Far from the town, a lone figure tore through the forest with impossible speed.
On his shoulder, a man hung like a dead weight, yet it barely slowed him down.
It was as if the body he carried weighed nothing at all.
The black mask with red tendrils confirmed his identity.
Evan.
And slung over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes… Kael.
Just minutes ago, Evan had pulled him out of the battlefield, even witnessing Vale's miniature form.
A tiny flame-born spirit echoing Velma.
'I didn't expect the chance to fall into my hands this easily.'
A quiet sigh left Evan as he looked at his unconscious passenger. 'Time to finish what I started. No more extra acting.'
Kael slept soundlessly, unaware that the man who saved him… was the same one who orchestrated this entire mess.
Even Vela stayed silent, watching Evan with sharp caution.
Something familiar radiated from him, but she couldn't draw a conclusion.
He saved Kael's life so that she couldn't lash out.
'Please don't be an enemy,' she thought. 'Kael can't fight like this. And my power is sealed.'
A few minutes later, Evan stopped in a quiet clearing.
A small grassland wrapped in forest shadows.
He laid Kael on the ground, circled the area, and once he felt no presence nearby, he returned to him.
Vela stiffened inside Kael.
She saw Evan approach and almost burst out in flames to protect him.
But then she froze.
A warm, glowing aura spread from Evan's palm.
Life energy.
A force used only by nature users and healers.
Evan silently placed his hand on Kael's chest.
The light spread like water through cracked stone.
Wounds mended.
Burnt flesh regenerated.
Even his internal injuries sealed themselves in mere minutes, which were critical for his life.
His mental damage, however, remained.
Evan stood and dusted his hands.
'He'll wake in a few hours. If he takes more than half a day, I'm going to lose my patience.'
He walked away as if healing Kael was nothing worth noting.
Vela watched the entire scene and felt something she hated.
Confusion.
This man showed no openings.
No tells.
No intentions she could read.
'Kael… climb higher, or the flames you're growing will burn you from the inside.' She looked at him as he fought internally against his own powers.
After which she returned to his consciousness.
A Few Hours Later~~
Kael stirred, stretching his limbs and blinking into the unfamiliar clearing.
He tensed immediately, sensing unusual surroundings.
"Vela… did you bring me here?"
"No, idiot. If I had freedom, I'd have roasted that guildmaster myself. Relax. You're safe.
Oh wait… look. Your 'saviour' is coming back."
Kael scrambled for his weapon, only to notice it lying beside him.
Untouched.
'He didn't even restrain me, leaving behind my weapon too… either he's a fool or he's unbelievably strong.'
Then he saw the figure walking toward him.
A man entirely cloaked, mask black and tendrilled.
But what made Kael's blood run cold was what he dragged behind him.
A massive beast.
Five times his size.
Easily over five hundred kilos.
The masked man pulled it by its tusk with one hand, the way someone drags a sleeping dog.
Without using any ability.
Pure strength.
'What kind of monster is this guy? How have I never heard of him?'
Kael's hands trembled. He instantly set his weapon down.
No one sane would provoke someone like this.
"Oh, good. You're awake," Evan said as he hauled the monster closer.
"Saves me the trouble."
Kael swallowed his fear.
It was an EarthlyBoar, stone-shelled and glowing with earthen energy.
A dangerous beast, even he doesn't dare to battle so carefree.
Evan didn't care.
He pulled out a dagger from thin air.
An action that revealed him as an otherworlder.
Kael watched in stunned silence as Evan skinned, dismantled, and butchered the beast with smooth precision.
He collected materials, separated organs, and tossed the edible pieces into a flame he conjured himself.
Despite everything, a plain, pleasant smell rose from the meat.
Evan handed him a cooked piece.
"Eat. You won't get another chance later."
His voice was calm… but there was weight underneath.
Kael accepted it and backed off to eat, while whispering to Vela:
'Check for poison. Anything odd. He may be trying to bait me.'
Vela scanned the food with her flames.
"No traps or poison," she whispered.
"But stay alert. Something is off about him."
Evan didn't even look back.
"I didn't poison it. And I can feel your flames checking," he said casually.
Kael stiffened.
"Ah… I… I wasn't—"
"Eat and recover," Evan said.
"I have something to tell you."
He stepped away, leaving Kael to the firelight and his racing heartbeat.
Kael remained lost in thought as he was left behind.
The saviour he never asked for.
The stranger who healed him.
And the man whose intentions were shrouded in an unreadable mask.
