Unchallenged sovereign

The air was thick with tension, an almost tangible weight pressing upon the patrons of the tavern. Conversations had ceased, and all that remained was the oppressive silence, broken only by the distant rumble of something monstrous moving beyond the wooden walls. It was an aura of bloodlust so raw, so unrelenting, that it coiled around their throats like an unseen noose.

A sensation like this was unforgettable—a primal terror that clung to the soul, seizing one's heart and squeezing mercilessly. The beast outside did not simply exude danger; it was the very embodiment of it, waiting, its patience as vast and deep as the abyss. It would strike the moment any of them made the fatal mistake of stepping outside.

A dreadful realization set in among those gathered. The boldest among them faltered, their bravado crumbling into dust. The false sense of security provided by the tavern's walls now felt laughable, like paper shielding them from an oncoming inferno.

Orion sat in a corner, silent and observant. He had faced such creatures before in the depths of the dreaded Death Forest, had even brushed against the presence of wyverns. But never had he dared to challenge them. Even the youngest of their kind—the cubs—could eviscerate a fully-trained radiant yellow mage without effort. And what lurked outside now was no cub.

Unlike the others, Orion remained composed, though not out of arrogance. He had spent his life enduring the suffocating presence of his grandfather's mana, training under its pressure. He knew how to control his fear, to suppress it, to focus. Yet even he did not underestimate the threat outside.

Then, like the crash of thunder before a storm, his senses screamed in warning.

Mana flared within him, reacting before his mind had fully processed the impending catastrophe. He had mere seconds to act. Without hesitation, he unleashed a burst of raw force, wind magic propelling him with explosive speed. He shot forward, tearing through the tavern's wooden wall like a cannonball.

A deafening roar followed, the sound thick with wrath, vibrating through the very bones of the city. And then came the fire.

A pillar of flame descended from the heavens, a judgment passed by an unseen deity. It swallowed the tavern whole, and in an instant, the night was banished, replaced by a blinding, searing brilliance.

The inferno raged, its intensity turning stone to slag and reducing wood to cinders in mere moments. The screams of those inside were lost beneath the crackling roar of the firestorm, their fates sealed before their minds could even comprehend the horror.

Orion did not turn back. He dared not meet the eyes of the beast in the sky.

Instead, he moved swiftly, stepping over the burning wreckage, ensuring no trace of his presence lingered amidst the chaos. The city was still in slumber, unaware of the horror that had begun to unfold. But that would soon change.

Before the smoke could fully obscure the scene, an unnatural gust swept through, tearing it apart with ruthless force. The destruction was laid bare, revealing a lone figure standing amidst the ruins.

A mage.

He clutched a blackened amulet in his left hand, frustration and fury warring on his face. His disheveled black hair clung to his sweat-slick forehead, and his almond-brown eyes burned with resentment. A silver staff was gripped tightly in his other hand, his knuckles white with anger.

"Damn it!" The words tore from his throat, a mix of rage and disbelief. "A one-time use life saveing artifact… wasted."

With a snarl, he threw the amulet to the ground, its dim crystal flickering before fading into nothingness. "I saved that for the Death Forest… and now… now it's gone! Cursed reptile!"

He turned his gaze skyward, his emotions clouding his judgment.

The wyvern roared again, and the sheer force of its magic-stained cry sent a ripple of madness through the air. Orion, watching from the shadows, saw it happen—the shift in the mage's stance, the way his breath hitched.

He had made a fatal mistake.

Dispelling the smoke had been reckless. Staring directly at the wyvern, even more so. The moment his gaze locked onto the beast, he sealed his fate.

The wyvern reacted instantly.

Wings, massive beyond comprehension, folded inward, and the beast descended. The very ground trembled beneath its arrival, a cataclysmic impact that sent cracks spidering through the stone streets. It loomed before the mage, an embodiment of destruction, standing nearly thirty meters tall. Its copper-hued scales shimmered, reflecting the infernal light of the burning city. Black horns curved skyward from its skull, and its reptilian eyes glowed with an eerie, luminous green.

For a single heartbeat, silence reigned.

Then the mage's confidence shattered. His rage evaporated, replaced by a terror so absolute that he forgot he can use magic to escape.

Instead, he dropped his staff.

Then he turned to run.

But he was too slow.

The wyvern's breath came in a torrent of flames, an all-consuming inferno that swallowed the mage whole. His scream was brief—cut off as his body was reduced to nothing but embers, his existence erased in an instant.

Yet the beast's fury did not end there.

With a single sweep of its wings, it took to the sky once more, raining hellfire upon the city. Buildings ignited in waves, their wooden frames succumbing to the flames.

The city of Ellsmere, once a bastion of life, became a battlefield of ruin.

The guards, the supposed protectors of order, stood powerless. Some tried to organize the citizens, ushering them towards safety, but fear made fools of even the bravest. Panic reigned supreme. People ran in all directions, their cries of terror lost beneath the symphony of destruction.

Orion stood amidst the chaos, heart pounding. This was no mere monster attack.

It was an extermination.

In minutes, the thriving city had become a wasteland. Smoke choked the air, the acrid scent of burning flesh lingering in its wake. Cries of anguish echoed through the streets, blending into the roaring inferno that consumed everything.

And above it all, the wyvern stood, wings spread, like the undisputed sovereign of a city reduced to ash.