Mel stopped near the mines, crouching near the bushes. He couldn't get any closer, seeing as there were several guards posted right outside the entrance. With how valuable a resource Stactite was, they were probably under orders to kill any unfamiliar figures that came too close.

'Can't risk that,'

Unfortunately, the dilemma he faced her was that the cave he was headed to required him to make a quite visible cut past the mines.

He had two options here. Turn back now, create a distraction or something that would get the job done.

Melchior wasn't willing to give up so quickly, but the second option was easier said than done. He doubted if he was even fast enough to get the job done.

And aside from all that, there was still the faint feeling gnawing for attention at the back of his mind. He ignored that, taking it as the remnant of discomfort he faced from facing an opponent like that man.

'My first fight with a Bonded, and it was someone who could practically time. That's terrible luck if I've ever seen it,' He groaned, thinking back to that man.

Luckily, he was quite fortunate to have acquired Damjan and Tirun's abilities just before. He was more worried about the opponent's identity. He had only obtained one or two pieces of information.

'He referred to himself as a soldier,' Melchior noted, squeezing the soil below.'Then mentioned some lieutenant.'

Those two pieces didn't bode well for the small town of Blackmount. Soldiers weren't exactly symbols of shining honour when you boiled it down. They were often romanticized as that in fiction, but the truth couldn't be any further.

Soldiers were death's representatives. Near mindless tools whose jobs were to follow orders. Destructive orders.

They often brought war along with them. That much rang through, especially in this world he found himself in.

When adding Stactite to the picture, he could more or less narrow down why soldiers of any nation would be in the area.

It was too much of a problem to ignore, but he couldn't exactly deal with it by himself or even tell people who were more qualified to handle it. Suspicion would fall on him — a boy who wasn't supposed to use Spirit Energy.

Too many things to consider altogether.

This complicated matters, but it opened a new realm of possibilities up.

Melchior watched on for a few minutes. The guards didn't appear to do much guarding, something he could try to use to his advantage.

The silence of the night overcame, and a strange aura built up all around him. The strange feeling at the back of his mind appeared once more, this time around, practically clawing for attention.

His eyes narrowed, then widened quickly as tongues of heat licked him from all angles.

'Shit!'

He ducked to the side, dodging the fiery fist just in time. The surrounding outgrowth went aflame with white-hot flames, burning and acting as a very bright beacon for his location.

'Tirun.'

Dark aura overcame his previously peaceful physique, absorbing whatever light around him like a black hole. 

Another blazing fist came straight towards him, but it was predictable, devoid of the swagger and skill wielded by his last opponent. So it most definitely was not the same person or not nearly as strong.

Melchior didn't try to dodge, instead reaching out with his own coated hand and grabbing the flame directly.

His dark-robed opponent looked at him head-on with gleeful eyes and the flame on his arm suddenly became larger and hotter.

Amateur.

Melchior stayed in the same position, still holding onto the other man wordlessly. The same thing happened to him as well, his energy spiking, and suddenly a suction force emerged from his palm.

The opponent's bright orange flames flickered twice before finally disappearing, and his grin along with it.

Melchior let go of his arm, then reached for his face, hurling with the full force of his increased strength.

The opponent flew back several metres and then crashed straight into a large tree behind.

'That was far easier than I expected at first..' He thought, then focused around him.

Unfortunately, the opponent's powers were still very much in effect. The forest fire in the making burned brightly, spreading rapidly and increasing in heat even more.

Now, the warriors standing in front of the mine shaft had jumped straight into action. Multiple of them called upon their spirits, and small waves of water formed, dousing the surrounding waters.

The others? Well, the others had their sights trained directly on Melchior's aura-cloaked figure.

'I fucked up big time.'

But he wasn't going to let the opportunity slip out of his fingers just like that. So, before anyone could react properly, he took into a sprint and began moving for the caves.

"Hey, get him!" a voice called out behind him, a solid bit after he had already started moving.

He cursed inwardly, dashing through the trees in zigzag patterns, hoping that he would at least lose some of them.

And much to his surprise, he actually did. With the combination of his physical strength and a bit of Spirit Energy, Melchior found himself outrunning even Second Layer Bonded.

'I moved way before them, but still. Could this be the two-times boost Damjan spoke about?'

That was what he concluded at least. Based on just physical strength, he was equal to Second Layers. It was little consolation, but it gave him a bit more confidence.

Soon enough, he had managed to outrun all the town soldiers… all but one.

This one followed after persistently, without speaking. And the worst part? He was gradually catching up to Melchior.

Melchior looked back and was met with a familiar face.

'Dad?!'

He grimaced, seeing his father's usual stark eagle-like look and familiar body.

His father still hadn't noticed it was him, hence was still chasing. He attributed it to the veil of dark aura that enveloped him while his connection with Tirun was active.

Despite that, even if he wanted to fight, he couldn't hurt his own father. The man was a prick, but he wasn't a bad person.

So Melchior kept running even faster, hoping to outrun the man before anything else.

Just then….

Two kicks dropped down on him from both sides. His mind flew into full alert, and he reached out, grabbing them before they could do any damage.

They wore the same uniform as the flaming man, with the same ninja-like masks that showed only their eyes.

He let go of their legs and moved back quickly.

One of the men eyed him, eyes sharp as daggers.

"Is he the one?"

The other one nodded. "He matches the description that the Deputy gave us,"

Without wasting any more words, they locked their eyes dead on him and began charging up their attacks.

'Three opponents.' Melchior sighed, readying himself up as well. 'Today's a bad day for my star sign.'