As a child, Yujin was a crybaby.
Small for his age. A face that looked like a girl's. A timid disposition.
If luck had been on his side, he might have made plenty of friends.
But as fate would have it, he became a target for bullying instead.
And so, day after day, he would come home in tears.
Until one day, his brother — five years his senior — clapped him on the back and said with a broad grin:
"Yujin! A real man doesn't cry in front of others. Show weakness, and people will walk all over you. Always stand tall and hold your head high. You're a man, aren't you?"
But his brother didn't stop at words of encouragement.
He was big, with a face that could look downright fierce when he wanted it to.
He tracked down every last kid who'd been leading the bullying.
And before long, the harassment aimed at Yujin quietly disappeared.
To Yujin, his brother was a hero — someone to admire and lean on.
One night, beneath a sky lit by a full moon, his brother shared his dream.
"I'm going to be a Commander someday. Isn't that cool? A hero who protects humanity from the Erosion Species! Maybe I'll even end up on TV?"
"What's so great about being on TV?"
"Huh? Well… for starters, you'd get famous. Build up a following, have pretty girls coming to find you… something like that, right?"
"I think you'd already be popular without going to all that trouble."
"Heh heh heh, yeah! I am pretty popular, aren't I!"
That was a lie.
His brother was a good person, but… he had absolutely no luck with women.
The moment he stood in front of a girl, he'd freeze up like he'd turned to stone.
A girlfriend was out of the question — it was doubtful he even knew any women.
*Don't tell me he's going after Valkyries because regular humans are too much for him…?*
Yujin asked his brother, half on a whim.
Whether he had any special feelings toward Valkyries.
Valkyries wore the shape of humans, but they were not human.
So there was no need to feel sorry for them or pity them.
That was what Yujin had been taught at school.
At that, his brother gave him a look that was somehow full of quiet sadness.
Then he gently ruffled Yujin's hair and said:
"Yujin. Valkyries aren't so different from humans. Aside from having special powers, they laugh just like us… and they cry, too."
"But… I heard that Valkyries don't even scream when they die. That they don't shed a single tear even when their comrades fall."
"That's because they're conditioned not to feel unnecessary emotions during combat. But in everyday life, they're all kind, good people."
"…If you say so, then I believe you."
"Actually, maybe the reason I want to become a Commander is because I wanted to change the way Valkyries are treated — the way people just let them die without a second thought."
That was different from anything he'd been taught at school.
But Yujin didn't doubt his brother for a single moment.
Because to him, his brother's words were always right.
Of course, what came next immediately deflated him.
"But honestly, aren't Valkyries prettier than regular women? I really don't get why adults dislike them so much."
"So you are going after Valkyries…."
My beloved brother, a Valkyrie enthusiast.
Even so, if he was going to do it, Yujin hoped he'd at least achieve his dream.
He wanted his brother to become a great Commander.
"Well then, I'm off! Yujin, you take care of yourself!"
"Have a safe trip. Don't let any shady people take advantage of you."
"Stay healthy, big brother."
"Bwahahaha! I'll make sure to bring a girlfriend home when I come back!"
Surely the girlfriend he'd bring back wouldn't be a Valkyrie….
Yujin watched his brother leave, a vague sense of dread settling over him.
But after his brother safely enrolled in the military academy and news from him grew sparse.
One day, Yujin came home from school to find his mother in tears.
"Oh — Mom. Why are you crying?"
"Yujin… your brother…."
The news that followed was devastating.
During a field exercise, just before his brother was set to graduate.
He had been caught up in an Erosion Species attack and gone missing.
Missing outside the city walls was as good as dead.
The shock hit Yujin hard, and for a long time he couldn't pull himself out of his grief.
Then, clutching a military academy poster, he made a quiet decision.
*I'll carry on what you started.*
His brother had wanted to become a Commander for the sake of Valkyries.
Then he would take that up in his place.
Against his mother's objections, Yujin enrolled in the military academy.
Fortunately, he had a natural aptitude for command.
Not only was his tactical ability exceptional — he also had a remarkable gift for drawing out the strength of Valkyries.
