Rowan was the only one who knew the truth.
No one else understood just how powerful he truly was.
Four years passed.
Now ten years old, Rowan stood in the garden behind the house, his presence concealed as he watched quietly from the side.
Not far away, his mother sat outside, keeping an eye on his four-year-old little brother, who clapped excitedly every ti sparks of fire or ice lit up the air.
In the center of the field—
Rowan and Voli clashed.
Steel rang as Rowan struck first, his sword flashing forward. Voli t the attack effortlessly, their blades colliding before Rowan twisted away and unleashed fire magic mid-step.
A wave of fla surged toward Voli.
Voli slashed it apart.
Rowan didn’t stop. He ford a massive fire arrow and hurled it forward.
Voli responded instantly, forming a fire arrow of his own—larger, denser.
The two attacks collided midair.
BOOM!
The explosion rippled outward, heat distorting the air.
Rowan leaped back, landing lightly as Voli raised his hand.
A blue fla ignited in Voli’s palm.
The fire twisted, sharpening into a spear of condensed heat before launching toward Rowan.
It chased him relentlessly.
Rowan sprinted left—then right—but the spear adjusted, homing in.
He drew his sword, mana surging through the blade.
With a clean swing, he split the blue fla spear in half.
The fragnts evaporated instantly.
Rowan didn’t hesitate.
Blue fire ignited around him, forming into a spear of his own. He hurled it forward.
Voli reacted fast, slamming his hand down as a solid wall of fire erupted from the ground.
The blue spear struck the wall—
—and vanished in a burst of steam and sparks.
Voli raised his hand again.
Three fire spears ford simultaneously and shot toward Rowan.
This ti, Rowan didn’t dodge.
He extended his hand.
"I’ll take control."
Mana surged outward.
The fire spears twisted midair—then turned.
They shot back toward Voli.
Voli leaped backward as the spears slamd into the ground behind him, exploding violently.
Smoke filled the field.
Then Voli stepped forward, eyes sharp.
"...This is it," he said. "The final test."
He raised both hands.
Mana erupted skyward as a gigantic phoenix of fire ford above him—larger than any he had summoned before. Its wings blotted out the sun.
Rowan raised his hand calmly.
"Absolute... pure mana."
The air scread.
Blue fire surged upward, coiling, shaping—
A massive blue fla dragon ford in the sky.
Its presence alone warped the heat around it.
Voli froze.
Blue fla...
And sothing even larger than my phoenix...?
His lips curled into a smile.
"...You finally did it."
Voli thrust his hand forward.
The phoenix scread and surged ahead.
Rowan’s dragon roared and t it.
The two titanic beings collided, forcing each other back before rising into the sky and slamming together again.
The dragon opened its jaws.
Blue fla poured out.
The phoenix answered, unleashing blazing red fire.
The attacks collided.
Rowan poured more mana into the dragon.
So did Voli.
The flas pushed against each other—
—but slowly...
The blue fla began to overpower the red.
Voli’s eyes widened.
"...Impossible."
The dragon’s fire surged forward, overwhelming the phoenix’s flas before smashing straight into its head.
BOOM!
The phoenix shattered into sparks and vanished.
Silence fell.
Rowan lowered his hand.
The blue dragon dissipated.
Aldwin ran forward, sword still in hand, staring at his son in disbelief.
"...Wow," he breathed. "Rowan. You’re incredible."
Voli laughed, loud and proud.
"Damn it... I’m honestly amazed."
He looked at Rowan with burning eyes.
"You were only six when I judged you. Four years later... you’ve already surpassed ."
He grinned.
"Fire God? You might be the next one to earn that title."
"But I’m not really interested in titles."
Rowan stepped forward and extended his hand toward Voli.
"Thank you. I wouldn’t have reached this level so quickly if you hadn’t trained properly these past four years."
Voli took his hand and gave a short laugh.
"I did very little. That was your own talent on display. You’ve already surpassed ," he said honestly. "I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of future you’ll carve for yourself."
Then Aldwin stepped in, folding his arms with a grin.
"Hey, son. You’re not going to thank your father too?"
He opened his arms wide. "Co on. Give your old man a hug."
Rowan didn’t move.
Aldwin raised an eyebrow. "Oi. You’re really going to ignore ? I’m the one who trained your swordsmanship."
Rowan turned his gaze away.
You didn’t teach much, he thought calmly.
When it cos to the sword, I was already sharper than anyone here.
Everyone gathered around.
"Father... well, thank you. I really appreciate everything," Rowan said. "You put in a lot of effort training . When it cos to swords, I’m actually good at it now."
Aldwin nodded proudly. "I didn’t teach you everything, but it seems you’ve surpassed even what I expected. It’s a pleasure, son."
MIra and Coran stepped forward. Coran ran up to Rowan, eyes shining with admiration.
"Big brother Rowan, you’re truly amazing! When I grow up, I want to be as strong as you!" he exclaid.
Rowan bent down and gently ruffled his hair. "Oh, really? You’re going to be stronger than ," he said with a small smile.
"Are you really sure, brother? I’ll be stronger than you?" Coran asked, full of excitent.
"Yes," Rowan said, still smiling as he patted his head.
Straightening, he said, "Well... I don’t have much more to say. I’ve been here long enough. Four years without leaving... it’s about ti I start moving again. The carriage is due to arrive any mont, so I need to pack my things."
With that, Voli nodded to him. Rowan turned and walked toward the house, ready to prepare for his next journey.
Elian then stepped forward toward Rowan.
"Master. Take," he said, handing him the towel.
Rowan accepted it and wiped his face.
As he finished, Rowan said, "Thank you."
Elian smiled faintly. "Master, you are truly outstanding, just as expected."
"Well, thank you once again," Rowan replied.
Then he slung the towel over his shoulder.
Reviews
All reviews (0)