The demon didn't move.
For a second, the forest went completely silent—like the whole world stopped to watch what had just happened.
My fist had landed on its chest, covered in flame. But not any flame.
Black.
Alive.
Screaming.
The fire crawled up the demon's skin like it had been waiting centuries to burn something again.
Its eyes—those glowing red eyes—weren't angry.
They were afraid.
"Impossible," it hissed, stepping back. "That fire was lost… sealed… dead…"
I didn't understand.
My body was shaking. My arm was burning, not from pain—but from power. A wild, uncontrollable storm rushing through my veins like it had just woken up from a thousand-year nap.
I looked down.
The flames were coming from me.
From my hand. My chest. My very bones.
"No," I whispered. "This… this isn't real."
The demon snarled. "You should not have that power! You are just a child!"
Yeah? And you're just a demon with really bad timing.
The fire pulsed. It felt like it had a heartbeat. No, not one. Two. Mine… and something else.
Then the pain came.
White-hot. Blinding.
It felt like my insides were melting.
My legs gave out. I dropped to my knees, gasping. The fire around me cracked louder, then flickered like it couldn't decide whether to consume the forest or protect me.
The demon growled and backed away.
"You will regret this," it whispered. "He will come for you. The one who left that flame in this world…"
And then—
It ran.
The demon turned and fled into the trees like a hunted animal.
"...Rai?"
I turned my head, barely able to focus.
Kairen stood there, bleeding, wide-eyed, stunned. His perfect hair was a mess. His pride was broken.
Behind him, a few other trainees peeked through the trees. All of them had seen it.
Me.
Not getting beaten.
Not lying in the dirt.
Me, standing in black fire like a monster from legend.
"W-What did you just do?" Kairen asked.
I opened my mouth to answer.
Then everything went black.
A Day Later
I woke up in a room that didn't smell like dirt or blood. It smelled… clean.
I blinked. The ceiling was white. The bed was soft. Too soft.
"I'm dead," I muttered. "This is either heaven or an expensive hospital."
"You're not dead," said a voice.
Instructor Margo stood in the corner. Arms crossed. Scowl in full force.
"You passed out. For seventeen hours."
I tried to sit up. My whole body ached.
"Don't move too fast," she added. "You were burning from the inside. We had to cool your blood with icewater and healing spells. You were almost… something else."
"Something else?"
"Something dangerous."
I swallowed.
"What happened to the demon?"
"Gone. Vanished. No trace."
She walked closer. Her boots clicked on the stone floor.
"You used a flame that shouldn't exist. A cursed flame. Ancient magic. Something beyond our ranks."
I looked at my hand.
No burns.
No scars.
Just… skin.
Normal.
"What am I?" I asked.
She didn't answer right away.
Then, finally: "I don't know. But it's not what you were yesterday."
That Evening
I walked back to the dorms.
Every step hurt. Every pair of eyes stared.
Whispers followed me like shadows.
"Is that him?"
"The E-Rank?"
"Did you see what he did?"
"Why's he still alive?"
Kairen didn't look at me when I passed.
For once, he didn't smirk. Didn't insult me. Didn't throw a punch.
He just looked away.
Like he saw something he didn't want to admit was real.
Back in my room, I sat in front of the cracked mirror.
My reflection looked… the same.
Same messy hair. Same tired eyes.
But I didn't feel the same.
Something was inside me now.
Something burning. Watching. Breathing.
I reached out and touched the mirror.
"Who are you?" I whispered.
And then—
The flame lit again.
Just a flicker.
In my eyes.
Black. Hungry. Alive.
Midnight
I had a dream.
At least, I hope it was a dream.
I stood in a dark field, surrounded by ash. The sky was burning. The ground was cracked. Mountains melted in the distance.
And standing across from me… was him.
A figure made of shadows and fire.
His body was covered in black flames, but his eyes—they were mine.
Exactly mine.
He looked at me, smiling like he knew every secret in the world.
"You finally woke up," he said.
"Who are you?" I asked.
He stepped closer. Flames crawled across the ground as he moved.
"I am the reason you never gave up. I'm the part of you that refused to die. I am the fire buried in your bones. The flame that gods feared."
I swallowed.
"What do you want?"
His smile widened.
"To finish what we started."