The light from Raka’s palm grew brighter.
The ground beneath his feet cracked into fine lines. The grass around him swayed even though there was barely any wind that night.
Alya stood several steps behind him.
For a moment, she didn’t recognize the figure standing before her.
Raka still had the same face.
He was still the stubborn young man who, just days ago, couldn’t even control a single drop of water.
But the energy pouring from his body was no longer that of a novice mage.
It was something far greater.
Something that had been asleep for a very long time.
Bastian watched the light with a satisfied smile.
“Wake up.”
Raka clenched his fists.
“I don’t know what you want.”
Bastian laughed.
“You don’t need to know.”
He raised a hand.
Three royal guards moved in unison.
Alya immediately stepped forward.
“Raka, don’t use that power.”
“Why?”
“Because you can’t control it yet.”
One of the guards attacked.
Raka raised his hand on reflex.
A wave of energy exploded.
The guard was hurled several yards away.
Raka himself nearly lost his balance.
He stared at his hand.
“I didn’t do anything.”
Alya ran over to him.
“That’s the problem.”
The second guard came from the side.
Alya raised her hand.
A barrier appeared.
The attack slammed into it and shattered into fragments of light.
Alya was forced backward.
Nadia’s body couldn’t withstand the impact.
Raka saw her.
“Alya!”
He moved.
But Bastian was already standing before him.
Fast.
Far too fast.
Raka tried to block.
Bastian struck him in the stomach.
Raka was sent flying.
He rolled across the ground.
Pain.
But pain wasn’t the only thing he felt.
There was a burning sensation in his chest.
Alya suddenly collapsed.
She clutched the same spot.
Raka froze.
“You feel it too?”
Alya nodded, holding her breath.
“The Soul Bond.”
Bastian smiled.
“So you really are bound together.”
Raka glared at him.
“How do you know?”
Bastian didn’t answer.
Instead, he looked at Alya.
“You shouldn’t be using that body.”
Alya slowly rose to her feet.
“Why?”
“Because Nadia’s body isn’t an ordinary vessel.”
Alya froze.
Bastian continued,
“And you still don’t know who the girl whose body you’re using really is.”
Alya clenched her fists.
“Don’t talk like you know her.”
“I know her better than you do.”
“Stop.”
Raka stood.
“If you really know something, then tell us.”
Bastian turned toward him.
“You’re not ready to hear the answer.”
Raka stepped forward.
“I’ll decide that.”
Bastian smiled.
“All right.”
He raised his hand.
Black energy gathered around it.
“Then let’s see how long you can last.”
The battle unfolded faster than Dimas could comprehend.
Alya moved to the left.
Raka moved to the right.
Two guards attacked at the same time.
Alya dodged the first attack and kicked her opponent’s hand.
Raka blocked the second.
His sword trembled.
His opponent’s strength was far greater.
Raka nearly fell.
Alya saw him.
“Don’t fight his strength.”
“What?”
“Follow his movements.”
Raka remembered his first lesson.
Don’t force it.
He waited.
His opponent’s sword came down.
Raka shifted aside.
The attack passed within inches of his body.
He twisted and used his opponent’s momentum to bring him down.
The guard was thrown to the ground.
Raka looked at Alya.
“Like that?”
Alya nodded.
“Good.”
The other guard attacked.
This time, Raka was ready.
He didn’t force it.
He didn’t resist.
He followed.
Every movement felt lighter.
But Bastian was different.
The man didn’t fight like an ordinary mage.
It was as if he knew every move before it was made.
Raka attacked.
Bastian dodged.
Raka changed direction.
Bastian was already behind him.
Raka turned.
Too late.
A palm struck his chest.
Black energy entered Raka’s body.
He dropped to his knees.
Alya screamed.
“Raka!”
Bastian smiled.
“How does it feel?”
Raka clawed at the ground.
His body felt as though it were burning from the inside out.
Then that voice appeared.
**Open the door.**
Raka gritted his teeth.
No.
**Open it.**
“No.”
**You’ll die.**
Raka raised his head.
Bastian stood before him.
“Get up.”
Raka tried to stand.
Bastian attacked again.
But this time, something changed.
A red light appeared in Raka’s eyes.
