Sunlight sliced through the trees, and Leo Ashford finally saw the face of the man in black.
He nearly screamed.
Long black hair covered the man’s whole face. His yellow eyes glared like a beast’s. His nose kept twitching, as if he was sniffing the air for prey.
Then a voice rang through the forest, cold as ice.
"Enough! Not one more step. You chased her, so don’t expect to walk back out."
A bright light flickered in the sky. It twisted into a beautiful shape and flashed through the woods like lightning, two, three times.
Eight or nine black-clad hunters froze on the spot. A moment later, they dropped to the ground.
Leo saw only bushes in front of him.
Then, suddenly, a man in white stepped into view. His face was hidden.
Leo hadn’t even seen him move. Beams of light burst from the man’s chest.
The whole forest seemed to shake. Leo’s eyes burned from the glare. He had to shut them.
When he opened them again, his jaw dropped.
The black-clad men were gone!
Only the man in white stood there, calm and silent.
It had all happened so fast. No bodies. Only dust. It was as if those terrifying hunters had never existed.
The man in white turned slowly toward the bushes where Leo and the mute girl were hiding.
"Come out."
Leo’s heart pounded. They had been caught.
He stared into the man’s eyes. They were empty. Gray-black, with no feeling at all. Long black hair fell past his shoulders. His clothes were plain white, with no decoration.
Leo shivered. He was facing someone terrifyingly strong.
And Leo was only nine years old.
But then he looked down. He saw the little mute girl’s pale, trembling face.
Something burned inside him.
The fear was gone. Courage rose up like a storm.
He gave the girl a small nod. *Stay quiet.* Then he leaped out of the bushes.
In mid-air, he pulled the Wooden Sword from his back.
The man in white didn’t move an inch.
Even so, Leo knew it deep in his bones. This man was more dangerous than any beast in the woods.
He tightened his grip and stared straight at him.
He only had one hope. *Please, please let him not have seen her.*
"We should go back."
The voice was flat and cold. But just those few words soaked Leo’s back with sweat.
Then...
*Swish!*
A small shadow shot in front of Leo.
He froze. Something that fast, something his eyes couldn’t even follow, was the mute girl he was trying to protect!
"She’s so fast!"
He could only stare.
Lyra spread both arms wide. Her thin little body shielded Leo completely.
Her eyes locked on the man in white. She shook her head hard, again and again. *No. No. No.*
Something flickered in the man’s empty eyes.
The next second, his body shimmered like white light.
And then Lyra moved too. Faster than Leo could ever imagine!
Leo had sharper eyes than most kids his age. Still, all he could catch was a tiny dagger in her small hand.
She darted in zigzags like a fierce tiger cub. Only someone with Spiritual Energy above 20 could move like that.
But the gap between them was like heaven and earth.
It was over before Leo could take a breath.
Lyra’s dagger was gone. She was tucked under the man’s arm.
What happened? How? Leo didn’t see any of it.
"Let her go!"
Leo shouted.
He took the standard knight’s pose. The tip of his Wooden Sword pointed straight at the man in white.
He had forgotten how terrifying this man was. He had forgotten everything. Only one thought was left. *Save her.*
He poured out all his strength and got ready to strike.
But the man in white simply raised one hand.
And Leo’s world went dark.
Under the man’s arm, Lyra began to struggle wildly.
The man was startled.
He felt her whole body burning hot. A deep red glow was rising from her skin.
"Calm down. I won’t hurt him."
For the first time, his voice sounded human. He even seemed a little helpless.
Lyra stopped struggling. She looked up at him.
He nodded. Then he took a step and stood over Leo.
With one hand, he lifted Leo’s body and studied him carefully.
After a while, his eyebrows slowly drew together.
"His natural talent is high. But his bones are not fully grown. His heart and his gifts both fit a great knight."
He set Lyra down.
She quickly made several signs with her hands.
"His future?" the man said. "Hard to say. Judging by talent alone, he could become a very good knight."
He looked down at Leo.
"He is only eight or nine. Yet he already carries a knight’s heart. Kindness. Courage. Stubbornness. Sacrifice. His potential has no limit. He will be a knight who protects the people around him. And that matters more than any talent."
Lyra pointed at herself. Then at Leo. Then she made more signs.
The man nodded.
"Very well. The courage he showed just now deserves a reward."
White light gathered in his chest. It formed a small white stove, with thin blue flames flickering inside.
A few moments later, the blue and white light faded and flowed back into his body.
He looked clearly tired.
"Done. With the Spiritual Stove of Power, I helped straighten his twelve Standard Channels. His talent will shine much brighter now. Your test is finished. Let’s go back."
He stood up calmly and signaled Lyra to follow.
But nobody expected what she did next.
Lyra ran to Leo.
She slipped a blue ring with a gold band off her finger. Then she gently put it on the middle finger of Leo’s left hand.
Strangely, the ring grew a little bigger when it touched his finger. In the end, it fit him perfectly.
"Lyra, you..."
The man spoke softly.
Lyra only looked back at him. Her eyes were stubborn. She would not change her mind.
Before she left, she carefully arranged the wild herbs Leo had gathered, one by one.
Then she walked back to the man in white.
He was silent for a long time. His brows stayed tight.
At last, he gave a small nod.
He took her hand.
And the two of them vanished into the deep forest.
Leo lay still on the grass, deep in the dark.
Then, on his finger, the blue ring began to glow.
A faint, pulsing red light.
Like a heartbeat.