2025-12-15 20:36:49The floating bench swayed gently under them like a boat on quiet water. Old Man Kael sat with one elbow on the table, scarred hand rubbing his chin, staring at the torn-out page as if it had personally insulted his entire bloodline.
“Who might have done this…?”
He muttered, his voice rough as gravel.
Asta couldn’t sit still. He leaned forward, elbows on knees, fingers laced so tight his knuckles went white.
“There has to be another way.”
He said, the words tumbling out fast.
“Anything. I don’t care how dangerous. I need to know what’s inside me.”
Kael lifted his palm. A perfect sphere of golden-white flame bloomed above it, spinning slowly, soft and warm like sunrise.
“There is one way.”
He said quietly.
“I send this Dawn Lotus Flame straight into your heart. It’ll act like a mirror,let you look inside yourself and see the dragon face-to-face.”
Asta’s eyes lit up.
“Do it!”
Kael’s grin turned wicked.
“Of course, the second my flame touches the seal, the dragon wakes up furious. You’ll be cooked from the inside in three seconds flat. Eyeballs boiled, blood turned to steam and we’ll be scraping you off the ceiling with a spoon.”
Asta went pale.
“Okay, bad plan, really bad plan”
“Got a better one, genius?”
Asta rubbed his temples.
“Yeah. All the sealed dragons have black flames, right? Like the smoke on the pickaxe. Just list them. Describe what they look like. I’ll know when you say the right one.”
Kael raised an eyebrow.
“You sure? There are nine. And most of them make nightmares look friendly.”
“I’m sure. Go.”
Kael leaned back, folded his arms, and started counting on his fingers.
“First: Nyxara the Star-Eater. Void dragon. Scales like liquid night, eyes like dying galaxies. Her fire erases whatever it touches,people, memories, even time. Sealed inside the old Shadow Empire’s royal line. Funny thing,the empire vanished overnight.”
Asta shook his head fast.
“Not her. Mine’s hot. Angry-hot.”
“Second: Glacira the Eternal Winter. Ice dragon. Scales white as moonlight on snow. Froze three cities solid when her seal cracked a little.”
“Nope. Definitely fire.”
“Third: Terravox the Earth-Singer. Emerald and bronze, mountain-sized. His roar causes earthquakes that redraw maps.”
“Cool, but no.”
“Fourth: Tempestus. Storm dragon. Wings like thunderclouds, his eyes electric blue. Fire made of pure lightning.”
“Still no.”
“Fifth: Hemoria the Blood Moon. Crimson scales that drip liquid ruby. Drinks blood, spreads plague.”
Asta wrinkled his nose.
“Gross. Pass.”
“Sixth: Somnus the Dream-Weaver. Scales shift colour every heartbeat. One look and you sleep forever in whatever dream,or nightmare,he chooses.”
“Terrifying, but not it.”
“Seventh: Oblivion. No fixed colour. Some say pure white, some pure black, some say it has no colour at all. Its fire erases names from history. You stop existing in every story ever told.”
Asta swallowed.
“Close… but still not right.”
“Eighth: Aurion the Golden Dawn. Father of light dragons. Scales like molten gold, wings that blind armies. His fire is pure creation,life, healing, resurrection.”
Asta frowned.
“That one sounds… nice?”
Kael gave a short, humourless laugh.
“Nice doesn’t begin to cover it. Not your dragon.”
He went very still.
Then he spoke so quietly Asta had to lean in.
“Ninth…”
The air in the library suddenly felt thick, like the whole place was holding its breath.
“The one they tore out of every book. The Ash-Bringer. The End-Flame. Scales black glass shot through with rivers of molten red. Six wings, not four. Horns curved forward like a crown of knives. Eyes like dying suns. Its fire is black at the edges, crimson at the core. When it wakes, the sky turns to ash and the ground forgets how to grow life.”
Asta’s heart slammed against his ribs. His mouth went dry.
“That…”
He could barely speak.