The black energy inside his body was blasted out.
Bastian stumbled backward.
His expression changed.
“Impossible.”
Raka stood.
The air around him trembled.
Alya stared at him.
“Raka...”
Raka couldn’t hear her.
He could hear only one voice.
**Now.**
Energy exploded.
Bastian was sent flying.
The ground split apart.
The trees around them shook.
The guards dropped to their knees.
Dimas covered his face against the dust.
Then everything stopped.
Raka stood in the middle of the field.
His eyes had returned to normal.
But he looked confused.
“What happened?”
Alya ran over.
“You opened a little of the seal.”
“I did?”
Alya nodded.
“And you almost destroyed this entire place.”
Raka looked at the cracked ground.
“Oh.”
Dimas came over.
“Oh?”
He pointed around them.
“You’re supposed to say ‘sorry.’”
Raka sighed.
“Sorry.”
Dimas shook his head.
“At least you know some manners.”
Bastian was gone.
The royal guards had retreated as well.
But before he left, Bastian delivered one message.
He stood in the distance and said,
“We’ll meet again.”
Raka stared at him.
“Who are you?”
Bastian smiled.
“Someone who once saved your life.”
Then he disappeared behind the trees.
Alya stood in silence.
Raka looked at her.
“Do you believe him?”
“No.”
“Good.”
“But...”
Alya lowered her head.
“...I remembered something.”
Raka waited.
“When I was little, someone took me away.”
“Him?”
Alya nodded.
“I thought he saved me.”
“And now?”
“I don’t know.”
They returned to the warehouse.
Neither of them spoke the entire way.
The next morning, Alya changed the training method.
There would be no more energy exercises.
No more books.
No more attempts to use the elements.
Instead, Raka was given a wooden sword.
“Attack me.”
Raka raised an eyebrow.
“You sure?”
“Attack.”
“What if I hurt you?”
Alya smiled.
“You won’t be able to.”
Raka drew a breath.
He attacked.
Alya dodged.
Raka attacked again.
Alya parried.
Raka spun.
Alya stepped backward.
“Faster.”
Raka sped up.
“Faster.”
Raka attacked with all his strength.
Alya caught his sword.
Then she twisted her wrist.
Raka’s sword flew from his hand.
He landed on his butt.
Alya stood before him.
“Why did you lose?”
Raka snorted.
“Because you’re stronger.”
“Wrong.”
“Faster?”
“Wrong.”
“More experienced?”
Alya nodded.
“Correct.”
She handed him the sword.
“And that’s something you can catch up on.”
Raka took it.
“How?”
“Training.”
They continued training.
One hour.
Two hours.
Three hours.
Raka fell again and again.
Every time he fell, Alya ordered him to get back up.
At first, Raka complained.
Then he stopped complaining.
He began to pay attention.
Alya wasn’t merely strong.
She was efficient.
Not a single movement was wasted.
Every step had a purpose.
Every attack had a direction.
Every defense waited for the opponent’s mistake.
Raka began to imitate her.
Little by little.
On the first day, he could only hold out for a few seconds.
On the second, almost a minute.
On the third, he managed to touch Alya’s arm.
Alya stopped.
Raka was stunned.
“I did it?”
Alya looked at the mark on her arm.
“Yes.”
Raka grinned.
Dimas, who was sitting beneath a tree, applauded.
“Awesome.”
Raka raised his sword.
“Finally.”
Alya looked at him.
“Don’t get too excited.”
“Why not?”
“Because the real training starts after this.”
Raka’s smile vanished immediately.
On the fourth day, Alya took Raka into the forest.
“Why are we going here?”
“Because you rely too much on your sight.”
“What do you mean?”
Alya closed her eyes.
“You’re going to fight without seeing.”
Raka stared at her.
“That’s insane.”
“Correct.”
“You admit it?”
“Of course.”
Alya tied a cloth over Raka’s eyes.
Dimas laughed.
“Good luck.”
Raka raised his sword.
“I really hate you.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Exactly.”
Alya stood several yards in front of him.
“Begin.”
Raka heard sounds.
The wind.
Leaves.
Birds.
Then footsteps.
He attacked.
Nothing.
Alya had already moved.
Another step.
Raka blocked.
