Kyota ran as fast as he could.
His heart pounded. His legs moved on instinct.
He had seen it.
His father—Raito—was fighting a man.
But something felt off. As he cast Light Vision, he saw it clearly.
Eleven mages.
And one man at the center... radiating an overwhelming aura.
"What is that… aura?"
His sister, still far behind, could only grit her teeth.
"Why, Kyota? Why are you this fast now? You always lost to me… so why are you running ahead now?"
She bit her lip hard. Blood ran down.
Kyota didn't stop.
He leaped off the edge of a sloping cliff and used Wind Magic to push himself forward, then again to slow his fall.
The battlefield came into view.
His father was there, standing tall. Facing a man with purple hair and piercing violet eyes.
The man wielded a sword, too, and they fought tough in that magic-less combat. Yet, Raito remained on the defensive, never countering.
Blades clashed.
Sparks flew.
And then—
Raito raised his sword high ready to slash his enemy.
But at that moment, the purple-haired man launched a lightning spell—straight at Aqua.
Raito didn't hesitate. He rushed in and shielded her.
"You're not hurt… are you?" he asked, smiling.
But the moment was short-lived.
A sword pierced through his back.
Raito collapsed.
One of the mages tried to rush in to use healing magic—but was halted by the one in the center.
The purple-haired man stepped forward and spoke with a cold smile.
"Remember me, Master? Your student is stronger than you now. You let your emotions get in the fight... and you lost."
Raito, barely conscious, looked up.
"You were never a true swordsman, Akiya. That's why you lost… as my disciple."
Akiya laughed.
"Whatever. The Ni-Yahiba is mine now."
He turned to the house and—without a word—cast a Second-Class Fire Spell. No incantation. Just raw destruction.
It exploded into flames.
He glanced at Kyota's mother.
"For someone with two kids… you are gorgeous."
Then his eyes returned to Raito.
"Maybe next time, we'll fight for your wife."
"You bastard!" Raito spat, trying to rise—but the sword twisted deeper into his flesh.
Akiya sneered, "Your mistake was not releasing the Ni-Yahiba sooner."
Kyota stoped
Then, suddenly—
Someone passed by Kyota
It was Ayame
Ayame charged.
She was fast. Reckless. Brave.
But was not strong enough.
He struck her down without hesitation.
She collapsed.
Unmoving.
Aqua, trembling with fury, began chanting for Mist Dragon.
But Akiya was faster.
He grabbed her arm and slammed her to the ground.
Kyota froze.
His breath was ragged.
"Why? Why am I this angry…? Is this how it should be?"
"Not in my past life… not in this one… Why can't I have a family…?"
Everything inside him—
Snapped.
The earth trembled.
The sky turned gray.
Lightning cracked again and again. The wind howled, picking up in violent surges.
Even the elite mages stepped back.
"W-What is that aura…?"
"It's going wild… His mana is spiraling out of control!"
"No… he's not just casting a Second-Class spell… He's… ascending?!" Akiya was shocked
From Kyota's shadows, a figure emerged.
Covered in black, with bright red eyes. Gray cloth covered his face and body, from chest to legs. Only his hands, feet, and glowing eyes were visible. His hair flew wildly in the wind.
Even Kyota's cursed marks burned—black flames spiraling around them.
His eyes? Glowing with pure, empty white.
Kyota slowly raised his right hand.
He folded his middle finger, placed his thumb atop it—and summoned a sphere.
A black-purple orb, no bigger than an enhancement stone.
Purple lightning sparked around it.
Akiya laughed mockingly.
"You think that'll stop me? The Ni-Yahiba absorbs everything! That's why I didn't bother aiming for your father and—I went after your mother. You're nothing kid."
But the Head Mage—watching silently—finally spoke.
"That boy… he used magic without an incantation."
"Not only that... that spell… doesn't belong to any known attribute."
"It's either forbidden—or something completely new."
"It was his aura I sensed… while I was in the capital."
"But it's useless. That sword absorbs magic."
Kyota didn't flinch.
He released the orb.
It flew—fast, sharp—like a bullet of shadows.
It struck the Ni-Yahiba.
Everyone watched.
Waiting for it to be absorbed.
But—
It passed through.
And pierced straight through Akiya's chest.
He looked down.
There was a hole—fist-sized—where his heart used to be.
His mouth moved, but no words came. Akiya fell down but mages began healing magic
Also, Kyota collapsed.
His vision blurred.
And just before it all went black—
He saw something.
Far off.
A man… holding a book on a mountaintop.
And away and opposite from him…
A boy.
Floating mid-air.
His aura was overwhelming.
Kyota's vision went black completely
The rain fell.
Mages rushed in, healing the wounded. Four of them stood at each corner of the ruined house and, together, rebuilt it—good as new.
The Head Mage knelt beside Kyota, eyes wide.
"Who… or what are you?"
"A magic with no nature… or one that changes nature?"
"How is this possible…?"
He stood up and turned to Raito.
"Sorry for everything."
Raito squinted. "Is that… you?"
The mage pulled his mask tighter and said
"Get some rest."
Before disappearing, he looked at Kyota one more time.
"See you soon, kid."
Then—vanished into the storm.
Only the Ni-Yahiba remained, half embedded in the earth.
They carried Kyota inside the new home.
That's when his mother noticed something.
A book.
Lying on the ground near some bushes.
She picked it up.
Her hands trembled.
"The forbidden spell book…?"
I used it to research, but since it was dangerous, only half are written in this book.
It was incomplete.
The spell—half-formed.
And yet... he used it.
"So it was his aura all along…"
"Who are you… my baby…?"
"Why do you possess such a power?"
"I won't let them turn you into a weapon."
She clutched that book to her chest and cried.
High above them—on the cliff—stood that man.
He watched silently her crying.
Then slowly disappeared into the woods.