By the time Yujin reached the same age his brother had been when he disappeared, he graduated from the academy at the top of his class.
"Congratulations on your graduation, Yujin. You're officially a member of Valhalla now."
"Thank you, sir. It's entirely thanks to your guidance."
"Hmm… but are you sure about this? Lumia, of all places…. A frontier city is quite dangerous for a new Commander."
"I'll be fine. Someone has to go, after all."
Yujin had specifically requested a posting to the frontier city that no one else would volunteer for.
The reason was simple. It was the city where his brother had died.
"You might want to ease up on yourself a little."
"…I'll try."
Thump.
Yujin gave a small nod at the instructor's hand patting his shoulder.
But the expression on his face remained as hard and rigid as stone.
After his brother's death, he had stopped showing his emotions.
No matter how happy or how sad he felt, his face was always impassive.
It wasn't that he'd stopped feeling things.
Show weakness, and people will walk all over you.
It was simply the result of quietly following the words his brother had once told him.
*Easy for him to say, ease up on yourself….*
On the train from Schütten, where the academy was, heading toward Lumia.
He stared out the window at the passing scenery and turned his thoughts to what lay ahead.
He had decided to carry on his late brother's dream in his place.
But the more he thought about it, the more hopeless it seemed.
Changing the way Valkyries were treated.
That wasn't something a single Commander could accomplish.
"A fool's dream, maybe…."
His quiet murmur reached no one.
If his brother had been here, maybe it really would have been possible.
At times like these, his brother's shadow felt impossibly large.
But in that moment, something unexpected happened.
A deafening roar tore through the air, and his vision lurched violently.
The train, which had been moving along without incident, had overturned.
"Ugh — what in the—"
Knocked unconscious by the impact, Yujin came to inside the derailed train.
Miraculously, his injuries amounted to nothing worse than a cracked rib.
Even so, every breath sent a sharp stab of pain through his side.
The interior of the train was chaos.
The walls had buckled from the force of the impact, and shards of glass littered the floor.
Through it all, an unbearable stench hung in the air.
Bodies were strewn everywhere.
Yujin forced his aching body to move and made his way to the nearest person.
The woman who had collapsed nearby lay completely still, showing no signs of life.
He carefully touched her shoulder and understood her condition at once.
"She's already dead…."
Had she taken the full brunt of the crash?
The pale-faced woman was not breathing.
From her appearance, she had probably been a Valkyrie.
It was the first time he had seen a corpse. He clenched his fist tight.
To die so senselessly — for some reason, it made him furious.
He closed her eyes, then decided to make his way through the rest of the train.
There might still be survivors somewhere.
And if anyone was in critical condition, he wanted to be there to help.
In the process, he met a Valkyrie named Daisy and the two of them joined forces.
They were forcing their way through the mangled train doors, pressing forward, when an unexpected crisis suddenly found him.
"Grrrrrr…."
"An — an Erosion Species!"
After the violent shocks that had sent the train lurching.
Something that looked like an Erosion Species had begun forcing its way inside.
There was no reason for Erosion Species to appear this close to the city.
Yujin thought as much, but moved quickly all the same.
What drove his legs was pure survival instinct.
But there was nowhere to run in the narrow confines of the train.
Yujin and Daisy were cornered in an instant.
They resolved to fight the Erosion Species however they could.
"Ngh…!"
"Daisy!"
But the Valkyrie traveling with him was only D-rank at best.
She was no match for an Erosion Species that could tear through steel with brute force.
Their only fighting strength was now out of commission — a desperate situation.
Before he could even think, Yujin stepped forward in front of the Valkyrie.
*I never want to lose someone in front of me again…!*
Of course, it was a meaningless gesture.
Even a D-rank Valkyrie was superhuman by any human standard.
There was no way he could stop a monster that could overpower even her.
The Erosion Species raised its razor-sharp claws high.
His body was about to be split in two—
The Erosion Species' head exploded in a spray of blood.
*What… what is this…?*
Thud.