Too late.
A blow struck his shoulder.
“Ow.”
“Don’t rely on your ears.”
“Then what?”
“Feel.”
Raka tried.
He closed his eyes more deeply.
Not just listening.
He tried to feel the changes in the air.
Pressure.
Movement.
Energy.
Someone was behind him.
Raka turned and slashed.
His sword stopped within inches of Alya’s neck.
Silence.
Alya opened her eyes.
“Good.”
Raka removed the blindfold.
“I almost killed you.”
“But you didn’t.”
“How did you know I’d stop?”
“Because you don’t want to kill me.”
Raka fell silent.
Alya looked at him.
“That’s what true strength is.”
“What is?”
“Knowing when to attack and when to stop.”
Raka nodded.
He was beginning to understand.
The days that followed passed by.
Training became routine.
Mornings were for the body.
Afternoons were for the sword.
Evenings were for energy.
Nights were for reading.
Alya slowly taught Raka about the world of magic.
About the four basic elements.
Fire.
Water.
Wind.
Earth.
About mages who could control one element.
About rare mages who could control more than one.
About seals.
About the flow of energy.
About magic cores.
But there was one thing that made Raka different.
He had no magic core.
Alya realized it after trying several times.
“This doesn’t make sense.”
Raka sat before her.
“What?”
“Every mage has a core.”
“What if I don’t have one?”
“Then you’re not an ordinary mage.”
“Knew it.”
Alya ignored his joke.
“The core functions as a storage center for energy.”
“What if I don’t have one?”
“Then the energy flows directly through your body.”
“So?”
“So you don’t store energy.”
Alya looked at him.
“You become the conduit.”
Raka fell silent.
“A conduit?”
“Imagine a river.”
Alya took a stick and drew in the dirt.
“For an ordinary mage, the river flows into a lake.”
She drew a circle.
“That lake is the magic core.”
Then she drew a straight line.
“But in your body...”
“The water flows straight through.”
“Yes.”
Raka looked at the drawing.
“That’s good, right?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because if the river’s flow is too strong...”
Alya erased part of the line.
“...the channel will break.”
Raka swallowed.
“So my body could be damaged?”
Alya nodded.
“If you force that power.”
Raka said nothing.
For the first time, he truly understood the danger.
Great power wasn’t a gift.
Great power was a responsibility.
That night, Raka couldn’t sleep.
He sat outside the warehouse.
Alya came carrying two cups of tea.
“Drink.”
Raka accepted one.
“Thank you.”
Alya sat beside him.
“Thinking about your power?”
Raka nodded.
“If I lose control...”
“You won’t.”
“How can you be sure?”
“Because I’ll stop you.”
Raka looked at her.
“What if you can’t?”
Alya didn’t answer.
Raka looked up at the sky.
“I’m scared.”
Alya remained silent.
Raka continued,
“I’m not afraid of dying.”
He tightened his grip on the cup.
“I’m afraid of becoming someone I can’t control.”
Alya understood that feeling.
She had experienced it herself.
She might still be experiencing it.
“Raka.”
“Yeah?”
“You aren’t your power.”
Raka turned toward her.
“Never forget that.”
Alya looked at him.
“Whoever’s inside your body, whatever your family passed down to you, whatever people say about you...”
She touched Raka’s chest.
“What determines who you are is your choices.”
Raka fell silent.
Then he gave a small smile.
“You can be pretty wise.”
Alya pulled her hand away.
“Don’t ruin the mood.”
Raka laughed.
For a while, they simply sat there.
No training.
No magic.
No fugitive.
Just two people gazing at the sky.
But that night, Alya had a dream.
She stood in a white room.
A little girl stood before her.
Nadia.
The girl was crying.
“Don’t take my body.”
Alya froze.
“I didn’t mean to...”
“You took it.”
“I didn’t know.”
Nadia cried.
“I’m still here.”
Alya stepped closer.
“Where?”
The little girl pointed to her own chest.
“Here.”
Alya woke up.
Her breathing was ragged.
Sweat dampened her forehead.
She clutched her chest.
There was something inside it.
A pulse.
Not her own.
“Nadia?”
There was no answer.
But then a small voice emerged.
**Help me.**
Alya froze.
