Chapter 3 - Hero Elit and Demon Elit.

Time had passed. Precisely, a little over a year and a half since that day. And in what was a secluded forest in some region, a boy was panting with exhaustion.

The multiple marks around the area evidenced the intensity of his training.

In front of him, stood an immense natural wall, part of a plateau, on which numerous impacts had already been made.

The surprising thing was that, little by little, those impacts began to regenerate.

That boy, with dark hair and brown eyes, was the same one who at some point was called the Weakest Hero.

"Mr. Exael! Hiro! Mom says lunch is ready!" exclaimed a distant voice.

The voice came from a girl who was perhaps sixteen years old. Her appearance was simple; in the boy's eyes, the word that would describe her beauty would be pretty. She had green hair and somewhat pale skin.

She had come out from among the trees and cheerfully approached Hiro. Her eyes, the same shade as her hair, met those of the young man.

He became nervous when she approached so close that her face almost touched his. She looked up at him, due to the difference in height, and it was adorable to see the smile she gave him.

Hiro was about to speak, but it was Exael who, in the end, intervened:

"We'll be there in a little while, Remi," he said, in a calm voice.

The old Demon King could be seen smoking his pipe, something that was already habitual for him.

"Okay!" Remi replied, with great energy. "See you later, Hiro." She winked at him with a wide smile.

Exael just smiled as he saw Hiro blush slightly.

Near their location was a small town, very far from other settlements. It was the perfect place for Exael to have hidden from the one who had overthrown him, a demon named Afístole.

That town, along with many others, maintained unwavering loyalty to Exael. For them, the current Demon King was nobody; they were still waiting for the day their true king would retake the throne.

The old demon approached Hiro and placed his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"You're more incredible than I thought. It's only been a few months since you fully recovered, and you've already reached this level. Without a doubt, you are a hero."

The joy in those words thrilled Hiro. However, the old man's expression changed.

"But... I still don't see your soul uniting with your essences," he said, rubbing his beard.

The cause of that situation was a mystery to him. It should be easy in your current state, he thought internally.

Hiro asked about soul essences. In the past, he had heard that phrase several times from the one who taught him the basics of fighting, but they were never explained to him well; or rather, he never asked to learn more in depth.

Exael showed surprise, as he didn't expect such ignorance about something so basic. So he had no choice but to explain.

Soul essences are, in simple words, the source of power for every living being. A soul is born with its own essence, although sometimes these essences take forms that are called Elit. Examples are the Hero Elit and the Demon Elit. There was great variety, and although some were cataloged with the same name, their form and power varied between users.

Hiro managed to understand the explanation, although he still had some doubts.

"But where do these essences come from?" the boy asked.

Exael rubbed his beard, pondering his answer. He didn't stop to think exactly what to say, but rather decided if Hiro was ready to understand. Finally, he replied:

"They are the gift given to us by the ancient ones."

"The ancient ones?"

"That's right. They are the beings who created this world. From them come the gods and the elementals. But that's a rather long story." The old man lightly ruffled Hiro's hair. "Going back to the previous topic: using the power of two or more Elit at the same time is a great feat. There are rare occasions when an individual is born with several, and in those cases, they usually learn to use the power of one and switch to another; using more than one at a time is very risky. Let's see..." he said, nonchalantly.

In a few moments, Hiro's reaction changed to one of surprise. Everything around him turned dark, and in the distance, a small blue flame could be seen.

The surprise in Hiro changed to confusion about what had happened, but Exael told him that that place was none other than the inside of his soul.

With a gesture, the old demon completely transformed the appearance of the surroundings.

It was a temple with large structures that reminded him of Roman architectural style. Looking up, only an absolute void could be seen. His confusion immediately changed to shock, but it wasn't so much due to the surroundings as it was to the colossal beings that stood on either side.

On the right, there was a being that emitted a light as white as snow and wore beautiful armor. It gave a feeling of protection and warmth when contemplating it.

But, on the left, there was a mass of dark energy that looked like smoke and assumed a humanoid form. Its eyes, if they could be called that, conveyed feelings of death and hatred.

Exael broke the silence:

"That blue flame in the center is your soul. And, as you might be thinking, those are your Elit: the Hero Elit and the Demon Elit."

Exael showed concern upon seeing the Elit. He knew perfectly well that Hiro was hiding great power, but he didn't imagine it would be so overwhelming. His Hero Elit was imposing, but his worries arose because of the Demon Elit. Despite being practically his essence, it was much more powerful, almost on par with that of the Hero.

He noticed that both were already connected to Hiro; however, something was preventing them from fully complementing each other.

