❝𝙎𝙝𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙬𝙞𝙥𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙧𝙚 𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙙𝙤𝙢, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙞𝙩.❞
｡˚ ✦ ┊ Corrupt, evil, and fatal. That is how people define Shadow Wielders in the kingdom of Lucinda.
Huang Suyin is a peasant who lives a simple life...
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Chapter 03 : Reveal
≿ · ┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈ · ≾
"The next demonstration will be presented by Yang Jungwon!"
The audience clapped for the next boy who traveled to the center of the arena. Natural black inked his silky hair, but that was all Suyin could make out of the far distance between them. As Jungwon stood still, everyone waited suspensefully, eager to see the boy reveal his power and skills.
With closed eyes, Jungwon's arms spiraled outwards, manifesting numerous crystals on his command. The white quartz captured the glimmering sunlight, and they gradually whirled around Jungwon's figure. The crystals progressed speed, and they froze once Jungwon's hands balled into fists. His eyes shot open.
Crowds gasped in an instant, recognizing his specific type of power. "Oh wow, now this boy is a gifted one. I don't think anyone has seen crystal manipulation in a while," a person near Suyin said.
"The last great one I recall is the Seong Daehyun, the first warrior," another added on.
Suyin hummed softly to herself, mesmerized by the boy's enticing aura. Jungwon's tight fists relaxed, and his arms flowed to each side, guiding the crystals like a stream. He darted forward and executed a powerful flip kick. Once landing back on his feet, he struck the air with fists. The white quartzes flew off, and they shattered into illuminated smoke. The audience couldn't help but break into applause, and Suyin couldn't help herself either.
His hands splayed in the air, summoning multiple larger sunstones. Alluring orange light shot all over the stadium, stroking some of the audience. The sunstones followed his hands, keeping up as he hastened. Taking quicker steps, he soon sprung into the air with the assistance of his sunstones, and his fist aimed for the ground. He plunged back onto the dirt with a strong force. A roaring blast blew across the entire stadium, spiking everyone's eardrums.
Dirt fluttered around Jungwon's crouched figure, obscuring his body. The audience murmured to each other–curious of the sudden silence. By far, this had to be Suyin's favorite demonstration. The dust wreathed into the clear air, unveiling a slight golden glow. Suyin immediately flickered her eyes to the swords, and a smile touched her lips. The boy had been chosen.
Yang Jungwon rose to his feet, staring through the dust with slit eyes. Too anxious to steal a look for himself, the audience answered for him. As the crowds erupted, awareness trickled over Jungwon, and his hand hovered over his mouth. He bowed in an instant, and he met eyes with Queen Taeyeon, who gave a nod of welcome. He bowed once more, and he made his way over to the glowing weapon. He viewed the ancient yet iconic silver blade for a second, stunned by how it was about to be his. Wrapping his fingers around the handle, the weapon floated.
A blinding flash was born, displaying Jungwon a personalized golden sword. The intricate longsword rested in his hands. Not only was the handle beautifully designed with a sunstone at the center, but the shape of the sword's large blade was stunning as well–like it had been handcrafted by an artist. Everyone clapped their hands once more for the well-deserved sword, guiding Jungwon to the Eight Warriors' seats.
The next performer–Huening Kai–stood at the center shortly after Jungwon sat with the other chosen warriors. There were seven chosen warriors in total now–one left to choose. Would this be their eighth? His arms dove downward, spinning his hands. The ground sparkled, and it shined with iridescent magical doves flying into the sky. The crowds shared their "oo"s, already enjoying Kai's demonstration.
As he stood on a basic stance, his arms waved outward, summoning another animal consisting of magic. A glimmering horse puffed into reality, galloping around the stadium. Its hair flowed with the wind in slow motion–as calming as a lake's ripples. Kai smirked as he gained more reactions from the audience. The horse's transparent figure eventually greeted its summoner, and it vanished once Kai laid the tips of his fingers onto its face. Kai lifted his arms up. High in the air, a burst of smoke appeared along with a glimmering dragon's head. Blue glowed in its eyes, earning applause. A smile tickled at Kai's lips, partially distracted by the audience's love.
Kai moved his hands once, but nothing more happened. The dragon's head only surveyed the crowds, and a low growl rumbled. Kai thrust his hands once more, leading the dragon's growing body to swim in the air. Kai's eyes remained on the crowds, guiding the dragon carelessly. However, gaining control, the dragon shifted out of its place. It slithered through the air like a snake. Although the people thought it was part of the demonstration...it was not.
Suyin cocked a brow, noticing Kai's off movements. Unlike the other performers, his current actions radiated confusion mixed with frustration. All of a sudden, the magic dragon uttered an alarming roar. The dragon dove into the end of the arena, smashing into the walls. The white stone cracked, crumbling into gigantic chunks. The crowds gasped–some screaming. Fortunately, the broken pieces fell off the arena instead of squashing the audience.
Kai no longer held himself back, and he frantically waved his hands in the air to gain the dragon's attention. "STOP!" The dragon flicked its head to its summoner, slitting its flickering red eyes.
Panic rushed through the crowds, earning bewildered shouts and feared cries. In the corner of Suyin's eye, she noticed another movement. Sitting at the Eight Warriors' seats, one hesitantly rose to their feet, speculating the next possible result.
The irritated dragon dove into Kai's direction. Kai tripped over his feet, and he stumbled onto his bottom. "NO, I SAID STOP– WAIT!" Kai cried, shielding himself with a useless hand. His legs wriggled, shifting him backward.
Before the uncontrollable dragon could reach Kai, a warrior stepped in front of him. Yang Jungwon banged his sword onto the ground, and he conjured a blast of shielding obsidian, earning a blaring screech from the dragon. Jungwon's save hauled gasps out of everyone. Nonetheless, it infuriated the dragon further. It slithered off, crashing wind to the audience as it continued screaming. Jungwon aimed and chucked his sword at the dragon. The sword shot through the dragon's scales with sunstone. However, it had no effect.
"Guards!" Queen Taeyeon commanded over the panicked screaming.
The screeching dragon began to fly recklessly. Suyin gasped once more, realizing that the dragon was ramming in their direction. "Oh no," Suyin muttered under her breath.
"RUN!" Miyoung screamed beside her. The audience members in the area began to shift, climbing over each other as if it were an apocalypse.
At the edge of Suyin's vision, she caught Jungwon sprinting after the dragon. A few of the queen's knights were gliding through the air as well. But the dragon was gaining proximity rapidly, and its eyes blazed with crimson–almost begging Suyin to do something. Suyin peeked at Miyoung and Chenle, who were trying to flee the crowd beside them. However, people flooded the entire area, giving them no chance to escape. Suyin grunted, attempting to slip through the crowds–nothing worked.
The dragon's glare shot through Suyin's eyes one more time. Suyin swore her heart stopped beating. Without any further thought, Suyin instinctively lifted her hands. Shadows instantly raced at her command, rising to the surface from every little corner around her. Fear and pain thrashed her heart, and salt pricked her eyes. The shadows gathered into a sphere at her front, and they charged forward. By Suyin's blood-curdling scream, the shadows penetrated the dragon, obliterating the beast. A black explosion consumed the arena, obscuring everyone's visions for a few seconds.
As the Sun returned, hundreds of eyes scattered onto Suyin, who stumbled with weak legs. She couldn't hold herself up much longer. Something clawed at her chest, and pain spiked every inch of her bones.
However, a familiar golden shine bloomed upon her skin. Her body no longer surrendered to the weakness, and it froze instead.
