The academy gates stood behind them.
Raizen walked forward without looking back.
Kaira walked beside him, her massive axe resting against her shoulder.
Zayden walked on his other side, his hand resting near the hilt of his sword.
Neither of them spoke.
Behind them, hundreds of students had gathered near the entrance.
The teachers stood frozen in silence.
No one knew what to say.
The three young mages who had once represented the future of the Central Academy were now walking away from it.
Their footsteps echoed across the stone road.
One step.
Then another.
They were leaving everything behind: their childhood, their teachers, their friends, their home.
The academy that had once given them a place to grow was now nothing more than a memory.
Kaira glanced at Raizen.
“Are you sure about this?” Raizen didn’t slow his pace.
“Yes.” “You really don’t want to look back?” He remained silent for a few seconds before answering: “If I look back, I might hesitate.” Zayden lowered his eyes.
“Then keep walking.” The Three Great Mages At the entrance of the grounds, three figures stood out from the crowd: Kael, Selene, and Darian.
The three Great Mages watched their former allies walk away.
Kael clenched his fists.
He remembered the very first time he had met Raizen.
Back then, Raizen was just a mysterious new student wielding a strange shadow magic.
They had fought, grown together, trained side by side, and become brothers-in-arms.
Now, they stood on opposite sides.
Selene whispered, her eyes fixed on Raizen’s retreating figure: “He’s really leaving…” Darian nodded.
“He made his choice.” Kael took a step forward.
“We can still stop him.” Selene looked at him in disbelief.
“Stop him?” “We can’t just let him walk away!” Darian sighed.
“And what do you suggest?” Lentely, Kael raised his hand.
Lightning began to crackle around his fingers.
“Raizen!” His voice echoed down the avenue.
The trio stopped.
Raizen slowly turned his head.
Kael stepped forward.
“You can still come back.” “No,” Raizen replied.
“Why?” “Because I’ve already made my decision.” “You don’t have to become our enemy!” Raizen stared directly into his eyes.
“I’m not your enemy.” Kael looked back at him with a trace of sadness.
“Then don’t make me treat you like one.” Raizen turned away.
“We’re leaving.” Kael’s lightning intensified.
“Raizen!” He lunged forward.
But before he could take another step— The world around them shifted.
The wind stopped dead.
Birds fled from the canopy.
The entire atmosphere fell into an unnatural, heavy silence.
Kael froze.
Selene’s eyes widened, while Darian instantly dropped into a defensive stance.
“What…
is this?” A crushing pressure radiated through the area.
It wasn’t ordinary magical energy—it was darker, ancient, and terrifying.
The Demon’s Aura The pressure exploded outward in a fraction of a second.
BOOM.
The stone ground cracked beneath the feet of the three Great Mages.
Kael gritted his teeth, completely unable to move a muscle.
Selene tried to weave a spell, but her magic was instantly snuffed out.
Darian attempted to draw his blade, but his arm refused to obey, paralyzed by raw instinct.
Behind them, the scene turned to absolute chaos.
At the academy entrance, the wave of sheer malice slammed full force into the crowd of students.
Dozens gasped for air before collapsing heavily onto the cobblestones, overwhelmed by panic and suffocation.
Others fell to their knees, clutching the ground as nausea and unbearable psychic strain took hold.
Even veteran professors dropped to one knee, sweat pouring down their faces, their minds completely shattered by the weight of such an oppressive presence.
“This aura…” Kael groaned through gritted teeth.
“I recognize it…” Selene whispered, her face bloodless.
“It’s impossible…” “It isn’t an ordinary demon,” Kael said, his voice trembling.
“It’s a Superior Demon.” Selene shook her head, her gaze locked on the darkness creeping along the road.
“No…
It isn’t just a Superior Demon.
It’s one of the Four Ancient Demons.” A freezing chill ran through the academy.
The Four Ancient Demons…
Mythical beings whose names had echoed through generations like living nightmares.
A deep, razor-sharp voice echoed from the shadows: “Who gave you permission to block their path?” The pressure doubled.
The remaining mages sank further into the cracked earth, completely immobilized.
Raizen watched the scene unfold.
Even the shadows at his feet writhed, reacting instinctively to the overwhelming energy.
“Raizen…” Kaira whispered, tightening her grip on her axe.
“I know.” Zayden drew his sword halfway out of its sheath.
“Whoever that is…
they’re on another level entirely.” The Arrival of Sanglan Rhythmic footsteps echoed from the woods.
Step.
Step.
A silhouette emerged slowly from the darkness.
Under the moonlight, his features finally took shape: his clothes, his face, his glowing eyes, his overwhelming presence.
For the first time, the entity that had been watching from the dark revealed himself.
Sanglan.
He stopped a few meters away from the group.
Raizen met his gaze.
Neither spoke for several tense seconds.
Sanglan finally smiled.
“I’ve finally found you.” “Found me?” Raizen narrowed his eyes.
“Yes.
I have spent a long time searching for you.” Kaira adjusted her stance.
“Raizen, do you know him?” “No.
But he seems to know me.” Sanglan glanced briefly at Kaira and Zayden before refocusing entirely on Raizen.
Then, right before the stunned eyes of everyone present, the ancient demon lowered himself and bowed deeply.
“Will you become my master?” A dead silence fell over the avenue.
Behind them, Kael, fighting against the suffocating aura, couldn’t believe his eyes.
“An Ancient Demon…
asking to serve him?” Raizen stared down at the creature bowing before him.
“Who are you really?” Sanglan slowly raised his head, his eyes glowing with a dark brilliance.
“My name is Sanglan.
I am one of the Four Ancient Demons.” The statement hit the standing mages like a shockwave.
A living legend was kneeling right in front of them…
pledging allegiance to a rogue student.
Raizen looked at Sanglan, then glanced back at the academy behind him, before turning toward the open road ahead.
He had abandoned his past, his safety, and the life he knew.
A new path was opening up.
A faint, sharp smile appeared on his face.
“Very well.” “Raizen?” Kaira asked cautiously.
“Come with us,” Raizen ordered Sanglan.
“As you command, my Master.” Zayden stared at his friend.
“What are you planning to do now?” Raizen looked out toward the dark horizon.
The hesitant boy who had first entered the academy seeking answers was gone.
In his place stood someone ready to forge his own destiny.
“We are going to destroy this world…” Kaira’s eyes widened.
“…and rebuild it in our image.” Sanglan smiled.
The Great Mages remained frozen where they stood, unable to move a single finger as Raizen and his companions disappeared into the night.
High above the academy, the moon vanished behind dark clouds.
Somewhere far beyond the known world, something ancient was stirring.
The Mage had fallen.
But his true story had only just begun.
END OF ARC 1 ARC 2 — THE AWAKENING OF DESTINY To Be Continued…
— Kurotsuki