Episode 8: Beyond the Door
Souma and Kei faced each other in the gym, locked in a heated confrontation.
Just before things could reach a decisive end, Touka and Kanoshike rushed in and stopped them.
The outcome—
No contest.
Marks of the struggle remained on the gym floor.
Souma barely had time to catch his breath as he looked around the cluttered evacuation shelter.
Beside him, Touka crossed her arms.
“…Alright then. Time for a lecture.”
Souma lowered his head.
But Touka smiled.
“That’s what I should say.
But there’s no way you started this, Souma.
That edgy guy must’ve provoked you again.
He’s got a bad attitude. Tell us what happened.”
Souma lifted his head and explained.
“…Himuro hurt a civilian.”
He bit his lip.
“When I tried to stop him, I got hit…
and before I knew it, things escalated.”
Touka’s expression darkened instantly.
“That idiot…! What does he think he’s doing to our Souma!?”
Kanoshike clenched his fists.
“I always thought he was annoying, but this is way worse than I imagined!”
“Getting provoked so easily and hurting civilians?
That’s just pathetic. The civilians—and Souma—are the victims here.”
Souma said nothing.
There was no denying Kei was at fault.
“That idiot… I’ll deal with him when he wakes up.
…but Souma. You were impressive.”
“…Huh?”
Souma blinked, surprised by the praise.
“To be honest, I underestimated you.
After seeing all that horror, seeing you get sick…
I thought, ‘This kid can’t fight. We have to protect him.’
But that’s not true anymore.
You stood up to Kei. That took courage. Be proud of it.”
Souma’s stiff expression softened slightly.
“…Thank you.”
“And Souma.
You triggered Gorin, didn’t you?”
“Gorin…?
I think Himuro mentioned that…”
When Souma’s fist connected earlier, red sparks had scattered.
And Kei had shouted—
“Why can someone as weak as you trigger Gorin…!?”
“…Is Gorin really that big of a deal?”
“Of course it is.
You can’t activate it on purpose.”
Touka began explaining.
“Gorin isn’t something you aim for.
It happens in an instant—
a fraction of a second when two forces collide perfectly.
For that moment, the flow doesn’t stagnate or reverse.
Fear, anger, or resolve—
one of them has to be pushed to its absolute limit.
The moment you try to activate it, you usually fail.
That’s why it’s rare.
The fact that a beginner like you triggered it proves you’ve got talent.”
“…I do?”
Souma felt a small spark of happiness.
“When Gorin activates, your strike becomes several times stronger than normal.
But it’s not that the technique itself improves.
The density of power spikes unnaturally.
Afterward, you start to see the flow—
you waste less energy, your efficiency improves,
and you understand applications instinctively.
It’s not a flashy level-up.
It’s like your perception opens up.”
“That sounds amazing!
If I could do it repeatedly, wouldn’t that be unstoppable?”
“Nope. It’s not that simple.
You can’t use it back-to-back.
It causes severe exhaustion or disrupts your flow.
Trying to reproduce it usually fails.
And if your heart wavers, you may never trigger it again.
That’s why true experts can use it—
but don’t rely on it.”
Kanoshike’s eyes sparkled.
“I don’t really get it, but it sounds awesome!
I wanna do it too!”
“First, fix your personality.”
Touka turned back to Souma.
“Souma.
Triggering Gorin deepens your understanding of power and techniques.
If your ability is already engraved in your body
and you just haven’t figured it out yet,
this raises the chances dramatically.
You might even be able to use fire or water someday.
Excited yet?”
Kanoshike shouted.
“That’s sick!
I wanna see Souma shooting energy blasts and stuff!”
“Why are you the one getting excited?”
Souma smiled quietly.
“When I triggered Gorin…
I felt a little stronger.
Like… maybe I really can fight.
That makes me happy.”
Touka and Kanoshike smiled back.
But Touka’s expression soon darkened.
“…Still, Souma.
Gorin isn’t something you can brush off as ‘talent.’
Once the door opens, you can’t go back.
You’ve already stepped halfway onto this side.”
Souma felt a chill despite his joy.
“…I can’t go back?”
Touka answered softly.
“It’s okay to be afraid.
But it’s also okay to be proud.”
Souma understood then—
Gorin was both a gift and a point of no return.
“By the way…
Before Gorin activated, I saw something—
like the future. Was that part of it?”
“Huh? Never heard of that.”
“What!? You can see the future!? That’s awesome!”
“…So then?”
“Most likely, that’s something else entirely.
A hidden ability of yours might be awakening.”
“My… hidden power…”
“One thing’s for sure.
If you saw it during Gorin,
your power reacted to something.”
“…Reacted.”
That vision—
it would become Souma’s key.
At that moment, Kei suddenly stirred.
“…Ugh… I was… asleep?”
As he woke, Touka immediately struck his stomach.
“Gah—! What are you doing!?”
“That’s my line!
I heard everything from Souma!
You hurt him? You hurt civilians!?
Do you have any idea what you’ve done to our reputation!?”
Kanoshike backed her up.
“Yeah!”
“You dare confront me the moment I wake…
Are you picking a fight?”
“Please stop!”
Souma stepped between them.
“You brat…
I won’t forgive you…”
“Someone restrain him!”
Kanoshike grabbed Kei from behind.
“Calm down already!”
Kei struggled, but Kanoshike’s strength held firm.
“Why are you acting like this!?
Aren’t we teammates!?”
“…Teammates? Don’t make me laugh.
I don’t consider people like you allies.”
Touka hesitated—then decided.
“Souma. Tie him up.”
“Yes!”
They restrained Kei and took his sword.
“Give it back…”
“No.
Right now, it’s dangerous.
Your eyes aren’t on monsters—you’re looking at people.”
“…Yeah. I’m injured because of you too.”
Touka spoke calmly.
“Why did you even get that angry?
A kid called your fighting ‘hero play’ and you snapped?
That’s ridiculous.”
Kei shouted back.
“…I was watched… looked down on… again!
That kid mocked my fight like it was a game!”
“…I see.”
“And that’s not all!
A woman said I was crazy for training nonstop,
and a man told me I was in the way!”
“Well, the guy wasn’t wrong.
And you could’ve just warned the woman lightly.
Why let it get to you that much?”
“…Shut up…!”
Seeing no point continuing, Touka sighed.
“This is going nowhere.
We’re leaving. Cool your head.”
“Hey—wait!”
“Kanoshike, wanna play games over there?”
“Sure! Smash Bros?”
“Souma, you coming?”
“…No.
I’ll stay here a bit longer.”
“Alright. Come when you’re done.”
They left.
Only Souma and Kei remained.
Kei spoke coldly.
“…Go away.”
But Souma didn’t move.
“No.
I want to talk to you.”
Kei clicked his tongue.
“…What’s your angle?”
The voices faded.
All that remained in the gym
was Kei’s rough breathing
and the creak of rope.
Souma crouched down.
“…Let’s talk.”
He looked up at Kei.
“…You saved my life once.”
And so,
the conversation between an earnest boy
and a broken man began.
