A month had passed since the day Kageya and Reikuro were rescued by Ayaka and Reiji. The wounds that once painted his body were now faded, leaving only the faintest of scars as a silent reminder of the night the Black Wolf Clan was reduced to ashes. His strength had returned; his spirit was now much steadier than before. Yet, beneath the quiet surface, something stirred restlessly.
Winter's breath began to creep into the valley. The morning sun was warm, but the air bit with cold. The trees swayed gently, leaves whispering to the wind, and birds chirped in a crisp harmony.
Kageya walked through the forest with Ayaka, a bow in his hand. Reikuro padded silently behind them, his sleek black fur catching the light through the trees, while Yuki, Ayaka's snow white fox spirit, was playfully dancing between the roots.
This group had gone hunting again, something that was a part of their lives together.
Ayaka burst out laughing at Kageya's missed shot. "You're aiming too stiffly," she teased.
"Or maybe the bird just doesn't like being shot," Kageya said with a faint grin.
He climbed a low-hanging branch to get a better shot, steadying his aim. The moment he released the arrow, his balance shifted and the world spun.
He fell hard, going through branches before landing on his knee.
"Kageya!" Ayaka's voice was full of panic as she rushed toward him, knelt down, and almost tenderly brushed the dust from his clothes. "Are you injured?"
He winced. "It's fine
She didn't wait. Her hand shone faintly as golden light enveloped his knee: the warmth of her magic seeped through his skin, soothing the pain away.
Kageya blinked, fascinated. The glow was soft-alive, like sunlight captured in her palms.
"…Light magic," he muttered.
She smiled modestly. "Just a small healing spell. You'll get used to it."
But he couldn't tear his gaze away. Something in him stirred, a pulse faint and deep, but responding to the magic before him.
That evening, Kageya sat in silence at the hearth. The flames danced, sending flickering shadows across his face. Reiji noticed his far-off gaze.
"You've been quiet lately," Reiji said, chopping herbs. "Either you're thinking deeply… or planning trouble." Kageya did not say a word, only stood up, walked outside, and looked up to the night sky. He had seen Ayaka use her magic countless times since then: healing wounded animals, mending broken fences, restoring the frost-damaged crops. And each time he watched in silence, his heart being pulled toward something he couldn't yet name. Days later, when all were busy, Kageya was standing alone in the open field behind their cabin. "Fireball!" he yelled, thrusting his hand forward. Nothing. "Wind Slasher!" Silence. "Ice Blade!"
Nothing again.
He gritted his teeth, frustration burning in his chest. "Earth Wall!"
Still nothing.
Dropping to his knees and panting, he said, "Why… can't I use anything?"
From behind the trees, Reiji said calmly, an amused note in his voice, "Because magic doesn't respond to shouting, kid."
Kageya spun, startled. "Reiji?"
Reiji stepped forward, throwing aside a pouch of herbs. "You can't call on something you don't understand. Magic isn't like swinging a sword; it's alive. It chooses who listens."
He crossed his arms. "Before we train, we will need to see what elements you are compatible with."
Kageya blinked. "Elements?"
"Six," Reiji explained. "Wind, Water, Fire, Earth, Light… and Dark".Most mages are born with affinities to one or two. Some, the talented ones, can control three."
He looked gravely at Kageya. "But before training, you'll take an aptitude test. It'll tell us what elements will answer to you."
Reikuro, from a short distance away, watched the scene in silence, his golden eyes narrowing slightly.
(So… he'll finally find out. Though if the truth is revealed, the entire world will come for him.)
His mind echoed with a memory of a month ago when he had used Appraisal Vision.
He had seen it, then: six glowing colors swirling in Kageya's soul, and beneath them, a seventh a strange, dark-golden energy, ancient and untamed.
"This boy…he's a monster," Reikuro had whispered to himself then.
"All six elements… and something else something that shouldn't exist. If word spreads, every kingdom will want him. What should I do? Tell him? No… not yet. But maybe, someday…"
He exhaled deeply now, tail flicking. Let the boy learn slowly.
Before the sun was fully up the next morning, Reiji led Kageya and Ayaka to the riverbank, where the mist coiled over the water like some sleeping beast, and a circle of stones stood in its heart, marked by faint runes.
