As the smoke slowly cleared, Lennox's saw the old man, his red and blue eyes piercing through the haze. Before Lennox could fully comprehend the situation, the old man disappeared from his sight and then reappeared, behind swiftly turning to see he spotted the attacker through the almost cleared smoke it was Wyatt.
But instead of being able to retaliate or take any action, Wyatt found his body suspended rigidly in mid-air, his eyes betraying a deep-seated panic and fear. How could this old man have such control over him, effortlessly manipulating his movements without any discernible technique or specific gestures?
The old man fixed a piercing gaze upon Wyatt. "You dare to destroy my shop," he growled, advancing slowly. "Worse still, you ruin the most important day of my life." he said because in his mind he forged most of these weapon and his disciples did but most of all he waited over 1000 year's for this mysterious sword to be picked up.
Suddenly, sharp red and blue crystals burst out from Wyatt's hand , shattering his hand completely. He writhed in agony, tears streaming down his face as he endured the excruciating pain, unable to vocalize his pain, only experiencing it mentally.
The sight of Wyatt's hand exploding with shards of crystal left Lennox eyes widened in shock. 'This old man is way too strong,' he thought, bewildered. 'Being able to destroy somebody so easily, even just to control them completely. Are dragons that powerful, or is his rank very high? If so, why is he here in this old shop? and most importantly, what did it mean for his own safety.
While Lennox pondered the identity of the old man, Wyatt, who remained suspended in the air, multiple crystal shards burst out from his body. This time, they burs out all over him until his body could no longer withstand the onslaught, eventually shattering him into nothingness. In his final moments, with Wyatt last breathe he had one thought he knew, inevitably, that one day Gabriel's arrogance would lead to his death. Yet, he had no choice; from a young age, he was trained to become Gabriel's bodyguard. As his own progress slowed, Gabriel's powers flourished, fueled by his arrogance and superior potential.
As the old man's crystal shard vanished from the air, Lennox felt a surge of energy coursing them him, as if they were filled with nexus energy. It was a rare, for items infused with nexus energy and most are too powerful for this realm.
As the old man turned to Lennox, concern evident in his voice, "Are you okay?" he asked.
Upon closer inspection, the old man noticed something was wrong with Lennox. He appeared pale, his body covered in a cold sweat . At the same time he started to fall as he got closer to the grown, something halted his descent midway, preventing him from hitting the ground. The old man hurried to Lennox's side, questioning what had happened. It was then that he caught a different scent of blood in the air, distinct from the smoke and fire, a scent of blood. Beside Wyatt, Lennox was bleeding profusely.
...
"Ah" Lennox's eyes fluttered open, struggling to focus in the dimly lit room. With just a few candles casting flickering shadows, he could barely make out his surroundings. Wrapped in a sheet, he spotted the old man in the corner, engrossed in reading what seemed to be an adult book but he couldn't see what its about and he doesn't care.
"What happened?" Lennox's voice was hoarse as he struggled to sit up, his memories was hazy as he only remember feeling dizzy and falling down.
The old man glanced up from his book, "You passed out," he replied. "Your injuries weren't healing properly."
"Huh, what do you__" Lennox's stopped speaking as his brow furrowed in confusion as he inspected his body, finding that the claw marks from his fight with the lightning tiger had miraculously vanished. A matter a fact all of Lennox's injuries miraculously healed, and he felt full of energy. How could this be? Did the old man have something to do with it? Lennox's eyes widened as he stared at the old man, his mind racing with questions and suspicion.
"If my guess is right, you fought a lightning tiger," the old man remarked.
Lennox simply nodded in response.
"Well, during that fight, the Tigers realized you properly would escaped. So ss a last resort, they infused lightning into your body, intending to slowly kill you. If not treated in time, the lightning would have burnt out your body, causing you to explode. Fortunately, I managed to take care of it in time."
Hearing what the old man a shiver ran down Lennox's spine as cold sweat trickled down his back. He hadn't taken the injury seriously, assuming the nurses at the House of Ignitis had properly tended to it. But now he realized they hadn't. While he did harbored no ill feelings toward them; they were just doing their job. However, he now understood the importance of taking better care of himself from now on even if someone else did.
"Thank you for saving my life," Lennox whispered.
The old man closed his book and rose from his seat, a proud smile gracing his lips. "You asked who I am and why I'm so excited about you picking up the sword," he began, his eyes sparkling with pride. "Well, I am Malik Xommorth the master of he Ruby Dragon Forging Hall"
As Malik watched Lennox with a mixture of pride and curiosity, his thoughts drifted back to a time long past. He remembered the days when he was revered as the legendary First Dragon Forger, when his skills were unmatched and his name known throughout the nexus academy and most for all throughout the realms
But as the years had passed, so too had his influence waned. Forgotten by those he once called colleagues, he now found himself relegated to the shadows, a mere shadow of his former self because of his research taking a hold o him.
