The group sat under the shade of a tree on a high cliff, the city of Nortin sprawling below them, quiet and gleaming in the distance. But no one was admiring the view.
Huorin (dry): "We came all the way from Solaren… just to get humiliated by a bunch of playful Vortals."
Rocyan: "Can't even blame anyone else. Wild Vortals are rare in this region—we should've done our homework."
A small rock bounced off Osmian's head.
Osmian: "Wuxing, I'm already frustrated. Get lost."
Another rock hit him.
Osmian (snapping): "Hey! What the hell is your problem?! You bored or something?!"
Tency: "Jeez, stop yelling."
Wuxing didn't respond. He simply pointed across the cliff, eyes narrowed.
They followed his finger.
On a ridge across the valley, standing motionless, was a wild Vortal.
Muscular. Massive. Its mane scorched black with fire residue. Eyes glowing—not curious or playful, but cold and calculating.
Everyone (breathless): "Whoa…"
Osmian (quietly): "It's terrifying… and majestic."
Tency: "Yeah. That thing isn't like the ones from the ranch."
Rocyan: "If even the tamed ones ran circles around us… there's no way we're beating that."
Huorin (focused): "Then we don't hold back. We take it together—with weapons."
Tency (half-grinning): "At least you're not dumb enough to underestimate it this time."
Huorin: "Why do you all talk like I'm constantly an idiot?"
Meena (smirking): "It's just… common. The eldest prince is usually some honor-obsessed blowhard who yells about glory. You being reasonable is kinda… weird."
Huorin: "That's because I am stronger. Smarter. Better. I'm not like the rest of those fools."
Tency: "Still an idiot, though."
Wuxing clapped silently, grinning.
Then Rocyan tensed.
Rocyan: "Shit—it's moving!"
The Vortal bolted. A blur of muscle and fire.
Rocyan: "Move!"
The chase began.
Through the rugged valleys of the Northern Mountains, nine prodigies of the Empire ran.
Huorin surged forward, Flame Thrust blasting from his legs, propelling him past boulders and tight forest gaps.
Rocyan ignited his Explosion Runes, leaping in timed bursts, covering ground like artillery shells.
Hyumin and Ren burned across the terrain using Flame Walk, sparks trailing behind their synchronized pace.
Tency latched onto them with her Movement Threads, letting their momentum pull her forward as she conserved energy, swinging between cliffs like a fire-threaded pendulum.
Overhead, Meena and Osmian flew low with Flight spells, gliding just above the trees, watching the terrain blur beneath them.
At the front, Om leapt across ravines using pure physical power, each bound precise and powerful.
And between them all, Wuxing blinked in and out of existence, short-distance teleports keeping pace—until even he began to lag.
Osmian (panting): "Even Wuxing can't keep up… wild Vortals are something else."
Then, the beast stopped.
Dead in its tracks.
The wind they'd generated from the chase caught up a second later, hitting them like a wave as they all halted in sync.
They stood at the edge of a wide clearing, the sky above painted in fading gold.
The wild Vortal turned to face them.
Its breath steamed in the cold mountain air. Its stance said one thing: Come if you dare.
And there they stood—the nine prodigies of the Empire—shoulder to shoulder, eyes locked on the untamed monster that ruled these mountains.
The Vortal locked onto its prey.
Without warning, it dashed forward—massive body low to the ground, jaws wide open. Layers of jagged teeth glinted in the light as it lunged straight for Wuxing.
His head was nearly inside its mouth when—blink—he vanished in a flash of light.
Meena (wide-eyed): "Whoa, whoa—did it just try to eat Wuxing?!"
Osmian: "Bro, it's crazy! He was almost dead!"
Wuxing: ————— (silent stare)
Huorin (dead serious): "Yeah, like hell the strongest of us dies first."
Meena: "How can you even understand him?"
Tency: "He wears a mask. No facial expressions. No voice."
Huorin (smirking): "That's the bond between battle buddies. You girls wouldn't get it. Right, buddy?"
Wuxing gave a simple thumbs-up.
Then a bright glow lit up Huorin's face.
Osmian (shouting): "Dodge!"
BOOM.
A searing blast of flame tore past, just missing Huorin by inches. The Vortal had breathed fire.
Huorin (coughing): "That was too close…"
The beast charged them, wildly unpredictable. It snapped its jaws, swiped with hooves, trying to tear them down one by one.
Osmian stepped forward, arms crossed, chanting.
"Ignite."
Flames erupted from the ground in a straight line, chasing the Vortal's path—but the beast moved with inhuman speed, dodging by milliseconds, turning at sharp angles.
At the trail's end, Om stood his ground.
The Vortal slammed into him.
He slid back several meters, boots digging into the dirt—but he didn't fall. He stopped the Vortal cold.
Wuxing blinked beside him, placing his hand directly on the Vortal's flank.
"Shock."
Lightning exploded from his palm, a white-hot pulse of mana surging into the beast's body. The light dimmed—but the Vortal stood firm.
It rose on its hind legs and slammed down with massive force. Om dodged left. Wuxing blinked out.
Just then—Ignite caught up.
BOOM!
The blast from underneath launched the Vortal into the air, spinning wildly before it crashed back down.
It staggered—then set its glowing eyes on Meena and charged again.
Huorin: "Fifth Form: Sunfire Slash!"
A flaming arc slashed the ground in front of the beast, stunning it for just a second.
That second was enough.
Hyumin's twin chaindaggers snapped around its back legs.
Rocyan lashed his chaindagger onto its front right leg.
Tency's Binding Thread locked the last limb in place.
The beast roared—but couldn't move.
Meena took aim.
"Flame Spear!"
A blazing lance of fire tore through the air, hitting the Vortal dead-on.
Osmian followed instantly, raising his arms high.
"Great Ember Well." Flames surged from beneath the Vortal like an erupting volcano.
Wuxing's Thunder Ball detonated a split-second later—white-blue lightning engulfing the creature in a final blast.
The light faded.
The Vortal collapsed.
Silence.
For a moment, no one moved.
Then—
Everyone: "WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!"
Osmian (grinning): "That was hella fun!"
Om (laughing): "We actually did it!"
Huorin (grinning): "We actually hunted a Vortal."
Tency and Meena locked hands, jumping in place like kids, chanting together:
Tency & Meena: "We did it! We did it!"
Rocyan gave a rare laugh—soft, but genuine.
Rocyan: "I have to admit… that was fun."
Om (stretching): "Alright, let's tie this guy up and get back to the city. It's almost sunset."
Osmian: "Yeah. Let's move before the mountain gets cold."
As they worked, Huorin stepped beside Meena, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Huorin (smiling): "That Flame Spear… was seriously cool."
Meena turned slightly pink.
Meena: "Thanks… Your sword skills were pretty extraordinary too."
A pause. Not awkward—just quiet.
Tency (smirking): "I sense something interesting."
Rocyan (deadpan): "I sense something disgusting."
They both turned, looked at each other—and smiled.
Then said together:
Tency & Rocyan: "Gross."
And walked side by side behind the rest of the group.
The team moved out, the downed Vortal in tow.
Ahead, Nortin shimmered in the distance under the golden light of sunset. The sky blazed with fire, like it was celebrating their victory too.