The next morning arrived quietly.
Ryuzen opened his eyes and stared at the wooden ceiling of the small shelter.
For a few seconds, he didn’t move.
Then the pain returned.
His ribs hurt.
His shoulders hurt.
Even his fingers were sore from gripping the weighted whip during the battle with the three-headed serpent.
Ryuzen slowly sat up.
“Ah…”
He touched his side.
“That thing really hit me hard.”
Across the shelter, Eldran was already awake.
The old wizard sat beside the dying fire, preparing their supplies.
“You’re awake.”
Ryuzen looked at him.
“You’ve been awake this whole time?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“I am old.”
Ryuzen sighed.
“That isn’t an explanation.”
“It is when you’re old enough.”
Ryuzen shook his head.
He looked toward the entrance of the shelter.
Beyond it, the morning light had begun spreading through the forest.
And far in the distance stood Thunder Mountain.
Its enormous peak disappeared into dark clouds.
Lightning flashed around it.
Ryuzen stared.
“So that’s where we’re going.”
“Yes.”
Ryuzen stood.
His legs felt weak, but he forced himself upright.
Eldran immediately noticed.
“You’re still injured.”
“I can walk.”
“That wasn’t my question.”
Ryuzen smiled.
“I’ll be fine.”
Eldran gave him a serious look.
“You said that after the Thunder Scorpion.”
Ryuzen’s smile disappeared.
“And you nearly died.”
“I didn’t die.”
“You came close.”
Ryuzen looked away.
He knew Eldran was right.
The Thunder Scorpion had pushed his body close to Beast Overload.
The three-headed serpent had exhausted him even further.
His body had become stronger during his years of training, but it still had limits.
Eldran stood.
“Today isn’t about fighting.”
Ryuzen looked at him.
“Then what is it about?”
“Travel.”
Ryuzen blinked.
“That’s it?”
“That’s enough.”
They packed their supplies and left the shelter.
Ryuzen carried his bag across his shoulder.
His weighted whip was secured across his back.
Eldran walked beside him.
For the first few hours, the journey was peaceful.
The forest slowly changed around them.
The trees became shorter.
The ground became rougher.
Large rocks appeared between the roots.
The further they traveled, the colder the air became.
Ryuzen looked around.
“Are we still in Valtara?”
“No.”
Ryuzen looked surprised.
“Already?”
“We left the Valtaran border yesterday.”
“Then where are we?”
“Between kingdoms.”
Ryuzen looked ahead.
Eldran continued.
“Thunder Mountain stands in the wilderness between Kryptoria and Valtara.”
“So nobody owns it?”
“Correct.”
“Why?”
“Because nobody was foolish enough to claim it.”
Ryuzen laughed.
“That sounds encouraging.”
“It wasn’t meant to be.”
They continued walking.
The path became narrower.
At one point, they passed an abandoned road.
Broken stone pillars stood on both sides.
Ryuzen stopped.
“What happened here?”
Eldran glanced at the ruins.
“This road used to connect travelers between Kryptoria and Valtara.”
“What happened to it?”
“Thunder Mountain became too dangerous.”
Ryuzen looked at the distant peak.
“Because of the lightning?”
“Among other things.”
Ryuzen waited for more.
Eldran kept walking.
Ryuzen sighed.
“You could explain things normally, you know.”
“I could.”
“But you won’t.”
“No.”
Around midday, they reached a small stream.
Ryuzen crouched and drank some water.
The water was freezing.
He splashed some across his face.
“That feels good.”
Eldran sat beneath a tree.
“You’ll need to remember places like this.”
“Why?”
“Because you won’t always have someone to guide you.”
Ryuzen looked at him.
“What do you mean?”
Eldran didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he looked toward Thunder Mountain. This chapter was taken from g.com without permission.
“Your journey is changing.”
Ryuzen frowned.
“How?”
“You’ve spent years learning how to survive with my guidance.”
Ryuzen remained silent.
“Soon, you’ll need to survive without it.”
Ryuzen’s expression became serious.
“Are you saying you’re leaving me?”
“Not yet.”
“Then why are you talking like that?”
“Because a master who does everything for his student creates weakness.”
Ryuzen looked down at the water.
He understood.
Eldran had never wanted him to depend on him.
Every lesson had been designed to make Ryuzen stronger on his own.
Even the strange weight placed on everyday objects.
The endless physical training.
The weighted whip.
The painful thunder exercises.
Everything had been preparing him for something.
Ryuzen looked up.
“I understand.”
Eldran nodded.
“Good.”
They continued their journey.
By afternoon, the wilderness became more dangerous.
The wind became stronger.
The sound of thunder echoed from the mountains.
Ryuzen stopped several times to study the clouds.
Lightning flashed across the peak.
KRAAAACK!
Ryuzen’s blue thunder suddenly sparked around his fingers.
He immediately clenched his fist.
The sparks disappeared.
Eldran noticed.
“Again.”
Ryuzen looked at him.
“My thunder?”
“Yes.”
“It reacted to the mountain.”
“Don’t suppress it.”
Ryuzen frowned.
“Then what should I do?”
“Feel it.”
Ryuzen closed his eyes.
He stood quietly.
The wind passed around him.
Thunder rolled in the distance.
Inside his soul, the Electric Eel stirred.
Ryuzen could feel it.
Restless.
Curious.
Almost excited.
He slowly breathed in.
Then out.
The blue sparks faded.
Ryuzen opened his eyes.
