Sovereign of The Abyss

Chapter 5

More creatures emerged from the red mist, their forms twisted and grotesque. Miko gripped his ash-covered sword tighter, but exhaustion was already setting in.

"Well," he muttered, "at least I lasted longer than expected—"

Suddenly, a crack of thunder split the air. Lightning arced across the wasteland, striking the creatures with surgical precision. Each bolt found its mark, reducing the wraiths to ash in seconds.

"My, my," a weathered voice called out. "Quite the predicament you've found yourself in, young man."

Through the settling dust walked an elderly man, his white hair tied back in a loose ponytail. Despite his age, he moved with fluid grace, a sword hanging casually at his hip. Lightning still crackled around his fingers.

"Who...?" Miko managed, still catching his breath but suddenly was lifted off the ground.

"You? Want to know who I am? Sadly you are not on that level," the old man said, offering a slight bow. His eyes, though kind, held a sharp alertness that belied his aged appearance. "Just a wandering knight of the church these days."

"A knight?" Miko frowned. "But you're using magic…"

The mysterious man chuckled, the sound warm but tinged with something bitter. "Ah yes, that old distinction. I spent decades mastering the sword, becoming what they call a grandmaster." He flexed his lightning-wrapped fingers. "But it wasn't enough for them. Never enough."

"Them?" Miko asked.

The old man's eyes darkened momentarily. "Never mind an old man's ramblings." His expression brightened as he studied Miko. "Now then, that was quite impressive what you did with your ash element earlier. Crude, but impressive."

"You... you saw that?"

"Indeed. And I see something familiar in your eyes." The mysterious man stroked his beard thoughtfully. "The look of someone who's been underestimated their entire life."

“It’s a no brainer, how are you so weak even when you’re in the academy,” the man said.

“Look‘s like that worn-ass principal has gotten soft on you kids of this generation,”

More wraiths began emerging from the mist. The mysterious man sighed, drawing his sword with ease.

"Watch carefully, boy," he said, electricity crackling along his blade. "This won't take long."

What followed was a display of power that left Miko speechless. The mysterious man moved like water, each step precise, each strike devastating. Lightning and steel worked in perfect harmony as he cut through the wraiths.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" The mysterious man called out between strikes. "The marriage of blade and element. They said it couldn't be done, that I was wasting my time." He laughed, the sound almost musical. "Fools, all of them."

When the last wraith fell, The mysterious man turned back to Miko. "I could teach you, you know. Three techniques that saved my life more times than I can count."

Miko's eyes widened. "You'd teach me?"

"Why not? It's not like the church is keeping track of me anymore." The mysterious man grinned. "Besides, someone should benefit from my... unconventional methods."

What followed was unlike any training Miko had experienced.

"First," The mysterious man explained, demonstrating a stance, "elemental acceleration. Channel your element through your legs, let it boost your natural movement." He disappeared in a flash of lightning, reappearing several meters away. "Your fire element should work nicely for this."

"Good, good!" The mysterious man praised. "Now for something trickier. Body swap."

He created a ball of lightning and threw it. Just before it struck a rock, The mysterious man's body seemed to merge with the electricity, appearing where the ball had been.

"The element is an extension of yourself," he explained. "Learn to see it that way, and you can trade places with it at will. Imagine the possibilities with your fireballs."

This technique took longer to master, but when Miko got a grip of it with a small flame, The mysterious man's approval was evident.

"Last but not least," the old knight said, his voice growing serious, "the Fiery Palm. This one's dangerous, boy. Use it wisely."

He demonstrated by gathering energy into his palm until it glowed with concentrated mana. "One touch," he explained, tapping a nearby rock. Cracks spread across its surface before it crumbled. "Disrupts the target's mana flow completely. In a human, it would render them unconscious instantly.”

"That's... incredible," Miko breathed.

"And deadly if misused," The mysterious man warned. "This technique requires perfect control. Too much power, and you'll do more than knock them out."

They practiced until the red mist began to thicken again. The mysterious man looked up, his expression growing concerned.

