Instructor Drein stood behind an old building, his body almost blending into its shadow. In the distance, a large, cracked building could be seen.
"Kyle," Instructor Drein said.
There was no sound except the whistling of the wind and the pounding of his heart in Drein's chest. Everything was silent. Too silent.
"Just one chance," he thought. "If I fail, it's all over."
With the skill of a teacher, Drein moved. He avoided the barely visible illusion sensors, scanned the hidden security lines, and then silently blasted one of the gates with his magic.
He made his way into the underground passageway.
The rescue operation had begun.
In the corner of the dark basement, Kyle's body lay limp. At first glance, he appeared drugged and powerless, unable to even stand. Instructor Drein then approached Kyle, clearly observing his severely swollen eyes, his labored breathing, and the scars on his wrists where the chains had been tied to his hands.
Instructor Drein cautiously approached, his robes touching the cold stone floor. His sole focus was to bring Kyle home alive.
However, a sudden dark aura stopped him in his tracks.
From the darkness, a massive figure emerged. Over two meters tall, his body clad in jet-black armor that clung to him like a second skin. His breathing was labored, emitting a cloud of steam. Beneath his metal helmet, a single, glowing red eye radiated hatred and destruction.
"You shouldn't be here..." the figure murmured, his voice deep and intimidating.
Drein stood firm, though his body tensed. He knew who was standing before him, Velgrin's right-hand man, a human transformed into a monster by Velgrin. Instructor Drein knew he couldn't defeat the beast in a straight fight.
But he wasn't here to win. He was here to save Kyle.
The battle erupted instantly. A single blow from the monster shattered part of the building wall, causing the stones of the ancient building to crack and begin to fall.
Instructor Drein moved quickly. His ground barrier magic activated instantly, and he sprinted swiftly, allowing him to dodge blow after blow from the monster, which could destroy a human body in a single strike. The creature's dark aura compressed the air, creating a heavy pressure in the room, but Drein kept moving, his eyes never leaving Kyle.
In one swift movement, Drein pulled Kyle off the floor and dragged him along, dodging. In the middle of the narrow hallway, he unleashed a seal of ground magic, activated by the monster passing directly above him, and the magic turned the surface beneath the monster into mud, causing him to fall and become trapped in the mud. But it wasn't enough.
The creature leaped back to the floor where they were fighting, shattering nearly every surface with a single blow.
Drein gritted his teeth. With a final plan, he threw the magic bomb he had carried for this mission, then ran away from the monster, and the magic energy exploded, destroying part of the wall and creating a gap in the part that had been destroyed by the explosion.
Without thinking, Drein charged out, his body covered in blood. Behind him was Kyle, badly injured, barely conscious.
They had little time left. But they were still alive.
The clash of magic was still echoing through downtown Blackmist when the ground suddenly shook. From a gap in the rubble and smoke, a figure emerged, running, his body covered in wounds and limping.
Instructor Drein.
He dragged himself along with the last of his strength, Kyle lying on his back, limp and barely conscious.
Rygar, who had been strangling a mage, immediately stopped. His gaze shifted from anger to panic. He darted toward Drein, his knees nearly collapsing as he met his brother's body.
"Kyle!" he exclaimed, trembling, a voice filled with both despair and relief.
Drein fell to his knees in the midst of them all. His breathing was heavy, his vision blurry. But his eyes remained fixed on Damian, who was rapidly approaching from the other side.
"I... believed... in you all..." he muttered.
And in the next second, his body collapsed, unable to stand again.
Kyle also fell unconscious in Rygar's arms. His face was pale, his body covered in wounds, the marks of torture and the effects of the magical torture that had not yet fully worn off.
The entire team froze for a moment, realizing one thing: who could have injured Instructor Drein and Kyle this badly?
"This... is just the beginning of a much bigger mission. We must return together and complete, no one can miss out on returning to Zephyrus," Damian said seriously.
The sky above Blackmist was still filled with dust and the remnants of the explosion when the sound of heavy metal hitting the ground with incredible force.
CRASH!
The vibrations were felt to the bone. The ground cracked. The air and dust were instantly removed from the battlefield. Everyone immediately turned toward the source of the sound.
The smoke slowly cleared, and from behind the cloud of dust, a figure emerged.
The creature stood tall atop the rubble. Tall, massive, its body no longer human, but more like a monster. Its skin was tough and thick, and veins glowed red across every part of its body. From its back, a surge of mana crystals pulsed as if it could explode at any moment.
The entire team trembled at the sight of the monster.
Elric, usually a playful presence even on the battlefield, was now speechless. His eyes widened.
"...What is that?" he whispered, barely audible.
The creature lifted its head, gazing at each of Zephyrus's students standing before it. A realization gleamed in its red eyes. Not a human, but a desire to wipe out every Zephyrus student there.
And... he smiled.
A small smile. Thin. Full of mockery.
"You guys... are the ones making this complicated, aren't you?" His voice was deep, echoing like a sound from the depths of a cave.
His right hand clenched slowly. The ground beneath him began to crack like shattered glass, and the surrounding mana pressure surged wildly. The air suddenly felt heavy. Breathing became labored.
Team Zephyrus took a half step back reflexively.
And in their midst, Rygar and Damian stood at the forefront. Their hands tightly gripped the hilts of Setsu'ryū, which were now trembling gently, responding to the menacing aura emanating from the creature before them.
Rygar took a deep breath. The look in his eyes changed.
"...Ready," he said calmly.
Their greatest battle... was about to begin.