The sun had not yet dispersed the veil of fog hanging over the village. Kael sat at the kitchen table, absentmindedly stirring the soup in front of him. With every turn of the spoon, the moments he had shared with Ashael the night before kept running through his mind.
His mother, as she arranged the medicinal herbs by the stove, noticed her son's unusual silence. She set a bundle of herbs on the table and turned to Kael. Her gaze drifted to the moon ring on his left hand.
"You're still there, aren't you?" his mother said in a worried tone. "Your body is here, but your mind seems trapped in what happened last night."
Kael looked at his mother. "It's just... I can't make sense of it. Ashael, that butterfly... It feels like everything was just a dream."
His mother let out a deep sigh; there was an indescribable sadness in her eyes.
"Sometimes life knocks on our door before we're ready, Kael. You need to clear your mind today. The forest doesn't like a distracted hunter."
Kael nodded and stood up. As he slung his axe over his shoulder, he tried not to ignore his mother's warning, but the unease inside him just wouldn't go away.
As he plunged into the depths of the forest, the air felt heavier than usual. He brought his axe down on a thick log, but the blow missed; the axe scraped lightly against the wood and slipped from his hand. He paused for a moment, out of breath. He looked at the moon ring on his left finger. Its silver glow flickered rhythmically, as if it were a warning signal.
"You need to focus," he told himself. But just then, that first acrid scent carried by the wind hit his nose. The clean forest air he'd been breathing in had been replaced by the suffocating stench of rotting leaves and a fire that seemed to have been scorched by magic. Birds were fleeing the forest with a great clamor.
When Kael looked up, he saw black smoke rising into the sky from the direction of the village.
He gripped his axe tighter and began running toward the village, using every ounce of strength in his legs. He broke branches and carelessly pushed through thorny bushes, getting scratched; he didn't even feel the small cuts on his face. When he reached the village entrance, the scene before him was darker than even his worst nightmares.
The village's peaceful square had turned into a veritable battlefield.
The Red Shadow Wolves, who normally lived in the forest's deepest corners, were attacking
everything as if they had turned into beasts. Kael froze when he locked eyes with one of them. The wolves' eyes glowed a deep crimson, and the strange,
blood-red runes on their necks seemed to distort the very air around them. They were far larger and more savage than any wolves he had ever encountered.
In an instinctive reflex, Kael swung the heavy wood-chopping axe in his hand at the first wolf that leaped at him.
Despite being only fourteen years old, the raw strength gained from years of chopping wood allowed him to deliver a heavy blow to the wolf's head. As the creature collapsed to the ground with a painful whimper,
Kael watched the chaos around him in horror. People were running around screaming; some lay wounded on the ground.
Just as a wolf was about to sink its teeth into an old villager's throat, Kael sprinted toward them at full speed.
"Get to the tavern! Save yourselves!" he shouted to those around him.
Kael's mind was completely numb with fear and panic, but his body wouldn't stop. He had no strategy, no idea what to do; when he saw someone in need of help in that moment, he swung his axe not like a warrior, but like a child terrified of losing those he loved.
"Get to the tavern!" he shouted again. Grabbing a few elderly people who could barely stand and two crying children by the arms, he guided them toward the heavy oak doors of the Great Oak Inn.
But there was one thing Kael hadn't realized: In his rush to save everyone, he had forgotten his own home, his mother. "Mother!" he muttered. After pushing the people he'd managed to save through the inn's secure doors, he broke through the wolves and flames and sprinted toward his own home.
Kael was climbing the village hill, gasping for breath, his heart pounding in his throat. But when he reached the garden gate of his house,
his steps slowed at the sight before him; Kael was literally frozen in place by the scene. While the center of the village was a hell of flames, his own home stood surrounded by a green barrier, enveloped in a strange stillness.
The air around the house rippled slightly, as if he were underwater, emitting a faint green aura. The most terrifying sight, however, was the Red Shadow Wolves. A few of them stood right next to the house,
but they weren't attacking. With their heads tilted to the side as if watching their prey through an invisible glass, they silently observed the house and its interior with those glowing red eyes. They didn't even attempt to extend their claws beyond that boundary; it was as if there were a force enchanting them rather than a physical power holding them back.
Kael pushed through the wolves' chilling stares and burst through the door.
"Mom!"
