The Silverstaff Institute Arc
Episode 8: Training Begins, Part 1
The morning began with four students being summoned to the headmaster's office.
That alone was suspicious.
Headmaster Raiden Mei rarely called students into her office unless someone had broken a rule, broken a building, or somehow managed to break both at the same time.
Considering the students involved, all three possibilities remained open.
Yin Pendragon walked through the administrative corridor with his hands buried inside his coat pockets. Amani Roya followed beside him, looking personally betrayed by the existence of mornings.
Ren Sato moved quietly behind them.
Wander Nozu was nowhere to be seen.
Yin was not surprised.
Wander could become lost while walking through a straight hallway.
Still, Yin had a more important question occupying his mind.
Who exactly was Raiden Mei?
He already knew she was powerful.
What he did not know was why someone with an aura deeper than the sky had taken such an interest in a magicless student.
The memory of their first private lesson still lived inside his bruises.
Several Days Earlier
The Silverstaff Institute mess hall was crowded during lunch.
Hundreds of students occupied long tables while enchanted trays moved through the room, delivering food according to each person's order.
Yin sat near one of the windows behind a mountain of empty dishes.
Meat.
Bread.
Rice.
Vegetables.
Fruit.
Several desserts.
A bowl of soup large enough to bathe in.
He reached for another plate.
A student sitting nearby stared.
"Where does all that food go?"
Another student examined Yin's five-foot frame.
"There isn't enough space inside him."
Yin ignored them.
He had trained throughout the morning, and dragon metabolism had declared war upon the kitchen.
Before he could take another bite, a magical announcement echoed through the hall.
"Yin Pendragon, report to the headmaster's office immediately."
Every conversation near him stopped.
Yin slowly lowered the food.
Whispers immediately followed.
"I hope he's being expelled."
"He's caused enough trouble."
"The school should've never accepted someone without magic."
"Maybe the headmaster finally realized her mistake."
Yin stood.
Their words followed him toward the exit.
His smile remained.
He had become very good at smiling while his chest tightened.
When Yin reached the administrative wing, Mei stood outside her office.
Her long purple hair rested over one shoulder. A sword hung at her side despite her wearing no combat uniform.
"Follow me."
Yin stopped.
"That sounds dangerous."
"It is."
"That wasn't reassuring."
"It wasn't intended to be."
Mei walked away.
Yin followed.
She led him beyond the northern towers and through a hidden path protected by several barriers.
Minutes later, they emerged into a vast grassy field surrounded by mountains.
Flowers bloomed beneath Mei's feet.
Not because she cast a spell.
They simply reacted to her presence.
Yin stared at them.
Her aura did not overwhelm nature.
Nature welcomed her.
Mei stopped in the center of the field.
"What is your reason for fighting?"
Yin blinked.
"My reason?"
A blade flashed toward his throat.
He threw himself backward.
The sword passed close enough to remove several strands of his hair.
Yin landed in a crouch.
"You could've warned me!"
"I asked a question."
"That isn't a warning!"
Mei appeared directly above him.
Her sword descended.
Yin crossed both arms.
The blade struck.
Pain ripped through his bones.
The impact buried him inside a crater while the leftover force traveled beyond the field and split a distant mountain.
Yin gritted his teeth.
His forearms turned dark purple beneath his sleeves.
Mei pressed the sword lower.
"Answer."
"I fight because I'm tired!"
Yin pushed upward.
His damaged arms shook violently.
"I'm tired of everyone treating me like I shouldn't exist!"
He forced Mei's blade aside and kicked toward her stomach.
She stepped away before the attack landed properly.
Yin rose from the crater.
His arms hung numb at his sides.
Mei aimed the sword toward him.
"Is that all?"
"What else do you want?"
"The truth."
Purple lightning crawled across her blade.
The sky darkened.
Yin's body screamed at him to flee.
Mei lifted her sword.
"Divine Heaven, descend. Place terror within the heart of the unworthy and leave nothing untouched."