"This is the Elemental Circle," said Reiji. "Old as the continent itself. It still remembers the first breath of the world. Step inside, close your eyes, and listen."
Kageya did as he was told. Barefoot, he stepped onto the cold stones. The world grew silent. The air seemed to thrum with unseen life.
"Don't summon anything," Reiji's voice echoed. "Just feel."
Slowly, Kageya breathed in. At first nothing. Then, faint sensations began to rise: the gentle warmth of fire near his heart, the whisper of wind at his cheek, the cool pull of water brushing his ankles, the heavy patience of earth beneath his feet, the soft hum of light behind his eyes… and something else cold, vast, endless a dark pressure circling deep inside him.
He flinched.
Reiji's brows furrowed. "Five… no six responses?" He stepped closer, eyes narrowing. "That's impossible. No one attunes to all six elements."
"Reiji, is that even. allowed?" Ayaka gasped softly.
The stones beneath Kageya's feet pulsed once, glowing faintly in six colors: red, blue, green, white, gold, and black, dancing for a moment before falling silent.
Kageya opened his eyes, pale and unsure. "What… was that?
Reiji did not immediately answer. Forcing a smile to conceal his shock, he said, "Seems you've got… unusual potential."
Behind his masks of golden eyes, Reikuro watched with unease flickering within them.
So he's starting to awaken already.
Reiji laid a firm hand on Kageya's shoulder. "Listen carefully. It's a blessing and a curse to have multiple elements. You will be able to learn faster but control will be harder. We'll start small. Fire first."
Kageya nodded in silence, still shaken by what he had felt.
Reiji turned toward the rising sun. "Tomorrow morning, we begin your elemental training. Prepare yourself, Kageya. The world you're stepping into is far more dangerous than you think."
The winds stirred, carrying with it a faint shimmer of unseen power-one which even Reiji could not feel.
But Reikuro could. And, with eyes shining faintly gold, he muttered under his breath:
"Six elements… and one more sleeping inside.If that awakens… even gods will shake."
The next morning dawned colder than usual. Mist curled over the grass, and the sun's pale rays scattered weakly through drifting fog. The air tasted like iron and frost winter was close, and the village had grown quieter than before.
Kageya stood at the edge of the open field behind Reiji's house, his bow slung over his back as morning wind tugged at his black hair. Reikuro sat beside him, his tail flicking lazily but his golden eyes sharp, assessing. Ayaka and Yuki were a few meters away, preparing water and light magic tools, as Reiji finished drawing faint runes in the soil: circles of earth magic meant to stabilize the training area.
Today was the day Kageya would start learning magic.
The First Lesson The Flow of Mana....
"Before you command the elements," Reiji began, his voice patient but firm, "you must understand mana the lifeblood of every living thing.
He nudged the dirt with his boot. The rune circles glowed faintly green. "Everything stone, water, flame, even the air you breathe has mana. To use it, you must first feel it."Kageya nodded, but his expression reflected faint uncertainty."Close your eyes," Reiji instructed. "Empty your thoughts. Listen to the world around you to the hum beneath your skin."Kageya did so. For a long time, he heard only the quiet whisper of wind and the distant chanting of Yuki as she formed water into hovering spheres. Then, something changed: the silence deepened, and faintly, like a heartbeat within the earth, he felt it a pulse, a rhythm not his own.He opened his eyes. "I. I felt something," he muttered. Reiji smiled a little. "Good; that's the world's mana answering you. But to shape it into an element, you have to make it yours. The Trial of Fire..... Reikuro stepped forward next, crossing his arms. "Enough of soft talk," he said, his voice sharp like steel. "Magic is not only about peace and balance. It is about will. Fire obeys those who command it-not those who beg it.
Kageya turned to him. "So what do I do?"
"Summon your will," Reikuro said, pointing to a dried log set nearby. "Picture the warmth of fire. The hunger. The rage. The beauty of destruction and rebirth. Then call it by name."
Kageya fixed his eyes on the log, furrowing his brow. He lifted his hand, shaking, with uncertain confidence, and whispered:
"Fireball!
Nothing.
Only a gust of wind rustled the leaves.
He gritted his teeth, tried again, louder this time.
"Fireball!"
Still nothing.
Reikuro exhaled, almost amused. "You are too calm. Fire doesn't listen to patience; it listens to passion. What do you want to burn, boy?"
