CHAPTER 14 - 14: FIRST CLASH

Arden didn't move immediately.

He crouched among the thick underbrush, watching the scene unfold through narrowed eyes.

His gaze stayed fixed on the girl that was battered, bloodied, and yet still gripping something deep inside her.

Each time they hit her, she didn't break. Not truly.

Her body trembled, but there was something just under the surface, like a dam about to burst.

One of the bandits leaned in and hissed something at her, but Arden's ears caught the words.

"Stop pretending and reveal yourself."

Her eyes lifted, and for a second Arden saw it, a flicker of fear, but beneath it, something colder.

Her lips parted.

"Don't... please... you don't know what you're doing," she said, her voice raw and thin.

The temperature dropping as she pleaded.

It wasn't just cold. It crept with the wind through the trees, coating leaves in a thin glaze of frost. Arden's breath misted out in front of him, and even Zephyra shifted, ears flicking in quiet alert.

The girl clenched her fists, the necklace still in her grasp, but then she snapped.

A surge of wind howled out from her body, carrying tiny blades of ice that cut through the clearing like a swarm of angry needles. The bandits stumbled back, two of them bleeding from their arms, clothes torn and frostbitten.

"Damn it, she's losing it!" one of them shouted.

The leader of the group stepped forward, tall and broad, his aura stable even under the storm. He didn't flinch. Instead, he gave the order calmly.

"We've got the right one. Don't let her burn out. Move. Now.

His voice snapped the others into motion. Arden remained still, watching the group break into formation. They weren't amateurs.

The leader surged forward first, body glowing faintly as dark-blue energy wrapped around his limbs. Reinforcement type, Arden noted. He was a battle mage, clearly. His movements were fast, but solid, each step grounding him against the icy winds.

Behind him, a hooded bandit raised both hands, conjuring rings of heat that floated in mid-air before firing out small controlled bursts of flame to counter the ice. An Elemental mage, And he focused more on support, controlling the environment while the others advanced.

To the side, a younger and leaner mage rushed in with a rune-inscribed blade glowing in violet light. This was a Artificer class elemental user. His swings were clumsy but carried weight, likely due to some basic enchantments.

The fourth bandit was short and also young, less sure as he trailed at the back, weaving in and out with less precision.

Arden picked up on the weaker flow of aether around him. A battle mage too, but likely in the Vein Flow realm.

The rest were clearly at Vein Surge, with their leader just a step from breaking through to something more.

Arden's mind sharpened as he watched.

So this is how coordinated teams fight...

The girl tried to hold her ground. Her hands trembled as more cold spiraled around her. She launched jagged shards of ice in every direction, forcing two of the bandits to duck behind trees. One was grazed across the cheek, howling. The leader, though, broke through with sheer force, landing a punch to her stomach that sent her crashing into the mud.

She struggled back up, gasping. Her energy flickered, unstable and scattered. Arden felt it now. Two threads of affinity tangled inside her.

Most dual-affinity awakeners like her couldn't maintain control, especially when under stress or overwhelmed by intense emotions.

Even minor disturbances could trigger devastating outbursts.

With no way to contain their energy, they were often viewed as monsters.

Hunted, or cast into exile.

The outlands were full of their graves.

Yet her case felt... off. She wasn't rampaging. She fought it. Tried to stop it. Even now, half-conscious and bleeding, she still whispered, "Don't make me lose it... I don't want to hurt anyone..."

The artificer stepped in again, slashing with his enchanted blade, but she ducked and swept out a kick, sending him sprawling.

But she couldn't withstand the assault of the four men at once.

Soon the leader caught her by the neck before she could dodge.

"Enough games. Strain her too much and her veins will collapse. We need her alive, or it's all for nothing."

That was when Arden stood.

No more waiting.

The girl's legs were barely holding her up, her fingers twitching from overdrawn aether.

Her eyes were glassy now, her mouth opening and closing without sound.

He stepped into the clearing, the shadow skill fading from his skin.

"Let her go," he said, voice calm but sharp.

The four men turned, startled.

For a second they didn't move, as if unsure where he'd come from.

Then the leader laughed.

"And who the hell are you?"

Arden stepped forward, brushing aside the last bit of concealment as if he'd just finished stretching after a walk.

He didn't respond to their question. Didn't feel like wasting breath on people who thought they were more important than they really were.

If anything, he looked bored.

The leader's eyes narrowed. "You lost, kid? Turn around and maybe we won't snap your neck."

Arden tilted his head slightly, as if weighing something. Then he looked at the girl who was barely conscious, with blood dried around her lips, and her energy flickering in and out of focus.

He sighed. "You're not worth the noise you make."

That did it. The leader clenched his jaw and waved his hand.

"Go break him."

The second battle mage obeyed, charging forward with a yell, trying to close the gap quickly. Arden didn't move until the last second. Then he shifted his weight, twisted slightly, and let his fist fly.

The hit landed with a crunch, sending the man spiraling backward like a ragdoll before crashing into a tree trunk and slumping to the ground, groaning.

"Seriously?" Arden muttered, glancing at the leader. "That's the best you've got?"

The Artificer lunged next, sword glowing with etched lines of violet.

But Arden sidestepped, grabbing his wrist mid-swing and twisting hard before driving a palm into his gut. The air left the man's lungs in a wheeze, and he folded, collapsing beside his partner.

That was two.

The leader's smirk vanished. His grip tightened around the girl's neck, her body lifted off the ground again, feet barely scraping the dirt.

"Take one more step and I'll snap her neck."

Arden didn't stop walking.

He didn't need to say anything.

He just thought it, and Zephyra moved.

From the brush behind the leader, she burst forth, silent as a shadow, her eyes glowing with intent. Before the man could react, her claws swept across his shoulder, slicing deep and forcing his hand to release the girl. She dropped to the ground, coughing hard.

Arden was already there.

He caught her gently, setting her down away from the fight, his voice quiet. "Stay low. Don't force your energy again."

She nodded weakly, eyes wide but grateful.

Then he turned.

The leader was recovering quickly, clutching his bleeding shoulder, a mix of rage and disbelief in his expression.

Their fight didn't last long.

The man was stronger, faster, reinforced by his affinity.

But Arden was beyond brute force. He moved like he knew every opening before it appeared, weaving between attacks with a flow that almost looked practiced.

Every punch landed with purpose, and every shift in his stance came with weight.

His fist collided with the leader's jaw, then his ribs, then his gut.

The man stumbled, coughing blood, trying to summon his energy again, but Arden didn't give him the chance.

A final blow to the chest sent him sprawling, unmoving.

Across the clearing, Zephyra had her own dance with the others. The elemental mage had tried casting a wall of fire, but Zephyra slipped through with sheer speed, flanking them again and again. Every time they regrouped, she broke them apart.

It wasn't long before the last of them fell, one after the other.

Then it hit.

A bang in Arden's skull, like a gong rung too close to his ear.

He staggered slightly, clutching his head as something shifted deep inside.

And then he felt it.

A/N:

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