Lightning Magic: Divine Wrath
Mei vanished.
Yin could not follow her speed.
For one helpless instant, he saw only purple light.
Then something inside his body moved.
His feet twisted before he consciously commanded them.
The lightning crossed the space where his heart had been.
Yin entered Mei's reach and drove an uppercut beneath her chin.
The strike launched her across the field.
Yin stared at his fist.
"I actually hit her?"
Mei's voice came from behind him.
"Barely."
Yin froze.
She stood several feet away, wiping one small drop of blood from her cheek.
She had returned before he could blink.
"I have seen enough."
"Enough of what?"
"Your motivation."
Mei sheathed her weapon.
"You possess extraordinary instinct, but your mind is unstable."
Yin's expression tightened.
"The tournament will place you against people who insult you, manipulate you, and threaten those you love."
She stepped closer.
"If anger controls your sword, then your enemy controls you."
Yin looked toward the grass.
"What am I supposed to do?"
Mei tossed a book toward him.
He caught it against his chest.
Its cover depicted a black island surrounded by mist.
Trials Beyond the Mind
"You will study this."
Mei turned away.
"Then you will travel somewhere that strips away every sense you trust."
Yin examined the book.
"And after that?"
"You will confront the reason you fight."
She glanced over her shoulder.
"Not the reason anger gives you."
Yin's visible eye narrowed.
"You know about the voice."
Mei did not answer directly.
"Prepare yourself."
That was when Yin realized the headmaster knew far more about him than she had admitted.
Present Morning
BZZZT. BZZZT. BZZZT.
Amani's hand emerged from beneath her blanket.
She slapped her makeshift alarm clock.
The buzzing stopped.
Amani remained face-down for several seconds.
"I hate education."
Mei had ordered her to arrive early for an "important event," a phrase adults used when they wanted students awake before reason permitted it.
Amani dressed quickly and traveled toward the administrative wing.
When she entered the office, she found Mei behind her desk and one unfamiliar student seated nearby.
The boy had dark skin, short white hair, and bright crimson eyes.
Ren Sato.
Amani recognized him as the second-year demon who had recently befriended Wander.
Ren noticed her.
Amani noticed him noticing her.
Neither spoke.
Mei looked up.
"Amani. You're early."
"That sounds surprised."
"It is."
Amani dropped into a chair across from Ren.
"Two more students are coming," Mei explained. "One should arrive very soon."
Her violet eyes shifted toward the door.
"Or there will be consequences."
Amani nodded.
Within a minute, her head tilted backward.
Her eyes closed.
Ren stared at her.
The girl had fallen asleep in front of the headmaster.
Either she possessed impossible courage, or exhaustion had consumed every survival instinct.
Ren sat straighter.
He had already waited with Mei for thirty minutes, unsure why he had been summoned.
Judging by Amani's strength, the meeting likely involved the tournament.
The door opened.
Yin entered.
His red eye immediately settled upon the sleeping girl.
His expression softened.
Ren noticed.
She must be important to him.
Then Yin looked toward Ren.
His shaded eye appeared hollow beneath his bangs.
Ren slowly looked away.
Perhaps he does not enjoy conversation.
Yin sensed Amani's presence.
She had somehow slid halfway out of her chair and into the doorway.
He stepped toward her and chopped the top of her head.
"Agh!"
Amani snapped awake.
Her eyes landed on him.
"Oh, Yin!"
Her exhaustion vanished almost instantly.
"You're here too."
Yin offered his hand and helped her stand.
"Did Mei explain what this is about?" Amani asked quietly. "I'm too scared to ask."
Mei raised an eyebrow from behind the desk.
Amani pretended she had not seen it.
"I think I know," Yin answered.
"You do?"
"She's forcing us into a tournament team."
Amani smiled.
"Forcing?"
She glanced toward Mei.
The headmaster smiled back.
Amani faced Yin again.