Kageya clenched his fists. Memories flickered, the ruins of his clan, the loneliness, the endless struggle to survive. His eyes hardened. "Everything that stands in my way."
Reikuro's lips curled into a small grin. "Then show me."
The air changed.
A faint shimmer enveloped Kageya's hand; heat, invisible, was real nonetheless. The grass at his feet stirred when there was no wind. Something in his chest pulsed to a deep, ancient rhythm-a pulse not his own.
His heartbeat synchronized with it. Ba dum. Ba dum.
Then, suddenly
FWOOOSH!
A wild, violent burst of flame erupted from his palm. It scorched the ground beneath his hand and blew him backward with the heat of it; Ayaka gasped, raising her arm to shield her face as a wave of wind rushed outward.
Kageya fell to his knees, panting. His right arm glowed faintly red lines pulsing beneath his skin, almost like scales then vanished just as fast.
For an instant, his eyes gleamed red.
Reikuro's tail had frozen mid-sway; his golden eyes slitted. It was not ordinary mana. It was ancient.
"Kageya!" Ayaka hastened to his side and used Light Magic to cool the burns on his arm. "Are you all right?"
"I… don't know," Kageya whispered. His voice had a slight quaver in it. For a moment, it felt like… something else took over.
Reiji frowned, crouching beside him. "That magic wasn't just Fire Elemental. It carried… something deeper. A resonance I've never felt."
Reikuro masked his unease with a smirk. "Heh. Maybe the boy's got more potential than I thought."
But his thoughts were anything but amused.
"That power.it's not normal. It's acting on its own. Could it be.the energy I sensed before?"
He had looked at Kageya's hands, which were faintly trembling, and thought, If this goes on, the seal won't last much longer.
The Whisper Beneath the Moon
That night, nothing stirred in the forest.
The campfire crackled weakly as Ayaka and Yuki slept near the cottage. Reiji fell asleep over his books, his quill still in hand. Only Reikuro's golden eyes glimmered faintly in the dark, half awake, listening.
Kageya slipped outside quietly, unable to rest. The tingling sensation had remained in his arm ever since; the faint warmth would not go away. He stood under the moonlight, his breath misting in the cold air as he stared at his open palm.
"Fire obeys those who command it…" he whispered, repeating Reikuro's words.
He focused this time, calm and centred. He reached within slowly, and he could feel it again-a pulse buried deep within him, now stronger. Like a slumbering beast, stirring under his skin.
A faint spark flickered above his hand, then another. Tiny, unstable, but real.
He smiled faintly. "So it wasn't a fluke."
But in the next instant, the air shifted.
The temperature plummeted, then soared. A spark exploded into a surge of red light faint, yet wild. Kageya had been pushed backward by the fierce pain in his chest. The same crimson lines across his arm and neck appeared again, soft-glowing, pulsating with rhythm.
His heart began to beat loudly in his ears: Ba-dum. Ba-dum. Ba-dum. And then, in one moment A huge shadow flickered behind him. A silhouette something enormous, winged, and ancient swept across the ground and then was gone, like smoke. Kageya gasped, falling onto his knees and clutching his chest. "What… was that?"No answer but the cold wind whispering through the trees. Reikuro, hidden on a neighbouring branch, opened his eyes slowly. He'd followed Kageya because he was curious and now he'd seen it.A faint red aura, the shadow, pressure in the air it was unmistakable."So it's true," he murmured to himself. "The energy inside of him. it's not human. Not even close."He dropped with a silent leap, his cloak flying over Kageya as the boy finally slumped, his strength spent. The faint light faded from Kageya's skin, and the night returned to stillness. Reikuro looked up at the moon, his eyes narrowing."If this keeps up, that power will awaken completely. And if it does. even the gods might tremble. The wind howled softly through the forest, carrying with it scents of ash and frost. Kageya lay unconscious, unaware of the storm quietly building inside him-the heartbeat of something that was old, and that waited. The Dragon Core had stirred.
The ember had resurrected.
And soon, the flame would demand to be free. Afternoon light bled gold across the trees, tracing every leaf in molten shimmer. The air was alive charged, trembling. Kageya stood in the centre of the clearing, his breathing sharp and heavy, his hands shaking above the ground marked by burn scars, patches of frost, and cracked earth in every direction. He had been training since the break of dawn. His arms throbbed, his lungs in fire, yet he refused to stop.
