"Who the hell are you!" Parocly shouts at Rio. His body has begun seeping the dark aura as he approaches Rio.
"He has nothing to do with this. Leave my son alone!" Rhama shouts as she swings towards Parocly who easily catches her hand.
"Son? I've been in this trial for months. You never had a-... Oho, I see what's going on now." Parocly laughs as he looks back and forth between Rio and Rhama. "You must be another apostle just like me! But You can't be a follower of Lord Zenith, or you wouldn't have fought against this war."
Parocly was deep in thought as he threw Rhama to the side. "Well, whoever you belong to doesn't matter. This trial's reward will be mine and there's nothing you can do to stop it. With the powers given to me by my lord, Nothing shall stand in my way ever again."
Parocly then holds his arms up as dark mist envelops the air around him. His body begins to rumble as his hands vanish within the dark cloud. After his rumbling ceases, he
"Get your ass back down here!" Rio yells as he continues to chase the man. Dust kicks up behind him as he runs towards the top, using all of his energy to catch up to the fading image of Parocly. "Seething with anger Rio uses his force to create a disc and uses it to fly after Parocly. He begins to close the distance between the two when Parocly suddenly vanishes. "Where the hell did you go you little shit! I'm going to make you pay for what you've done! Do you know how much work I had to do in that trial! Just for you to mess everything up in the end. You better get back here so I can finish you!" Rio yells as he frantically looks around for the man. As Rio continues to look around for the man, a message appears in front of him. "You have been caught cheating
Rio can hear the sound of popping and swishing as he is dunked into a pool of burning liquid. He can feel his skin burning away and quickly jumps onto a disc above the liquid as his body heals. "Ouch. That's going to leave a mark. Rio complains as he instinctively licks his wounded flesh. "Are you enjoying yourself Cheater, Soon you will be nothing but a memory as my body melts you down!" Rio can hear the sound of the dragon echoing around him. as he feels the walls around him pulsate with life. He can now tell that he was currently inside of the stomach of the dragon. "You're going to have to try harder than this to kill me. Rio snaps back. As he does so, the walls around him begin to light up, Revealing a large space o
After a few hours of climbing, Rio reaches the next of his trials. He fails to spot Parocly along the way, but knows that if he was able to pass the punishment trial, Albeit by a technicality. There was a strong possibility that he too was able to overcome his punishment. As Rio is climbing, he begins to notice the sound of rushing wind around him. He begins to feel a slight breeze as a message flashes in front of him. "Welcome to the fourth trial. This is the trial of the hero. Using your power, you shall save this world from destruction. You have failed once previously. As such, If you fail in this trial, Your rights to our inheritance shall be revoked. Good luck, young prophet. Rio can hear the sound of rushing winds as a vortex of air begins to swirl around him. As the vortex begins to spin faster, Rio'
The two of them are led to a bedroom with large windows that overlook the city. The city is bustling and filled with people and traffic. As Rio and the young boy enter the room and close the door, the young boy begins to take a seat upon the bed. As Rio and the boy sit on the edge of the bed and face each other, the king begins to speak. "This will be where you will be staying during your time with us in the grand kingdom of Chania. I will allow you some time to rest for the day as you will be busy tomorrow as we help you gain control of your new powers. Have a good night, Hero." The king leaves the room and closes the door, leaving Rio and the young boy alone to take in their surroundings. As soon as they are alone, Rio activates his domination to gain control over the boy. With full control of his powers returned to him, Rio figures that it's in his best interest to take the reins personally in this trial. Especially if the boy's powers turn out to be of use to him. He was sti
The rest of the day passes by smoothly with Rio and Fye focusing on their given tasks while Hiro rests in the bed. Then next morning, Rio is awakened to the sound of a knock coming from outside the room. It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the light as he sits up in his bed and orders Hiro to open the door. As soon as Hiro opens the door, Rio spots a man dressed in a black robe and holding a book in his hand. He seems familiar to Rio as he stands there in front of the door. "He must have been one of the men accompanying the king earlier." Rio figured as he stretched out his body. "Good morning hero." The man says to Hiro while giving a slight bow. "I hope that your night was well." The robed man adds after seeing Fye sitting in the corner of the room. "Yeah it was pretty good. I was able to get some sleep. Hiro tells the man in response as he invites him inside. "Rio had given Hiro the ability to answer independently for the time being. Although he wanted full control o
Jack then begins to lead Hiro away from the fountain. As they begins to walk away, Rio notices that the light that had engulfed Hiro's body begins to slowly seep into his body, Causing his stats to increase with every passing moment.Rio couldn't suppress his grin as he watches his servants power increasing, which in turn allowed his own power to reach new heights.After a few minutes pass, the three of them arrive at an outdoor training ground with equipment and weapons stationed around it. Jack then gestures towards a nearby man wielding a spear."This will be your instructor, Gaius. He is one of our kingdoms greatest warriors." Jack explains as he leads Hiro over to him. "Gaius, this is the Hero that we mentioned before. He will be joining us in the near future. And we have much work ahead of us before then."Gaius bows his head respectfully and nods his head in greeting. He then turns his attention back to Hiro as he extends his hand. "I am honored by your presence and welcome yo
"Again!...Again!...AGAIN!!!" Gaius shouts as he continuously slams his spear and fist into Hiro. Hiro groans as he pushes himself up to his feet yet again. Not giving up, Hiro takes the beating while attempting to draw on the power from before. But no matter how many times he tries it, Hiro remains unable to protect himself. Gaius smacks Hiro upside the head with his free hand, sending him flying through the air and crashing into a training dummy. Hiro hits the wooden structure with such force that it cracks beneath his weight before collapsing entirely. "Damnit!" Gaius curses as he runs over to Hiro and picks him up off the floor. "Maybe we should take a quick break. If we continue at this pace, you won't live long enough to even see real combat." Gaius sighs while dusting Hiro off. "We'll come back tomorrow when your wounds have healed. Until then, I want you to keep practicing on manifesting your power." Hiro nods in agreement with his exhausted body. As Gaius walks away from
The next morning, Rio and Hiro hurry to the training grounds as per Zack's request. Hiro's eyes were red and swollen from lack of sleep. His hair looked messy as if he hadn't washed it recently either. Despite these signs, his face remained full of determination as he faced off against his mentor. Gaius was already waiting for them when they arrived. He stood tall and proud with his spear held by his side. "By the look of you, I'm guessing that you didn't get much sleep." Gaius states bluntly as he looks over Hiro. Hiro shakes his head in response. "I might not have gotten much sleep, But you will see the impact of all of my efforts soon." Hiro explains confidently. Gaius narrows his eyes slightly before responding. "Cockiness is not an attractive trait, But I will allow you a bit of pride if what you say is true. Now then, How about you prove to me how strong you are today?" Gaius says as he steps forward with his spear raised high above his head. Without hesitation, Hiro readi