Black snow. Apocalypse

On the other side of the battlefield, Kaen, Lia, and Zephyr struggle against the beast—Drah'vorr.

Kaen strikes first, but the monster retaliates with a crushing blow, slamming him into the ground.

Zephyr roars and activates a spell combination—earth and fire arrays merge. He amplifies them with his telekinesis, while Lia adds her own array from above. A blinding flash follows, and Drah'vorr lets out a furious screech. The combined force leaves a deep gash across the beast's flank.

But it isn't enough.

Drah'vorr stomps violently, sending a shockwave across the field. The trio are hurled back, smashing into trees and rocks. Blood spills. Lia groans. Zephyr coughs, clutching his ribs. Kaen's head slams into a tree trunk—and time stills.

A pulse surges through his brain.

A vision.

A man… sealed within green lightning arrays… whispering his name.

Kaen's eyes snap open—glowing emerald.

A crack of thunder shakes the heavens. Green lightning arcs across the sky as Kaen rises, transformed.

Josh arrives just in time to witness it, skidding to a halt beside Lia and Zephyr.

"What… what happened to him?" Zephyr whispers, wide-eyed.

Kaen doesn't speak. He clenches his sword, now wrapped in lightning, and dashes forward—blindingly fast.

With a flick, Drah'vorr's limbs are severed.

But the beast doesn't fall.

A putrid mist escapes its mouth—poison.

Lia gasps. "That's a death mist!"

But Kaen walks calmly through it, unaffected. Sparks of green energy dance off his skin.

With one final burst, Kaen channels everything into his blade. Lightning crackles.

He leaps.

One strike.

A clean cut.

Drah'vorr's head hits the ground.

The monster disintegrates.

> ❖ System Notice: Core Absorbed.

Kaen stumbles, blinking—his eyes no longer glowing. "Wait… who killed it?"

Josh, Lia, and Zephyr stare at him in shock.

They return to school, where the principal commends them for a successful mission.

> System Ping:

Magic Core Absorbed: Drah'vorr (Tier 10)

New Ability Unlocked: Poison Mist

Status: Immune to all forms of poison

System Upgrade: Level 2

» Fire Upgraded to: Level 10 Flames

» New Flame Type: Blue Flame (Lv. 1)

🎖 Rank: SS

» Speed: 89%

» Strength: 89%

🛡 Durability: 89%

• Water Manipulation: Lv. 2

• Fog Beast Armor Compatibility: 75%

⚔ Blightfall Skill Proficiency: 50%

Josh and Kaen returned home, their bodies tired but their minds restless.

As they sat on the porch beneath the quiet stars, Josh glanced at Kaen.

"You really don't remember anything from that fight?" he asked.

Kaen shook his head slowly. "I just… blacked out. And then I was standing there, sword in hand. The monster… gone."

Josh frowned. Something didn't sit right with him. That surge of green lightning—Kaen's speed, strength, and aura—it was beyond anything they'd seen before.

Josh opened his system interface and asked quietly, "What was that transformation?"

But the system responded coldly:

> ⚠ WARNING: Unauthorized Question.

❖ You are not to know—yet.

Josh sighed, frustrated, and shut the interface.

Kaen, meanwhile, stared at his palm.

"But why can't I remember?" he whispered to himself.

They had dinner in silence, and then retreated to their rooms.

---

That night, Josh's sleep was broken by shadows and whispers.

He stood once again in his burning village. The fire raged. The ash choked him.

The cloaked men laughed.

He saw his mother—reaching for him.

Then her hand turned to dust.

As he cried out, a voice echoed from the flames:

> "We will not rest… until we are avenged."

Josh jolted awake, drenched in sweat.

---

Across the hall, Kaen's dreams were no less strange.

He stood in a vast field of green lightning. The wind howled, but the world was silent.

In front of him, a tall, radiant man floated in the center of glowing emerald arrays. His hair was long, deep black with green highlights that shimmered like stars. His skin seemed sculpted from obsidian, his eyes glowing like twin suns—handsome and terrifying, like a demon god made of light.

Kaen stepped forward. "Who are you?" he asked.

The man didn't answer directly. Instead, his voice echoed like a melody wrapped in thunder.

> "Do you wish to know what lies beyond?"

Kaen nodded. "Yes. I do."

But the man's tone suddenly shifted—stern and cold.

> "Then wait."

> "On the night of the full moon… when the moon turns green… I will return."

Kaen shouted, "When is that?! Why can't I know now?!"

"Because… the truth will burn you before you're ready."

Lightning struck the ground at Kaen's feet—

And he snapped awake, gasping for air, his sheets soaked in sweat, the echo of the man's eyes still glowing in his mind.