The story of each element had driven him to the brink of exhaustion, but now something deeper stirred in him, something which didn't pertain just to magic.
"Again," Reiji called from across the room, his voice even, yet low and tinged with worry. "Hold the focus this time, Kageya. Don't wrestle with it flow with it."
Kageya's fingers clenched, and sweat ran down his face, stinging his eyes, but he nodded. His voice came out hoarse, raw.
"Fireball!"
The spark ignited in an instant but this time, the fire didn't feel right. It wasn't roaring like a usual flame; it growled. The orb twisted midair, flickering between crimson and black; sparks hissed like whispers.
Reikuro's fur bristled as the black spirit wolf slowly paced a circle, his golden eyes narrowing.
"This is no ordinary magic," he said, his voice rumbling deep like thunder. "The mana around him is… bending."
Instinctively, Ayaka stepped forward, her small hand clutching her sleeve. Her half-elf ears quivered, catching each unnatural vibration in the air. "Kageya, stop! You're pushing too hard"
But he couldn't stop. He didn't want to stop.
With every breath he took, he could feel the mana twisting inside him, something inside him answering the energy of the world, reshaping it. Fire no longer obeyed its natural hue; it deepened, darkened until its centre was pure black edged with veins of glowing scarlet.
He lifted his palm, still panting, and the black flame coiled upward, like a living thing. It didn't burn him it accepted him.
"Wind slasher!
The fire dulled to naught. A sharp gust burst forth, spiralling with the faint shimmer of ash. The wind cut through the clearing, slicing bark clean off trees-but instead of scattering harmlessly, the fragments floated and glowed like molten feathers.
Reiji's eyes slightly widened. "The elements aren't resisting him anymore. they're merging with his will."
Kageya stumbled backward, chest heaving, clutching at his side. Mana pulsed erratically beneath his skin, like lightning caught under flesh. "Why. does it feel like this.?"
Ayaka rushed closer, but froze halfway when the air around him shimmered. The temperature dropped suddenly; even the wind refused to enter his radius.
And then, without warning, his mana ignited.
A surge burst from his centre, a wave so strong it sent dust swirling outward. His eyes blazed a deep red, the veins of light crawling faintly up his arms. And from behind his shoulders, the light began to twist thin threads at first, like smoke rising from dying embers.Then the threads gathered, formed.A cape unfolded behind him.
It was not cloth it was alive. A dark crimson mantle rippled, untouchable yet tangible, woven from fire and shadow, in the air. Sparks of ember drifted from its edges, fading before they could touch the earth. Every movement of his breath caused it to flow like liquid light.
Ayaka gasped, her hand covering her mouth. "His back. it's glowing."
Reiji stepped forward, feeling the vibration of ancient energy humming through the soil. "That's not magic," he murmured. "That's power."
Reikuro's low growl filled the clearing. His golden eyes flared with memory something ancient, primal."The dragon's essence…" he whispered. "It's waking."It was a partial awakening, raw as if a storm were trapped in a glass.
Kageya felt the surge race through his veins, not like energy, but like instinct. The world's sounds dimmed. He could hear the beating of his heart, each pulse echoing in his ears like a war drum.
He stretched out his hand and the forest answered.
The wind roared, the trees bowed down, and the earth split open with slight cracks that glowed red from within. All six elements fire, water, earth, light, wind, and dark responded to his call, swirling in a storm around him.
Ayaka shielded her eyes as gold light met black flame, as shards of frost hissed against waves of heat. "Kageya!" she cried. "Stop it, you'll "
He gritted his teeth, voice strained. "I… can't… control… it!"
The magic tore through him, half-pain, half ecstasy. His veins felt like molten glass; every nerve screamed. Yet, even as agony lanced through his body, there seemed to be a strange calm within his core-a pulse that whispered, More.
Reiji pounded his staff against the ground, flaring runes to contain the tempest. The sigils shook under the pressure. "Reikuro!" he yelled, "If this keeps up, the mana flow will tear apart his circuits!"
Reikuro sprang forward, his black fur wreathed in shadow. "Then we'll make him master it now!"
Howling, the spirit wolf summoned dark flames that met Kageya's swirling fire, the two merging in mid air.
