The orchard trembled as if the sky itself was enraged when the black lightning clashed with the ice, exploding the place with blinding light and a sound that tore through the silence. The air itself split, and the trees shattered into spiritual ashes.
Before Baran could catch his breath, the ground behind him froze, and the boy appeared amidst a whirlwind of ice, as if a gate from another world had opened.
There was no warning, just an icy punch that pierced Baran's back, spreading a death-like chill throughout his body.
Baran stopped, his body swaying, then a cold smile full of disdain spread across his face.
In a hoarse but imposing voice, he said:
"Is that all you've got...?"
He turned slowly, his eyes burning like a wild black flash. He raised his hand, and black lightning flowed around his fist as if a dragon from hell was coiling around it.
"If you believe that ice can extinguish lightning..."
He took a step forward, and every word he spoke was like thunder:
"Then allow me to—"
Before Baran's punch even touched the air, the boy disappeared as if his body had vanished into the folds of the same void.
The echo disappeared, the energy faded for a moment, and all that remained was the black lightning that cracked open in the sky like an open wound.
Baran froze in place, his eyes scanning the area with deadly caution.
At that moment, amidst the deadly silence, a faint, almost whispered voice was heard in the mind of the missing boy:
"Hmm... this lightning isn't ordinary. There are two types of energy intertwined around this man..."
He raised his gaze towards Baran from afar, and the analysis began in his mind with astonishing speed:
"The first... is the lightning that appears and disappears, the one that attacks suddenly, cuts through distances, and tears through defenses — it is the direct offensive force.
As for the second... it is the lightning that wraps around his body, breathes with him, as if it were part of his being... this type is responsible for protecting and strengthening his body."
His eyes narrowed with deadly intensity.
"Two different lightning bolts... attack and defense at the same time. If I don't separate one from the other... I won't even be able to touch this man."
The boy finished his thoughts, and his silence turned into a storm. In a single moment, he disappeared from his place, leaving behind traces of scattered ice, and appeared beside Baran as if he had moved through spacetime itself.
His icy fist shot out with incredible speed, striking the air with enough force to shatter a mountain of iron. But when it collided with Baran, it did nothing... as if it had struck a wall of live lightning.
The shock wave dissipated, and Baran remained standing motionless, his eyes half-closed, as if he were watching a child trying to touch fire for the first time.
The boy smiled and said,
"Okay, okay, what's your name?"
Baran looked at the boy steadily, a slight smile spreading across his face before he said in a calm voice tinged with arrogance,
"My name is Baran... remember it well, because it's the name that will bring you down today."
The boy did not back down, but smiled with a similar calmness, his eyes shining like pieces of ice,
"Narvik… that's my name, and I'm excited to see how you'll bring me down, Baran."
The next moment, the atmosphere changed completely. Cold steam gathered around Narvik's body, and layers of ice began to condense on the ground beneath him.
He reached down to his waist and pulled out a sword covered with a layer of pure blue ice. The sound he made as he withdrew it from its sheath was like a quiet explosion of spiritual energy.
Narvik did not hesitate. He raised his sword high, and a wave of frozen energy flowed from it, instantly forming a huge icy arc.
He shouted in a deep voice:
"— Ice Bow Attack! —"
The bow shot through the air, cleaving space with a frozen line slanting toward dark blue, dragging behind it tails of deadly frost, heading directly toward Baran, who had not yet moved, as if he were waiting for the attack with a quiet, defiant smile.
The attack was like a huge celestial arc, glowing with a bright blue color that filled the sky, as if winter itself had turned into a sword in Narvik's hand. The bow shot out with incredible speed, piercing the air with a sound like the creaking of ice as it ripped apart.
The attack hit Baran directly—
The place exploded with a massive blast, sending waves of light, snow, and sparks flying in every direction.
But amidst that wild light... lightning appeared. It was not ordinary — black lightning piercing the destruction, interspersed with golden threads that glittered like the eyes of an angry celestial dragon.
The thunder roared, the earth shook under its force, and then everything suddenly vanished.
From amidst the dust and smoke, Baran emerged with steady steps, his body covered in an aura of black and golden lightning.
In his hand was a long spear, overflowing with pure fighting energy, radiating a terrifying flash that made the air around him tremble.
Baran smiled coldly and said in a confident voice that pierced the silence,
"I have my weapon too... and my weapon is more powerful than your cheap weapon, Narvik."
He slowly raised the spear, his eyes glowing with silent defiance, as if the whole world had become an arena just between them.
Narvik smiled calmly and raised his finger lightly. The next moment, the temperature dropped sharply, and the air itself froze.
The earth cracked, and columns of blue ice rose from beneath it, spreading with astonishing speed until they covered the sky and the earth.
The ice was not just energy... but a heavenly force seeking to devour everything in its path.
Baran gazed at the scene calmly, then said in a low voice, like a harbinger of a storm,
"Attack… the roar of the dragon."
At the same moment, the lightning disappeared from the place, as if the sky had held its breath.
There was complete silence for a fraction of a second... then a terrible sound, like a roar coming from the depths of the world, boomed.
A dragon of black and gold lightning appeared behind Baran. He opened his mouth and let out a heavenly scream that pierced through space.
The light exploded, the ice shattered into cold dust, and the air evaporated from the intensity of the energy.
Narvik gave a strange smile, bearing something of mystery and danger, but he didn't pay much attention to it, for he trusted his abilities after all he had seen.
As for Baran, he stood in complete silence, then slowly bent down, touching the ground with his hands heavily, as if summoning something from the depths of the earth itself.
"What is he doing? Why is he putting his hand in the ground?" Narvik muttered to himself, his eyes watching every move.
Before he could understand what was happening, the ground beneath his feet suddenly shook. Lightning flashed from beneath the earth, and columns of black lightning entwined with gold rose, erupting from the bowels of the earth like an angry monster, illuminating the entire place with an overwhelming light.
Narvik successfully dodged the lightning pillars that emerged from the ground, but he felt the continuous vibration of energy around him; the lightning did not stop, as if relentlessly pursuing him.
He paused for a moment, gathering all his ice energy in preparation for a counterattack, but before he could move, Baran suddenly appeared beside him, standing firm as an unshakable mountain.
The air around him trembled, and the sound of lightning roared in the sky with the echo of his angry voice:
"— Black Death Dragon! —"
At the same moment, lightning burst from Baran's body, converging into the form of a massive black dragon, its body coiling like mist, its eyes glowing with gold, and its jaws gleaming as if devouring the sky.
The roar echoed in the horizon, and sparks of lightning erupted from its mouth, filling the entire place.
The dragon's attack struck Narvik, and lightning streamed everywhere, surrounding him like dark clouds.
Baran stepped forward, his eyes burning with unconcealed fury, his voice piercing the silence of the sky:
"— This is impossible... This attack is one of my strongest! —"
Narvik stopped, standing tall after the attack, his eyes looking at Baran without any fear.
The air trembled with the power of the rage emanating from Baran, then he raised his hand and roared a cry like the echo of thunder itself:
"— Skill Transformation! —"
Narvik smiled a mysterious smile, as if he had been waiting for this moment from the beginning. He slowly raised his sword, and the icy energy around him gathered and gleamed with dazzling blue colors, and said calmly and defiantly:
"— Skill Transformation! —"