Beyond the Erosion Species crumpling headless to the ground, a woman stood.
Blood spattered across her body, breathing in ragged gasps.
Yujin could only stare at her in a daze.
*A Valkyrie… is she?*
Navy-blue hair. Eyes like molten gold.
A face that was beautiful even stained with blood.
A powerful presence that radiated from her even at a glance.
The gun in one hand, and what had just happened.
There was no doubt — the woman was a Valkyrie.
But something was strange.
As far as he knew, Valkyries in combat had their unnecessary emotions dulled.
The emotions a Valkyrie in this state could show were coldness, anger, hostility — or killing intent at most.
Which meant the relief visible in her eyes was something that, to Yujin, should have been impossible.
Yet the woman seemed satisfied simply by confirming he was unharmed.
She murmured something under her breath, then turned and sprinted back into the train in an instant.
She looked desperately urgent, like someone racing against time.
"W — wait. It's dangerous to go alone! There are still Erosion Species inside—!"
After confirming that the Valkyrie he had shielded was safe, Yujin immediately ran after the woman.
From the other side, a rapid volley of gunshots rang out in quick succession.
Please let her be all right.
Breathless, he barely managed to catch up to her.
What he found was the woman down on one knee.
*Is she… grieving…?*
It was hard to tell clearly from a distance.
But as she looked down at a body that was already dead, her face looked as though she might cry.
In the sunlight streaming in from above, the woman looked almost sacred.
Then, without warning, her gaze shifted to Yujin.
For just a moment she looked caught off guard, as if he'd seen something he wasn't supposed to.
Then her expression hardened, and she fixed him with a rigid stare.
Flustered by the sudden change, Yujin fumbled for an explanation.
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to intrude. I was just a little worried… that was presumptuous of me."
"…It's all right. Now that I think about it, I don't think I even introduced myself."
The woman's name was Leila.
She had somehow learned that something had gone wrong with the train.
And had rushed over to help.
She was, in every sense, the person who had saved his life.
But did she really need to push herself that hard?
Looking at Leila, Yujin felt he understood something essential about her.
*I'm sure of it. This person is… absurdly kind.*
Kind enough to suppress even a Valkyrie's instincts.
Why was that? There was no resemblance between them at all.
And yet Yujin found himself thinking of his brother when he looked at her.
He wanted to know more about Leila.
Which was exactly why her request caught him so off guard.
"Commander Yujin. Please touch my Stigma."
"But I heard you dislike having your Stigma touched…."
"I'm fine. If it means reducing casualties from the Erosion Species, I can endure this much."
To sacrifice herself that much for the sake of others.
Yujin found it impossible to refuse her.
Because he had already seen her grieving over someone who was beyond saving.
"Ngh, ugh… ah…."
The sensation from the Stigma must have been unpleasant.
Leila flinched, but endured it without showing any sign of reluctance.
To cause this much pain to the person who had saved his life.
Overcome with guilt, Yujin tried to complete the contract as quickly as he could.
The soft warmth of her abdomen was impossible not to notice, of course.
But right now, he refused to be swayed by any such impulse.
Truly, he felt not the slightest selfish thought.
Even if he had, he would have had to pretend otherwise.
"Hah, hah…. Um… Commander…. Your hand…."
"…Oh! I'm sorry. My mind went blank for a moment…. Did it fail?"
"No… I think it worked…."
After completing the contract — during which he had fought hard to keep his thoughts pure — he set out with Leila to hunt down the remaining Erosion Species hiding in the train.
They had been concealed in places that were nearly impossible to find.
Whether it was worth the pain she had endured to form the contract — it certainly seemed so.
Leila dispatched the Erosion Species in an instant.
And when everything was resolved and they were finally on their way to Lumia.
Yujin received news that felt like a trick of fate.
"I was surprised. I never imagined you were also heading to Lumia, Leila…."
"I was surprised too. I never imagined Commander Yujin would turn out to be my actual Commander…."
Right. As her Commander, he would find a way to repay her someday.
Yujin noticed, with some bewilderment, that his heart was beating strangely fast.