Hiro, ignoring the colossi and focused on the small flame, commented:

"That's my soul? It doesn't surprise me that it looks so small and fragile... It seems like it could be extinguished at any moment," he murmured with a forced smile.

Exael understood that it was his insecurity that prevented a full connection with his Elit.

Since arriving in this world, he had felt inferior. From time to time, he would tell stories of what he had achieved when he was with the humans; and his gestures betrayed that he still didn't feel confident in his abilities.

"I firmly believe that you will be someone who will change this world," Exael commented, again placing his hand on Hiro's shoulder.

Hiro asked how he could have so much faith in him. The old man just smiled and, turning his gaze towards the small flame, replied:

"Because a Nymph of Origin told me so."

Hiro tried to remember the name. He had read in an old book that they were a mysterious race of another level. Their power was incomparable, although knowledge about their civilization was scarce; what little was known came from ancient books found in ruins.

According to legend, one of them could end the current Demon King, and not even the heroes would be rivals. All the remnants told that one day someone would arrive whom they would call their lord, whom they would serve with unwavering loyalty.

"Some years ago, I encountered one," Exael continued. "She told me that our meeting was the work of destiny. Her age was perhaps eight or nine years old. When I realized she was one, I tried to attack her. I almost lost my life. Ha, ha, ha, ha."

Exael laughed despite not seeming to care about that event; perhaps it was his way of accepting the harsh reality of almost being killed by a girl.

Hiro's expression showed concern. Thinking that even a child of that race could be so powerful made him reflect on the destiny that awaited him.

"She told me that my destiny was to find the one they have been waiting for so long," Exael said, looking at him intently.

Hiro was stunned. He wanted to say something, but a sudden change in the surroundings caught his attention.

Everything disappeared, as if it were an illusion, returning to the place where they were. When Hiro asked Exael what had happened, his concern increased upon seeing him on his knees on the ground, with his right hand brought to his mouth, which was full of blood.

"What's wrong? What's with all that blood?" he asked, frightened.

Hiro wanted to help him get up, but Exael signaled with his free hand, indicating that it wasn't necessary. Slowly, the old demon stood up; the exhaustion was noticeable in his labored and shaky breathing.

"It's not... it's nothing. Let's go eat..." he said, breathless.

Exael began to walk towards the town without saying a word, and, still worried, Hiro had no choice but to follow him.

Although Hiro sensed what was happening to Exael, he understood that, having given him one of his hearts, he would probably end up like this. The reality was harsher than he thought: the heart that Exael gave him was his main heart, where almost all the essence of his soul resided. That sacrifice had left him too weak; it would take years for his body to get used to such a radical change and fully recover.

***

In the distance, the mountain ranges of the dark elf nation could be seen. On the edge of a ravine, someone was making a bonfire. The day had ended, and the moon, along with the stars, dominated the sky.

"It's been a year since I last felt my lord's power," said the one by the bonfire.

A big smile spread across the face of that person who turned out to be a girl. Her hair was blond, and her hairstyle was characterized by two large braids. She was roasting a large piece of meat.

The curious thing was that, next to her, lay the body of a dragon, that creature that even the Demon Kings consider a great threat.

Apparently, that piece of meat came from the dragon. The girl, who wore a robe that concealed her clothes, turned to observe it.

"The meat of a primeval dragon isn't very tasty. But I haven't eaten in more than five days," she mentioned to the void.

A small laugh escaped her as she poked the piece of meat with a branch to see if it was ready.

Looking at the sky, the girl uttered some words. Magical symbols appeared, and a kind of list manifested in front of her: letters made of energy floated in the air. Without hesitation, she began to write:

"Lo-rd... Dragon. Done! You're already on my exclusive list of beings I've faced." She directed those cheerful words to the corpse, as if it were going to respond. "And you're currently in third place among those who have lasted the longest against me. You lasted twenty-five seconds; that's quite an achievement."

The girl applauded as she uttered those words. Whoever saw the scene would think she was crazy.

The corpse was about thirty meters long, and almost all of its skin was charred. It was almost ironic to roast a piece of meat from something that had been charred.

Although it was incredible to have killed a dragon and charred its body, if one were to reflect, perhaps there were many types, but their resistance to heat, except for ice dragons, was known to all.

For the girl, none of that seemed to matter; she simply took the piece of meat and began to eat. After a few minutes, it became clear that she had nothing left to do in that place, so she stood up.

"Well. Time to continue searching for the stars that will form my lord's constellation," she said, while stretching.

She bowed before the dragon's corpse as a sign of gratitude and left the place.

She cheerfully walked away while singing something in an incomprehensible language, unlike any that had been heard before.

She stopped suddenly to observe the stars in the sky. The view was beautiful, and immediately afterwards, she continued on her way with a huge smile.

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