The battlefield was a wasteland.
Charred earth, shattered trees, and smoking craters surrounded the two combatants locked in a terrifying magical duel. The Shaman Ogre snarled, its staff blazing with cursed fire and corrupted mana. Across from it, Kazuki stood tall, cloak billowing in the wind, his eyes cold and unreadable.
They hurled spell after spell—flame storms, ice spears, shockwaves of wind and crushing stone—clashing with thunderous force. Each collision created tremors that shook the land.
The battle was evenly matched.
Elara groaned as she regained consciousness. Garron coughed and tried to lift himself up. Arin clung to Elara, wide-eyed.
A few meters away, Drake sat up, his hand gripping the grass beneath him. “What… what is this…? That aura…”
He looked up and saw Kazuki.
Alone.
Facing the ogre with terrifying calmness.
Suddenly, a translucent energy shield appeared around the group.
“Wha—?” Elara gasped.
Kazuki hadn’t looked their way, hadn’t spoken—but he had cast a protective barrier powerful enough to shield them from any assault. Even while fighting a monstrous opponent, he still protected them.
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Yet, the fear wouldn’t fade from their eyes.
---
Within Kazuki’s mind…
“I need more. Elemental spells… aren’t enough.”
He could feel the shaman’s power growing darker. And deep down, he knew he needed something more.
He thought hard—his memories blurred, but one image surfaced: the fantasy games he used to obsess over in his old life.
“Dark Magic... shadow, decay, illusions... it existed in the game. How was it triggered?”
Focusing all his thoughts, he imagined it—the sensation of dark energy, how it flowed, the way it worked. He visualized its circuits. The memory of theory from RPG games blended with real mana patterns.
And then—his status screen flashed before his eyes:
> New Element Acquired: Dark Magic
MP increased: 600+ → 720 MP
HP increased: 620 HP
You have awakened the Affinity of Shadows.
Kazuki's eyes widened for a moment. Then narrowed.
Perfect.
---
He stepped back, gathering magic from every element within him—fire, wind, earth, water, lightning, light, dark.
The winds howled.
The earth trembled.
His aura rose to the sky like a vortex.
Then he raised his hand—and muttered:
> “Elemental Fury.”
A blinding flash.
A rain of magical destruction.
Dozens of spells fired in rapid succession—flames, lightning, freezing storms, shadow blades, wind scythes—every element converging on the Shaman Ogre in a single overwhelming blast.
The explosion engulfed the ogre.
When the dust cleared…
The battlefield was unrecognizable.
And there stood Kazuki—silent, cold, unflinching—beside the collapsed Shaman Ogre. Its staff broken, its body scorched and still.
> Status Updated
Quest Complete – Mutant Ogre Eliminated
Rewards Distributed – All Party Members Received EXP, Stat Points, and Skill Advancement
---
Garron pushed himself to his feet, panting.
He stared at the destruction. “That spell… That wasn’t like anything I’ve ever seen. It wasn’t in the academy books. Not even the royal court mages have anything like that.”
Drake stood behind him, silent. His eyes fixated on Kazuki.
Even Elara looked shaken.
Kazuki walked toward them without a word. His aura slowly dissipated, but the weight it left behind remained.
Everyone’s eyes followed him.
Garron’s suspicion grew.
Drake’s doubts deepened.
Elara, though grateful, now feared what Kazuki had become.
---
Kazuki stood at the edge of the group, silent.
In his mind, he reviewed the results. His dark magic affinity was confirmed. His spell arsenal had grown. His mana pool now dwarfed even some royal-class mages.
But what shook him most… was not the power.
It was how easy it felt to use.
And that scared him.
