The Fallen's onslaught was relentless. It swung a massive fist in my direction, and in a fit of panic and fear, I barely managed to duck under the blow. I rolled away just in time as another set of tendrils lunged at me. Each attack was narrowly evaded, and I could feel like I was running out of luck.

My gaze turned towards the boy lying unconscious on the ground. He had risked himself to save me, and now he lay motionless, possibly on the verge of death. I had to get to him. I had to try forming the Contracted Bond again and unlock my weapon form.

We had failed once, but there had to be a way to fulfill the conditions. I've heard from other Fragmi that at least two conditions have to be fulfilled for the bare bones stage of transformation to be fulfilled, I didn't know that at first given the fact that I've never shapeshifted into my weapon form before.

And during our initial attempt earlier, we were fortunate enough to fulfill one condition, but we still failed the other two, now if only I could help the boy fulfill one more with me.

There was no time to ponder, as every second was crucial. I knew this adrenaline rush wouldn't last forever, so I have to make sure every move counts.

As I continued to dart around, I also tried to channel my magic resource, using every spare moment between attacks to regain my power. This desperate juggling act felt like it was draining me even more, but I couldn't afford to stop. Not until I had enough magic to fight back.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I sensed enough magic had returned to cast one of my strongest spells. After evading another lunging attack from the Fallen, I spread my arms wide and began my chant.

"O Ancient Laws of the Guardians, allow me to purge my enemies with the might of the fiery depths: [[Hell's Veil]]!"

A fiery magic circle formed before me, burning with the raw power of my spell. Thrusting my hand through the circle, I clenched my fist, condensing its fiery essence. And with a snap of my finger, I unleashed the spell towards the Fallen.

[[Hell's Veil]] roared into life, wrapping the Fallen in an inferno of blazing heat. The creature's black tendrils wilted and recoiled in the flames, its monstrous form writhing and bellowing in agony. But even as it burned, the creature refused to back down entirely.

Now was my chance.

Despite being drained completely of my magic, I ignored the fatigue that threatened to bring me to the ground. My eyes were locked on the boy, who remained lying unconscious a short distance away.

I quickly sprinted, falling to my knees beside him, and without hesitation, I reached out and grabbed his hand.

"Please," I whispered, closing my eyes and focusing all my remaining strength on forming the Contracted Bond.

[[Attempting the Formation of a Contracted Bond]]

I pressed his hand to my forehead, willing the laws of Althea to align in our favor. Hoping. Praying.

[[Contracted Bond Condition: Elemental Resonance is not fulfilled]]

Please let this work...

[[Contracted Bond Condition: Crested Link has been fulfilled]]

That's one...

Suddenly, a sudden surge of fiery energy erupted around us, an aura similar to our first attempt, but this time it was burning brighter. It radiated from our joined hands, and the temperature around the boy and I started to rise, singeing the edges of the surrounding foliage.

[[Contracted Bond Condition: Power Balance has been fulfilled]]

That's two... we've got two!

Everything went white. A blinding light that was so intense it felt as though it was burning straight through my eyelids. I tried to call out, but no sound left my throat. Instead, all I could do was hold on tightly to the boy's hand.

Then, an unexpected sensation washed over me. The intense heat that was radiating from the attempt started to diminish. It was replaced by an icy chill that crawled up my arm, snaking its way through my body. The cold felt like a shock to my system, causing me to gasp, despite the fact that I was still unconscious.

Everything around me felt... cold. Not just cold, but freezing... and yet, strangely comforting.

As I was wrapped by the comfort of this unknown cold temperature, my memories began to flow, taking me back to the start of this ordeal.

Hours earlier as I was entering the Drafting Office, I had been a bundle of nerves. The large, imposing building had been filled with people of all sorts – some visibly anxious like me, some had confidence. I remember standing in the line, fidgeting and shifting uncomfortably from one foot to the other as I waited for my turn.

When it came, I approached the counter and announced my name and category: "Ardyn Emberfyre, a Fragmi."

The receptionist, who was a woman with a stern face and sharp eyes, had noted down my details and pointed me towards a door, "Go through there," she had said. "You'll be joining the other Fragmi."

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Inside that empty room was where I met the others. In a group of five, everyone was equally nervous. And they remained the same throughout the examiner's explanations, and even after we've been teleported to the examination grounds.

Then, after we were given the task to survive for three days alone in this forest filled with monsters, instead of coming together, we splintered. Every person had their own agenda, their own ambitions. Arguments began, everyone had their fair share of unreasonable things to say to each other.

They were Fragmi, they can't work well without a Wielder.

Some people's magic was weak, like mine, but some in the group were bearers of an Arcane Fragment, a type of Fragment that's a single level above a Mundane.

I remember trying to mediate, to bring some sense of order. But my pleas fell on deaf ears.

Before I knew it, I was alone in the forest, armed with nothing but my limited magic and my mixed feelings of fear and wanting to survive. As a Mundane Fragmi, my magic reserves were low. So using them recklessly could mean the end of my journey.

Three days. Three days of survival with limited resources and countless dangers. The task was intimidating, but if I want to make it to the day when I'll be assigned to a School I had to have a resolve to face the exam head-on.

That resolve was tested when I encountered a Class-D Fallen. The beast was unlike anything I had seen from the news before, is this really what a Class-D Fallen is?

I tried to fend it off, but my magic resources were depleting fast. And then, he appeared.

