Kaelen woke with a start, the morning sun spilling across his room. He yawned, ran a hand through his white hair streaked with sky blue, and glanced around. The memories of the previous day's training with Tessandra Liones filled him with both excitement and determination.
After a quick breakfast, he made his way to Tessandra's apartment. She was already waiting, calm and collected as always, her silver-violet hair catching the light through the open window.
"Ready?" she asked, her voice serene but carrying the weight of someone who had seen more battles than most could imagine.
"Always," Kaelen replied, stepping onto the training ground, the energy of circuits buzzing faintly around them.
They sparred lightly at first, blocks and strikes measured, but suddenly, Kaelen noticed something strange. His perception of time fluctuated—slowing down, speeding up, impossible to predict.
"Tessandra," he said, lowering his stance, "do you feel that?"
She paused mid-strike, eyes narrowing slightly. "Yes… we've got visitors."
Almost instantly, they both leapt back toward her apartment. Outside, the sun was high, and sitting nonchalantly on the steps like bored royalty were three figures: Alzwalt, John, and Kaelven. Their presence was commanding, a palpable aura that made the air itself tense.
"Who… are they?" Kaelen asked softly.
Tessandra crossed her arms, tilting her head. "Good question. Let's find out."
The three men stood as she approached. Alzwalt's golden wings flickered faintly, John's black aura radiated lethality, and Kaelven, though younger, carried the energy of someone who had survived impossible odds.
"We wanted to see who trains the hero," John said casually, voice calm but dripping with confidence. "And… maybe teach him a thing or two ourselves."
Tessandra smiled faintly, her sharp gaze sweeping over all three. "That's fine. But are you strong enough?"
Alzwalt, John, and Kaelven exchanged glances, the corner of each mouth twitching into a smile.
"I'll go first," Kaelven said.
The wind whipped around them as Kaelven activated his circuits, his white hair flickering like lightning. "Double Count," he said softly, and explained as he prepared to fight Tessandra.
"In my world," he began, "we don't use circuits. We have numbers. The higher your number, the stronger you are. To gain numbers, you kill. The more you survive, the more dangerous foes you overcome, the higher your count grows. When I arrived in Kael'Ar, I had one million count. Enough to survive a 7-billion-count dragon chasing me."
He activated his abilities, energy bending gravity around him while manipulating time to move with staggering speed. His eyes glowed as he demonstrated teleportation, speed bursts, and precision strikes, showing just how lethal a Double Count user could be.
Tessandra met every attack calmly, her movements precise, almost effortless. Kaelven put up an incredible fight—dodging, striking, adapting—but in the end, it was clear.
With a graceful, almost bored movement, Tessandra landed the final strike. Kaelven staggered, the fight over.
Alzwalt stepped forward immediately, golden wings unfurling as he gently healed both Tessandra and Kaelven.
"You want to rest before I spar you?" he asked Tessandra.
She shook her head, letting her coat flow behind her in the wind as she adopted her fighting stance. "I'm good. Your healing did enough."
Kaelen, sitting beside John and Kaelven, blinked. "Who… is he? Alzwalt, I mean. He kept up with Tessandra!"
John leaned back, smirking. "His name is Alzwalt Light. He has a luminous circuit. Notice he hasn't used any named attacks yet? That's for two reasons. One—he doesn't need to. Two—Tessandra isn't evil. If she was, he would've ended her instantly. But because she isn't, he's fighting purely on strength, speed, endurance, and battle IQ. Sure, he could heal instantly, but that wouldn't be fair."
John's eyes flicked toward Kaelen. A grin spread across his face. "Wanna make a bet?"
Kaelen's gaze sharpened. "Bet."
John chuckled darkly. "If I win, I get to spar with you first."
Kaelen narrowed his eyes. "If you lose… you teach me a technique."
John's laugh was low and menacing. "I would've done that regardless. But this? This will be fun, the fight will end in a draw."
The wind stirred, carrying the faint hum of circuits and the promise of a fight that could reshape the area around them. Kaelen gripped his weapon tighter, heart racing with anticipation.
Above them, the sun gleamed off Tessandra's flowing coat, Alzwalt's golden aura shimmered, and John's lethal calm radiated power. The stage was set, the Era of Dungeons and heroes intertwining once more—and Kaelen was about to learn just how small he truly was in a world of titans.