Kai staggered back, clutching his chest as the glowing stone shattered into fragments. The mark of a dragon—the symbol of the Dragon King—burned itself into his palm. The pain subsided, replaced by a deep warmth, as if something ancient had awakened within him.
"What… what just happened?" he whispered, staring at the mark, his heart racing.
For a moment, all he could hear was the sound of his own breath. His body shook, his hands trembling as they hovered over the mark. It burned, then cooled. The symbol etched itself into his skin with a faint golden glow, its lines intricate and impossible to ignore.
Before he could process what had just happened, the ground trembled beneath his feet, as if the earth itself was reacting to the power within him. The silence was shattered by snarls that echoed in the distance. His eyes darted to the trees, and from the shadows, glowing red eyes emerged—wolves corrupted by dark magic. They moved with unnatural speed, their blackened fur glistening in the moonlight, fangs dripping with venom.
Kai's breath quickened. He backed away, his instincts screaming at him to run. But as the wolves closed in, something inside him snapped.
A voice echoed inside his mind, cold and commanding: "Run."
But it was too late. The power that had awoken inside him surged, and before he could even understand what was happening, flames erupted from his hands, swirling in a violent inferno. The wolves shrieked as they were consumed by the fire, their bodies turning to ash in seconds.
Kai stood frozen, his wide eyes taking in the devastation. The forest around him burned, yet he felt no fear. Only a strange sense of calm. He hadn't meant to do this. He didn't even know how.
From the distance, a cloaked figure watched him, her face hidden beneath a shadowed hood. She stood motionless, her green eyes narrowed as she observed the aftermath. "The Dragon Heir has risen… at last."