“Nadia?”
**Help me get out.**
Alya covered her mouth.
All this time, she’d thought the body was empty.
She’d thought Nadia’s soul had left.
But it turned out...
Nadia was still there.
Hidden deep within.
Alya closed her eyes.
“I’m sorry.”
Tears fell.
“I didn’t know.”
The next morning, Alya didn’t teach Raka.
Instead, she left on her own.
Raka noticed.
“Where are you going?”
“I need to find some answers.”
“I’m coming.”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Because this is about the body I’m using.”
Raka stood.
“If Nadia is still inside your body, then it affects us too.”
Alya fell silent.
Raka continued,
“We’re bound together.”
“I know.”
“So don’t go alone.”
Alya looked at him.
Then she nodded.
They went to the home of an old mage on the outskirts of the city.
Her name was **Maya**.
Maya was known as a healer who understood the relationship between souls and bodies.
When Alya explained everything, Maya didn’t answer right away.
She took out a bowl.
Filled it with water.
Then she asked Alya to touch the surface.
The water changed color.
From clear to grayish.
Maya looked at her.
“It’s true.”
Alya held her breath.
“She’s still there?”
Maya nodded.
“The soul of the body’s owner hasn’t left.”
Raka asked,
“Where is she?”
“In the deepest layer.”
“Can she come back?”
Maya looked at Alya.
“Maybe.”
Alya froze.
“How?”
Maya shook her head.
“If you remove Nadia’s soul now, this body might reject yours.”
“And?”
“You could lose the place you have to return to.”
Alya looked at her hands.
“So we’re trapped.”
“For now.”
Raka asked,
“What caused their souls to overlap?”
Maya looked at them.
“The bond.”
She looked at the symbols on Raka and Alya’s palms.
“This bond wasn’t created by the soul exchange.”
Alya frowned.
“Then what is it?”
“It’s existed since birth.”
Raka and Alya looked at each other.
Maya continued,
“You aren’t two souls that happened to meet.”
She pointed at the symbols.
“You’re two parts of a single sequence.”
A chill ran through Raka.
“Explain.”
Maya stood.
“Some souls can be divided.”
“Divided?”
“When someone possesses too much power, part of their soul energy can be separated.”
Alya remembered something.
“The Flame Keeper.”
Maya looked at her.
“You know that term?”
Alya nodded.
Maya sighed.
“Then you’ve already come too far.”
On the way home, Raka was mostly silent.
So was Alya.
Dimas, who was waiting for them, immediately noticed the change in mood.
“What happened?”
Raka answered,
“We found something.”
“What?”
Raka looked at Alya.
Alya nodded.
“Nadia is still here.”
Dimas fell silent.
“Her soul?”
“Yes.”
“And you two?”
Alya showed him the symbol on her hand.
“Our connection is older than we thought.”
Dimas sighed.
“The longer this goes on, the worse the story gets.”
Raka let out a small laugh.
“At least we have an answer.”
Dimas looked at him.
“Which answer?”
Raka said nothing.
There was no answer.
That night, Alya sat alone.
She closed her eyes.
“Nadia.”
There was no answer.
“Nadia, if you can hear me...”
Silence.
“I’m sorry.”
Several seconds passed.
Then a small voice spoke.
**I know.**
Alya opened her eyes.
“You’re not angry?”
**I’m scared.**
“So am I.”
**Are you going to leave?**
Alya fell silent.
“I don’t know.”
**If you leave, will I die?**
Alya closed her eyes.
“I won’t let that happen.”
**Promise?**
Alya smiled faintly.
“Promise.”
For the first time, she didn’t feel alone inside that body.
But that feeling brought a new problem.
If Nadia was still alive...
then who truly had the right to that body?
Alya?
Nadia?
Or both of them?
Elsewhere, Bastian returned to an old house.
He entered the basement.
A magic circle lay in the center of the room.
An old man sat inside it.
Bastian knelt.
“They’ve met.”
The old man opened his eyes.
“Raka?”
“He’s begun awakening his power.”
“And Alya?”
“Her soul is bound.”
The old man smiled.
“Good.”
Bastian lowered his head.
“There’s a problem.”
“What?”
“Nadia’s soul is still inside the body.”