“It feels different.”
“How?”
“I don’t know.”
Eldran nodded.
“That is enough for now.”
Ryuzen looked toward the mountain.
“Something is waiting there.”
Eldran’s eyes briefly narrowed.
“Yes.”
As evening approached, they entered a rocky valley.
Tall cliffs surrounded them.
Ryuzen looked upward.
“Are we going through here?”
“Yes.”
“Is it safe?”
“No.”
Ryuzen stopped.
“You could have mentioned that before.”
“You asked.”
Ryuzen sighed.
They continued.
The valley was strangely quiet.
No birds.
No insects.
No animals.
Only the sound of their footsteps.
Ryuzen’s hand moved toward his whip.
“Eldran.”
“I know.”
“Something’s wrong.”
Eldran looked around.
Then—
A rock rolled down the cliff.
CRACK!
Ryuzen jumped aside.
The rock smashed into the ground.
BOOM!
Ryuzen stared upward.
“Was that an attack?”
“No.”
“Then what was it?”
“Warning.”
Ryuzen frowned.
A low growl echoed through the valley.
Several glowing eyes appeared between the rocks.
Ryuzen slowly reached for the whip.
Eldran raised one hand.
“Don’t.”
“But—”
“They aren’t attacking.”
The creatures emerged.
They were small, wolf-like beasts with stone-colored fur.
They stared at Ryuzen.
One growled.
Ryuzen slowly lowered his hand.
The creatures eventually turned away and disappeared between the rocks.
Ryuzen watched them.
“Why didn’t they attack?”
“Because they sensed something stronger.”
Ryuzen looked at Eldran.
“You?”
Eldran smiled.
“Perhaps.”
Ryuzen narrowed his eyes. This chapter is updated first at novelping.com.
“You really enjoy that word.”
They made camp inside a shallow cave that night.
Ryuzen sat near the entrance.
Thunder Mountain was visible in the distance.
The lightning never stopped.
He watched it for a long time.
Eldran sat behind him.
“You should sleep.”
“I can’t.”
“Why?”
Ryuzen looked at the mountain.
“I keep thinking about the sword.”
Eldran was silent.
“You said it was created by a Master of Souls.”
“Yes.”
“Who was that person?”
Eldran’s expression became distant.
“Someone from a very long time ago.”
“Were they from Kryptoria?”
“No.”
“Valtara?”
“No.”
“Then where?”
Eldran looked toward the moon.
“Lunaris.”
Ryuzen turned.
“Lunaris?”
“Yes.”
Ryuzen remembered hearing stories about the distant kingdom.
“So the sword came from Lunaris?”
“The sword was created there.”
“Why would someone from Lunaris create a sword on Thunder Mountain?”
“Because the mountain possessed something the sword needed.”
“What?”
Eldran looked at him.
“Thunder.”
Ryuzen blinked.
“That doesn’t explain much.”
“It wasn’t meant to.”
Ryuzen groaned.
“One day, I’m going to make you answer a question properly.”
Eldran smiled.
“I look forward to it.”
The next morning, they continued.
Thunder Mountain was much closer now.
The mountain filled most of Ryuzen’s vision.
Lightning struck its slopes again and again.
The closer they got, the stronger Ryuzen’s Electric Eel reacted.
Blue sparks appeared around his body.
His heartbeat quickened.
He stopped walking.
“Eldran.”
“Yes?”
“I can feel it again.”
“The mountain?”
Ryuzen nodded.
“It feels like something is calling me.”
Eldran studied him carefully.
“Then don’t answer yet.”
Ryuzen looked confused.
“Why?”
“Because we haven’t reached the mountain.”
Ryuzen looked ahead.
The path continued toward the massive peak.
He nodded.
“Alright.”
They walked on.
Neither of them noticed that, several miles away, another traveler had already reached the mountain.
A young woman stood near an old stone ruin.
She held an ancient book in one hand.
A faint silver aura surrounded her.
Behind her appeared the translucent shape of a wolf.
She looked toward the summit.
Thunder rolled overhead.
Her Moon Wolf reacted.
She frowned.
“There is something strange about this mountain.”
She closed the book.
Then she heard footsteps.
She turned.
Nothing.
Only the wind.
The woman looked toward the mountain again.
She didn’t know who was coming.
She didn’t know that a young man carrying a strange weighted whip was approaching.
And she certainly didn’t know that their paths would soon cross.
By sunset, Ryuzen and Eldran reached the base of Thunder Mountain.
Ryuzen stopped.
The sheer size of it left him speechless.
Lightning struck the peak.
KRAAAAAACK!
Blue light covered the entire mountain for a moment.
Ryuzen’s thunder responded.
Blue sparks exploded around his arms.
He quickly controlled them.
Eldran looked at him.
“Tomorrow, we begin the climb.”
Ryuzen looked up.
“How long will it take?”
“That depends on you.”
Ryuzen smiled.
“Then I’ll make it to the top.”
Eldran turned toward the mountain.
“Rest tonight.”
Ryuzen nodded.
But before entering their temporary shelter, he looked upward one more time.
Somewhere beyond those clouds…
was the ancient sword.
The weapon created by the Master of Souls.
The weapon that could form a Life Contract.
Ryuzen clenched his fist.
“I’ll reach you.”
Far above him, lightning struck the mountain.
And for the briefest moment…
a faint golden light appeared near the summit.
Ryuzen didn’t see it.
But something at the top had already sensed his arrival.