"Actually, yes. Forcing."
Then her eyes brightened.
"A team with you sounds exciting."
Yin's face turned red.
He covered it with both hands.
How can she say things like that without warning?
Amani tilted her head.
"Are you feeling ill?"
"No."
"You're overheating."
"I'm a dragon."
"That excuse is becoming less effective."
Yin lowered his hands.
"Mei implied losing would expose us to her wrath."
Amani's excitement cracked.
"There are powerful contestants. We'll need four members."
"Who said this is only tournament training?"
Yin opened the door wider.
Ren remained inside.
He gave Amani a polite nod.
She returned it.
"That makes three," Yin said. "We're only missing Wander."
A voice came from the hallway.
"Sorry."
Wander Nozu rounded the corner with his head lowered.
His encounter with the priest still occupied his thoughts.
The man had known his name.
Known his species.
Known that the Forged had supposedly been exterminated.
Wander looked down at dried blood on his knuckles.
He generated enough heat to burn it away.
How did he know me?
He walked directly into Yin.
Wander blinked.
"Oh. Hey."
"You're late."
"I got lost."
"You sleep inside the Institute."
"The halls are confusing."
"They have signs."
"The signs are judgmental."
Once all four were inside, Mei rose.
"I'm glad everyone arrived."
Her tone suggested Wander's survival remained under review.
Amani lifted one hand.
"Headmaster, why exactly are we here?"
Mei removed four maps from her desk.
"You are preparing for opponents far more dangerous than typical students."
She handed each of them a different map.
"Your abilities are powerful, but incomplete."
Amani leaned toward Yin.
"We're too advanced for ordinary teaching."
"That is not what she said."
"It was hidden between the words."
"No, it wasn't."
Wander unfolded his map.
A location far beyond Rize had been marked.
"What's there?"
"That is for you to discover."
Ren straightened.
"You're separating us?"
"Yes."
"This was not part of last year's training."
"The circumstances have changed."
Mei gestured toward Yin.
"This year contains a student without magic."
Yin's expression tightened.
Wander immediately looked at her.
"Don't point at him like he's defective."
"I stated a relevant fact."
"You made him sound like a problem."
Mei's violet eyes settled upon Wander.
"And what would you do if I considered him one?"
The room became still.
Wander stared directly at her.
His orange markings glowed faintly.
Mei lifted one hand.
Purple lightning struck the floor.
Her sword appeared inside her grasp.
"You are threatening someone you do not understand."
Ren stood.
"Perhaps we can delay the contest of intimidating expressions."
Neither looked away.
Ren continued.
"I do not believe Headmaster Mei intended 'magicless' as an insult."
Wander's markings slowly dimmed.
Ren faced Mei.
"However, sending us away without providing duration or destination details is unreasonable."
He gestured toward the others.
"These three are first-years."
Then toward himself.
"I have obligations here."
Aria's bright smile briefly entered his mind.
"I also have someone I promised to meet."
"Will we receive compensation?"
Mei returned her sword to lightning.
"I received information concerning another academy."
Ren sighed.
"That is not compensation."
"One of their students originates from Purgatory."
Yin's attention sharpened.
"She eliminated an entire wyvern horde alone."
The room became silent.
Mei folded her hands.
"You are not the only exceptional students preparing for the tournament."
Ren leaned back.
"You avoided my question by providing alarming information."
"It was effective."
Yin looked at his map.
The first marked location was the Forest of Judah.
Beyond it rested Night Moon Valley.
"I'm starting here."
He touched the forest symbol.
"Then I'll go to Night Moon Valley."
A Letter from Home
After leaving the office, a younger student approached Amani and handed her an envelope.
He ran before she could question him.
The seal belonged to her father.
Amani opened it.
Dear Amani,
Your departure without notice has caused considerable concern. I expected you to return and explain yourself after Cyprus located you, yet you instead subjected him to an inappropriate display of force. Such behavior is unbecoming of a princess.
