Scene 1: A Playful Encounter
Setting: The quiet village streets, with a gentle breeze blowing.
Andre was strolling through the village with confident, steady steps, his eyes scanning the surroundings with curiosity. From a distance, Iris spotted him. A sly, mischievous smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. She leaned her body toward Emily, whispering in a serpentine, teasing tone:
"Do you know who I see right now? ... Your 'Big Brother'."
Emily jolted in surprise, her eyes widening. "My brother?"
She spun around quickly to follow Iris's gaze. The moment her eyes landed on Andre, blood rushed to her cheeks, turning her face a deep crimson. She stomped her foot shyly and looked at Iris with flustered reproach:
"Hey! He is not my big brother!"
Iris let out a ringing laugh, covering her mouth with her hand.
"Really? So, you weren't the one complaining all this time, saying: 'Where is Andre? Since he started training with Volac, he doesn't eat my food... My Big Brother'?" Iris dragged out the last words playfully.
Emily punched Iris's arm lightly: "Stop it at once!"
At that moment, Andre approached to greet them. Sensing him behind her, Emily's body stiffened. She turned mechanically and shouted nervously:
"Hello, Brother!"
Silence fell for a second. Emily's eyes widened in horror at her slip of the tongue, while Andre raised an eyebrow in innocent confusion: "Brother?"
Emily immediately clamped both hands over her mouth. Iris stepped in smoothly, waving her hand with feigned nonchalance:
"Don't mind her, Andre. You know... everyone in the village calls each other 'brother' and 'sister', right, Emily?"
Emily nodded her head frantically, stammering: "Y-Yes! That's correct!"
Andre smiled—a warm, genuine smile—and placed a hand on his chest: "That makes me happy, sister Emily... and sister Iris."
Hearing this, Emily's face turned so red that steam practically rolled off her ears.
Scene 2: A Display of Power
Setting: An open clearing on the outskirts of the village.
Iris shifted her tone to be slightly more serious: "So, you're training with Volac?"
Andre crossed his arms proudly. "Yes. I've mastered the art of swordsmanship, and I also learned how to control Mana and use it naturally."
Iris's eyes gleamed with a challenge. "Beautiful... Let's test that."
Before Andre could ask, Iris raised a finger gracefully. Suddenly, a strong current of air launched Andre upwards.
"Whoa! Okay!" Andre muttered, trying to balance. He focused Mana into his legs to hover steadily.
But the scene changed in an instant. Below, he saw Iris drawing the string of an invisible bow of wind. Three transparent wind arrows materialized, emitting a sharp whistling sound.
She fired them without mercy!
Andre drew his sword mid-air, canceled the Mana in his feet to free-fall towards the arrows, and swung his blade to slash them. However, the arrows swerved fluidly! Andre landed, only to find one arrow diving from above and another from behind.
With sharp instincts, he stomped the ground. Ice columns erupted, forming a protective dome that shattered the arrows. Andre emerged from the icy mist, panting: "Where is the third arro—"
Before he could finish, he found the third arrow buzzing right in front of his nose. With a supernatural reaction speed, he caught the arrow with his bare hand just before it touched him.
Andre exhaled sharply, sweat dripping from his forehead, and yelled: "Are you trying to kill me too?!"
He looked at Iris and saw her features soften; she let out a hidden sigh of relief. "That one didn't hit you either."
Andre shuddered. "So you were actually trying to hit me?!"
She nodded simply. Andre screamed, "At least try to hide your intent!"
Iris smiled, though inwardly she was astonished: (He didn't realize I was guiding the arrows by sight... and his reflexes were incredible. It seems Volac taught him well).
She broke her train of thought: "Are you going to the Clan Chief?"
"Why would I?"
Emily chimed in excitedly: "Because there is a newborn, and he intends to celebrate his arrival."
Andre asked naively: "Did the Chief get married?"
Emily smacked him lightly: "No, you idiot! The whole tribe celebrates any newborn."
"Ah, understood... let's go then."
Scene 3: The Miracle of Healing
Setting: The village center, lit by bonfires and filled with celebration.
The Clan Chief stood tall, holding the baby as if he were holding a treasure. He painted the clan's symbol (three spears) on the infant's forehead and spoke with a booming voice:
"This child has brought joy to the entire tribe. He is one of the lights that will make us flourish. Let us wish him happiness."
Everyone closed their eyes solemnly, raised their hands, and chanted in unison: "We wish for that."
The Chief asked the parents, "What will you name him?"
The mother looked at her son with overwhelming tenderness: "Kane... to be a symbol of determination."
Applause erupted, but suddenly... strange lights flickered in the sky and vanished, followed by total astonishment. The baby, Kane, began to glow with a warm green light... it was the Power of Healing.
People whispered in shock: "Impossible... It's the power of Rose!"
Quickly, the Chief cut his own hand and placed it near the child. The wound healed instantly. The Chief smiled, but tears betrayed him, flowing down his white beard.
"It seems our prayers were answered... We have a light in this bitter cold." He looked at the crowd with teary eyes. "Please, pray for his success... just as you prayed for my daughter, Rose."
Everyone was moved, but eyes secretly shifted toward the Ice Master, specifically his necklace. The Chief noticed and spoke firmly to protect the secret: "The necklace is empty of magic, so do not think of anything... I used the last drop within it."
Scene 4: Into the Unknown
Setting: The edge of the celebration. Suddenly... Absolute Void.
From afar, Maurice watched, his eyes wide with a look of pure madness. The observer beside him asked with disgust and confusion: "Why are you staring like a lunatic?"
Maurice's smile widened slowly until it bared his teeth. He whispered in a voice dripping with malice:
"Do you know how to hunt big prey?"
The moment he spoke, the world shifted.
The lights of the celebration vanished. The laughter faded. The observer felt a deadly chill seep into his bones. There was no sky, no earth. They found themselves standing in the middle of "The Unknown"—a pitch-black, silent, desolate void, where time and direction ceased to exist.
In the heart of this terrifying nothingness, with slow, confident movements, Maurice pulled out a strange book glowing with a faint violet hue and placed a sinister object around his neck.
Suddenly, from the depths of this Unknown... the gates of hell cracked open.
Monsters poured out in massive numbers. The heroes shouted: "Everyone, leave now!"
But it was too late.
Julian lunged, tearing through beasts with his Blood Swords. Iris stood as a wall, protecting the villagers with her arrows. Harold incinerated monsters with fire, while the Ice Master and Volac reaped heads.
Amidst the chaos, Andre felt a cold shiver... a horrific, familiar power approaching. He saw a man walking calmly amidst the monsters, but a surprise attack distracted him.
Scene 5: The Infiltration
Setting: The chaos of battle, then the Chief's hut.
Amidst the blood and screams, a man wearing a cloak and covering his face crashed into Julian. The man was trembling violently.
Julian grabbed him anxiously: "Are you okay?"
The man shook his head in feigned fear.
Julian shouted: "Hurry and hide!"
The man replied with a quivering voice: "Yes, sir..." and ran past Julian... heading straight for the Chief's hut.
Once inside, the man lifted the hood. The fear vanished instantly, replaced by Maurice's foolish, wicked grin: "I am the one who brought the monsters."
He looked at the Chief and the baby.
The Chief asked sharply: "Who are you?"
Maurice bowed theatrically: "I am, quite humbly, the cause of all this chaos. My name is Maurice, and I came specifically for you... and the child."
The Clan Chief gripped his spear with old but powerful hands, standing like a mountain before the child.
"You want our tribe's light? Then you will have to kill me first."
Maurice's smile widened until it almost tore his face:
"With pleasure."