He knew he couldn't let this opportunity slip away. If there was a chance to reclaim his former glory and find out more about the sword, he would seize it with both hands. And if Lennox proved to be the key to unlocking the sword's true potential, then so be it. The world would once again know the name Malik Xommorth, the master of the Ruby Dragon Forging Hall.
But those thought were instantly destroyed when he heard.
Lennox's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Malik Xommorth? Who?" he asked, his mind racing with questions.
Lennox's shock was palpable; that Malik made a strange noise, nearly stumbling backward. "What do you mean? I was literally the first forger of the nexus academy. I created all the weapons, built most of the academy buildings and equipment. I am the legendary First Dragon Forger...the First Champion of Dragon Forging," he exclaimed, his voice rising with each word.
"The legendary forger of the academy doesn't ring a bell," Lennox responded, shaking his head. 'Maybe his records about him disappeared... just like his hall... I'll have to find out why,' he thought.
Malik scratched his head, a mixture of disbelief and sadness washing over him. 'Has it really been that long since I was even seen or heard about in the academy?' he pondered sadly, thnking back to what caused his disappearance.
"Whatever, never mind that... Well, about that sword is that no one can possibly pick it up as its to heavy. Even when touched, there will be a backlash, weakening your nexus energy and possibly damaging your body," Malik said in a low tone, his gaze fixed on his completely blackened hand one of the reasons he was no longer the academy's top forger and now found himself in an alleyway, for continuously attempting to lift the sword and figure out how to obtain it.
"So it shouldn't be possible," Lennox remarked, his eyes fixed on the sword lying on the ground where he had dropped it, the impact leaving a the ground wooden boards broken that he then approached the sword again picking it up with ease, surprising Malik with how effortlessly he lifted it.
'There's really something special inside of you, both good and... opposite,' Malik thought to himself, observing Lennox's actions.
With the sword in hand, Lennox examined it closely, infusing it with his nexus energy. Slowly, he checked the sword, trying to identify its properties, when suddenly his nexus energy disappeared, almost as if the sword had absorbed it but he didn't think it was the sword. He h then noticed he felt a little drained, but then suddenly some of the darkness that covered the sword began to dissipate into the air. Malik quickly walked, by his side as they was both was surprised, quickly questioning what had happened. Under the sword's darkness it revealed a rainbow-colored blade before it reverted to a pure white state.
"It seems I was always right; there is something special about this sword," Malik laughed and smiled excitedly. "Let me see the sword," he signaled to Lennox eagerly.
Lennox nodded and placed the sword's handle in Malik hand. Suddenly, Malik hand dropped with a loud thud, the force of the backlash nearly shattering his bones.
"It seems this sword is only for you..." he said, grimacing in pain.
Lennox then retrieved the sword from Malik, he shook his hand to get rid of the pain as he got back up, Lennox looked at Malik with a smirk "Okay, if that's the case, why don't I take it? It has no use to you, and if I find out what's special about the sword, you'll be the first to know about it," he proposed..
Malik shook his head. "Sorry, but no. I can't. I don't know you that well, and you don't seem to know me__" he paused his eyes brightened, slowly smirking as continued, "However, if you become my personal disciple, I am willing to give you, in addition to show you a personal sword I've been working on, my most prized possession," he said.
Lennox deeply considered the offer, eyeing the sword before respectfully returning it to its holder. He admired the sword and sensed its power, but he couldn't join something, especially something he had no information or guarantee about, solely for its benefits. However, he also no problem with becoming someone else disciple but he just needed to discuss it with Nadia first to see if she was okay with the idea she is his first Mentor also he respects her.
Turning back to Malik, Lennox replied, "I will have to think about it."
Malik sighed with disappointment, feeling as though he hand finally he had a breakthrough despite over a thousand years of effort put into the sword's research he but now he back into another dead end.
"Thanks for everything... I will visit again when I have time," Lennox said, turning and leaving out the building's rubble.
As Lennox walked away, the black sword suddenly floated up, appearing as though it might head in his direction, but it was quickly surrounded by a globe, trapping its movement. Malik raised an eyebrow, sensing the unusual behavior of the sword it never did this before.
...
Some time later, within the hall, there were sudden footsteps and murmurs. Malik got up, looking outside with a mix of annoyance and weariness.
"Law enforcement hall," he muttered in a deep tone, anticipating potential trouble.