When Mike opened his eyes again, he found himself lying near the lake.
He sat up and watched the sun rise once more.
"What the hell is happening here?"
Mike looked at himself. He was wearing only leather pants, nothing on his chest. Blood ran down, and a symbol had been freshly carved into him. It was a sword – right in the middle of his chest.
Mike stood up. He was by the lake, next to the ruin.
The memories only now began to return.
Mike took a step back and stood with his foot in the water. Suddenly, he remembered everything.
"Alright, demon… it seems I'm still alive. Now tell me, what is the pact?"
Suddenly, Mike's vision went black, and he felt as if he were falling.
Then, the darkness vanished, and Mike found himself in a throne room.
On the throne sat the demon, who spoke:
"I spared you. I should have killed you for destroying my eternal sleep. But now… the air has turned heavy, and you feel crushed. Is this my power? The power of a demon? But now, since I am awake again, I have decided to take revenge. You need to know nothing about me – I will tell you only this: mortal, you now possess my power. You may do as you wish, but kill the legendary White Knight. He is an extremely powerful creature who once sealed me. He resides in the kingdom of Ahren. From here, it will take two months to reach him. That is all. If you fail, we will both die – but I will make you suffer in your final moments. Good luck, mortal."
A gust of wind struck Mike, and when he blinked, he was back beside the ruin.
So now he had to find this White Knight. He must be very strong if he could seal a demon.
"I should train… I'll go to the nearest village."
Mike set off through the forest and saw the large village of Vori on the horizon.
He had actually been heading to Vori for some time. Well, until the demon incident, Mike had been just a warrior seeking fame.
In a few days, a tournament would take place in Vori.
It was now the perfect opportunity to test Mike's new power.
"I'm still not sure, demon… if I should use your power. I don't want to kill anyone."
Mike heard a quiet voice:
Mike shook his head and continued his way toward the village of Vori.
After about two hours, he arrived in the village.
He saw many strong and broad people training at the training ground.
Since Mike had now rented a room for a few days, he could fully concentrate on his training. The tournament would start in two days.
Mike stood in front of a training dummy. It was made of leather and filled with straw.
He clenched his fist and struck.
Mike hit the dummy with full force several times. It wobbled, pushed backward, then swung forward with every impact.
A girl stood next to Mike.
She looked beautiful, with blonde hair and striking blue eyes—just like Mike, who also had ice-blue eyes.
The girl moved her lips and spoke to him:
"Hello, warrior. They say you arrived in the village just a few hours ago?"
Mike kept striking the dummy a little more, then stopped. He turned to the girl.
"Yes, that's right."
The girl smiled, lifting a hand to her hair and playing with it.
"Would you like to do a sort of sparring match with me?"
Mike noticed how shy she was, her face completely red, even though she was only asking for a training fight. He couldn't refuse her now and accepted.
"Okay, let's do it."
The girl smiled and nodded. Then she said:
"G-great… come with me. A-and… you have very beautiful eyes. I really like the color."
Mike blushed as well. He felt flattered.
"Thank you… ice-blue."
The girl looked surprised and said:
"U-uhm, sir… not ice-blue. You have orange eyes."
"Orange? Since when do I—oh… right. Well, let's fight now."
The girl just nodded, not questioning it further.
The two went to an empty area, on a grassy field under a tree. They faced each other, taking combat positions.
The girl tied her hair into a braid so it wouldn't get in the way during the fight.
When she was ready, she began to speak:
"I-I will start now."
Mike nodded, and the girl rushed toward him.
She swung forward, but Mike caught her fist at the last second.
Mike decided to try ending the fight with a single strike. He held her fist firmly.
But the girl's other fist flew toward him. So Mike quickly released the hand he was holding and dodged the blow.
Now they faced each other again – only their positions had switched.
Mike wanted to attack, so he waited for her to strike.
She did – very fast. She came at him and struck him in the stomach.
Mike grabbed his stomach with one hand while raising the other to block.
She kicked toward him, but Mike caught her leg with his free hand and pulled it, making her fall.
However, she grabbed him as well. Both of them tumbled to the ground.
"Well… this is a bit embarrassing,"
Mike said.
They ended up lying on top of each other for a moment.
Mike quickly got up and helped her to her feet.
They decided to end the training quickly to forget this awkward moment.
They now sat under the tree, catching their breath.
Mike looked her straight in the eyes and asked her name.
"So… what's your name?"
"M-My name is Soul… and y-yours?"
Mike didn't answer right away. He first said:
"Soul… nice name. My name is Mike. Not as nice as yours, though."
The girl just laughed and shook her head.
"A-Actually, that's not true, Mike…" She paused and simply smiled.
On the day of the tournament…
Opening Fight Mike vs Soul...