Jake went into the jungle to find out how the Hunter won the war there. But instead, he saw something else — a monster made from the dead bodies of knights. Over a hundred dead knights had merged together, forming one huge titan-like creature.
The voices of the dead knights echoed in Jake's mind:
> "Kill us…"
"I want to see my Emily…"
Hundreds of ghostly voices filled his head. For the first time, Jake was in real danger — a true war, facing a killer monster.
The beast, which looked like a massive bull made of meat and bones, charged toward Jake. He jumped and dodged, pulling out his sword, ready to attack. The monster charged again. Jake shouted, "Sword of Light!" and light energy flashed from his blade, slicing the beast in half.
Blood of the dead knights splashed onto Jake's face and body. It was the first time Jake saw the blood of other people. He sat down and whispered to himself:
> "God gives us life… and He takes it. God gives us mercy."
At that moment, Jake felt something strange. His sword pierced into his own chest as if pulled by an unseen force. He jumped up again, confused. "What is this…?"
Then, all the dead knights began to move. Their bodies merged again, becoming one titan of corpses. Jake was afraid. The monster was strong enough to destroy a city.
Jake was already hurt, blood dripping from his wounds. But he pulled the sword out of his body and said:
> "Burn my body with your light."
He used his energy to close his wounds with heat. Then he remembered what his master had once said:
> "If people die in a place with strong magical energy, their bodies can rise again. That's how undead monsters are born."
Jake knew he had to find the heart of the monster. He ran forward and drew his sword. The titan grabbed a massive tree from the ground to use as a weapon and swung it at Jake. But Jake jumped high and started cutting at the beast.
No matter how many times he cut it, the monster wouldn't stop. It was made from dead bodies — a zombie titan.
Jake landed on top of the monster. One dead knight, still part of the monster, grabbed Jake's leg and begged, "Save me…"
Jake didn't know what to do. The monster gripped Jake tightly in its hand, crushing him. Jake was in pain. Then he shouted:
> "With the light God gave us, burn everything!"
The monster's hand caught fire. Jake fell to the ground, broken and barely alive.
He looked to the sky and said:
> "By the power of the God who created the sun — burn this beast with the fire of the sun!"
A beam of sunlight burst down from the sky, burning the jungle and the monster. Fire spread across the land. Even the ice from the city melted into water. The weather became hot, as if the sun had fallen onto the earth.
Jake's clothes also caught fire.
Far away in the city, Mr. Sdreous saw the fire and said to Tole, "Let's go to the jungle. Jake is in danger!"
They rushed to the jungle and found Jake's body. Sdreous covered him with his coat and took him back to the city on a horse.
After a few days, Jake finally woke up. He looked around and saw Sdreous sitting beside him.
Jake smiled weakly and said, "I'm alive…"
Sdreous said, "You made a big problem for yourself, Jake. If you wanted to go to such a dangerous place, you should have told us."
Jake replied, "I'm sorry. But I found important information about the Hunter."
Sdreous leaned in. "What did you learn?"
Jake said, "He can use three or four types of magic. He can heal himself. It's unbelievable. He's a boy my age… and his goal is to destroy the kingdom."
Sdreous nodded. "That's a lot of useful information. But what do you want to do now?"
Jake replied, "The only way I can become king… is to hunt the Hunter. Dead or alive. But I know he's strong."
Sdreous looked at him and said, "You're the strongest man in the kingdom. But you still have a lot to learn about magic. I'll help you. I'll make you the strongest."
Now Jake had a goal — to become king and make the world a better place. And Sirab, the Hunter, had his own goal — to destroy the kingdom. After speaking with the mysterious voice, Jake tried to leave the place. But Sdreeos stopped him.
"You should rest," Sdreeos said.
Jake shook his head. "No. You said I'm strong, didn't you? Then I am. I want to help the people of this city—and I want to speak with someone."
Jake walked out of the room and made his way to the city hall. But he couldn't find the old lady he was searching for. After a long time wandering, he finally saw her and ran toward her.
"Hi, lady!"
The old woman turned and said gently, "My son… is that you? What happened to you?"
Jake smiled. "It was just a small fight in the jungle."
She looked at him closely. "You… you're the one who used light magic?"
Jake nodded. As soon as she said that, people from around the market and streets began to gather. One by one, they came to Jake, smiling.
"Thank you, Jake," some of them said.
A few of them offered him food—small loaves of bread, dried fruit, simple meals. "This is a gift," one man said. "It's all we have, but it's yours."
Jake accepted it all with quiet gratitude.
Then he asked, "Do you know why that boy destroyed the city?"
The old woman sighed and said, "I don't know for sure. But I think… he wants revenge. On everyone. And I believe he will come back for it."
Jake clenched his fists and looked into the distance.
"Then I'll be waiting." Jake