"Hmmm, not a bad place for a temporary base," Jack muttered as he walked through the hallways of the abandoned ship. He could see other members of the Mavericks Guild training among themselves, perhaps trying to improve after suffering a brutal defeat at the hands of the Elemental Beast.
"Lightning Blast!" Adin shouted, unleashing a blast of lightning at his twin, Adams, who retaliated with an equally powerful attack. The two forces collided mid-air, producing a powerful explosion.
"Thus far, your lightning skills seem to be the most effective against the Elemental Beast," Reyes commented, watching the fight with a calculating glint in his eyes. "I want you two to develop an even better combo attack—something that can stun the Elemental Beast for a while!"
The twins clenched their fists and nodded vigorously, their faces serious. "Yes, Guild Master!"
On another side, Hex and Nahim Wong, the Spectral Archer, were exchanging projectiles—one firing ice spikes while the other shot spectral arrows at quick intervals. The arrows zipped through the air at a rapid pace, but they were ultimately blocked by Hex's ice shield, which he followed up with an attack of his own.
Nahim, a girl with Asian features, was unique. Her class didn't limit her to just firing arrows; she could also manipulate spectral energy into any shape she wanted, allowing her to deflect Hex's attacks. Watching the two, Jack couldn't help but feel they were evenly matched.
Even Brenda and Cormach were engaged in a sparring session.
'Something tells me that the next time the Elemental Beast shows up, it might actually be its end,' Jack thought, his eyes narrowing as he observed the ongoing training.
Just as he was watching, he heard a series of footsteps behind him. The steps didn't sound like those of someone with ill intentions—they were very noticeable. Jack didn't panic and simply turned around to find Reyes staring at him.
"Since you're a temporary member of our guild, isn't it right for you to train as well? We wouldn't want any burdens on our team, you know," Reyes said, holding Jack's gaze with an intense stare.
Jack displayed a carefree smile, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Of course, I'd like to spar against my brother. Where is he? I haven't seen him around. Is he always this busy?" Jack inquired. He had been walking around the ship for the past few minutes, hoping to find Nox, yet he couldn't even spot a shadow of the boy.
Nox had earlier informed Reyes that he needed some time to himself and preferred not to be disturbed. Considering the significant contribution Nox's panda had made in the last battle, Reyes readily agreed, thinking the boy needed time to recuperate after the panda's tide-changing attacks.
Reyes relayed this information to Jack, who had a disappointed expression on his face. After seeing Nox's moves, Jack wanted to test how far he could go against the dark-haired boy. He wanted to gauge the strength gap between them.
"Since the kid isn't here, why don't we spar instead?" Reyes smiled, his face calm, though his mind was swirling with thoughts. 'If I want to use you, I must first confirm if you're really as strong as your flame suggests.'
Reyes had agreed despite seeing through Jack's intentions because he wanted to use the latter as extra aid in acquiring the Elemental Crystal, then dispose of him afterward. It was very similar to hiring a mercenary.
'The only difference is that he'll be disposed of instead of being paid,' Reyes laughed evilly in his mind. He was no saint—no Guild Master was. Most importantly, he knew this scarred boy wouldn't hesitate to do the same.
Jack's eyes flashed with a competitive gleam as his odachi, crackling with lightning, materialized in his arms. He wrapped his fingers around the hilt of the odachi, and the lightning began to pulse more fiercely than before.
If he wanted to earn this man's trust and prove that he was reliable, he had to perform well in this spar.
"Hmm," Reyes stroked his chin, a hint of confusion shining in his eyes. "You're not Awakened, so how did you summon that swor—"
Before Reyes could finish, Jack interrupted, "Spatial storage." He raised his hand, and a shiny red ring on his finger flashed briefly.
"Makes sense," Reyes muttered, clenching his fist as both of his arms became covered in solid gray rocks. Then he kicked the ground, charging towards Jack with narrowed eyes.
In the blink of an eye, Reyes effortlessly closed the distance. Jack wasn't surprised by his speed—after all, there were people in his family much faster than this. With lightning speed, Jack brought his sword forward to parry the attack.
However, his face soon contorted into a frown as he felt the powerful force of the attack. His hand, gripping the sword, trembled, and he was sent flying, bursting through the ship's walls and out onto the frozen river.
Jack skidded to a stop by striking the ground with his sword. "Alright, he's strong," Jack muttered, tightening his grasp on the warm hilt of the odachi as he watched Reyes, who was leaping through the broken portion of the ship with a complicated expression.
"I can't beat him," Jack whispered under his breath. "Why don't we swap places? You have better swordsmanship than me."
"I'm glad you asked," the voice in his head immediately responded. The carefree aura surrounding Jack shifted into something more serious—something more focused. He stood like a blade, and even his gaze became sharper.
"Another flame?" Reyes's expression slowly shifted into one of confusion. Why was he seeing a second flame all of a sudden?
'Who is this kid... where is he from?' This was the first time Reyes had seen a human with two flames.
**In an unknown location.**
The Elemental Beast shuffled around a frozen cavern with several beast cores embedded in the walls. The recent battle had dealt more damage than the beast could have ever imagined. Despite its powerful regenerative ability, half of the beast's energy had been depleted, and it would need a few days to recuperate before making another appearance.
Yes, no matter what, it must complete its goal. It had been decades since it had successfully completed all the other goals. Only this one remained, and then it would be unstoppable. This was the major reason the beast hadn't killed the humans.
It needed them for its goal.
As it contemplated this, the Elemental Beast's gaze drifted to the elevated platform within the frozen cavern.
Lying harmlessly atop the platform, amidst several beast cores and other treasures that would make Nox drool with greed, were two shiny blue crystals emitting a freezing aura and another emitting a shadowy aura.
But these weren't just any crystals.
These were Elemental Crystals.