Ignatius and I walked to the tomb and opened it, seeing Ignelgia being held by Kulik. Ignelgia was a greatsword with a brown handle, golden hilt, and a white and gold blade. There was an opening in the middle of the hilt where the Flame Medallion was supposedly supposed to go.
Ignatius took Ignelgia and looked at it. The sword faintly glowed in his hand then we headed onward to the cove, using Ignelgia to unlock the gates to the cove.
"So...about Fujo, I know it isn't a topic you'd like to talk about-"
"Because it isn't one I want to speak on, but go ahead," I said.
"The things he said were really...just unacceptable. It reminded me of when my brother hated me because I was a direct descendant of Apollus. I could hear the pain in your voice even when you sealed him away." Ignatius said.
I looked down and closed my eyes. I let out a sigh. "Yeah. I was hurt, the brother I looked up to hated me for years. Not only did my biological father not love me, but Fujo also did the same thing my father did. The love was fake and I never knew. But that's now in the past...you should mentally prepare yourself alright..? This is your trial, and I'm gonna let you handle it alright?"
"Right." Ignatius nodded.
We traversed the cove and within an hour or two, we made it to the Adristan Inferno Shrine. There, in front of the shrine, was a dragon who laid in front of the shrine, the Guardian of the Flame Medallion.
"Wielder of Ignelgia.." The dragon started. "You have come as the prophecy foretold, but it seems like Ignelgia hasn't responded to you...I can help with that in this Trial of Inferno. I am the Guardian of the Flame Medallion, I am Magmadamus. Enter the Shrine and your trial will start to see if you're truly ready to wield the Flame Medallion's power."
Ignatius looked at me and I nodded at him. He nodded back then walked ahead and Magmadamus flew to the skies, roaring then turned into magic particles, and thus, the trial began.
Ignatius walked ahead and stopped, seeing a flame pillar appear in front of him. The pillar disappeared and showed a male with red hair, and dark brown eyes, wearing a red sleeveless top, red trousers and brown boots. He wore an iron breastplate and an iron tasset belt.
"A swordsman who once served the late Emperor Kulik before the Adristian Empire was born...was the first Flame Guardian, the first Descendant of Apollus. His name is Agni and for this trial, you will be fighting Agni four different times. A battle for each of his different forms." Magmadamus said. "First Battle will be against First Form Agni."
Ignatius looked at his sword then looked at Agni. He nodded and then got ready for battle. He got into his stance then dashed ahead. Agni watched Ignatius then dodged the thrusts of his sword and his slashes. Ignatius rushed ahead, dragging his blade along the ground and bellowed then slashed upwards. Agni blocked his attack then grunted as his guard was broken. Ignatius bellowed and sliced Agni's body three times then twirled his sword around in a circle before slashing upward while jumping.
"Flame Drive!" Ignatius bellowed and sliced Agni's body in half then Agni's body dispersed into magic particles.
Ignatius landed on his feet and grunted softly. He looked at his sword as his techniques dealt a lot more damage due to the Fire Affinity ability the sword had, boosting all of his techniques' attack potency and damage output.
"A quick battle. Well done. Move on to the next area." Magmadamus said then a portal opened in front of Ignatius.
Ignatius walked into the portal and was transported to a battlefield. He looked around and noticed he was in an empty arena. He looked ahead and a fire pillar appeared in front of him. The fire pillar disappeared and Agni appeared in front of Ignatius. Agni's hair was redder and flame-like now. He still wore the same red sleeveless top with red trousers and brown boots, but he ditched the armor and wore a scarf instead around his neck. His longsword appeared redder and was encased with flames.
"Meet the Blaze Lord form of Agni. Agni became a drifter, banished from the Royal Guard and soon the now Ruined Kingdom of Adrista because of his power. His final battle before leaving his home was in this very arena against a powerful knight. Here, he was crowned the Blaze Lord because of his mastery with the flames." Magmadamus said. "The second battle is against Blaze Lord Agni. Good luck."
Ignatius looked at Agni then noticed Agni pull up his scarf to cover his nose and face. This Agni was the rouge arc of Agni's life. The part of his life that he hated because he felt him being a descendant of Apollus was a curse because he lost everything he'd ever known and had.
The battle started with Agni dashing ahead to Ignatius then slashed at him. Ignatius blocked his attack and grunted. Ignatius in this form was a lot stronger than his first form and was able to easily overpower Ignatius. Ignatius surfed on his flames and Agni surfed after him on his flames. The two circled the battlefield before surfing towards each other and swinging their swords, colliding with one another. Ignatius grunted as he was pushed back, and Agni took this chance to dish out three powerful attacks on Ignatius.
Agni uppercut Ignatius's chin, sending him flying and surfed upwards then zoomed around the area. Ignatius looked around as he tried to track Agni, but he was too fast for Ignatius to see. Agni hit Ignatius with five quick and powerful slashes from multiple directions and angles.
"Infinity Burst!" Agni bellowed and slashed downward at Ignatius.
Ignatius blocked the attack and grunted hard. The two of them were descending to the ground quickly. Ignatius was going to take most of the impact. Ignatius bellowed and his back sparked and Ignelgia began shining. "Scorching...Counter?" He bellowed then managed to break Agni's guard then used his flames to fly above Agni and delivered massive kick to his back with his leg encased in flames.
