17 hours before the fight
Abell woke up feeling the weight of the fight ahead. His mother, Keeko, at her full strength? That terrified him. He didn't know much about her past as a Luminary, but he knew she was one of the best.
Determined, Abell woke up early and started training, pushing his body harder than usual. He took some pointers from Torin and began focusing on his physical strength. Without his trait, he knew he wouldn't be strong enough.
Push-ups, squats, and a long jog around town to build stamina—he had to prepare for the challenge ahead. ""Things will start to get more difficult if my body isn't strong enough, Torin sure as hell surprised me yesterday." He thought.
As he jogged past the blacksmith, Torin called out, "Hmm Abell, what are you doing up this early?"
"After yesterday I was thinking about how strong you were and decided I won't be left behind." He turned around with a smirk.
"Interesting, you finally realized my genius and are stealing my training regimen. Hahaha the great Torin has found a disciple."
"What are talking about? Abell stared blankly.
"It's okay, just remember not to push yourself to hard if you exhaust yourself, your body will draw energy from the luminous orb. If that ever runs out, you basically shut down."
"Really, how do you know that?" He questioned.
"My mom is the town doctor, she always tells me to be careful, now I'm telling you my disciple hahaha."
"Right, thanks for the advice." Abell waved Torin off and kept running.
"Looks like I need to start my training too." Torin said with a smile.
15 hours before the fight
After an hour of training, Abell sat on the hillside to catch his breath. He noticed Hugo sitting nearby, staring off into the distance.
Hugo smiled when he saw him. "Up early, huh? Sneaking in some training before your big fight with your mom?"
Abell shrugged, a bit annoyed. "Something like that."
After a solid hour of running, Abell took a rest at the hillside where he often went to relax his thoughts and look over the town. When walking up to his spot he saw Hugo, looking as if he was looking out from something or someone.
Hugo quickly turned around and readied himself but when he saw it was Abell he smiled. "Hey kid, what you doing up so early? Sneaking in some training before your big fight with your mommy."
"Ehh something like that." Abell said with a hint of annoyance.
Abell walked up and sat far away from Hugo, already feeling annoyed with his jovial attitude. He couldn't help but wonder if it was fake, how could the leader of the shining order, the top of the luminary hierarchy be so weird.
"Why are you sitting so far from me, do I scare you? Aren't you curious?
"About what? Abell asked.
Hugo raised an eyebrow. "You've got a lot of questions. Curious about your mom's past? Or maybe about me?"
Abell's gaze narrowed. "Nah, I'll hear about that from her. You're just here to take me to the next level."
Hugo chuckled. "You've got guts, kid. But I'll tell you what, I sense four Malignants approaching near the forest side. Let's go fight them."
"The forest? That's across town. How can you sense that?"
"Enough questions. Keep up if you can," Hugo said, already speeding off.
Abell tried to follow, but Hugo was too fast. By the time he caught up, Hugo was already sitting in the forest, waiting.
"You took your sweet time," Hugo said. "The Malignants are about to show up. Just watch and learn."
The first one came at him with terrifying speed. Without moving a muscle, Hugo sidestepped, his movements a blur, and punched the creature square in the chest.
The impact was brutal-a sickening crack echoed as the Malignant collapsed, unable to rise again.
Before the second could react, Hugo was already in motion. With a swift kick, he sent its head flying clean off its shoulders, the body crumpling to the ground in a lifeless heap.
Abell watched, his breath catching in his throat. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Is this... the power of a top Luminary?
As the third Malignant lunged at Hugo, he didn't even flinch. With a powerful leap, Hugo landed atop a nearby tree branch, crouching low before propelling himself downward. The force of his landing sent shockwaves through the ground, and the Malignant crumpled beneath the impact, knocked out cold.
Abell's eyes widened. "Is this the power of a top Luminary?"
"Watch out, kid. There's one more," Hugo warned.
Abell barely had time to process the warning when the fourth Malignant emerged.
Unlike the others, this one stood upright, its beastly features more human-like. It let out a deafening roar and charged directly at Abell.
Before Abell could even react, Hugo flicked his fingers, and a small ball of radiant light shot from his hand, piercing the Malignant's chest with blinding speed. The creature screeched, and in an instant, it disintegrated into a cloud of dust, leaving nothing behind but a faint, sizzling mark on the ground.
Abell stood frozen, his heart racing. "What... what was that?" he whispered,
"Oh that one, it's some kind of new mutation that's one of the reasons I came to this region. It slaughtered the neighboring town but don't worry that was the only one here."
Hugo grinned. "Leaving here and joining the academy won't be easy. You'll face stronger Malignants. They're not the worst we've seen."
Abell nodded, his resolve hardening. "I'm ready."
"Good," Hugo said, stretching. "Now, let's head back to town. I'm starving. Pulling an all-nighter tired me out."
12 hours before the fight…