His mother was standing in the middle of the living room. Her face was paler than usual, and her breathing was more irregular.
Her hands trembled slightly in the air, as if holding invisible strings. When she saw Kael, she took a deep breath but didn't lower her arms. Her gaze locked onto her son; she looked at the soot running down his face, the tears in his clothes, and the bloodied axe in his hand.
In that moment, the tension in her arms seemed to ease for an instant. She took a deep breath as tears streamed down her face. Seeing her son standing there, safe and sound, had made her forget all the chaos outside for that moment, bringing her some peace.
"Kael... Thank the gods," his mother said.
Kael immediately ran to his mother's side. "Mom, are you okay? This house... The wolves outside can't even get near here!"
His mother cupped his face in her hands with a forced smile. "You're safe here, my son. This barrier... it will protect you as long as I breathe. But don't you dare go outside. There's nothing we can do until the Eastern Kingdom comes to our aid."
Kael held his mother's weary hands, but his eyes were fixed on the smoke outside.
"I can't do it, Mom. Those children and the elderly I brought to the Great Plane Tree Inn... They don't have a shield like this. They'll all die before the kingdom's guards arrive."
When his mother saw the resolve in Kael's eyes, she realized she couldn't keep him locked up at home. She let out a deep sigh and gripped her son's right hand tightly. "If you're going, you can't go unprotected," she said, her voice trembling.
As his mother murmured words in an ancient language, a green, glowing beam of light appeared in Kael's hand. The light slowly etched itself into his palm as a complex rune pattern. Kael could feel the sudden warmth and magic in his hand.
"My son, I'm inscribing this spell into your hand to protect you from the wolves,"
his mother said, looking into Kael's eyes. Her voice was more serious than ever.
"But listen to me; this rune won't make you immortal. It has its limits. It absorbs blows and prevents claws from cutting your flesh, but it doesn't have unlimited power. Don't waste your power, take care of yourself, and never put your life in danger unnecessarily. You're a smart boy—don't forget what I've told you!"
Kael looked at the glowing pattern on his hand. His mother's serious warning had unsettled him, but thinking of the villagers' desperate cries, he couldn't stay put. He hugged his mother tightly one last time.
"I promise, Mom, I'll be careful."
He gripped his axe again and ran out the door, into the midst of the Red Shadow Wolves waiting silently. As he neared the center, the area was still in chaos. A wolf lunged at Kael; before he could even react, the wolf's claw struck his shoulder. The blow, which should have torn his flesh, was blocked by a green flash the moment it made contact. Kael had felt the rune's protection firsthand.
"It's working..." he muttered. But when his mother's words "it has its limits" came to mind, he didn't stop; he continued carrying the helpless people to the Great Oak Inn, taking down the wolves that stood in his way one by one.
By the time Kael reached the center, he could feel the rune's power in every cell of his body. As he took down the wolves charging at him one by one, the blows he received seemed to slide off him like they were hitting a shield. For a moment, the thought crossed his mind:
"If only we could inscribe this rune on everyone in the village, then no one would have to die."
But immediately afterward, he remembered his sick mother's exhausted state; she wasn't in any condition to enchant everyone one by one. "If only I could perform this magic like my mother," he thought, but it was already too late to rebel.
Just as he was saving as many people as possible and guiding them to the inn's doors, a deep howl echoed across the square. As the other wolves stepped aside one by one, a wolf that was much larger than usual and had an intelligent gaze stepped forward in front of Kael. This was the pack's leader, the Alpha Red Shadow Wolf.
Kael realized at first glance that his opponent was no match for him. The Alpha was terrifying not only because of his claws but also because of the oppressive red energy he radiated. His mother's words, "Don't risk your life," echoed in his ears. Kael was gasping for breath, and the green glow of the rune had begun to tremble slightly.
He turned and began running for his life. But in the midst of the chaos, his foot caught on a piece of debris on the ground, and he crashed hard to the ground. With one final effort, he wriggled free from the other wolves lunging at him, got back on his feet, and kept running—but the Alpha had already closed the distance.
Just as Kael was about to round a corner, the Alpha's massive shadow loomed over him. In that split second when the wolf seemed suspended in midair, it swung its claw. Kael raised his hand to shield himself, but the blow was so fierce that his mother's rune couldn't block the Alpha's powerful attack. The green light shattered like glass and faded, and Kael was knocked to the ground by the force of the blow.