Your mother remains worried. I ask that you return so this matter may be resolved peacefully.
Sincerely, King Conrad Roya
Amani read it twice.
Her father had never written anything that politely without a motive hidden underneath it.
Still, the mention of her mother affected her.
She had left without explaining.
Her mother remained in Oceania to face Conrad's anger alone.
Amani looked toward the corridor where Yin had disappeared.
Yin had friends now.
Wander protected him.
Ren had entered their growing circle.
He was no longer the isolated child who depended entirely upon her presence.
Perhaps he did not need her anymore.
The thought hurt.
Amani folded the letter.
She could use the training assignment as an excuse to visit Oceania, ensure her mother was safe, then leave again.
Worst case, she abandoned Silverstaff.
The Institute had taught her less than expected anyway.
She had come because Yin needed someone beside him.
"It cannot hurt."
Amani had said those words before several disasters.
She trusted them once more.
The Roya Kingdom
The journey south took several days.
Amani hired a private carriage with a white exterior and rose-colored interior.
Roya scouts stopped her near the border.
The moment they recognized her, they immediately cleared the road.
The same occurred at the capital gates.
Information traveled through kingdoms faster than anything useful.
Amani entered the royal castle.
Her father's voice shook the throne room.
"AMANI! WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?"
No affectionate nickname.
No polite concern.
The letter had been a net written in formal language.
Amani entered carefully.
Red carpets stretched beneath golden pillars. Guards and nobles knelt along both sides.
Cyprus knelt closest to King Conrad's throne.
Her mother stood nearby.
Fabric covered almost every part of her body.
Gloves hid her hands.
A veil concealed most of her face.
Only her eyes remained visible.
Her mother never dressed that way.
Amani immediately suspected the clothing was hiding injuries.
She also sensed waves of electromagnetic interference flowing through the room.
The field disrupted her mental abilities.
Cyprus had told Conrad exactly how she defeated him.
Her father leaned forward.
"Answer me."
"I was studying."
"WITHOUT INFORMING ME?"
"I believed informing you would result in refusal."
"Because it would have."
Conrad's aura expanded.
Amani's heart began beating faster.
She despised being frightened by him.
Still, the king possessed enough power to kill her before she completed a thought.
She trusted that he still required an heir.
"I have reached Oceania's legal age of independence."
"You're lying about your motive."
His eyes narrowed.
"My perception exceeds your deception."
Amani remained silent.
"Tell me why you left."
Conrad smiled coldly.
"Or there will be consequences."
Amani nearly challenged him.
Then her father spoke again.
"This concerns the dragon boy, doesn't it?"
Her chest tightened.
"Yin Pendragon."
"That is irrelevant."
"Your reaction disagrees."
Conrad rested his chin upon one hand.
"Tell me everything, and I promise no harm will come to him."
Amani hated that he had chosen the correct pressure point.
"I went because Yin was alone."
She clenched her hands.
"Everyone treated him as defective because he lacked magic. His family's reputation prevented him from experiencing anything normal."
Conrad listened.
"He needed someone beside him, so I helped him leave and attend Silverstaff."
"Yin Pendragon."
Conrad smiled.
"The magicless prince."
"Do not call him that."
"What makes my daughter value him so greatly?"
"That is none of your concern."
"Then I will discover it myself."
Conrad lifted one hand.
Several shadowed guards appeared.
"Find Yin Pendragon."
Amani's eyes widened.
"Bring him here discreetly."
"You promised not to hurt him!"
"I promised no harm."
Conrad's smile widened.
"Kidnapping can be surprisingly gentle."
"That is still kidnapping!"
"Legality behaves differently near crowns."
He waved.
"Take Amani to her room."
Invisible restraints closed around her arms.
Amani struggled.
"Leave him alone!"
Conrad looked bored.
"Daddy's orders."
As guards dragged her away, Amani looked toward her mother.
Tears had gathered behind the veil.