A silver-haired boy emerged from the trees. The instant he appeared, the temperature around me seemed to drop, and this was when I realized that the cold I was feeling from earlier was his.

[[Contracted Bond has been formed]]

Waking up, I found myself in a strange, ethereal plane. The surroundings were tinted a soft blue, and the environment felt cold, yet not uncomfortable. I could not feel my body, nor my clothes - it was as though I was floating in this vast, beautiful dimension.

But then I noticed something else. Floating in the distance was an enormous screen, glowing with a vibrant light, and I was naturally drawn to it, eager to figure out what it was.

My eyes widened in awe and disbelief. On the screen, I saw the boy. He was back in the forest, on his feet, fighting against the monstrous Class-D Fallen. However, he was no longer unarmed. In his grip was a large, fiery red great sword that was locked in a clash against the Fallen's attack.

Realization suddenly hit me. I was the sword. We had succeeded. We had formed the Contracted Bond. I could see everything that he could see, feel everything that he could feel. Surely, all that I'm currently feeling were our linked senses.

I wish I could celebrate at the success but this was not the time for marveling at my unlocked abilities. The boy was still in danger, and I had to help him. In this form, I could feel my magic resources start to regenerate faster than usual, it seemed like the Contracted Bond had boosted some of my natural abilities, it was perfect.

Without warning, I heard a voice echo around me. It was him - the boy. Our Contracted Bond allowed us to communicate directly. His voice sounded strained and filled with effort though, which was to be expected as I could clearly see him trying to fight the Fallen on the screen before me.

"Thank you..." he grunted, his words were accompanied by the sound of steel clashing against monstrous flesh. "You really saved our butts there, what's your name?" he added.

"Ardyn... Ardyn Emberfyre," I responded.

"I'm Leif Frostmourne, now listen, Ardyn, can you manage to increase your flames a bit?" Leif asked, his request startled me as there was once concern that entered my mind.

"Won't the flames hurt you?" I voiced out.

"Don't worry about me," he said in a confident tone. "I can keep your flames in check, I won't get hurt. My element is ice, remember? Ice can temper fire."

His words suddenly sparked a question in my mind.

Elemental Resonance... why hadn't we achieved that condition during our first bond initiation?

His ability to manipulate ice should have worked well with my Inferno element, yet the bond indicated otherwise, perhaps due to the fact that my element of Inferno, which was a sub-element of Fire, and then his Ice would naturally collide.

No time to think about that yet.

For now, I centered myself and poured my focus into the fire of my sword form, intensifying its flames, the magic directly being fueled by my steadily regenerating reserves. Through the screen, I saw Leif look at the fiery sword in his hand, smiling despite the danger in front of him. He then sprinted forward, targeting the Fallen, the flaming sword leaving a blazing trail behind him.

The sword pierced through the Fallen's dark shroud and met its tough hide, carving a deep gash, which caused the beast to recoil and roar loudly in pain.

As Leif tried to recover from the momentum of his heavy swing, I noticed the Fallen, its recovery much swifter than we anticipated. It was charging towards Leif who had his back turned to it.

"Behind you!" I warned him through our telepathic link.

Fortunately, his reaction was immediate. He quickly bent down, narrowly avoiding the Fallen's crushing fist, and swung the fiery sword horizontally. The blade once again carved through the monster's shroud, flames trailing behind it before they met the Fallen's tough hide again, leaving another painful gash. The monster stumbled backward, roaring in agony as it collapsed on the ground.

Capitalizing on the opportunity, an instinctual idea took form in my mind - a spell that I could pass on to Leif to help him deal the finishing blow. It was strange, as if the knowledge was there at the back of my head all along, waiting for the right moment to reveal itself.

"Leif, I have something, it might just help us finish this."

His acceptance was instantaneous as he answered with his mind's voice, "Let's hear it."

As I shared the thought, I felt Leif grasp it immediately. He began to chant as he slowly walked towards the Fallen, "O Ancient Laws of the Guardians, allow me the power to break the limits of this blaze: [[Enchant Inferno]]."

His hand slid along the length of the blazing sword as the enchantment lit up the blade, causing the flames to erupt and dance more violently. Despite the blazing heat at point-blank range, he held firm as he raised the sword high above his head.

With a final, powerful downward swing, he drove the blazing sword into the weakened Fallen. The blade cleaved through its body, and the monster let out a final roar before it began to disintegrate. Then it crumbled, turning into a cloud of black particles that was then carried away by the wind, leaving nothing but the scarred earth behind.

It was over. We survived a Fallen's attack.

Leif stood panting, the great sword - my weapon form - disappearing from his hand. The sight was abrupt, startling even. His body swayed and then fell to the ground, it was clear that the toll of the battle finally caught on to him.

I found my consciousness quickly enveloped by a fiery aura, followed by the same blinding light that had marked the beginning of my transformation now signaling its end. I felt the return of my physical form and also the familiar sensation of my body under my control.

Leif was sprawled out on the ground. His face was pale and drained of energy, but he was breathing, and that was what mattered.

"Leif! Hang in there!" I called out to him as I hurriedly rushed to his side, before noticing that the battle had left the surrounding trees ablaze. I had to get him out of here.

The second wave of slightly weaker adrenaline helped mask my exhaustion as I hoisted him onto my back carefully. We needed to get away from the heat, the flames, the danger. We needed to find safety, and a spot for us to spend the night safe.