After the incident in the backyard, Kael, Rian, Nolan, and Uncle Darius were immediately taken to the doctor for treatment. Their injuries varied, from external wounds to more serious internal damage.
Kael's body was covered in bruises and cuts from trying to break through the mana waves unleashed by Ardyn. Rian had a severe wound on his right arm from an accidental strike, while Nolan suffered internal injuries that left his mana core slightly cracked, though the doctor assured them it wasn't critical. Uncle Darius, like Kael, was covered in injuries but endured them stoically.
In the tension-filled treatment room, Ardyn, overwhelmed with guilt, chose to leave on his own. His aunt, Eladra, and his twin siblings tried to stop him.
"Ardyn, wait! Where are you going?" Aunt Eladra exclaimed, grabbing his arm. But Ardyn merely glanced at them briefly before gently freeing himself and walking away without a word.
Uncle Darius, lying on the hospital bed, looked at his wife weakly and whispered, "Let him go... He needs time to think. We all do."
Meanwhile, Elysia, who was also in the room, looked deeply worried. Her eyes followed Ardyn as he left the hospital. Questions filled her mind: How could Ardyn suddenly unleash such immense power? Elysia sensed there was something peculiar about the incident, something even Ardyn himself might not realize.
The atmosphere in the room grew tense. Uncle Darius finally spoke, his voice weary, "Since when did Ardyn become this powerful? I've never seen him wield such strength before."
Aunt Eladra shook her head. "He's trained often, but not to this extent. This is like a sudden surge of power."
Rian, his arm wrapped in bandages, sighed quietly. "I think it's because of the dagger he used. That dagger triggered his power. Ardyn got it at the mana festival yesterday."
As they listened, Kael, still in pain, interjected with a hoarse voice, "Blood element..."
Everyone in the room turned to Kael with confused expressions. "What do you mean?" Uncle Darius asked, his brow furrowed.
Kael weakly explained, "I saw it... Ardyn almost attacked me with blood element."
Shock rippled through the room. Aunt Eladra, Ardyn's twin siblings, Rian, Nolan, and Elysia were all taken aback. The blood element was one of the rarest and most dangerous elements. How could Ardyn possibly wield it?
"That's impossible, right? How could Ardyn master the blood element?" Rian questioned in disbelief.
Scene shifts to Ardyn in the forest.
Ardyn walked alone through the forest, trying to process everything that had just happened. Guilt consumed him, especially because he had almost hurt the people he cared about. The incident terrified him. Were his nightmares becoming reality? Would he lose control and turn into a monster that destroyed everything, just as he had always feared?
The sound of wind rustling through the trees filled the air, but suddenly, a much heavier, harsher sound emerged. Ardyn sensed danger approaching. Before he could react, a group of orcs leapt out from behind the trees, attacking swiftly.
"Orcs?" Ardyn thought, startled.
His reflexes and training kicked in, allowing him to dodge the first strike. However, the orcs didn't give him time to breathe. He was up against seven orcs on his own, a feat he had handled before, but these orcs were far stronger than he anticipated.
Ardyn dodged and counterattacked, using various elements he had mastered. Fire erupted from his palms, incinerating one orc, while wind enhanced his movements, enabling him to dodge incoming attacks. Water cooled his body as exhaustion began to creep in, and earth strengthened his footing, keeping him from being knocked down. Despite his best efforts, the sheer number of enemies overwhelmed him, and Ardyn found himself cornered.
Amid the chaos and panic, his mind drifted to the dagger stored in his magical inventory. Should he use it again? The memory of the previous incident made him hesitate. Yet, as one of the orcs swung a massive axe toward him, Ardyn had no choice. He quickly summoned the dagger and unleashed its latent power.
Every strike he delivered with the dagger felt exponentially stronger than before. With ease, Ardyn defeated the six remaining orcs. Their bodies collapsed one by one, unable to withstand the combined might of Ardyn and the dagger.
But just as relief began to wash over him, a far larger and more menacing orc emerged from the shadows of the trees. This orc was different. Its sharp eyes glinted as it locked onto Ardyn.
"You're intriguing," the orc said in a deep, guttural voice. "What's your name?"
Ardyn stared at the orc warily, unsure of what was happening. "Ardyn," he replied tersely.
The orc grinned. "I am Urzok, a general of the orc clans."
Ardyn froze. A general? Why were orcs in the territory of the human race?
"Why are orcs here?" Ardyn asked, his eyes narrowing with suspicion.
Urzok didn't answer directly, only broadening his grin. "You'll find out soon enough."
Ardyn stood his ground, his breaths heavy, chest heaving as his heart pounded in his ears. Before him, Urzok—an intimidating orc general—towered with massive muscles radiating deadly power. Under the dim sunlight, the orc seemed like a giant ready to crush anything in his path.
"You may be interesting, Ardyn, but you're just a human child! Let's see how long you can last against me!" Urzok roared, his thunderous voice echoing through the forest.
Urzok raised his obsidian axe high, sunlight reflecting off its sharp surface. In an instant, he lunged forward, moving with a speed that belied his massive frame. The axe swung with enough force to cleave a hill, hurtling toward Ardyn with murderous intent.
Ardyn, with lightning reflexes, threw himself to the side, narrowly avoiding the deadly strike. However, the axe's impact with the ground created a shockwave that shattered nearby trees, sending shards of rock and debris flying, scraping Ardyn's face and body.
