...He sat on the top of the hill with his back to the camp, turning his gaze to the peaks of the mountains in the distance. The students will wait. Jebu was wearing a simple gray kimono. His fingers unconsciously dropped into the secret pocket of the kimono, which had become so familiar over the years. The precious stone sparkled in the rays of the early morning sun. Jebu calmed down, moved his hand with the stone far from his face, focusing his gaze on it. Shike's eyes scanned the bulges and curves of the Tree of Life engraved on the crystalline surface, his fingers slowly rotating the stone. Through the thickness of the stone, the lines of the drawing seemed magical and harmonious. Jebu heard the sound of wings in the sky above him. It was Muratomo's White Dragon, the animal he had flown in his visions. Jebu raised his eyes to the sky and reached up to touch the dragon that hung above him. The dragon looked at Jebu with Yukio's big brown eyes. After looking sadly at the chic, the animal flew up and disappeared into the blue sky. Jebu felt the aching pain of loss. The Stone appeared before his eyes again. After a while, Jebu put it in his pocket and, sighing, stood up. His foreboding about the outcome of the expedition was confirmed.

Chique began to go down the hill. Today he will have to teach his charges how to kill a person using thirty-four household items.