They crashed to the ground and Ignatius jumped backwards and grunted as he felt a sharp pain in his leg, taking recoil from his attack. His attack however was double the power because he did take damage before Agni delivered the final attack of his Infinity Burst.
Agni slowly stood up and panted. His eyes became redder and his hair became more flame-like. "More...I need more strength..." Agni said then his Crest of Phlogiston shined and he dispersed into magic particles.
"Battle two completed. From here until the final battle, the fights will only get harder. You didn't defeat him in battle, but got him low enough to where he needed to retreat. Onward to the next location." Magmadamus said.
A portal opened and Ignatius hurried inside. He walked out of the other side of the portal and noticed he was in another battlefield. This battlefield was in the Ruined Kingdom of Adrista. The castle and the other buildings around it were destroyed. A flame pillar appeared in front of Ignatius once again. The pillar vanished and showed Agni once more. He wore black and red armor. The armor had a flame like design to it and his sword was encased in stronger flames then a single wing of fire manifested on the left side of his back.
"This is the Divine Inferno form of Agni. This was after Shidao attacked the kingdom and killed Apollus, making him the new Flame Deity as well as being the Guardian of the Flame Medallion. His girlfriend, who was a Valkyrie, lived in this Kingdom gave him her wings before she died in his arms. Obviously since this is a trial, he isn't at his Lore Strength but I didn't want to make this too easy." Magmadamus said. "The third battle is against Divine Inferno Agni."
Agni looked at Ignatius then got into his battle stance. Ignatius got into his then the two dashed to each other and swung their swords. They clashed with each other and continued clashing continuously. Ignatius began to rush Agni with quick attacks, but Agni blocked each attack then punched Ignatius's stomach. He groaned then was blown away into a ruined tower. Ignatius fell onto one knee and coughed. He sensed Agni then dodged his attack from above by rolling to the side. Agni stood up and looked at Ignatius.
"This guy's pretty fast...He also isn't at his full strength thanks to this being a simple trial, but I wonder how strong he is in reality and if he wasn't dead.." Ignatius said then stood up.
Agni pointed his sword at Ignatius then dashed towards him. Ignatius braced himself then blocked Agni's attack. The two went back to colliding and clashing then Agni flapped his wing then levitated slightly then swooped down with a slash, hitting Ignatius at full speed. Ignatius groaned and Agni began to rush Ignatius with attacks from all directions rapidly.
He kicked Agni upwards to the air then flew to him and struck him five times. "Inferno Nova!" He bellowed and struck him with a powerful slash infused with flames then an explosion happened.
Ignatius groaned and crashed into another tower then began to fall to the ground. He fell to the ground face first and laid there. Agni landed on his feet and looked at Ignatius. He noticed Ignatius stand up slowly and got into his battle stance.
Ignatius bellowed and his flames surged powerfully as he awakened his ability, Blazing Overdrive. The ability boosted Ignatius's Attack Potency, Striking Power, and his Speed by a notable degree. This is when Ignatius really shined as a fighter.
He dashed to Agni and slashed at him. Agni looked surprised and blocked the attack then an explosion happened, blowing Agni away. Ignatius used his flames to fly toward Agni then began to strike him quickly from all directions. He bellowed as he began to zip around the area in blazing speeds.
"Sacred...Megiddo!" Ignatius bellowed and summoned massive fireball then sent it crashing down at Agni.
Agni groaned as he was hit with the fireball then it exploded. Ignatius panted and slowly descended to the ground and landed on his feet. Agni fell on the ground and Ignatius looked at him. He noticed Agni wasn't disappearing.
"This...This is the Fourth Battle." Magmadamus said.
Agni's armor slowly disappeared into magic particles. A second wing manifested on his back and his eyes shined a bright red. "I'm...not finished yet.." He said then his sword transformed into his Legendary Weapon.
"The Legendary Blade known as Magmella. Agni's signature blade used to face off against Shidao. This is his final form, Infernal Legend Agni. In this form, Agni was at his strongest. He was an unstoppable force, being able to go toe to toe with Shidao even in his Perfect Ruin Ragnarok State." Magmadamus said.
"The man of Adristian Legend..." Ignatius said.
"He was Adristan's Final Hope. Shidao was prepared to destroy the entire country and to defend it, Agni faced off against him with nothing else to lose except the country he loved. Ultimately he lost the battle, his body sunk to the bottom of the ocean unable to be recovered. Due to his heroism and his valiant battle against Shidao, Shidao spared Adristan and moved on. Shidao found this country to be his favorite because of the warriors who lived here. That aside, are you prepared...to fight the Infernal Legend?" Magmadamus said.
Ignatius was running low on stamina and energy. He couldn't count on his Blazing Overdrive to keep him steady, but he still raised his blade and looked determined. The blade shined in response, boosting his spirit thus recovering his stamina. Ignatius's eyes shined. "I'm ready. Me and Ignelgia."
"Let the Fourth Battle begin. Good luck." Magmadamus said.
Ignatius and Agni looked at each other then got into their battle stances. They dashed with one another and clashed, creating a crater in the ground. They both were filled with a fiery fighting spirit and were ready to give it their all.