Before Ardyn could catch his breath, Urzok was upon him again, swinging his axe downward with incredible speed. Ardyn raised his left hand, summoning the earth element to create a stone wall as a shield. Urzok's axe struck the wall with immense force, shattering it in a single blow and sending chunks of rock flying in all directions. Ardyn staggered backward, feeling the vibrations from the impact reverberate through his bones.
"Damn it! He's too strong!" thought Ardyn, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
But retreat wasn't an option. He gathered the wind element around him, cloaking his body in a fierce whirlwind that increased his speed. In a flash, he was behind Urzok, delivering a fiery kick to the orc's back. Though Urzok stumbled forward, the attack seemed to barely faze him.
Urzok turned, grinning. "That's what you call an attack? Enough to make a child cry!" he mocked. Swinging his axe horizontally with terrifying speed, he aimed to cleave Ardyn in two. Ardyn leaped high into the air, dodging the swing, but Urzok had anticipated this move.
With a swift motion, Urzok hurled his axe upward toward Ardyn. His eyes widened in shock; he hadn't expected the orc to throw his weapon. In desperation, Ardyn summoned the water element, forming a thick barrier of ice around himself. The axe collided with the ice, shattering it into countless shards, but Ardyn managed to evade with a backward leap, suffering only minor cuts from the flying fragments.
As Ardyn landed, he sensed an ominous shift in the air behind him. Turning quickly, he realized it was too late—Urzok, moving with unnatural speed, was already in front of him, gripping his axe, which he had recalled using dark magic. Before Ardyn could react, Urzok delivered a powerful kick, sending him crashing into a massive tree. The impact shattered the tree, and Ardyn collapsed to the ground, coughing up blood.
"This is just the beginning, human!" roared Urzok, stepping forward, his massive shadow looming over Ardyn.
The orc raised his axe once more, this time aiming to decapitate him. With his last ounce of strength, Ardyn used the earth element to create a sudden spike from the ground, striking Urzok from below.
Forced to stagger back, Urzok planted his axe into the ground to steady himself. Ardyn saw the opening and, despite his battered body, rose to his feet. With a determined gaze, he called upon all his elemental powers. Fire, water, wind, and earth swirled around him, creating an overwhelming aura that cracked the ground beneath him.
"Elemental Tempest!" Ardyn shouted, raising both hands. A fierce tornado enveloped in flames, spinning water, and flying debris surged toward Urzok.
The elemental storm barreled forward with incredible force, engulfing Urzok in a maelstrom of slicing wind, searing fire, crushing water, and smashing rocks. The orc roared in pain, his body battered by the devastating onslaught. But even under the storm's ferocity, Urzok stood his ground.
"Is that all you've got?!" bellowed Urzok, his voice cutting through the roaring elements. With sheer brute strength, he swung his axe, splitting the tornado in half and causing it to explode into scattered fragments of elemental energy.
Ardyn gasped, his breath ragged. He had poured nearly all his power into that attack, yet Urzok remained standing. "How… how is this possible?" he muttered, disbelief etched on his face.
However, Urzok wasn't unscathed. His body bore burns, his skin was torn by the slicing wind and water, and green blood oozed from numerous wounds. Yet the orc simply smiled—a crazed, battle-hungry grin.
"Now it's your turn to suffer, Ardyn!" Urzok slammed his axe into the ground, releasing dark energy that cracked the earth. From the fissures emerged massive shadowy hands, grabbing hold of Ardyn's legs and rooting him in place. Ardyn struggled, but the shadows tightened their grip, dragging him downward.
Urzok advanced, raising his axe high. "This is the end for you, human!" He brought the axe down with deadly precision, intent on finishing Ardyn.
At the last second, Ardyn summoned all his courage. With his free hand, he retrieved a hidden dagger from his dimensional storage. Swinging it with all his might, he severed the shadowy hands binding his legs. The shadows dissipated, and Ardyn rolled aside just in time to dodge the axe that crashed into the ground where he had been.
Rising to his feet, Ardyn knew this was his final chance. Calling upon the forbidden blood element, he channeled its wild energy through the dagger in his hand. Crimson energy swirled around him, merging with the other elements. He felt its raw, dangerous power, knowing it was his only hope.
"Blood Requiem!" Ardyn shouted, his voice echoing through the battlefield. Blood energy surrounded him, entwining with fire, wind, and earth.
In a desperate charge, he leaped toward Urzok, his dagger glowing with dark red energy. The blade pierced Urzok's chest with unrelenting force, driving deep into the orc's flesh.
Urzok staggered, green blood gushing from the wound. He tried to lift his axe, but the blood energy coiling around him immobilized his movements. With a final roar, Ardyn pushed the dagger further, unleashing a torrent of blood energy that tore through Urzok from within.
The orc's body convulsed, his strength failing as the blood magic ravaged him from the inside out. With one last, horrifying scream, Urzok fell lifeless to the ground, surrounded by a pool of green blood.
Exhausted and drained of mana, Ardyn collapsed to his knees. His vision blurred, and his body felt heavy. As he struggled to stand, he thought of the villagers who needed to be warned. "I… I must… tell them…" he whispered weakly before succumbing to unconsciousness in the forest, with no one there to help him.