time on me then just say so." He then accused with a tone dripping of resentment.
"I would never," Otto replied with a slightly surprised tone at Seto's sudden turn of hostility.
"I know you don't think we can be strong." He then continued.
"Seto, calm dow-"
"THEN TELL ME THE TRUTH" Seto barked angrily as he charged at Otto and grabbed him by his collar he glared up into his green eyes with a scowl, gritting his teeth as his eyes glared desperately into the blonde-haired man's green pair of eyes. However, his expression was trembling in a mix of sadness, frustration and angst.
"DO YOU THINK WE'RE ALL BEYOND SAVING?" He growled.
"No," Otto replied as he tried to calm down the young man, placing both of his hands on Seto's shoulders.
"SO WHAT IF I CAN'T USE HONKAI?' Seto then asked as he swiped Otto's hands away in a curt manner.
"You're going to get yourself killed." Otto reasoned.
"Then so be it. I'm not having anyone else die on me." Seto retorted as he slowly relaxed his grip, but remained still before Otto, gazing up at him.
"I can always do more. I could have done more. We all could have done more."
"You've already done the best you could at that time," Otto replied in an effort to console Seto.
"You don't understand. You don't understand unless you have lived here." Seto retorted angrily.
"The warmth of the sun of a new day that seemed so mundane. The voices of the friends you meet at the bus stop. The sight of the kids playing in the park as the school bus passed by the middle school. The restaurant everyone frequents. The community park is crowded with voices and people. The locker you put your bag in. The classroom you sat at and the lectures you listened to. The damn lectures that seemed so tedious and pointless. You then hung out with your friends at lunch and played cards together or just talked about how you were going to hang out after school. The road back home. The house you've lived in for seventeen years. The visage of people you've known for your entire life. The home food you ate." Seto then said as his voice began to break, breathing in the tears that started to fall naturally as he tried to keep in his emotions.
"...You don't know what this town used to look like, the life you used to live before it's nothing but a dusted street with debris lying everywhere and all you've got left is strange faces and a couple of tents."
"I used to hate a kid until now I'm the only one left in that classroom." He then concluded as he fell to his knees, his hands still clutching onto Otto's shirt.
"Please, I don't care if I amount to nothing."
"I just want to do something."
"I don't want to sit idly around anymore."
"This world won't have that."
"Even if I can't fight the Honkai as you say."
"I just want to die having done my best."
"I don't want to tell him on the other side that I was irresponsible after he left." Seto then pleaded one last time as he became quiet, suppressing his emotions as he clutched his chest and wiped the tears that flowed down his face endlessly.
Otto glanced down at the young man with a pitiful look.
He then breathed in deeply before replying.
"After you finish all your work leading the camp. Come find me." He then replied.
"So long as I am here. Nothing will touch nameless street again." Otto then gave the greatest consolation he could offer.
A/N: And that will be the first part of chapter 6. There is probably going to be around 3 parts of chapter 6 or maybe 2. I cut it up because it's getting late and I didn't want to rush the chapter and take out the quality for a speedy and hasty upload.
With this, WDYSIYM has returned and I'll try to get the rest of the chapter out soon.
I also want to remind everyone after chapter 5 that even I am as confused as you are about the overall idea of how Firstborn's powers work or explaining all that stuff. I tried to patch up as many holes as I can but I had an idea but not the entire map drawn. Not to mention, this is the first time I wrote a story of such great length. So there will be a lot of loopholes.
Why do I say this? after going through multiple brainstorms of WDYSIYM, I realized "What the hell am I writing? This makes no sense."