Just as Alfa was about to pounce to deliver the final blow, a sharp metallic clang and the neighing of horses echoed through the air.
"Hang in, little guy!"
Commander Alaric charged into the fray on his horse like a storm. The moment he saw Alfa gliding through the air toward Kael, he swung his silver-inlaid sword with such force that the massive wolf was split in two with a single stroke.
The Eastern Kingdom's famed warrior squad spread out across the battlefield, beginning to subdue the remaining creatures.
Once the chaos had settled somewhat, the squad from the Eastern Kingdom had completely subdued the creature attack. The kingdom's healers immediately began tending to the wounded.
The Eastern Kingdom was far more advanced in alchemy and medicine than the others; its healers were trained to treat even the most severe injuries.
Alaric pointed to Kael, who was lying on the ground, and ordered one of the healers, "Attend to this boy immediately!"
Kael gently pushed the healer's hand away as he struggled to his feet in pain. "I'm fine," he said, his voice trembling.
"Please, there are others in worse shape than me. Help them."
Commander Alaric paused at this reply. He was moved by the tenderness and courage of the 14-year-old boy standing before him. When he saw the rusty wooden axe covered in wolf's blood standing beside Kael, he smiled slightly, but his eyes held a deep seriousness.
"Did you fight that pack all by yourself with this simple axe, little man?" Alaric asked.
Kael looked at his bloodstained axe and his trembling hands. In that moment, an indescribable sense of helplessness washed over him. He knew that if the warriors of the Eastern Kingdom hadn't arrived, he would have died there and been unable to save anyone.
"I wish I were stronger," he thought. "Then I could have saved more of my neighbors, more of my friends."
Before he could answer Alaric's question, Kael set off toward home with weary steps. Behind him, Commander Alaric and his team were examining the strange runes on the necks of the neutralized wolves.
These patterns, which they had never seen before, proved that the attack was no coincidence—that someone had deliberately driven these creatures into the village.
"We must report this to headquarters immediately,"
the commander said, giving orders to set out before dawn.
When Kael arrived home, his mother, Nerya, was waiting for him right there. When she saw his bloodied axe, his torn clothes, and the deep helplessness on his face, she asked nothing; she simply opened her arms. As Kael leaned against his mother's shoulder, all his stoicism crumbled in an instant.
"Mother, I couldn't do anything,"
he said, his voice trembling.
"That Alpha... He was stronger than even the Rune could protect against. If the soldiers of the Eastern Kingdom hadn't come, I wouldn't be here right now. People died before my very eyes, and I just watched."
Kael lifted his head and looked into his mother's eyes. There was a resolve in his gaze that had never been there before.
"Please, Mom... I want you to teach me magic. I need to be able to cast protective spells and healing magic from scratch. I want to protect myself and others. I don't want to feel this helpless ever again!"
A deep sadness settled over Nerya's face. She placed her hand on Kael's cheek and wiped the tears from his face with her fingers. She remained silent for a moment, as if battling a storm within herself. Taking a deep breath, she sat up straight. Her gaze softened, but for the first time, her voice carried the resolve of a teacher.
"Teaching magic isn't just about giving you power, Kael," his mother said, gripping her son's hand tightly.
"It's about taking on the world's unseen burdens as well. Once you start tampering with nature's balance, nothing will ever be the same again. If you're truly ready... we'll begin your first lesson at dawn tomorrow."
Kael held his mother's hand just as tightly.
"I'm ready, Mom. I can't protect anyone just by chopping wood and waiting."
His mother couldn't quite grasp the full meaning of Kael's protective stance. She thought to herself,
"Perhaps the scene he witnessed in the village must have stirred something within him."
Though she wanted to keep Kael as far away from the world of magic as possible, she also knew this situation would be for his own good.
His mother smiled gently.
"Then let's take a breather for now, son."
Outside, as the first light of dawn broke, Commander Alaric and his soldiers set off toward the Eastern Kingdom with the rune-inscribed evidence they'd gathered, while the smoke hovering over the village slowly began to dissipate. The village was quiet, but storms were raging in Kael's mind.
He was eager to uncover the secrets his mother would pull from those dusty shelves and to learn his first spell.