That was filling his brain to the peak, while on the other hand, Arven and Evan were in another debate.
Evan had no intention of striking a wounded opponent.
With the memories of his past and the iron rules of his present life, he would never hit someone who couldn't stand.
'You really are a fool,' Arven muttered.
'A golden chance to end it, and you walk right past it.'
Evan didn't budge.
A half-dead enemy gave no reward.
A recovered one offered experience for pressure, insight, and growth in the form of battle.
That was how he survived Lucas.
A man strong enough to kill him on the spot after using his bloodline… yet Evan walked away with a leap in power.
He wasn't going to abandon that kind of opportunity.
He tore a piece from the boar he'd hunted earlier, sat under a tree, and ate without hurry.
Kael wouldn't run.
Not with a bounty on his head and death lurking behind every adventurer in the region.
In Evan's eyes, the boy had only one safe place in the world.
Right beside him.
Though Kael had absolutely no idea he was sharing space with the mastermind behind his entire predicament.
One and a Half Hours Later~~~
On the far side of the clearing, Kael sat atop a boulder while several flames orbited him.
They looped through his body, exiting and entering in a precise rhythm, as if performing a ritual.
It was a miracle, and Evan recognised it at a glance.
'An art. A cultivation method… probably from Vela. This expanse doesn't have anything on that level.'
The flames sank into Kael like threads weaving new flesh.
Wounds that normally required weeks closed in moments. Scars vanished.
Vitality surged back into his limbs.
In less than an hour, Kael had climbed back to the peak of his realm.
Evan whistled under his breath.
"Arven, is there really a Flame Manipulation Method that heals this fast?"
"No," Arven replied. "His compatibility is ridiculous. And he's using Death Phoenix flames instead of normal ones. The effects are leagues higher."
Evan smirked.
'A degraded fragment technique, then. Destined ones really do cheat.'
The flames wrapped Kael in a cocoon before disappearing like mist.
Kael, awake, did not immediately open his eyes. He tried to sense the situation, but when he felt the piercing gaze of the masked man fixed upon him, he realised that simply sitting here and being observed would not yield any results.
Kael's eyes opened.
He spotted the masked figure watching him and jumped off the boulder, walking toward him.
"Thank you, sir. Truly. But I should leave now. Staying here any longer might drag you into my problems. If one day you need my help, I'll repay this debt."
His voice carried sincerity… and fear.
"You don't need to worry about me," Evan replied.
"Just worry about yourself. And as for help… I need one right now."
Kael blinked.
"Oh. If it's within my limits, I'm ready. I won't hurt innocents or steal, but anything else is fine."
"Relax," Evan said.
"All you need to do is catch someone. Alive."
"That's easy enough. Who is it? Someone causing trouble for you?"
"You could say that."
Evan's tone stayed casual. "Bring me the person, and I'll count this as repayment."
"Understood. Tell me his name, rank or anything to recognise him."
Evan pointed a finger at Kael.
"The former Number 2 Adventurer.
Current Number 1 on the Adventurer's list.
Kael… the Eternal Flame Swordsman."
Silence slammed over the clearing.
Kael stared at him. Evan stared back.
"Haha… good one, sir," Kael forced a laugh. "You're joking. Right? Just tell me the real name."
Evan didn't blink.
"Do I look like I'm joking? Bringing you to Myralt would pay me nicely."
Kael's face hardened.
"Sir… I'm sorry. Even if you saved me, I can't go back without proving my innocence."
"Then I'll have to use force," Evan said as he stood.
"I won't surrender," Kael replied, raising his blade. "Not even to you."
Evan cracked his neck.
"Kids these days think being strong means they can face anyone. Let me show you how big this world truly is… and how many monsters sit at the top."
He pulled out his Crimson Gale Blades.
Kael's breath caught.
The aura coming from the swords…It was the same type as his own blades.
Stronger.
Heavier.
Hungrier.
'He's a flame user too? Those blades… their heat alone could burn someone without fire affinity. And he's wielding two casually…'
Kael felt a strange confidence rise.
If flames were involved, he had an edge.
His resistance would carry him.
But the hope was shattered the moment Evan raised his hand.
An element manifested above his head.
Not flame.
Not anything Kael expected.
Something far beyond his understanding.
Kael froze, his pupils shaking.
"H—how… is that even possible…?"
To be continued
What did Kael see?
What will be the outcome of the battle?
If you want to know, keep following the journey of Evan as the story unfolds.