Jack was dragging his feet in the dirt, shivering. Not so far ahead, the Great Divide loomed, tall and powerful like the remnants of a slain god.
"I still think this is stupid."
Damien sighed.
"Do you think we stand any chance against mythical beasts? I'm only a grade one Elementalist… and your True Mage magic still hasn't come in yet."
I'll be grade two soon, though. I just need to learn another element.
An Elementalist's grade depended on two things: Learned elements and mastery rank. In Damien's case, he was at Natural rank with wind, the second mastery rank, so learning just one more element would elevate him to grade 2.
"No, we don't. But the north is freezing, we're weak, and you want us to fend off northern hordes?"
"Then put on your fur coat!" Damien shouted, and after a few seconds, added,
"And yes, you're exactly right. At the start of winter, magical beasts migrate west and ransack the northern villages. They offer rewards to anyone who'll help defend against the hordes. We'll grow tenfold in power as we fight, gather information, and maybe even find someone who knew my mother. The orphanage records said she came from the north."
Damien knew how ridiculous it sounded, two weak brothers on a quest to slay a pair of mythical beasts. But he didn't care. His rage demanded action, regardless of the odds.
"Also, we're broke..."
"Broke we may be, young brother… but you know what we're not?" Damien paused, a smile on his face.
"What?"
"We're not going to die tonight! We made it!"
In front of them was the start of the mountain pass. On each side, pine trees covered in powdery snow formed a dense forest, while the road itself was layered in thin sheets of ice. According to legend, the Great Divide was cursed by the Goddess of Fire and Ice. Simply put, it was always freezing. Even if it were plunged into a molten volcano, its frost would remain unscathed.
Lifting his palm to the border, Damien inhaled deeply. Then he pushed his hand through... and immediately winced. It was like he was standing on the edge of a storm, with half his body in clear skies and the other half engulfed in ice.
So cold! But I bet we'll be able to find a mountain hut or a cave if it gets pitch-black before then.
The sun sank, casting beautiful purple hues across the sky.
"Let's put on our warm gear and try to find a mountain hut before dark."
"Fine…" Jack said reluctantly.
"Don't you dare move."
"Says you, I can see you shaking."
Not even a mile into the hike, the brothers stumbled upon a Kodiak Crystalline Bear.
Standing over ten feet tall on all fours, with jade claws sharper than steel, the magical beast was death incarnate. She was prowling around the ledge to the left, her white jade claws glinting in the moonlight. Three cubs clung to her back, too fluffy and cute for something that deadly.
Staying as still as possible, Damien and Jack backed up the curved road, hoping to slip around the bend. But each footfall on the slick ice felt like a mile.
My luck, I swear… if I find that druid, he will have hell to pay for kicking me off the wagon.
Damien's thoughts were grim. He was only a grade-one Elementalist. Against a Kodiak Crystalline Bear? He'd need to be at least grade two with one saint-ranked element to fight it head-on.
If the mama bear were to see them…
Crunch!
Damien turned, his expression a mix of exasperation and dread. Looking downward, cracks in the ice splintered out from around Jack's boot in a spiderweb pattern.
His heart sank.
How did you even manage that? You're barely a hundred pounds!
"Heh, my bad." Jack scratched his hair.
A tremendous roar erupted from the beast's throat. The sound reverberated through the mountain pass, shaking the trees and making the brothers tremble.
Yawning, the three cubs jumped down from their mother's back.
In the next instant, the Great Divide quaked as the massive Crystalline Bear lunged forward, her claws shredding through the ice at a terrifying speed.
Death was charging at the brothers. Still, they had plans.
"See ya!" Jack waved over his shoulder as he ran around the bend. He had already begun sprinting the moment the ice cracked, not bothering to glance back.
On the other hand, Damien stood his ground, his fingers twitching slightly at his side.
The ledge is only twenty feet away. I have one chance at this...Don't think, do!
He dashed to his left, the Crystalline Bear hot on his tail. She changed directions as if she were a rabbit—way too quick and precise for something that large.
"Shit!" Damien cursed. The beast's jaw opened wide, and her breath scalded his neck… then he took three more strides and leapt into the open air.
He plummeted to the forest far below.
The Kodiak Crystalline Bear jumped as well, uncaring that below lay a sixty-foot fall—her jaws snapping around Damien's neck. However, just before she could feast on him midair, a circular platform of wind formed under his left foot. Kicking off it, he vaulted back over the bear's outstretched claw.
After a few seconds, he crashed and tumbled across the road.
His body ached. But having manipulated the wind to steady his fall, no bones were broken, nor was there any serious injury. Moments later, a weak moan came from the forest. Crawling forward, Damien peered over the ledge only to see the Kodiak Crystalline Bear impaled through the stomach by a sharp tree trunk.
I did it!
He fell to his back, laughing in relief.
Magical creatures might be dangerously powerful, but they weren't intelligent like Mythical Beasts. This bear only lost because of its intelligence.
In all of his honesty, Damien didn't expect his plan to work. To manipulate wind into solid matter was tricky and used a lot of mana, mana density he wasn't sure he had until now. Yet he felt no satisfaction with one element at Natural rank mastery. He needed six supreme-ranked elements to even think of facing the mythical beasts.
He had so far to go.
Suddenly, two of the cubs were hanging over the edge. Damien looked at them for a moment with a sad expression. Their cries were a subtle reminder that everything came at a cost…
Then they fell.
Damien thrust his hand forward, sending powerful gusts. But the two cubs slammed into the forest floor with a sickening yelp. Dead on impact.
The last cub warily hovered by the road's edge, a glare in its eyes. After hesitating, Damien manipulated the wind, carried the cub over the edge, and placed it gently beside its mother.
Go be with her…I'm sorry.
He turned away, not able to stomach the gruesome scene. Because not long ago that was him, whimpering and crying at his mother's corpse, not capable of doing a damned thing to protect her.
But that was then.
Damien had grown up. He was no longer the little cub he once was, but an eighteen-year-old man willing to do whatever it took to see his goal realized.
With that, Damien stood up, brushing shards of ice from his fur coat.
"Hey idiot, you can come out."
Jack nervously stepped out from around the bend, holding an assortment of branches he had collected.
"I got sticks for a fire. I figured you could use your wind to dry them off."
"So let me get this straight. While a magical beast almost ate me, you were collecting sticks."
"Yep."
Damien frowned. Deep down, though, he was glad his brother had run.
After all, Jack had no stakes in the quest to slay the mythical Beasts. Having met in the orphanage, the two brothers were related through a spit handshake, not by blood.
He only tagged along to support his elder brother.
He was a good brother.
"Let's find whatever cave these bears call home. That way, we won't alert any other magical beast."