He actually stepped forward first.
No warning, no buildup – just a shift in weight and suddenly the air in front of me collapsed. Sylendor closed the distance like he was skipping space itself.
*CLANG!*
My sword barely came up in time. The impact almost ripped it out of my hands. The shock ran straight up my arms, and for a split second my vision shook.
"–gh!"
My feet dragged back half a step just from the force. I can feel my whole body stinging… damn it… I gritted my teeth, and adjust my grip. I can't let him hit me… or block his attacks neither.. Because that block already felt like I lost something. Sylendor didn't wait. He rotated his axe and came in again, this time from the side.
*WHOOSH–CLANG!*
I barely twisted my blade to redirect it. Sparks burst out, but my arms screamed in protest. Every impact felt heavier than the last, like he was stacking weight onto my bones with each exchange. So I stopped trying to clash. I moved.
Step. Slip. Pivot.
I pushed speed to its limit, weaving through his swings instead of meeting them. The ground under me cracked from his missed strikes alone.
Too close. Too wide. Again. Always one step behind survival. Then I saw an opening. Just a fraction.
I shot forward and twisted my body, bringing my leg up for a clean kick aimed at his ribs.
"Got you–!" Sylendor didn't even flinch. He caught my ankle mid-air. Just like that.
"…what." My body froze. Before I could react, he spun once and threw me like I weighed nothing.
"Wha–?!" The world flipped.
*BOOM!*
I slammed into the ground, skidding hard across the training hall. My back scraped stone, dust exploding behind me as I finally stopped because my body hit a weapon rack.
Wood cracked above me. A piece of the rack collapsed, splintering over my shoulder. Silence for half a second. Then pain hit.
"...tch…" I pushed myself up slowly. One knee down. Blood dripping from my head, sliding past one eye. The other eye still open, shaking slightly as I exhaled through my teeth. "…okay… that one hurt." Across the hall, Sylendor rolled his shoulder like nothing happened. Like he just tossed aside a training dummy. But before anything else could happen–
*HISS!*
Blaze jumped in front of me. Low stance. Fangs out. Aura shifting. The air around him turned heavy in an instant, like something far older had just blinked awake.
"…Blaze?" I muttered. Behind him, Byakuren stepped forward, eyes sharp. Nochtrael's tail lowered, posture stiff.
And then I saw it. Elandris stopped smiling.
Caethel froze mid-step. Erendil's grip tightened on his spear. All three of them instinctively formed a defensive line without even speaking.
Not attacking. Just… guarding.
"…hey," Elandris said slowly, voice unsteady. "What's with your lizard?"
But it wasn't curiosity. His hand was trembling.
So was Caethel's. Even Erendil, calm moments ago, had shifted his stance like he was facing something unpredictable.
Fear.
That was it. Not hesitation. Fear. Blaze's aura deepened, pressure rolling off him in waves.
Sylendor narrowed his eyes slightly. "…interesting."
"Calm down, Blaze." My voice came out rough, but steady. "I'm fine. It's just a scratch." I wiped the blood from my face with the back of my hand, then exhaled. "Seriously. Stand down."
For a second, Blaze didn't move. Then—
The pressure snapped off like it never existed.
"Oh," he said casually, blinking. "Sorry kid, my bad." And just like that, he jumped back onto my shoulder like nothing happened.
The hall slowly started breathing again. I sighed.
"…you're unbelievable."
Blaze yawned. "You got thrown like a sack. I panicked for a second."
"I noticed." From the front, Sylendor exhaled once, slowly, as if he was saved from something bad that is about to happen earlier.
"…again," he said.
I tightened my grip on the sword. Blood still warm.
Body still shaking. But eyes steady now.
"Yeah, but Blaze, get back to the sides can you? We're still not done here." I muttered.
"…again." Sylendor repeated.
I muttered, "…but before anything else, I'll heal myself first…"
Green light gathered in my palm, soft at first—then steady. It spread across my arm, crawling up to my shoulder, stitching muscle, calming the burn, dulling the sting that still lingered in my bones. The cut on my head closed slowly, blood drying as the glow faded in pulses.
Silence. Not the usual kind. Confused silence.
"…healing magic?" Sylendor said, brows knitting together. "You didn't tell me that. I thought you were a swordsman."
I rolled my shoulder once, testing it. Good as new.
"That?" I shrugged. "I beat your son with healing magic."
A pause. Then—
"…what?"
"With a punch."
Sylendor just stared at me for a solid second. Then his expression twisted into pure disbelief. "Hey kid," he said, voice dropping. "Do you think I'm some kind of idiot? Pure brawn, no brain?"
I raised a hand slightly. "I mean, you did just throw me across the room–"
"Don't dodge the question."
"I'm not."
He exhaled sharply through his nose, clearly annoyed now. "Healing magic is for recovery. Support. Stabilization. Not–" he gestured vaguely, "–whatever nonsense you're saying."
From the side, Elandris tilted his head. "I'm… actually curious now."
Caethel frowned. "That shouldn't be possible."
Even Erendil's eyes narrowed slightly, studying me.
And Elandor..He didn't say anything. But he was watching closely. With a narrowed eyes.
Sylendor pointed one axe at me. "Fine. Show me." He planted his feet firmly against the cracked floor. "If you're talking nonsense, I will personally send your ass back to Valerión."
I cracked my neck slightly. "You really want to see it that bad, huh?" I said, stepping forward. "Then stand there."
Sylendor smirked. "Do your worst."
I exhaled once. Then raised my fist. Green light ignited again—but this time, it wasn't gentle. It condensed. Compressed. Focused.
The glow sharpened into something denser, heavier. The air around my hand started to distort slightly, like pressure building in a sealed space.
"…what is that…" Elandris muttered.
They could feel it. All of them. Even Sylendor's smirk faded just a little.
"…that's healing magic?" Caethel said under his breath.
It wasn't just light anymore. It had weight. Intent.
I tightened my fist. "Don't blink," I muttered. Then–
"Healing Impact." I moved. Not a step. A burst.
The ground beneath me cracked as I shot forward like an arrow, distance collapsing in an instant.
Sylendor raised his guard–
Too late.
My fist connected.
*BOOOOM–!!*
A deep, compressed impact echoed through the hall–not explosive, not destructive in the usual sense–but heavy. Like something slammed directly into the core of his body. For a split second, everything froze. Then–
Sylendor flew. Not far, but enough. His feet left the ground, body sliding back across the floor before skidding to a stop. Followed by complete silence.
"…what." Elandris blinked. "…but he looks fine," he added slowly. "He's just… sleeping?"
Sylendor lay there. No visible injuries. No blood.
No broken bones. Just… out. A few seconds passed. Then–
"…the hell…" He opened his eyes. Sat up slowly.
Blinking like he just woke up from a nap. "What the hell was that?"
I lowered my hand, shaking it once. "Told you," I said. "Healing magic."
Sylendor stared at me like reality just betrayed him.
From the side—
"When did you even learn that?" Elandor finally spoke, voice sharper than before. "What did you do? How?"
Yeah. That reaction? That was worse than Sylendor's. I scratched my cheek lightly. "I just… adjusted how it works."
"That is not an answer."
"I mean… it is an answer."
Behind me, Blaze burst out laughing. "HAHAHAHA—!" he pointed a tiny claw toward Sylendor. "That reminds me of your son!"
Sylendor's eye twitched. "…I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that."
Blaze grinned. "You got folded the same way."
"Say that again."
"Folded."
"…I'm going to kill this lizard."
"Try it," Blaze shot back instantly, tail flicking.
I sighed. "…can we not start another fight?"
End of chapter.