"INFERNO!"
The magic ignited within him—violent, unrelenting. Flames erupted from his arm, pouring into the raider's body from the inside.
The explosion that followed shook the entire canyon.
A pillar of fire blasted upward, engulfing the raider in an eruption of heat and light. The air screamed as the temperature surged. Smoke and ash billowed into the sky.
And through it all—Erik stood unmoving, his arm still extended through the inferno.
The raider's scream was lost in the roar of the flames.
Erik withdrew his arm from the raider's body, blood and flame trailing behind. He stepped past the burning corpse without looking back, walking toward Kaizer and Leena.
"For a legend," Erik muttered, "you don't look that good."
Kaizer didn't respond. His focus remained on the body still engulfed in fire.
Erik turned, expecting it to be over.
But it wasn't.
The corpse wasn't falling. It stood upright, arms swaying unnaturally, as if dancing while it disintegrated.
"Who is that?" Erik asked.
"Someone who can use dark magic," Kaizer replied.
Leena stiffened. "Dark magic?" she echoed in disbelief.
The three of them locked their eyes on the flaming figure.
"He's not dead," Erik said quietly.
The raider suddenly howled in agony.
"Aaagh! It hurts! It hurts!"
"How is he still alive?" Leena asked, eyes wide.
"He's healing…" Erik muttered.
He looked at Kaizer. "Old man, what the hell is he?"
Kaizer's voice was grim. "I don't know. But one thing's certain—that's not a human."
"Yeah, you don't have to tell me that," Erik replied.
The screaming faded as the flames died out. The raider stood tall again—unscathed, breathing, smirking.
"That's very rude—"
He stopped mid-sentence.
His expression shifted. Not with anger—but something stranger.
Joy.
"Erik!" he shouted, eyes lighting up.
Leena glanced sideways. "You know him?"
"Never met him in my life," Erik replied.
But the raider's gaze didn't waver. "Erik... I've been wanting to meet you for a long time."
"Oh yeah?" Erik said flatly. "Why's that?"
"My master's very interested in you," the raider said, smiling. "So I came all this way just to meet you myself."
Kaizer and Leena exchanged wary glances, trying to piece it together. Erik, despite the rising tension, kept his expression unreadable.
"Well," he said, throwing a look back at Kaizer, "you've made quite the first impression."
The raider chuckled. "Oh, come now. Me and the old legend were just having a friendly little chat, that's all."
"Your idea of a 'chat' is a bit different from mine," Erik replied.
Another laugh. Lighter this time. Almost amused.
"So what do you want?" Erik asked.
"Simple," the raider said, stepping forward. "Come with me. I came here to bring you to our side. Join us and—"
"No."
The word cut through the air like a blade.
"Huh?" the raider blinked.
"I've already got my hands full," Erik said. "So maybe later. How about that?"
The raider dragged a hand across his face, smile fading. "Tch. You're not very polite, are you?" he muttered. "First thing I'll do when I take you back is teach you some manners."
The mana around him began to pulse, the ground vibrating faintly.
"Get ready!" Kaizer barked.
"After I drag you back, of course," the raider said.
He surged forward, charging toward Erik with murderous intent.
But he didn't make it far.
On his fourth step, his right arm suddenly detached—and hit the ground with a soft thud.
The raider froze.
"What…?" Leena said, startled.
Erik, Kaizer, and Leena looked at each other.
None of them had moved.
"What's going on?" Erik asked.
The raider looked at his severed arm, then up at the sky. His face twisted in frustration.
"Argh! Why does time always work against me?" he muttered.
Then he whistled—sharp and loud.
Kaizer's instincts flared. "He's trying to get away!" he shouted, breaking into a sprint. "Don't let him escape!"
A wall of fire erupted in front of him, cutting off his path.
From above, the rider's dragon descended, wings kicking up heat and ash.
Kaizer skidded to a stop.
Another dragon swooped in from the right, diving toward him.
Erik launched forward midair, catching the beast with a flying kick that sent it crashing into the wall of flames.
A moment of silence passed.
Then—whoosh—a massive wave of fire exploded outward from the flame wall.
Kaizer leapt back. Erik stood unmoving, unharmed by the fire—but the force behind it sent him flying across the canyon, nearly over the edge.
Through the smoke, the raider emerged, now mounted on his dragon.
He looked down one last time.
"We'll meet again soon, Erik," he called out, voice echoing like smoke on the wind. "Kida. That's my name. Remember it."
With that, the dragon rose into the sky.
Behind him followed two more dragons, carrying the lifeless bodies of the fallen riders.
And then—he vanished into the clouds.
"Shit!" Kaizer growled, slamming his fist into the canyon wall.
His eyes shot toward the shore. "Vice-Captain?" he called.
"He's fine," Leena replied, her voice steady despite the lingering tension.
Kaizer exhaled sharply, the sound rasping in his throat. The wound in his chest, already half-healed, pulsed faintly beneath the fabric of his cloak.
He turned, walking toward Erik.
Erik stood near the edge, still staring at the sky where the dragons had disappeared. When he turned, Kaizer was already approaching—axe in hand, raised slightly.
Erik's eyes narrowed.
"What are you doing, old man?" he asked calmly.
Kaizer stopped just short of him, voice firm and unwavering. "Swear on the name of Runa," he said, "that you have no ties to them. No connection. Nothing hidden."
Erik blinked. Then shrugged. "Nothing I can think of."
Kaizer held his gaze for several long seconds.
Then lowered his axe.
Without a word, he turned and started walking back toward the giant's collapsed form.
"What about the relic?" he asked, not breaking stride.
Leena glanced at Erik.
Kaizer turned, following her gaze.
Erik held up a shimmering green crystal in the shape of a crescent moon. It glowed faintly in the early light, the artifact cool and silent in his palm.
Kaizer nodded once. "Let's regroup."
Then he jumped down the cliff, landing with a solid thud on the shore below.
Erik and Leena approached the ledge.
"Grab my hand," Leena said.
Erik took it without hesitation.
In a flash of light, she blinked them both down to the shoreline. Sand crunched beneath their boots.
"Let's go," she said, already moving toward the giant.
Erik lingered for a moment, eyes trailing back to the sky—where the name Kida still echoed in his thoughts like smoke on the wind.
"Kida, huh" Erik muttered.
Then he turned, and followed her.