Kageya dropped to one knee, clutching at the earth, his cape flying behind him like the wings of some beast which sought to burst free. His hair lashed across his face; he was clenching his teeth until his mouth was full of blood.
He forced himself to focus not on the pain, but on the rhythm. Breathe. Feel.... Balance.The fire in him pulsed once, hard enough to crack the earth at his feet. Then it started to settle, slowly painfully.
The elements stopped their collision course. Instead, they danced around him in synchrony, six ribbons of colour bleeding into each other at their edges: fire bleeding into light, light shimmering into wind, earth humming beneath, water and darkness dancing at the fringe.
Through it, his crimson cape flowed like a living current to feed the balance.
The storm remained calm. The air grew still. Kageya exhaled; the sound was more of a shudder than a sigh. Steam rose off his skin. His hands were shaking, his vision blurring, but for the first time, he wasn't at the mercy of the power: he commanded it. Ayaka hesitated, then ran forward and caught his arm before he fell. "You're burning up," she said softly. Her hands glowed faintly with light magic, soothing the raw scorch marks on his forearms. He looked at her with half lidded eyes, breathing ragged. "I… I didn't mean to scare you." She shook her head, and immediately the corners of her dark glowing pink eyes welled up with tears. "You didn't scare me," she whispered. "You scared yourself." Reiji came closer, his eyes serious but not cold. He squatted next to Kageya, observing the faint black veins that continued to glow beneath the boy's skin. "This is beyond natural magic. The Dragon Power is not just reacting, it is adapting to you. You are reshaping the laws that define mana itself." Kageya swallowed, wordless. The hum of the power was still in the air, quiet now, yet there like a heartbeat beneath the earth. Reikuro sat beside him, looking at Kageya with a sharp yet guarding intensity. "You just survived the taste of what you carry," he said. "That was barely a whisper of your true strength. You have to train more to completely control this mysterious black power ." Kageya looked down at his trembling hands. "If that's only a whisper…then what am I?" Reikuro didn't answer immediately. The wind in the forest started to blow again, softly, cautiously. Finally, the wolf spoke, "You are what happens when the world's balance shifts. Maybe savior. Maybe ruin. That choice is yours." There was silence, with only the chirping of a few birds that dared to sing again. Ayaka still held his arm. Her touch was warm, gentle. "Whatever you are," she said shyly, her voice trembling but firm, "you're not alone." He managed a faint, exhausted smile. "Yeah… not alone." His scarlet cape, though tattered, flew weakly in the rising light of dusk from blazing energy to a faint shimmer. Yet even when it vanished, a thin glow lingered about his shoulders, a silent reminder that the Dragon's breath was yet coursing through his veins. Reiji stood, looking out at the darkened training ground, before turning back to Kageya. "We'll continue again tomorrow," he said in a low tone. "But for now, rest. You've done enough." Kageya didn't argue. He simply leaned against a tree, eyes half closed, breathing in the cool air smelling of earth and ash. For a moment, he thought he could hear the echo deep in his head, a rumble not of words, but of approval. Ayaka remained beside him, her presence calm, her small smile faint within the twilight, while Reikuro and Yuki stood at the edges of the clearing their eyes reflecting the dying light, guardians watching something wondrous and terrifying being birthed. And beyond the forest, unseen, the air shifted. Creatures stirred. Old forces took notice. For such power could not long remain in hiding. Far above the canopy of the forest, darkness coalesced into a sea of stars each twinkling whispering of fate. The forest, once hushed, seemed to breathe with him. Leaves trembled as if the earth itself had shuddered. Kageya's fingers brushed against the ground, still warm from his short burst of energy. He could sense it weak, hammering, alive. The power of the dragon wasn't just in him… it was flowing into him. Mana, will, and instincts started to mix together. Ayaka observed him from the side of her eye, firefly light gently twirling in her silver hair. "You're changing," she murmured softly. It wasn't that she said it in a tone of fear it was a gentler tone, a quiet wonder. Kageya half smiled, his breath fogging in the icy night air. "Perhaps… perhaps I'm simply remembering what I was supposed to be."
Reikuro's eyes shone at night proud, but heavy. "Then get ready, Kageya. The world will know this spark soon… and it will be looking for the flame."The boy looked up at the stars, their light reflected in his red eyes. For the first time, fate was no longer a curse it was a flame waiting to be lit.