The three responded to the summons from The King, entering the castle with calm resolve. Sazama greeted them at the doors, and they thanked him before proceeding. Calmly walking up the stairs, they reached the King’s office and knocked on the door. They were invited in.
In the room, Daisy, Seraphina, Garrick, Senri, and other witnesses awaited them. Senri shot Haruki an angry look. The trio bowed respectfully to the king. “What is it, My Majesty?” Haruki inquired. Daisy explained, “You were called for a little meeting.” Curious, Haruki asked, “What meeting?” Daisy clarified, “A meeting to test if you can control these elements, to see if you are strong enough to fight.”
Daisy snapped her fingers, and seven maids entered with seven different colored stones. “These stones are magic elements, each representing a different element,” she explained. “The red is fire, blue is water, green is wind, light blue is lightning, and brown is earth. These are the five basic elements of magic. Lady Seraphina can control three due to her strong family history. Lastly, the two rarest are light and dark magic, controlled by very few. The King himself can use light magic and three basic elements.”
Haruki, eager to prove himself, inquired about the process. Daisy responded casually, “It’s easy. Just hold each stone one by one.”
Opting for the fire stone first, Haruki grasped it with open palms, but to his dismay, there was no change. The witnesses suppressed laughter, and Senri muttered to himself, “He’s not worth it. He must be a fake! Watch as he gets yelled and embarrassed by The King.”
Daisy intervened, providing guidance to Haruki. “Listen carefully, Haruki. Imagine your power stored inside you, traveling towards your hands, and transferring it to the stone.” “Got it,” replied Haruki.
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Focused, Haruki held the fire stone again. This time, it illuminated brightly, causing everyone to shield their eyes. When Haruki opened his eyes, he was surprised by the intensity of the light. He quickly set the stone down, apologizing, “I think I used too much power, didn’t I?” Daisy, understanding, advised, “Yeah, you might want to turn it down a little.”
Undeterred, Haruki proceeded with the test, successfully lighting up the remaining basic magic stones. Senri, left speechless, still doubted Haruki’s ability with the light and dark magic stones.
Attempting the light stone, Haruki faced a setback—it didn’t light up. Daisy explained, “You need more power to activate the stone.” Following her instructions, Haruki applied more power, and the light stone finally glowed. The onlookers marveled at his control over six stones. However, one challenge remained—the Dark Magic Stone.
Haruki, intrigued by the Dark stone, sensed an unusual attachment to it. Unexplainable feelings lingered, but he chose to keep them to himself. As he channeled his power into the stone, an unsettling voice echoed in his mind:
“You—You have something that terrifies me—Deep inside you—Your power—Your power that destroys a world—Yes—I can see it—I want Your POWER!”
Haruki, determined, responded mentally, “Go Away!” Pouring almost all his power into the stone, it lit up brightly and shattered. A black smoke emerged, visible only to Haruki. Time seemed to halt as the ominous smoke approached him.
“I will be back. I will never stop until I have all your power. All of it! I’ll command my armies to come and look for you! Mark my Words, little one, the time will come where I’ll consume all life of this world where no one can stop me.”
The dark dust dissipated with an evil laugh, and time resumed its normal flow. Despite the fear stirring within him, Haruki gathered his courage and calmly explained, “The Dark stone was challenging to activate. I had to use almost all my power, which caused it to break. I apologize for any disturbance caused.” He bowed respectfully to the onlookers.