I stared at the locker built into the wall. After everything I'd been through to get here, it felt surreal.
"Let's see what I'm working with," I muttered, pulling the door open.
Inside was a standard combat uniform, neatly folded, and next to it, a basic steel training sword. It wasn't anything fancy plain, functional, and barely enough to fend off even the weakest mana beasts.
I picked up the sword, giving it a quick swing.
"Feels solid enough," I said, strapping it to my hip. "Better than nothing."
Three days. That was all I had until the entrance ceremony at Astrea Academy. Three days to get strong enough to make a decent showing in the duels. Resources in the academy were limited, and I needed them to get strong enough to survive.
I turned to the mirror, staring at my reflection. My face was pale, my dark purple eyes seemed stressed out.
"Step one: find Magnus Arcanis' grave," I said aloud, trying to psych myself up.
"Step two: don't die."
The reflection smirked back at me.
"Step three: figure out how to survive whatever nightmare this world throws at me next."
Not exactly a flawless plan, but it was better than sitting around waiting for doom to knock on the door.
The Nexus, the sprawling capital city of Astrea, was unlike anything I'd ever seen. A fusion of magic and technology, it gleamed with floating platforms, crystalline spires, and artificial landscapes.
My destination? The Redwyrm Forest.
It wasn't far from the city center, just on the outskirts. Small by local standards, but infamous because of its guardian, a Gold Core Mana Beast called the Red Wyrm.
Luckily, the wyrm was known to be friendly to humans.
"Friendly," I muttered, boarding the mana-powered train. "Sure. I'll just bank on that."
The train glided through the Nexus silently, the hum of mana conduits faint beneath my feet. I kept my head down, trying to avoid attention.
"First time in the Nexus?"
I glanced to my right. A student, wearing an academy uniform like mine, grinned at me.
"Yeah," I lied.
"Same here. It's overwhelming, huh?"
I nodded, forcing a smile.
"You ready for the entrance ceremony? I hear the duels are brutal."
"Not really."
He chuckled nervously. "Well… good luck, I guess."
The train came to a smooth stop, and I stepped onto the platform at Redwyrm Forest Station.
The entrance to the forest buzzed with activity. Guards patrolled the perimeter, their enchanted weapons glowing faintly. Vendors hawked supplies maps, potions, even mana-infused snacks.
A stern-looking guard stopped me, holding out a sleek device.
"Flare gun," he said. "If you run into trouble, shoot it straight up. The Red Wyrm or a rescue squad will come."
"Got it," I said, tucking it into my belt.
The forest loomed ahead, a wall of towering trees and dense shadows. Artificial or not, it felt alive wild, untamed, and humming with mana.
"Relatively safe," I muttered to myself, stepping onto the trail.
The deeper I ventured, the quieter it became. The cool air carried the scent of earth and magic, but something felt off.
Too quiet.
Before I could process it, a jet of flames roared past me, singeing the edge of my uniform.
"What the ?!" I shouted, diving to the side.
I spun, heart hammering, and saw it.
A fire wolf.
Its sleek body shimmered with flames, its fiery-red fur crackling with heat. Glowing orange eyes locked onto me with predatory hunger.
It was over double the size of a normal wolf.
"Easy there," I said, slowly unsheathing my sword. "I'm not worth the trouble. Plenty of other snacks in this forest, right?"
The wolf snarled.
Great It doesn't have sense of humor.
It lunged, flames flaring around its paws.
I rolled, barely avoiding the attack, and swung my sword. The blade scraped its shoulder, sending sparks flying.
The wolf growled, turning on me again, its molten eyes blazing with fury.
"Alright, Kai," I muttered, gripping the sword tighter. "Step one: don't die. Step two…"
I trailed off, realizing not dying was step 2.
The wolf circled me, flames licking the ground where it stepped. The oppressive heat made every breath feel like fire.
It lunged again.
I swung harder this time, aiming for its shoulder. The blade clipped the edge of its fiery mane. The wolf yelped, staggering back but recovering almost instantly.
Unfortunately, its retaliation was faster.
Flaming claws swiped at me, throwing me off balance. Pain seared through my arm as I stumbled backward, fumbling for the flare gun at my belt.
"Come on, come on…"
I had just pulled it out when the wolf lunged again. Its strike sent the gun flying into the underbrush.
"Of course," I muttered, clutching my side. "Why wouldn't that happen?"
The wolf growled, pacing closer. My grip on the sword was slippery with sweat, and my arms trembled from the strain.
This wasn't how I wanted to die.
"Why me?" I muttered, raising the sword again.
The wolf lunged, flames surging around its body.
On pure reflex, I swung.
And something… shifted.
The space between us rippled, collapsing inward as if the distance had folded.
The wolf faltered mid-air, its momentum thrown off. My blade struck true, grazing its side and sending a burst of flames outward.
"What the…?" I whispered, staring at the faint distortion in the air.
The wolf snarled, shaking itself off.
It wasn't done yet. If anything, it looked angrier.
"I am so dead," I muttered, turning on my heel and sprinting deeper into the forest.
Branches whipped at my face as I ran, the wolf's snarls hot on my heels.
My lungs burned. My legs ached. But stopping wasn't an option.
"Keep going," I panted. "Just keep going."
Suddenly, a deafening snarl erupted behind me, followed by a loud, bone-shaking thud.
I skidded to a stop, nearly tripping over my own feet. Turning, I saw the fire wolf sprawled on the ground, its molten eyes glaring at something in the air between us.
A shimmering distortion hung there, like ripples on the surface of a pond.
The wolf lunged, only to crash into the invisible barrier with a crackling pulse. Sparks flew from its fiery mane as it howled in frustration.
"What… is that?" I muttered, taking a cautious step closer.
The wolf clawed at the air, its fiery claws inches from my face, but it couldn't pass through.
The barrier held.
For the first time since the chase began, I allowed myself to breathe.
The wolf snarled one last time before retreating into the forest. Its fiery form disappeared into the shadows.
I collapsed to my knees, gasping for air. Cool energy from the barrier washed over me, a stark contrast to the oppressive heat from before.
"I… made it," I whispered.
The shimmering barrier surrounded the clearing like a protective dome, faintly humming with mana.
At its center stood ...