Chapter 13 THE DEVIL'S MOUNTAIN
It was midday.
The sun stood gallantly , like a burning meteor frozen in space, threatening to drop anytime soon.
It was as if the gods held it in place, so it cast it's angry gaze upon the little mortal boy below.
Roman took steady steps as he climbed up the rocky hill.
He was battered and bruised, dirty and disheveled with heavy sweats running down his face, and his dirty red hair stood with all manner of pride, as if strucked by lightning ⚡.
Yet the fire 🔥 in his eyes never dulled, he was still alive, still determined with a tenacious spirit.
Roman took the last step reaching the top of the hill, then stared at the expanse of land before him... with mouth open widely.
"What the hell?"
It looked like another world entirely. The whole region was dark and covered with strange purple hue, filled with dead yet large trees like a forest. In the middle stood the tallest mountain Roman had ever seen, and above the mountain, purple dark clouds gathered with heavy winds and dropping multiple bolts of lightning with a bang.
A bolt struck the side of the mountain causing a rock slide which made some beasts scurred in fear.
"Now I see what mom meant when she said I'll know when I get there"
Not even the sun with all its angry glory could gaze upon this dark region, the devil's mountain.
"How come I didn't see this from afar"
It's has been a week since Roman left home, he come so far, but he wasn't gonna stop here.
Removing the dagger from it's shelt, it transformed into a katana, and he dove into the dark region ....
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WRITTEN BY PRIDE CHRONICLES
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Three men of horses rode smoothly on the grassy path leading the cart behind them.
Billy, Lan and Bryon walked briskly behind them, while Slyver sat quietly on the cart.
"You guys are becoming good with forest survival "
Wifred complemented.
"That's because we are the ones taking care of the advanced ranked beasts instead of them"
Barron scoffed.
"At least give them credit for coming this far. They have potentials"
Barron rolled his eyes.
"Heard that Billy, I have potentials"
Lan nugged at Billy.
Billy shot him a dead glare.
"I see a castle up ahead"
Bryon suddenly pointed. He had walked ahead of the group.
"Great eye boy, that's our destination"
Wifred said.
"A castle in the middle of the forest, I thought we were going to Avalon academy"
Lan said.
Barron suddenly laughed.
"You brats won't survive a day in the academy with such level of strength"
"He's right. Plus, the age for qualification is fifteen years and above and must be of a certain power level"
Wifred explained.
"Which is...."
Billy asked.
"Relax, you'll when we've settled down"
Soon , they arrived at the castle entrance.
Indeed it was a castle, but a run down and abandoned one with vines and trees growing within. Yet it stood.
"Avalon kingdom has many castles like this one all around within its borders. It's used as watch zones for specific purposes, but this one was overrun by a beast tide some years ago. So now we use it as a fortress for training young beast masters"
Wifred jumped down from his horse.
"This is where you'll train, grow and learn for the next five years before we take you to Avalon"
He added.
"Five years"
Lan forgot to breathe.
"Yeah, so you'll be spending a lot of time with me"
Barron let out a dark laugh as he directed his horse inside.
They glaced at each other with uneasiness, then Billy followed behind
"As long as I get stronger, I'm ready for it"
He said.
"What choice do we have "
Bryon shrugged before trailing behind.
Lan looked at Sylver
"So, five years huh? Do you think we'll be close by then "
Sylver threw him a glare before walking away.
"Oh come on"
He breathed out.
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At the devil's mountain region, a young boy with red hair was gritting his teeth as he climbed up the rough and dangerous mountain.
The rain had suddenly descended as soon as he began, and it increased at every moment.
The heavy winds blew mightily as if wanting to throw him back to the ground, but he held.
Roman took slow steps, feeling like the mountain was getting harder to climb at each step.
The purple atmosphere wasn't helping one bit.
"Whooaaa"
He suddenly missed a step but stabbed his katana into the rock before he could fall, his body slammed against the mountain walls as he dangled.
He could feel blood rolling down his head as pain gripped him.
After releasing multiple breaths, he supported his weight on an edge.
He looked above him to see the great distance he was yet to cover, then looked below him.
Such height could end his life if he lost focus.
And as if wanting to kill him, a purple bolt of lightning shot towards him.
Strangely he had expected such.
His perception and instincts had grown greatly
Roman leaped to the left side, letting the lightning hit his previous position with a bang, causing another rock slide.
"It's like you have a mind of your own"
Roman groaned.
Looking above, he scaled upwards.
TBC