"Our time grows short," he said. "Remember what I've taught you, boy. And remember this – those who call you weak do so because they fear what you might become."

"Wait," Miko called as The mysterious man turned to leave. "You never said who 'they' were. The ones who thought you weren't enough."

The old knight paused, a sad smile crossing his face. "Perhaps we'll meet again, and I'll tell you that story. For now, focus on surviving. You've got something special in you, boy. Something they'll all see soon enough."

With that, The mysterious man vanished in a crack of lightning, leaving Miko alone with his new knowledge and the growing darkness of the Abyss.

**

Miko blinked, still in shock. The strange, fiery heat in his chest faded as he suddenly felt the world shift around him. One moment, he was standing in the Abyss, the air heavy and thick with pressure, and the next, he was back on solid ground. He looked up in confusion as his surroundings began to come into focus.

The bright, blinding sunlight cut through the red mist of the Abyss, and he felt a cool breeze brush his face. The mirror, the one he had fallen through, stood before him, its surface still flickering with strange energy. It didn’t make sense—he had just been there. Hadn’t he?

Miko’s eyes darted to the surroundings, only to realize he was no longer in the red wasteland of the Abyss. He wasn’t alone either. His classmates stood nearby, staring at him. Some were pointing, others whispering amongst themselves. His gaze landed on the principal, standing tall, flanked by several teachers. Miko’s confusion grew.

"What… What just happened?" Miko muttered, looking from the mirror to the teachers and students around him.

“Are you alright, Student?” the principal, a tall man with an intimidating presence, asked, stepping forward. “You’ve just returned from an… unexpected journey.”

Miko slowly stood up, his body aching, trying to make sense of the situation. "I was just... in the Abyss. There were wraiths, and…" His voice trailed off as he looked back at the mirror. The skull imprinted on it was slowly vanishing, and the air around it was now calm.

“Yeah, that’s gonna take some time to wrap your head around,” one of the teachers said, a middle-aged man with glasses.

”It’s a miracle you’re even alive,” another added.

The principal held up a hand, silencing the murmurs. “Student Miko, we know you have a lot of questions. And we do, too. But first, let’s get you some food. You need to recover.”

Miko barely registered the offer. His mind was a whirlwind of thoughts. The Abyss, wraiths, the pendant, the strange powers coursing through him—nothing made sense. Before he could protest, the principal motioned for him to follow, leading the way through the school halls.

**

In the principal’s office, Miko sat down slowly, still processing everything. The office, large and neatly organized, felt strangely normal compared to the chaos he had just experienced. The principal stood by the window, looking out, while Miss Rose, a teacher with fiery red hair, sat across from him. Another teacher Miko barely recognized stood off to the side.

“I still can’t believe what just happened,” Miko muttered under his breath. “I was just in the Abyss… fighting creatures, and now I’m back here like nothing happened.”

The principal, sensing Miko’s confusion, finally spoke up. “You’ve been through something most students could never imagine. The Abyss… it’s not a place normal people are supposed to enter.”

“What was that?” Miko asked, looking between the three teachers. “The Abyss, the wraiths, and the portal…”

“I’ll start from the beginning due to your lack of knowledge,” Miss Rose said.

“In this world, power manifests in two primary forms: The Art of Magic and The Way of the Sword. The Church maintains order by regulating both paths, though they traditionally favor swordsmen over mages.”

“Magic users are ranked by circles, from 1st to 8th, with each circle representing a significant leap in power. A 6th circle mage, for instance, would be considered equal in combat capability to an expert swordsman. 7th circle mage is equal to a sword master and an 8th circle mage equals a sword grandmaster. The 8th circle and swords grandmaster are the point that extends beyond humans and steps into superhuman level.”

“The world is much larger than I thought,” Miko thought to himself.

Miss Rose leaned forward. “The portal you came through—that’s part of the numerous portals we’ve been studying for years. It’s a direct connection to the Abyss, the land of wraiths and death. These portals appear out of nowhere, on any mirror but it only appears in places with high density of mana.”