I had no idea how much mana this idea would take. I also didn't have the luxury of time to sit and think about it. Right in front of me was a monster who had just discovered archery and decided the best way to practice was to use my backside as the target. And somehow, she looked way too confident that if an arrow hit my butt, it wouldn’t bleed. It would just stick there, like a plunger.

  I had to act, and fast, before she turned the place, and probably me, into a freshly grown arrow field. I pulled a big, equal amount of mana from the old man and the general, wrapped it around myself, paused for half a second… and then went full mad scientist on my masterpiece.

  A moment later, a half dome of fire popped up around me. Perfect shape. Just like I imagined. My very own homemade sun, keeping me safe. Every arrow hit the flames and turned to ash before getting anywhere near me. I didn’t need to run anymore. I just stood there, arms crossed, wearing the most smug face I could manage.

  “Hey, come on, this is no fun!” Midori whined, shooting arrows as fast as she could. Too bad for her, my fire shield was far too much for those sad little wooden arrows.

  “Sorry, but,” I said, dropping onto a chunk of the rock I’d split earlier. “I’m kind of tired of running. I think I’ll rest here.”

  The level of confidence I felt at that moment knew no limits. Just minutes ago, those arrows had me running for my life, desperate as I was. Now they hit the flames and vanished, harmless like melting snowflakes. All I was missing was a cup of tea, and maybe some cookies.

  “Okay,” I said. “Your turn to train. Keep shooting. If even one arrow gets through my fire, you win.”

  I was feeling nasty, and I loved it. This was payback time, and there was no way I was letting it slip. I cracked open a tiny window in my fire dome and shot Midori what I was sure was the most annoying, punch-me-if-you-can grin imaginable.

  Her anger did the rest. She took the bait right away. An arrow flew through the gap, but at the last second I snapped it shut and split it in half. I picked up the piece that fell inside and rolled it between my fingers, just killing time.

  “You don’t really think these little wooden sticks can get through my fire, right?” I said, throwing the arrow into the flames and watching it vanish.

  “Oh, thanks for the idea,” Midori said. Not gonna lie, her face made me tense. “And who said I only use wooden arrows?”

  She gripped her bow again. This time, a stone arrow formed in her hand. She pulled it back and fired in one smooth move. Before I could blink, it ripped through my perfect wall of fire and slammed into the ground right at my feet.

  

  The little tassel on it was still burning. I bent down to grab it, and instantly regretted it. It was hot, way too hot. While I was busy blowing on my fingers, Midori fired another arrow. This one landed way too close to my backside, clearly showing where her focus was.

  Turns out my fire shield could only burn wooden arrows. Great. Not the end for me, though. I stood up, stayed calm, and this time decided to use my mana batteries a lot more generously.

  The plan was simple. Feed the shield twice the mana and burn everything touching it. Stone arrows, metal ones, whatever came next. If it flew at me, it was going to turn into dust before touching me.

  I pushed more mana into the flames, beefing up my shield. But wow… pulling, controlling, and shaping all that mana at once was harder than I expected. I felt a little sick, but not enough to quit. There was no way I was letting her win.

  Soon my fire dome went completely insane. It wouldn’t hold its shape; flames shaking, bubbling, roaring everywhere. I had no idea what I made wrong this time. Midori paused, probably waiting for some clever act. Too bad for her, this wasn’t a show. It was just me panicking, trying to fix the mess I’d made.

  But the harder I pushed, the less control I had. Then I felt it. I’d completely lost control over it. Everything went wrong at once. The fire shield of me surged outward, spreading, roaring, burning hotter, like it wanted to swallow the entire town. I tried to control it. I tried cutting off the mana. Tried canceling the spell. Nothing worked. My chest tightened.

  When the flames almost reached them, real fear slammed into me. No. Absolutely not. I wasn’t letting this turn into another disaster. I bolted backward, dragging the fire away as best I could, my heart hammering, my mind scrambling for a solution. It slowed the blaze… but just barely.

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  The flames stopped listening completely. They grew wild and stubborn, spreading faster and hotter, devouring everything in sight. My little sun had turned into a rampaging wildfire. If this kept up, first the mansion, then the entire town, would burn to ash… and all I could do was stand there, frozen, helpless, watching it happen.

  “What the hell are you doing now?!” Midori snapped.

  “I-I have no idea! I just… completely lost control,” I stammered, feeling utterly guilty.

  The moment Midori realized how out of control things were, she built a massive stone wall on their side. Like a fortress erupting from the ground, it sealed them in. It held the flames back… for a moment. Then my fire surged, furious, eating away at the stone, melting it bit by bit.

  Just as the wall was about to give in to my flames, a door-sized gap opened at its base. Midori stumbled through, charging straight at me, her rushed, wobbly steps telling the whole story. Before I could even say anything, she lunged, knocked me down, and ended up on top of me.

