"This is for Kirru!" One of the members surrounding Ragnar declares before hurling their sharp bone weapon connected to a metal chain and delivering a blow. The others waste no time and join the attack.

  "You've got the guts to come back after what you did to our brother! I won't allow you to keep wielding their weapons as if nothing happened, you thief!"

  The leader thrusts his bone spear towards Ragnar, but I swiftly intervene, deflecting his strike. The attacker is taken aback, hastily stepping back.

  "What the hell are you doing? We're in the middle of our race!"

  "This has nothing to do with you," says who seems to be the leader and who I recognize as one of the guards of the gorge. "Continue on your way, and we won't harm you."

  "I'm sorry, but I won't let you continue.."

  "If I have to kill you too, I won't hesitate."

  "If you want your revenge, you'll have to do better than that!" Ragnar roars with a guttural voice. "Altair," he sharpens his gaze in my direction, "don't you dare help me."

  Ragnar lunges at them like a wild animal. Despite their attempts to wound him, he presses on, attacking relentlessly. He manages to defeat two of them, leaving only the leader and one other.

  "You cursed animal!" the leader shouts and launches an attack with his spear.

  Ragnar evades the first strike, but his body falters from pain, unable to dodge the second. Nevertheless, this doesn't stop him as he seizes the opportunity to grab the spear.

  The elder brother struggles to wrest it from him but fails.

  "What's wrong, did you chicken out?"

  The leader releases the weapon, but instead of retreating, he suddenly closes in on Ragnar and delivers a knockout blow to his chin.

  "a single blow?"

  Upon closer inspection, I see that the knuckles of the leader are covered in a surface of sharp bone as if they had emerged from his skin.

  "The ground suits you best," the brother spits on Ragnar's unconscious body.

  He retrieves the bone spear.

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  "This spear was made from Kirru's bones. This is how we'll have our revenge."

  He strikes, but I manage to arrive in time, deflecting the spear's blow aimed at his arm, forcing him to let it go.

  "That's enough," I say, increasing the power of Mukasa's mark.

  The brother seems ready to fight, raising his hands.

  "Do you think you can defeat me? Or should I remind you that I was able to injure the Great Shield?"

  The leader bites his lip, eventually relenting.

  "With those injuries, at least that savage won't have the chance to return. Let's go, brothers."

  Once I'm sure they won't return, I let my guard down.

  Time passes, and eventually, Ragnar regains consciousness.

  "I'd make you something to eat, but I'm not good at that sort of thing."

  Despite the pain and his wounds, Ragnar manages to sit up.

  "Why did you help me? I told you not to," Ragnar says.

  " It was you who saved me first during the Trials of the Lobos, I couldn’t just stand there."

  "I told you not to!" Ragnar yells, rising to his feet. "You don't understand. Becoming an Adamantite warrior was-is my dream. If I can't become a warrior on my own, everything would be..."

  Ragnar grinds his teeth and heads towards the cave entrance.

  "From here on, I won't show mercy. If you stand in my way, I'll crush you," he says before leaving.

  I understand Ragnar a little. If I were suddenly given the chance to participate in the knights' trials again, I would do whatever it took to emerge victorious and rectify my mistake..

  I follow the cinnabar path. The rocky ground reappears, and gradually, the air becomes filled with this hot mist. In the distance, I can see Ragnar, who pauses for a moment on a mist-covered wall and then disappears into it.

  I quicken my pace and enter the hot mist. The glow of the Cinnabar is my only guide. This continues until suddenly, I hear the sound of an explosion, and water bursts from the surface. I barely manage to dodge it, getting me burned a little.

  This repeats several times, and I receive several burns, but eventually, I manage to escape the mist and reach the entrance of a cave. Inside, there is flora and undergrowth. In the center of the cave lies a gigantic waterfall cascading into a small lake. The water is boiling.

  "This is going to be painful."

  The Sinabarite path extends along a rock wall just behind the waterfall. A great distance is ahead of me, so I activate Mukasa's mark and grip the cave walls, using the explosive strength of my arms to jump and climb as fast as possible before my arms tire.

  Eventually, the only light is the cinnabar path, and I can spot Ragnar in the distance. As I get closer, I notice his arms trembling, struggling to continue.

  That distracts me, and I apply more force than necessary, destroying the rock. I barely manage not to fall at the last second.

  “It's not the moment to think about others. The fate of many people depends on me.”

  With this in mind, I hurry and reach Ragnar, but as soon as I pass him, he grabs my leg and I barely manage to hold on to the wall again.

  "I won't let you," Ragnar's face tenses in unrecognizable shadows.