The Forest of Judah
The Forest of Judah was filled with pale mist.
Any creature entering it gradually lost its senses.
Sight faded first.
Then hearing.
Smell.
Touch.
Eventually, even aura perception disappeared.
Yin had remained inside for several days.
He sat beneath a dead tree with his legs crossed.
He could not see the forest.
He could not hear the leaves.
He could not feel the soil beneath him.
The goal was to detect danger without relying upon any ordinary sense.
The ancient texts called it Preconscious Awareness, the moment instinct recognized an attack before perception translated it.
Yin had made no progress.
Mei intended to supervise him, but urgent military paperwork kept her at Silverstaff.
Yin was alone.
At least, he believed he was.
A figure moved silently through the mist.
Yin sensed nothing.
A blunt weapon struck the back of his head.
Darkness swallowed him.
The attackers restrained his body, placed him inside a reinforced bag, and carried him toward a waiting carriage.
By the time Yin's regeneration began healing the injury, the Forest of Judah had disappeared behind them.
The Captive Prince
Yin awakened inside darkness.
Chains restrained his wrists and ankles.
Each movement drained more strength from his body.
"Let me out!"
The bag opened.
Guards dragged him free and dropped him onto a polished floor.
Yin looked upward.
King Conrad sat on his throne.
Amani's aura existed somewhere above them.
Fear.
Anger.
Helplessness.
Yin's expression changed.
"Yin Pendragon," Conrad said. "You have recently become interesting."
Yin tested the restraints.
"If you wanted a conversation, an invitation would've been less expensive."
"You might have refused."
"That is usually allowed."
"I do not enjoy refusal."
"Neither does Amani. I finally see where she learned it."
Several guards lowered their faces to hide smiles.
Conrad's eyes narrowed.
"Where is she?" Yin asked.
"She is being disciplined."
The room grew hotter.
"For what?"
"For allowing you to influence her."
Yin's pleasant expression disappeared.
Conrad clapped once.
The throne room folded.
Walls turned.
The floor expanded.
Within seconds, Yin stood upon a balcony overlooking an enormous coliseum filled with nearly a million spectators.
Conrad's voice echoed across it.
"You will face Oceania's greatest warrior."
A gate opened.
Cyprus emerged wearing royal armor and carrying a specialized lance.
"He has strengthened himself since his humiliating encounter with my daughter."
Cyprus's jaw tightened.
"Defeat him," Conrad continued, "and perhaps I will believe you possess some value."
Yin looked toward Cyprus.
Then toward the king.
"Underestimate me, and I'll prepare a grave for both of you."
Conrad laughed.
"Throw him in."
The guards lifted Yin.
They hurled him from the balcony.
He fell fifty feet.
Yin struck the arena hard enough to crack the restraints and split the stone beneath him.
He pushed himself upright.
Pain ran through his knees and spine.
"What a welcoming family."
He shattered the remaining shackles and stretched his arms.
The strength-draining enchantment had weakened him severely.
His muscles felt hollow.
His aura perception had not fully returned after the Forest of Judah.
The opposite gate opened.
Cyprus entered.
The crowd roared.
He stopped several meters from Yin and aimed the lance at his throat.
"I pity you."
"That makes one of us."
"You believed you possessed a future."
Cyprus lowered his stance.
"When I'm finished, you will never want to fight again."
Yin raised his bare hands.
He had no sword.
No armor.
No recovered senses.
Only his body.
"I was planning to ask Amani's father for permission to marry her."
The stadium went silent for half a heartbeat.
High above, Amani nearly choked.
Yin grinned.
"I guess beating his favorite guard works as an introduction."
He pushed off the ground.
The stone exploded beneath him.
Yin rushed forward with one fist prepared.
Cyprus planted his feet and swung the lance.
Yin attempted to duck.
His dulled senses reacted too slowly.
The weapon struck his ribs.
CRACK!
Yin flew across the arena.
He bounced twice before crashing through a stone wall.