  The moment we hit the ground, we were suddenly somewhere else. I looked around, trying to figure out where she had sent us. A second later, I realized we were back at the riverbank where we first met.

  Thank god, her sudden teleport had also stopped my insane flames. I couldn’t sense any mana anymore and could only hope the town was safe. But relief didn’t last long. Midori lay unconscious on top of me, her clothes scorched by the fire. Her pale, expressionless face and the way her body kept getting colder made a chill run straight through me.

  I carefully moved her off me and felt for her pulse. Almost nothing. I leaned closer, listening for her heartbeat… it was barely there. My chest tightened. I lifted her and carried her to the river, splashing cold water on her face and hands, desperate to wake her.

  “Midori, hey! Talk to me. Can you hear me?”

  No answer. I jumped to my feet and ran around shouting like a maniac, praying someone, anyone, would hear me.

  “I-Is anyone there? Help! Please!”

  Nothing. Just empty land, a thin, slow river, and the two of us. I had no mana left to teleport us back, and no living thing around to drain any. Carrying her on my back wasn’t an option either. I didn’t know where we were or which way the town was.

  I sat beside her, close to her head, rubbing her hands to keep what little warmth I could. Every now and then, I splashed some water on her face or nudged her shoulder. Nothing. She stayed cold and still, unresponsive.

  Time slipped by, and the sun had long disappeared. Then night fell, and I didn’t even have any mana to light a fire to warm her. I just sat there, useless. A walking disaster. Someone who was powerful enough to accidentally burn down towns but couldn’t even save the one person who jumped into the fire to stop him.

  I just sat by the river and waited. Waiting for a miracle. Waiting for Midori to wake up by pure luck. I stared at my reflection in the water and hated everything about myself. I didn’t even notice something bad breathing right behind us.

  

  That’s when I heard it. A crack behind us. Low growls followed. I slowly turned around, and my face went as pale as Midori’s. Of course. Of course this had to happen. Like the disaster chain needed a final, cruel touch, a pack of wild dogs appeared right behind us.

  They moved in slowly, drool hanging from their jaws, yellow eyes fixed on us as the circle tightened. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. No. Six. I couldn't handle even one of them. And now six had us boxed in, a half circle pressing us toward the river. Perfect. Just perfect.

  I had to think fast. Really fast. I had only one power, and because of it, Midori was lying there, cold and maybe not even going to wake up. I couldn’t afford a single mistake. No. I’d already burned all my chances. I had to stay calm, stay careful… And yet here I was, freaking out. Six hungry wild dogs!

  Then the biggest one stepped out. Thick bones. Broad shoulders. The leader, loud and clear. It moved forward like it was giving the signal to start the hunt. I didn’t think. I wasn’t allowed to. My body moved on its own.

  The moment it jumped, I released my domain and drained every last drop of mana it had. And that was the first time I really saw my power for what it was. The dog didn’t fall. Didn’t scream. It just dried up. Like all the life inside it got wrung out. A twisted husk hit the ground, stiff and empty, no different from a rock.

  I froze, staring at it. If Midori had been a second slower back there… I would’ve done the same to everyone. At that moment, I stopped being afraid of the dogs. Instead, I was afraid of myself.

  I couldn’t use my domain again. No way. Not with Midori like this, clinging to life right next to me. One mistake and I could drain her to death. I wasn’t risking that. Still, I wasn’t completely helpless anymore. The dog’s mana was mine now.

  The first thing I did was check the mana around us, and just like I feared, Midori barely had any left. One deep breath could blow away her last drop of mana. That made my chest feel even heavier.

  The moment the leader dropped, the others rushed to it. They sniffed it, circled it, nudged the body. Then all eyes turned to me. Angry and hungry. Together, they started closing in on me.

  I didn’t have enough mana for a fire shield. Even if I did, I wouldn’t dare use it. So I stretched out my hand and formed my flaming katana instead. The sword flared to life. For one second, they hesitated and took a few steps back.

  Then they spread out, slow and smart, slipping toward my blind spots. One thing was clear. This wouldn’t end until one side broke. And I didn’t want to take another life. Even if it was just a wild beast, the first one already weighed heavy in my chest.

  I swung the sword left and right, trying to scare them back, then stepped forward myself. It didn’t work. They backed off for a second, then came creeping in again, bold as ever. It was like they had all agreed that dying here was a great life goal now that their leader was gone.

  One lunged and I blocked with my sword. Before I could even catch my breath, another struck from my blind side. These dogs weren’t amateurs, they knew exactly what they were doing. And me… I was just flailing my sword like a complete idiot.

  It didn’t take long to notice there were only four dogs in front of me. Cold dread crept up my spine. I spun around and damn it. One had taken advantage of the chaos and was already on Midori.