Tbate: Resurgence

-Chapter 13 : The Future Ahead-

Arthur Leywin

"Elder Rinia. It’s been a while…”

“That it has been, Arthur…” she responded softly, her voice weighed down by an unspoken sorrow. “It seems a lot has happened in such a short time, and I can’t help but feel partly responsible.” Her eyes, reflecting that distant sadness, seemed to look beyond the present moment, perhaps into the past, or into something just out of reach.

Her words lingered in the air as I took a moment to reflect. It was true—so much had changed since we last met. So much had happened. But as I thought back to the dream I’d just woken from, I realized this path was mine now, chosen by me. There was no room for regret, no turning back.

I looked down at myself. My upper body, from my chest to my arms and shoulders, was tightly wrapped in bandages. Every movement brought a dull, uncomfortable pain, the corrosive magic from the witch still clinging to me like a lingering curse. The battle had left me drained, my body weak and struggling. But there was something else, something stirring beneath the pain.

Focusing inward, I sensed it—my core had advanced. I had broken through to the initial silver stage, leaving behind the light yellow. It should have felt like a victory, a significant step forward in my progress. But instead, it felt out of place. My body, still weakened and battered, hadn’t yet adjusted to the newfound power. It was as if I had taken a step forward, yet remained tethered to my injuries. My mana core had grown stronger, but I wasn’t ready to fully harness it yet.

I could feel the dissonance between my strength and my condition. Recovery would take time—time I didn’t have, not with everything that was happening. Recent events had made that abundantly clear.

Suddenly, a familiar sensation surged through me as my body involuntarily shifted into the second phase of Sylvia’s Dragon Will.

Golden runes began to bloom across my arms and shoulders, glowing brighter than before. Their patterns twisted and reformed into a more complex, ancient design. My hair, usually auburn, flickered between white and its natural color, as if caught between two worlds.

Around me, the room began to tremble. The walls groaned, furniture rattled, and straw from the roof fell in wisps, letting beams of moonlight cut through the cottage. The high-pitched ring in my ears drowned out the noise of the clanging pots and shaking shelves. I could barely focus.

As my hair returned to its natural color, the glowing runes on my body burned even brighter. The world around me drained of color, leaving only the faint hues of mana particles floating in the air. I had seen this before during Dragon’s Awakening—the colors representing the four elements. But now, mixed among the familiar blues, reds, greens, and yellows, I saw specks of purple—an element I had never seen before.

I thought I had gotten better at controlling the second phase of Dragon’s Awakening. But this time, the will seemed to fight against me, rejecting my body more violently than ever before. Pain tore through me, my muscles and bones straining as if they were about to break apart. I could feel my body being ripped from the inside out.

When I could no longer bear the agony, I released Dragon’s Awakening. All at once, the surge of power vanished, leaving only silence in its place. The tension, the energy, the excruciating pain—gone. But with it went all the strength I thought I had gained.

“—thur… Arthur? Are you alright?” Elder Rinia’s voice pierced through the fog clouding my mind, pulling me back to reality.

“Ah, sorry, Elder Rinia,” I muttered, shaking off the lingering haze. “I was just… assessing the condition of my body.” I tried to mask the strain, burying the pain behind a calm facade.