Dust covered him.
His left side burned.
Several ribs had fractured despite his dragon scales.
Cyprus did not wait.
He crossed the distance and drove the lance downward.
Yin rolled aside.
The weapon pierced the ground.
A wave of energy erupted from the impact and threw him again.
Yin landed badly.
His shoulder dislocated.
Cyprus pulled the lance free.
"This is the student my princess abandoned her home for?"
Yin pushed himself up with one arm.
"Talk less."
He forced the shoulder back into place.
"Fight better."
Cyprus rushed him.
Three lance strikes arrived almost simultaneously.
Yin blocked the first with his forearm.
The second tore across his stomach.
The third struck his chest and launched him upward.
Cyprus followed.
He spun and struck Yin in midair.
The attack sent him crashing into the center of the arena.
A crater opened beneath him.
Yin coughed blood.
His regeneration attempted to repair the wounds, but the lance carried an energy that disrupted draconic healing.
His body felt heavier with every breath.
Cyprus landed at the edge of the crater.
"You are fast."
Yin wiped blood from his mouth.
"But not fast enough."
Cyprus thrust.
Yin barely moved aside.
The lance pierced his coat and cut deeply into his shoulder.
He grabbed the shaft.
Cyprus attempted to pull it free.
Yin tightened his grip.
"Got you."
He yanked Cyprus forward and drove his forehead into the guard's face.
The headbutt cracked Cyprus's nose.
Yin followed with an uppercut.
Cyprus flew several meters.
The crowd gasped.
Yin climbed from the crater.
His legs shook.
Cyprus touched the blood beneath his nose.
For the first time, genuine anger appeared on his face.
"You insolent little dragon."
He threw the lance.
The weapon accelerated beyond Yin's perception.
Kinetic energy twisted around it as visible lightning. Potential energy shifted constantly, making the trajectory impossible to predict.
Yin attempted to move.
The lance pierced his side.
His body was carried backward and pinned against the coliseum wall.
Blood poured down the stone.
Amani screamed from somewhere above.
"YIN!"
His vision blurred.
Cyprus walked toward him.
The lance had missed his heart by inches.
Only luck had prevented immediate death.
Or perhaps something else.
Yin gripped the weapon lodged through his body.
He tried pulling it free.
Pain exploded through him.
His hands slipped.
Cyprus stopped beneath him.
"You cannot defeat me."
Yin's breathing became shallow.
"I have spent my life fighting threats greater than you understand."
The crowd began chanting Cyprus's name.
"Your strength is impressive for someone without magic."
The guard lifted one hand.
"But strength without power is only desperate movement."
Yin looked toward the royal balcony.
He sensed Amani above.
Terrified.
Trapped.
Waiting for him.
He remembered five-year-old Amani standing at his bedroom door.
The first person who chose him.
He remembered Himeko holding his face and telling him he was not useless.
His mother never treated his lack of magic as failure.
She taught him that dragon blood was more than spells.
It was instinct.
Will.
The refusal to remain fallen.
Yin closed his eyes.
I don't need to beat him because I'm angry.
His hands tightened around the lance.
I don't need to prove I'm better than everyone.
The whisper inside his mind urged him to kill.
He ignored it.
I only need enough strength to reach her.
A small resolve formed.
Not rage.
Not pride.
Love.
Yin pulled.
The lance tore free from his body.
He fell from the wall and landed on one knee.
Cyprus stared.
Yin's wound continued bleeding.
Then golden-red light appeared within it.
The air became warm.
Not destructive.
Alive.
The same warmth that surrounded Himeko Pendragon.
Yin looked at his hands.
Crimson-gold energy flowed over his skin.
His blood ignited without burning him.
The torn flesh closed.
Not through his ordinary regeneration.
Through something brighter.
Something inherited.
High above, Amani felt the shift.
Conrad leaned forward.
Cyprus stepped back.
"What is that?"
Yin's shaded eyes transformed.
