''The First Duel''

The wind howled over the rooftops of Drake Town. Veon Ryuki stood at the edge of the watchtower, his cloak snapping behind him and his staff humming with a low magical vibration. The moonlight cast long shadows, and the silence enveloping the town felt unnatural. Every window was dark, and every street was barren.

Then, a voice—cold and smug—cut through the night.

"Oh, my meal… It's an honor to meet you, Veon Ryuki."

Veon spun, staff at the ready.

A figure stood on a nearby rooftop, dressed in blood-red robes, with half of his face hidden behind a cracked wolf skull mask. A curved naginata rested on his shoulder, faintly glowing with sick violet light.

Veon narrowed his eyes. "Who are you?"

The man chuckled and tapped the base of his naginata against the roof tiles. "Names are for the living. You won't need mine."

Without another word, the man dashed forward—unnaturally fast.

Veon barely raised his barrier in time. Sparks flew as the naginata clashed against it, vibrating with raw power. Veon gritted his teeth and pushed off, leaping to a lower rooftop. Tiles cracked beneath his boots as he landed, and he immediately sent a wave of fire magic surging toward the enemy.

But the masked man twisted mid-air, his cloak flaring, and slashed the flame clean in half with a precise arc of his blade.

"Tch. He's fast," Veon muttered.

The man landed gracefully across from him, eyes gleaming. "You're not bad for a city mage. But you'll need more than parlor tricks."

He lunged again—this time aiming low.

Veon deflected with his staff, but the naginata scraped across his side, tearing through his coat and grazing his ribs. Pain flared.

"Dammit!"

The rooftops became their battleground—leaps, slashes, spells, and counters. Sparks lit up the dark, their silhouettes dancing across chimneys and towers. Veon's heart pounded, not from fear, but from pressure.

This is my chance. I can't lose here. Not after everything I've trained for.

He remembered his father's words:

"If you see that bastard… make him pay."

And Master Hoshin's order:

"Prove you are a true Ryuki."

Veon pushed harder, unleashing a barrage of wind spells. Gales burst from his staff like compressed blades of air, tearing through signs, smashing lanterns. The masked man grunted as one cut his arm, but he didn't slow.

Instead, he planted the butt of his naginata into the rooftop and summoned a chain of dark magic.

Shadow tendrils slithered forward like snakes.

Veon jumped back, spinning mid-air to fire a blast of light magic. The spell exploded, tearing the rooftop apart in a burst of silver fire. Bricks and tiles were scattered into the street below.

I have to end this quickly. If we keep fighting like this, someone down there will get hurt...

The masked man rose through the smoke, laughing softly, half his mask scorched.

"You're fun, Veon. But your city's idea of strength? It's a joke."

"You talk too much," Veon spat, twirling his staff. "Why are you here? Why attack Wado Town?"

The man's voice grew darker.

"Because this world needs chaos. And you… You're just in the way."

With that, he drove his naginata into the rooftop. The structure split with a thunderous crack, forcing both fighters to leap.

They landed on opposite towers now—Veon on the bell tower, the masked man on an old church spire. Both bloodied, both breathing hard.

Veon's arm trembled.

He's stronger than expected... but I can't fall.

His staff pulsed. Veon drew a deep breath and planted his feet.

"No more games."

He slammed the butt of his staff into the roof.

"Sky Spirit Hawk — Zephyros… ASCEND!"

The sigil beneath him burst open with swirling light. From within, a massive hawk erupted into the sky, its wings wrapped in blue fire. Zephyros — radiant and furious — screeched loud enough to shatter every glass lantern in the district.

The masked man took one step back.

"Blue fire?" he muttered. "A true contract beast…"

Zephyros flared his wings and dove like a falling star, the rooftop beneath him igniting in sapphire flame. The masked man raised his naginata to block the impact, launching him through a statue, shattering it into dust.

Veon pressed forward, weaving signs with both hands.

"Zephyros, Spiral Flame Burst!"

Zephyros spun in the air, wings whipping a vortex of blue fire. It surged toward the masked man, swallowing half the roof in a twisting inferno.

But as the smoke cleared… he was still standing.

Cloak torn. The mask cracked deeper.

He coughed. Then laughed.

"You think you're the only one with contracts, Veon Ryuki?"

He drove the blade of his naginata into the roof.

"Black Seal: Come forth… Kyokuma, Ape of the Final Death!"

A portal tore open in the air — jagged, black, screeching like metal dragged across bone.

From it crawled a grotesque black-furred monkey, four times the size of a man. Its arms dragged across the roof, and four glowing red eyes blinked independently. Chains of bone rattled around its wrists, and smoke rose from its breath.

Zephyros screeched in fury.

The beast lunged.

Clash!

Blue flame met shadow rot. Rooftops buckled, tiles exploded. Veon fell back, shielding his face from the shockwave. The monkey roared, swinging a rusted iron club of bone. Zephyros dodged, raked its claws across its chest, then spun upward, fire raining from its wings.

Kyokuma shrieked and tackled Zephyros mid-air. They both crashed through a tower bell, sending chunks of stone flying.

Veon raised his staff to support, but his knees buckled — mana running thin.

"Come on, Zephyros… hold on…"

High above, the final clash happened.

Zephyros dove with a flame-wrapped beak. Kyokuma leapt with claws dripping dark sludge. The impact lit the sky like a dying star — a silent, bursting flash of light and shadow.

Then — silence.

Both beasts vanished.

Burn marks seared the rooftop. Magic crackled in the air.

Veon dropped to one knee, gasping. The masked man reappeared across the roof, panting heavily, half his mask gone.

His eye glowed — bright, amused, bleeding.

"You're strong, kid," he said. "Stronger than I thought."

He rose slightly into the air, body scorched, breathing sharply.

"You deserve to know something… I am Obara Rakuji. "

My master wanted me to test the city's strength — and you passed."

Veon's heart skipped.

"I've come… to kill someone far worse…"

He leaned closer, voice sharp as lightning.

The man smirked. "So? Civilians are just traces — shadows in a war. I don't care how many die. They were always meant to be collateral."

Veon's eyes widened. Then narrowed.

A gust of raw wind swirled around him.

"Traces…?" he whispered.

Then he roared.

"They had names! Families! You don't get to erase them!"

He slammed his staff into the ground again, aura flaring in silver-blue flame, barely able to stand — but burning with fury.