Beyond darkness

Chapter 35 - JP ARC

"Return to the Estates: A Night of Watchful Eyes"

A month has passed since Izumi had fought the Sin of Wrath and Subaru had passed away. Despite the weight that had been placed on Izumi's shoulders, life moved forward.

Ryo and Yuri had finally returned from their leave of absence, having recovered from their injuries inflicted by Envy. With the team reunited, they decided to take a break from their constant battles and enjoy the traditional Japanese firework festival.

Izumi, Floyd, Noelle, Yuri, and Ryo arrived at the festival, which was bustling with excitement and energy. The air was thick with the sweet aroma of food stalls and the sound of laughter and conversation. The group wandered around, taking in the vibrant colors of the decorations and the beautiful paper lanterns that lit up the night sky.

As the sun began to set, the fireworks display started. The group found a spot near the river to watch, sitting on a picnic blanket they had brought. The first firework exploded into the sky, filling the air with a bright array of colors. The display continued, each explosion more beautiful than the last.

Izumi, who had been lost in thought since the last battle, found himself caught up in the excitement of the festival. He smiled and laughed, forgetting his worries for a moment. Noelle and Floyd started a small competition of guessing the colors of the fireworks, while Ryo and Yuri reminisced about their childhood memories of attending the festival.

As the night wore on, the group savored the delicious festival food and drinks, enjoying the company of each other. 

Noelle and Izumi, spoke to each other watching the fireworks and sitting down. Noelle sat very close to Izumi. He got red and didn't know what to do. 

Noelle giggled at Izumi's reaction, finding his embarrassment endearing. "Don't be shy, Izumi. You look so cute when you're blushing like that," she teased, nudging him playfully.

Yuri, unexpectedly jumped out of nowhere and sat on the other side of Izumi, and started to tease him.

Yuri began to tease Izumi about his blushing face, causing him to become even more flustered. Noelle tried to ignore it at first, but she couldn't help feeling a twinge of jealousy at how close Yuri was sitting to Izumi.

She playfully nudged Izumi and smiled at him, trying to show Yuri that she wasn't bothered. But Yuri was relentless with her teasing, making silly faces, and pretending to flirt with Izumi.

Eventually, Noelle couldn't take it anymore and joined in on the teasing, making jokes and poking fun at Izumi. The three of them laughed and enjoyed each other's company, with the fireworks painting the sky with brilliant colors above them. 

The night grew bigger, and they started to head to the Estates, Izumi and Floyd told the ladies to take their time walking home as he and Izumi wanted to catch up and have a chat. 

As they walked down the path, Floyd couldn't help but notice the red marks on Izumi's face.

"Hey man, I noticed those marks on your face. Is everything okay?" Floyd asked, concerned.

Izumi nodded slowly, "It's nothing. Just the curse acting up a little bit."

Floyd furrowed his brows, "The curse? Is it still bothering you after all this time?"