Golden light burned around the crimson.
A flame-shaped mark appeared over his heart.
His mother's voice entered his memory.
"You are my son. That will never change."
Yin stood.
For one brief moment, he awakened the power carried through Himeko's bloodline.
Divine Dragon Blood: Heart of the First Flame
The arena bloomed.
Flowers pushed through cracks in the stone.
The blood covering Yin evaporated into golden sparks.
His body became lighter.
His damaged muscles filled with renewed strength.
His senses returned in a single overwhelming rush.
He could hear every heartbeat in the stadium.
Feel every movement in the air.
See the flow of energy inside Cyprus's body.
It was not ordinary fire.
It was the flame of life itself.
A power that restored, strengthened, and refused destruction.
Yin stared at Cyprus.
"I found you."
Then he disappeared.
Cyprus barely raised his arms before Yin struck his stomach.
The blow folded the guard's armor inward.
Cyprus flew across the arena.
Yin followed.
He appeared above him and kicked downward.
Cyprus crashed into the floor.
The entire coliseum shook.
Yin landed, but the golden flames flickered.
The awakening was already fading.
His body could not contain it.
Cyprus emerged from the crater with blood running from his mouth.
He roared and attacked barehanded.
Yin blocked one punch.
The impact still forced him backward.
The second struck his cheek.
The golden flame cracked.
Cyprus grabbed Yin by the throat and slammed him into the ground.
"You think a temporary spark makes you stronger than me?!"
Yin drove his knee into Cyprus's ribs.
The guard released him.
Both staggered apart.
The inherited power had closed Yin's worst injuries, but the earlier damage remained beneath the surface.
His lungs burned.
His legs shook.
Cyprus summoned his lance back into his hand.
Yin raised his palms.
Purple Qi gathered.
It struggled to form because his body was exhausted.
A short energy blade appeared.
Cyprus threw the lance again.
This time, Yin could see it.
He swung the Qi blade.
The weapons collided.
The force split the arena from one end to the other.
Yin's energy sword shattered.
The lance was deflected into the sky.
Cyprus appeared in front of him and drove a fist into his ribs.
Yin coughed blood again.
Cyprus struck his face.
Then his stomach.
Then his chest.
Each attack forced Yin backward.
The golden flames vanished completely.
His mother's power had lasted less than a minute.
Cyprus smiled.
"It is gone."
Yin nearly collapsed.
"Yes."
He wiped his mouth.
"But it gave me enough."
"Enough for what?"
"To understand how you move."
Yin had used the awakened senses to memorize Cyprus's breathing, muscle tension, and energy flow.
The guard attacked.
Yin stepped around the punch.
Cyprus swung again.
Yin ducked.
A knee rose toward his stomach.
Yin turned sideways.
Every movement passed inches from him.
Cyprus's confidence shattered.
Yin did not become faster.
He had finally learned the rhythm.
Cyprus summoned his lance and thrust toward Yin's throat.
Yin caught the shaft between both hands.
His palms tore open.
He twisted.
The lance was forced aside.
Yin stepped inside Cyprus's reach.
His fist drew back.
"Thank you."
Cyprus's eyes widened.
"For showing me what I was missing."
Yin delivered a left hook.
The impact shattered the remaining arena floor.
Cyprus flew through the coliseum wall and disappeared into the horizon.
Silence followed.
Yin remained standing for three seconds.
Then he fell onto one knee.
His mother's power had vanished.
Only a faint golden ember remained above his heart.
A Very Sudden Proposal
The coliseum's electromagnetic blockers failed during the chaos.
Amani's abilities returned.
She escaped her room and raced toward the arena.
"Yin!"
She reached him before he collapsed completely.
Amani wrapped both arms around him.
Yin froze.
Then returned the embrace weakly.
"You're alive."
Her voice trembled.
"I thought he killed you."
Yin rested his chin against her shoulder.
"I nearly let him."
"That isn't funny."
