Bare sunlight passed through the slits and cracks of the interweaving branches and leaves of the enchanted forest of Karan, casting a pale light to the world within it, seemingly independent from the rest of it all.
A boy lay on his aching back with sweat clinging his clothes to his skin. There was a look of utter shock and aspiration painted on his face.
"H-how…" He whispered quietly to nobody in particular.
Every part of him cried in pain and agony, as if the splitting headache and his churning stomach was not already too much of a burden to begin with. His nerves felt like they could explode at any second.
His vision was blurry, he tasted the metallic flavor of iron on his tongue, and his ears were ringing with a constant screech, drowning out all other noise with its high-pitched scream. His skin, on the other hand, felt like it could rip off at any second.
He tried to scream, to yell for help or aid, but nothing came out. Except for the slow, rhythmic rising and falling of his chest, everything indicated that the boy was om the verge of dying.
Even though he has not fulfilled his purpose yet. Really, what a shame.
Light seeped into his eyes, burning it. Even blinking was too much of a hassle.
Then, the world turned black.
◇◆◇◆◇
Harita watched astonishingly as a scrawny boy, about ten years-old, evaded his invisible arrows with relative ease.
While veterans would move faster and act quicker than what the boy was doing right now, they certainly would not be able to foo with such an untrained physique and inexperienced body, lacking all the necessary tools to properly evade his spells and even bait him, in some exceedingly rare chances.
'I know that I'm holding back, practically fighting with and arm and a leg tied to myself…but this is just absurd! That spell is something even fourth level mages would have great difficulty dodging, especially under such heavy fire! The fact that he was even able to notice my spell's flaw—the fact that it distorts the space around it—was surprising enough, but to think that he would pull something on the level of this… What a monster.'
Harita admitted that he was holding back as much as he normally would in order not severely injure the boy again, as well as give him the illusion of hope so that he would not just give up immediately. Everything was set, everything was perfect…all he needed to do was execute it.
He even altered his spell to better hold himself back, reducing the power and accuracy of it, as well as reducing a few features so as not to kill the kid. But to think that he would last for so long.
"Life truly is full of mysteries." A familiar voice echoed beyond. The tone it carried was both welcoming and repulsive at the same time.
Harita squinted his eyes and steeled himself for the boy's soon approach.
'Tch, not this shut again. I thought I had put that behind me, but it seems the past truly does find ways to haunt you, even after everything I've done...'
The boy did not have much in the way of options. Taking too long will only tire him out, while continuing his current hide-and-seek tactic is bound to result all the same, regardless. Thus, there was only one choice left: a blitzkrieg that risked it all.
The boy could very well not choose to do the latter, but Harita really doubted that.
'He's too smart for that.'
As soon as he did, he noticed the boy use an enchanted tree as cover. This was not the worst tactic he could have thought of, but it was certainly not the best, either. Harita could think of about seven different ways to evade his invisible arrows better, though that was just his own views of it, not others.
The boy, unsurprisingly enough, did not leave his hiding spot this time, stubbornly sticking to the trees like the roots of a mighty oak.
'He's trying to find my hiding spot.'
Harita immediately noticed the truth of the boy's odd behavior. It actually pleased him that the boy did not immediately force a full-frontal attack, which meant that he still had the mental capacity to think clearly. That was always a good thing.
'…Well, I guess I'll humor him just this one time. It was astounding that he even managed to keep this up for long, let alone still stand after such a rough beating.'
Making up his mind, Harita sped up his pace, shooting even more arrows than before. He made sure that the boy could trace it all back to him, but not too easily. This was still considered training, after all.
A few seconds later, and it seemed that the boy have made up his mind. From the depths of the shadows, Harita could just about make out the boy's haggard expression.
'He's getting desperate.'
His regard for the boy's current state was both cruel and factual, a point most often lost in people.
With a quick burst of adrenal strength, the boy dashed for Harita's hiding spot, a lush bush of dense vegetation.
'He's quick. Too quick, in fact.'
Without missing a beat, Harita let loose dozens of arrows. Not all of them were aimed for the boy, of course. Rather, it was just a distraction to keep him on his toes, to break his mind and rebuilt it. If he was going to go out in the real world, this was a necessary step to take.
Harita was brimming for confidence. The boy had good instincts, a flexible mind to learn on the spot, and the will to act based on it. However, he was severely inexperienced, still lacking numerous aspects and a mountain of knowledge to properly make use of hid talents.
This was a mistake.
Harita nocked another arrow, this time aimed to barely scrape the boy's shoulder. That was when it happened.
The boy's eyes glowed with sapphire light, intensifying the deep blue gems that was his eyes. Powerful magic was being casted within it.
With a scornful glare that shook Harita by his core, the boy let the magic loose, releasing it like a drawn bow.
"…Wha—?!"
Unconsciously, his body reacted to the spell on reflex, instinctually empowering his arrow and releasing it with malicious intent.
Space distorted as the two mystical forces collided, altering the space around it, then dissipating like it never even happened.
Harita's jaw slacked as he watched it all unfold in a the span of a second, with the length of an eternity.
A powerful blow struck the man's cheeks, forcing him to go all out.
Letting his mana flow with refined ease throughout his muscles and nerves, he felt for the power resting within the inner depths of his being.
Dismantling his spell into miniscule motes of light, he extended his right arm into a solid punch, knocking the daylights out of the boy with ease.
"Oh, crap. What have I done…"
The boy fell unceremoniously with one blow, his body thudding loudly on the ground with disgrace.
He was really in for it now.