Reider walked at the front of the group, calm as always, while behind him Vael and Mei were still quietly dying of embarrassment from earlier. The city street buzzed with merchants and chatter, heat from the sun spilling over the stone buildings. Meanwhile, Eryndra strutted with her usual smug confidence.
"You know, husband," Eryndra said casually, "maybe I should buy matching outfits for all of us."
Vael glared at her, face still red. "You're unbelievable…"
Before Eryndra could fire back, a soft glow flickered beneath Reider's feet.
A magic circle bloomed across the ground — massive, ancient, and violently bright. Runes spun around his body like chains.
Reider stopped instantly. "Something's wrong."
Vael and Mei froze.
"Reider?!" Vael shouted—
But the light swallowed him whole.
One flash — and he vanished.
Only shimmering dust remained.
Mei collapsed to her knees, eyes wide with panic. "R-Reider?!"
Eryndra stared at the fading light. "What the hell was that?!"
Vael immediately crouched beside the circle, running her hand over the lingering magic. It sparked against her fingers like static.
"Teleportation," she muttered, voice tight. "But not any spell I know. This wasn't simple — someone forced it."
Mei's voice shook. "Can we follow it? Can you track it?"
Vael clenched her jaw. "No. This is beyond anything I've studied."
The air around them buzzed as the last of the runes dissolved.
Meanwhile—
Reider stood on a snowy mountain peak, cold wind cutting across the sky. Clouds swirled far below like a sea of fog.
Reider looked around, calm but alert. "…Teleportation?"
A blur sliced toward him.
A sword hissed toward his neck.
Reider tilted his head at the last second. The blade grazed his cheek, leaving a thin cut.
A tall man stood in front of him — blue hair, ice-cold eyes, and a sword wreathed in frost. His aura was sharp, disciplined, lethal.
"You're not supposed to be here," the man said.
Reider eyed him. "Who are you?"
No answer.
The man lunged.
Reider sidestepped lightly. His hand shot out, catching the blade between his fingers. Frost shattered off the sword.
The man's jaw tightened. "You've got good reflexes for a demon."
Reider's gaze sharpened. "Demon?"
The man leapt back, switching stance. "Don't play dumb. You reek of that church's cursed magic."
"I'm not with them," Reider said.
"Liar. I won't let you destroy this region!"
Reider's aura flared — not violently, just enough to shift the air. Snow lifted in tiny spirals around him.
The man hesitated. "This pressure… he's unreal."
Back in the city, Vael paced like a wild animal.
"I should've noticed!" she growled.
Mei wrung her hands. "We need to find him… he's alone…"
Eryndra snorted, though her eyes were dark with worry. "Relax. Knowing him, he'll probably break a mountain before even thinking of asking for help."
They weren't wrong.
Snow blasted off the ground around Reider as he stepped forward.
"I don't care who you are," he said coldly. "Attack me again, and I'll fight."
The blue-haired man smirked. "Good."
He charged.
Ice magic exploded from his blade, cutting through the air with a howl. Reider stepped aside, grabbed the sword bare-handed again, and shattered the frost with a simple twist.
The man's eyes widened. "He broke ice magic— with nothing?!"
Reider moved.
A single palm strike erupted in a shockwave. Snow blew off the peak. Stone cracked. Wind howled.
The blue-haired man braced, sliding backward across the ice.
"What strength…?!"
Reider approached, calm and steady. "You attacked me. I warned you."
Then Reider stopped abruptly.
He tilted his head slightly, as if listening to something distant. The air shifted — almost bowing around him.
Mana thickened like a growing storm.
Snow lifted off the ground. The wind went still.
Reider exhaled.
The mountain reacted.
A crushing aura burst outward. Ice shattered. The clouds parted beneath them. The peak trembled like it was alive.
Far away in the city, Vael, Mei, and Eryndra all snapped their heads toward the direction of the mountain.
"What was that?!" Eryndra shouted.
Vael whispering: "…Reider."
In a distant throne room, a king stood stiffly from his seat.
"What kind of monster did I agree to help?"
Far across another kingdom, Lucian dropped a glass. It shattered across the floor.
"That aura… him."
Even ancient beasts across the world lifted their heads.
Back on the mountain, the blue-haired man was on one knee, barely holding himself upright under the crushing pressure. His breath came in sharp fog.
"He's not human… what is he…?!"
Reider lifted a hand.
Raw magic rushed to him — swirling, condensing, obeying as if it recognized him.
He compressed it into a tiny glowing sphere — something no human or even high-level mage should be capable of.
The man stared, stunned. "He's using raw magic… with no core… imposs—"
Reider looked down at him calmly. "Have you seen enough?"
The man lowered his sword slightly. "…Fine. You win."
Reider let the sphere dissolve harmlessly into the wind.
The blue-haired warrior stood, shaking off the melting frost.
"Name's Kael," he said. "Guess we're supposed to be allies or something."
"Reider."
Kael smirked. "Next time give a warning before you flex like that."
Reider blinked. "Flexing?"
Kael burst out laughing. "You're something else, man."
Meanwhile, Vael, Mei, and Eryndra sprinted toward the mountains.
"Hold on, Reider," Vael muttered. "We're coming."
Back at the mountaintop, Kael nudged Reider with his elbow.
"So, you always blow up mountains on the first meeting?"
Reider shook his head. "Only when people try to kill me."
Kael laughed again. "Fair enough. We'll get along."
Reider looked up at the sky, eyes distant.
"If they want to find me," he said softly, "they will."
The wind roared across the cracked peak, and the world quietly shifted around him.