"I wasn't joking."
Amani pulled back enough to examine his wounds.
The hole in his side had closed, but blood covered the surrounding clothing.
"What was that power?"
Yin looked at his hands.
"I think it came from my mother."
The ember above his heart disappeared.
"I only held it for a little while."
Amani hugged him again.
Yin's eyes moved toward Conrad.
The warmth in his aura briefly became bloodlust.
Then he remembered the resolve that awakened Himeko's power.
He released the anger.
"I need to ask your father something."
Amani raised her head.
"What?"
Yin gently patted her hair.
Then walked toward the royal balcony while limping badly.
King Conrad rose from his throne.
Yin cupped both hands around his mouth.
"YOUR MAJESTY!"
His voice echoed through the stadium.
"I ASK FOR PERMISSION TO MARRY YOUR DAUGHTER!"
The coliseum became completely silent.
Amani's face turned bright red.
Cyprus regained consciousness somewhere outside the wall and immediately wished to lose it again.
Conrad opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Finally, the king found his voice.
"You believe defeating Cyprus gives you the right to marry my daughter?"
"No."
Yin looked back toward Amani.
"I believe loving her gives me the right to ask."
Amani's heart nearly stopped.
Conrad gripped the balcony.
"A marriage between two royal families on opposite ends of the world would create political chaos!"
"I don't care."
"You are the Pendragon family's only male heir!"
"I don't care about that either."
Conrad stared at him.
Yin's fingers curled into fists.
"Amani was the first person outside my family who looked at me and didn't see a mistake."
His voice shook.
"She knew I had no magic and chose me anyway."
Amani stood frozen below.
"She gave me a reason to leave my room. She made me believe I could have a life beyond what people called me."
Yin looked directly at Conrad.
"I love her with everything I have."
Conrad's expression became serious.
"Your family will never allow its prince to marry into another kingdom."
"Then I'll give up my claim."
Amani's eyes widened.
"Yin…"
"Durandal should inherit Night Moon."
He smiled gently.
"She always deserved it."
He faced Amani.
"When we graduate, we don't need a palace. We can live in a village, a town, or wherever makes her happy."
Conrad remained silent.
Above everything else, even buried beneath control and pride, some part of him valued his daughter's happiness.
Cyprus could serve as an alternative successor if necessary.
Yin had also proven that his lack of magic did not make him powerless.
Conrad finally raised one hand.
"Very well."
Amani stopped breathing.
"I, Conrad Roya, grant Yin Pendragon permission to pursue marriage with Amani Roya when both of you are of age…"
He looked toward his daughter.
"…and only if she freely chooses the same."
Yin's eyes lit up.
"I promise to protect her with my life!"
He bowed deeply.
Then turned toward Amani.
Her entire face remained crimson.
Yin approached more slowly this time.
"That happened faster than I planned."
"You proposed before speaking to me."
"I was under pressure."
"You punched the pressure through a wall."
"That helped."
Amani stared at him.
Yin's confidence began collapsing.
"You can say no."
Her expression softened.
"I haven't."
Yin's face became just as red as hers.
He carefully placed his arms around her waist.
He paused, giving her the chance to move away.
She remained.
Yin leaned closer.
Their lips met.
The kiss was clumsy and uncertain.
Yin pressed too firmly at first, with absolutely no understanding of what he was doing.
Amani froze in surprise.
Then her hands rested against his shoulders.
She closed her eyes and kissed him back.
For several quiet seconds, the coliseum disappeared.
No tournament.
No kingdoms.
No whispers.
No sleeping Dragon of Judgment.
Only Yin and the girl who first believed he could be more than what the world named him.
High above, Conrad watched with the hollow expression of a father realizing his kidnapping had transformed into an engagement ceremony.
Far beyond them, inside Yin's blood, one tiny golden flame continued burning.
His mother's power had awakened only briefly.
But it had answered him.
And now Yin knew it existed.
To Be Continued ➡️