The night following the incident in the village square left a heavy, suffocating silence inside the Markus family's rickety shack. There was no more laughter or light conversation. In the corner of the room, Mark lay upon a wooden cot with bandages wrapped tightly across his body, wincing in pain with every breath he drew. Meanwhile, Elena knelt beside her husband, her tears long since dried, leaving only a hollow, deeply anxious gaze.

Near the cracked window, Rian stood tall, staring out at the darkened night sky. At ten years old, his physique was still undeniably young, yet the aura of command and absolute composure radiating from him made him look like a seasoned commander plotting a war strategy.

Today’s clash with Lord Vane’s knights had opened Rian's eyes to a fundamental truth: minor power in a remote backwater would forever make them easy prey for greater rulers.

Even though he had successfully driven the knights back that day using advanced shadow magic that terrified Captain Jaxon into fleeing, that act was nothing more than a ticking time bomb. A much larger force from the provincial capital or House Vane would inevitably return for retaliation. If he remained in this small village, his presence would not protect his family; instead, it would drag his mother and father into total ruin.

I have to leave, Rian thought coldly, though a faint, dull ache throbbed in the corner of his heart. My mother, my family... this safe haven can only be preserved if I possess absolute power recognized by the highest laws of this land.

The best path to securing power, legal protection, and access to high-tier magic was singular: travel to the royal capital and enroll in the elite magic academy—a place where geniuses and nobles gathered, where the law of the jungle was transformed into the law of absolute might.

Light footsteps approached Rian from behind. The scent of warm cinnamon spice and worn, cozy fabric greeted his senses. Elena stood there, carrying a small, tattered cloth bundle and a piece of hard bread for travel rations. The middle-aged woman’s eyes were bloodshot, desperately holding back the tears she refused to shed before her only child.

"Rian..." Elena’s voice quivered violently, barely audible above the howling night wind. "Do... do you really have to go?"

Rian turned around. He looked at the woman who had nurtured him, pouring out a pure, unconditional affection he had never known during his harsh past life as a mercenary. Rian nodded slowly.

"Mother, if I stay here, this house will become our collective grave," Rian said in a flat tone, yet filled with an unshakeable conviction. "Those knights will return with a stronger force. I must go to the capital... to seek the power that can protect this family from the shadows of death."

Elena could no longer hold back her tears. She stepped forward, pulling Rian tightly into her embrace. The woman’s sobs broke against her son’s shoulder.

"My child... the world out there is cruel, far crueler than this small village," Elena wept softly, kissing the top of Rian’s head repeatedly. "Don't take unnecessary risks... just come back to me alive. That is enough."

Mark, overhearing the conversation from his cot, struggled painfully to sit upright. The middle-aged man clenched his trembling fists, gazing at Rian with eyes full of heavy guilt yet profound pride.

"Rian," Mark called out in a deep, raspy voice. "Your father cannot give you wealth, nor can he protect you from those bastard nobles... but remember this. The blood flowing through your veins is the blood of a fighter. Go, and become someone no one can ever trample underfoot."

Rian returned his mother's tight embrace for the final time, etching that rare human warmth deep into his memory. He knew this parting was not forever, but rather the opening step of a long ascent toward the apex of this world's food chain.

Elena slowly released her hold. She took the small, tattered cloth bundle from her hands and tucked it into the pocket of Rian’s coat. Inside was an old cloth talisman embroidered with a simple wild flower pattern—their family's sole surviving heirloom, believed to bring good fortune.

"Keep this, son. Let it always remind you of the road back home," Elena said, wiping her tears with her sleeve.

"I will return," Rian replied softly, yet with absolute finality. "And when I come back, not a single soul in this world will ever dare bow our family's head again."

The dawn sky on the eastern horizon still held a bluish-gray hue as Rian stepped out through the cabin door. The morning air blew bitterly cold, carrying frozen dew crystals over the wild grass. Outside, absolute silence reigned. Only the creak of the old wooden door accompanied his departure.

Rian wore a thick, hooded cloth coat that concealed the upper half of his face. Tucked inside his coat pockets were his mana-infused wooden knife and the talisman bundle given by his mother. His footsteps were calm, steady, and entirely devoid of hesitation.

He walked past the yard, crossing the dusty dirt road of a village still fast asleep beneath a blanket of morning mist. There were no farewells to neighbors; this parting had to be done in strict secrecy for the village's own safety.

A few minutes later, Rian reached the absolute outskirts of Oakhaven Village—a natural gateway formed by rows of towering pine trees marking the threshold of the Black Mist Forest, the sole trade route connecting the isolated region to the royal capital.

Beyond that boundary, the trail vanished, swallowed by thick, pitch-gray rolls of mist that concealed ancient trees and steep ravines. From deep within the dense fog came the faint howls of red-eyed wolves, the hisses of unidentified beasts, and the snapping of distant branches—a clear warning that this place was a graveyard for careless travelers.

Rian halted right at the village boundary line. He looked up at the thick fog stretching out before him, while the mana circulation within his body began to pulse actively, priming all his senses and combat reflexes to face any threat beyond the safe zone.

Without looking back, Rian took his first step through the curtain of thick mist, welcoming the perilous path ahead to claim his new destiny as a master of the shadows.