Kaelen's eyes sharpened into a murderous glare as he stood before the mysterious figure. His killing intent crackled in the air, flames simmering faintly across his form. The figure only tilted his head, a faint smirk curving his lips.
"Finally, you showed yourself. For a moment, I thought you'd fled to another nation."
Before Kaelen could answer, a sharp voice rang out.
"Kaelen! Duck!"
It was Allaric.
Kaelen dropped without hesitation. A shimmering arc of condensed energy swept over his head, cleaving through the space where he had stood an instant earlier. Kaelen seized a dazed knight by the collar and dashed backward, skidding to a stop at Allaric's side.
"Allaric," Kaelen muttered, glancing at him.
His brother gave a grim nod, eyes fixed on the figure. "Seems like we're the only ones unaffected by his aura... Kaelen, this aura—it feels just like the dragon's."
Kaelen's expression hardened. "...Most likely, he's the one who corrupted the dragon."
'So it's true then... Ivarge's aura. This suffocating presence was what twisted that beast.'
The man chuckled, as if entertained by their whispered conversation.
"Vessel of Veldanava... you are not yet strong enough to face me."
Then his power erupted.
The air itself trembled as the man's aura expanded outward at a terrifying pace, pressing down like an ocean of malice. Students and knights behind the walls cried out, their bodies convulsing as the suffocating pressure crushed them. Even Allaric staggered, blood dripping from the corner of his lips.
Kaelen's Founder activated at once, shielding him from the suffocation. With a sweep of his arm, he conjured a burst of wind magic, hurling Allaric back toward the wall. A translucent barrier shimmered into place, giving the others a sliver of protection to breathe again.
His own body burned with power as Kaelen invoked Dragon Form – Version One. Black-blue scales rippled across his skin, eyes glowing with draconic intensity. Without pause, he condensed his Phoenix Flame into a blinding sphere, launching it as a concentrated beam.The fiery blast struck the mysterious figure, sending him sliding back several meters. But when the smoke cleared, the man stood unharmed, brushing off his shoulder with disdain.
At that moment, Lyra shouted from behind, her voice fierce.
"Light Burst—Radiant Spiral!"
A radiant cyclone of light magic surged forward, the shockwave shaking the earth. Yet the figure stepped through it unfazed, golden embroidery on his robes fluttering as if in mockery of her efforts.
Kaelen didn't hesitate. His body blurred—teleportation.He reappeared directly behind the man, palm pressed against his back.
"Devouring Flame."
The sinister fire licked into the man's life force, tethering itself like chains of hunger. The figure's body jolted before he snarled and spun, his kick slamming Kaelen like a meteor into the fortress wall. Stone shattered. A crater spread across the barrier.
Kaelen coughed blood as he pulled himself from the rubble.
Spells rained down. The second and third years unleashed everything—fire, lightning, light, holy incantations—all crashing toward the enemy. But with a single wave of his hand, a ripple of negation expanded, erasing every attack as though they were nothing. The next wave came just as quickly, and he erased that too.
The man laughed.
"Unique Skills, Ultimate Skills—without it none of you will ever defeat me. And you... vessel of his essence. How pathetic. Ten years in this world, and this is all you amount to—"
He didn't finish.
"Shut your mouth about my brother!"
Allaric's energy slash split the air again, forcing the man to shift aside. The boy's glare was sharp enough to wound.
"Oh? Want to say that again?" The figure raised his aura, suffocating pressure doubling—
But Kaelen moved.
Raising his hand in front of his face, his eyes glowed with dangerous calm.
"Ignite... Hellflame."
The tether he had planted earlier flared to life. Devouring flames erupted, burning with a blood-red core tinted in violet, a vortex of pure inferno born from the man's very life force. The sky itself seemed to split as the flames raged upward, swallowing the battlefield.
Students shielded their eyes. Knights fell to their knees. Even the heavens looked tainted red.The man gritted his teeth, his aura trembling. But with a forceful snarl, he severed the tether to his life force, dispersing the inferno. The sky cleared, leaving only scorched air in its wake.Kaelen didn't flinch. Calm, focused, he activated Dragon Form again, drawing deep breath. His chest glowed with a blinding core of energy.
"Eclipsed Dragon Breath!"
A torrent of black-blue energy and starlit flame roared forth. The man raised his arm, blocking it with sheer power. As the clash threatened to collapse the field, something descended from above.
A strike—clean, absolute.
A single blow forced the figure back.
Before Kaelen now stood a man with a regal presence, his sword gleaming with otherworldly radiance. The blade itself shone like a divine star—Deva, the legendary weapon.The mysterious man's smirk returned, but this time it carried a note of wariness.
"...So the Hero of Beginnings shows himself. Rudra Nam Ul Nasca. Seems it's time for me to withdraw."
But as he prepared to vanish, Kaelen's voice rang from above. His battered body still floated, eyes blazing.
"Starfall Nova!"
The sky erupted. Dozens of golden-white stars ignited in the skies , streaking downward like meteors. Each strike detonated with apocalyptic force, explosions lighting up the battlefield in relentless succession.
Smoke and fire consumed the land.
Through the haze, the man emerged, arm missing, his expression twisted in irritation.
"...So you have a spell that burns even the soul... and you wield star attribute as well. Vessel, we will meet again."
And with that, he vanished into the void.
Kaelen's body slackened, exhaustion overwhelming him. Consciousness slipped away.
As he fell from the sky, arms limp, someone caught him.The Hero himself, Rudra Nam Ul Nasca, lowered Kaelen gently to the ground, his gaze unreadable.