The old man fell silent.
“Impossible.”
“I thought so too.”
“Then...”
He stood.
“The ritual must be accelerated.”
Bastian looked at him.
“Isn’t that dangerous?”
“Dangerous.”
“For whom?”
The old man smiled.
“For everyone.”
Over the following days, Raka’s training grew more intense.
Alya no longer taught him merely to use energy.
She taught him restraint.
How to control his emotions.
How to recognize his body’s limits.
How to distinguish his own energy from foreign energy.
Raka began to understand that power wasn’t about how big an explosion he could create.
Power was the ability to stop before the explosion happened.
One morning, Alya gave him a candle.
“Light it.”
Raka looked at it.
“Easy.”
He moved his hand.
A flame appeared.
But Alya immediately snuffed it out.
“Don’t.”
“Why not?”
“Use as little as possible.”
Raka tried again.
A flame appeared.
Smaller this time.
Alya nodded.
“Smaller.”
Raka reduced the flame.
“Smaller.”
The flame became no larger than a needlepoint.
“Hold it there.”
Raka began to sweat.
“This is harder than making a big fire.”
“Because destroying is easy.”
Alya smiled.
“Control is the difficult part.”
Raka stared at the tiny flame.
He understood.
For years, he’d thought he had no power.
The problem wasn’t that he had no power.
The problem was that he had too much.
That afternoon, Raka finally managed to maintain the flame for an hour.
Alya watched him.
“Good.”
Raka smiled.
“So I passed?”
Alya shook her head.
“Not yet.”
“Why not?”
“Tomorrow, we begin the real training.”
Raka eyed her suspiciously.
“What now?”
Alya smiled.
“You’re going to learn how to open the seal.”
Raka fell silent.
“A little?”
“A little.”
“How little?”
Alya looked at him.
“One-fifth.”
Raka jumped to his feet.
“One-fifth?”
“Yes.”
“And that’s safe?”
Alya didn’t answer.
Raka narrowed his eyes.
“Alya.”
“Mostly safe.”
“Mostly?”
Alya walked away.
“We’ll find out tomorrow.”
Raka stared at her back.
“Dimas!”
Dimas appeared from behind a tree.
“What?”
“Do you think I should run?”
Dimas thought about it.
“Honestly?”
“Yes.”
“Yes.”
Alya stopped walking.
“You two still have until tomorrow.”
Raka and Dimas exchanged a look.
“For what?”
Alya smiled.
“To pray.”
That night, Raka stood before a mirror.
He looked at himself.
His face hadn’t changed.
But now he knew there was something behind that face.
A power.
A soul.
A past.
And perhaps a destiny decided before he was born.
He touched his palm.
The symbol glowed.
Then a voice spoke.
**Don’t open the seal.**
Raka froze.
“Why?”
**If you open it, you’ll remember everything.**
Raka stared into the mirror.
“What do I need to remember?”
Silence.
Then the voice answered.
**The night you killed your family.**
Raka froze.
His breath stopped.
“What?”
There was no answer.
He took several steps back.
“No.”
But a memory began to surface.
Fire.
Screams.
A house.
Blood.
And a boy standing in the middle of it all.
Raka.
His hands filled with light.
He screamed.
The vision vanished.
Raka collapsed to the floor.
Alya came running after hearing the noise.
“Raka!”
She dropped to her knees.
Raka looked at her with a pale face.
“Alya...”
“What happened?”
“I...”
He struggled to speak.
“I might have killed my family.”
Alya fell silent.
She saw the fear in Raka’s eyes.
Then she took his hand.
“We’ll find out.”
“What if it’s true?”
“We’ll still find out.”
“What if I really am a monster?”
Alya looked at him.
“Then I’ll stop you.”
Raka stared at her.
“But...”
Alya tightened her grip on his hand.
“If you’re not a monster, I’ll prove it.”
Between them, the Soul Bond symbol began to glow again.
And for the first time, Raka didn’t feel alone as he faced his past.
But far away, someone was lighting a magic circle.
An ancient ritual had begun to stir.
A ritual that had been waiting for twenty years.
And when the ritual was complete...
Raka’s memories would fully awaken.
Along with the power that had been sealed inside his body all this time.