“That’s it. That’s exactly what I felt.”
Before Kael could answer, a massive bronze bell high above them boomed,once, twice, three times. The sound rolled through the library like a tidal wave.
A calm, amplified voice followed from floating crystals everywhere.
“Attention all higher-class labourers and senior students. This is Headmaster Veyron speaking. One month from today, the annual Inter-Academy Flame Tournament will commence against White Crimson Academy. The winning academy claims the Eternal Flame Cup for the year. Labourers who place in the top sixteen will be granted full student status and immediate release from labour duties. Prepare yourselves. Glory to the Empire.”
The message ended. The library exploded,cheers, gasps and students high-fiving mid-air.
Asta’s eyes went wide.
“The tournament… I used to watch it every year with my father on the big crystal screen. The battles, the flames, the crowds…”
Kael was already on his feet, slinging the dragon ledger under one arm like it weighed nothing.
“Well, this year you’re not watching.”
Asta blinked.
“What?”
“You’re fighting.”
Asta laughed, loud and nervous.
“Me? I don’t have flames! I’m not even a real student anymore,I’m just a labourer!”
Kael started walking toward the massive doors, boots clacking on the invisible floor.
“That’s why I’m here, boy. Starting tonight, I’m your master. I’ll teach you how to hold the dragon’s leash without letting it drag you into hell. You’ll learn to wield fire that makes the sun look like a candle.”
Asta scrambled after him, heart racing for a brand-new reason.
“You’re serious? You’ll really train me?”
Kael glanced back, and for the first time Asta saw a real, fierce smile,no sarcasm, no bitterness, just pure fire.
“As serious as the end of the world, kid. Because if you step into that arena without control, the dragon won’t just win the cup.”
He pushed the huge doors open. Cold tunnel air rushed in.
“It’ll burn the whole damn empire down with it.”
The doors began to swing shut behind them.
Asta shoulders curled in, his hands shoved deep in his pockets.
“I’m not ready. I am not even strong, you said it yourself old man.”
Kael turned slowly, the golden light from the library spilling across his scarred face. For once, there was no sarcasm, no eye-roll. Just quiet and steady fire in his eyes.
“Listen to me, boy.”
He said, his voice low but firm.
“I’ve seen cowards with perfect flames burn out in the first round. And I’ve seen terrified kids with nothing but guts in their belly go further than anyone thought possible. Strength isn’t the fire you’re born with. It’s the fire you decide to carry when everything says you should drop it and run.”
He stepped closer, placing one rough hand on Asta’s shoulder, the same way he had when he stopped the dragon from killing those two idiots.
“You think I wasn’t scared when I faced my first lava titan? I pissed myself so bad my squad called me ‘Waterfall Kael’ for a year. But I kept swinging the hammer anyway, I didn't let their words get to me, my mind was as heard as a rock.And you know what I learned? The dragon inside you isn’t waiting for you to feel ready. It’s waiting for you to decide you’re done letting other people write your story.”
Asta stared at the floor, his throat tight.Kael’s grip tightened.
“They laughed at you, humiliated you, they now call you “Asta the Flameless Xavier.” They threw you away, your girlfriend broke up with you and also at the spot disdanied and humiliated you, let her go, let them all go, Let the whole damn empire laugh. And then step into that arena and show them what happens when the trash they tossed aside decides to burn brighter than their flames.”
long silence. Just the distant hum of floating fire-rivers behind them.
Asta lifted his head. His eyes were wet, but something hard and bright had kindled inside them.
“…Okay.”
He whispered. Then louder.
“Okay. I’m
in.”
Kael’s smile was slow and proud.
“Good. Because the dragon’s already chosen you, boy. Now it’s time you chose it back.”
He turned and started walking down the dark tunnel, boots echoing.
“So get ready, Asta Xavier… because training starts in section.”
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Chapter 597
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Chapter 596
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Chapter 595
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Chapter 594
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Chapter 593
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Chapter 592
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