The Village of Vale, Meet Rajen

Alliance Calendar, DS Year 10015.

Location: Northern Territory, within the outskirts of the Meteor Forest.

It was a peculiar sight, as flames soared to the sky amidst a myriad of burning trees that stood tall as if unphased by the fires that burned around them. Here, there were many clusters of meteor fragments scattered about this forest giving off a scorching light as it painted the entire woods with a fiery hue.

Observing this blazing environment, one would notice that despite the terrifying flames, creatures were living here, each giving off a burning power like that of the forests itself as if merging with nature. It was here that was considered a special place in this land, an area known as the Meteor Forest, a Top-Grade Rank 4 Adventure Zone.

Swish-swish-swish!

With a sound much like that of the rushing wind, the silhouette of a young man had briefly appeared. He kept shuffling back and forth amongst the tall blazing trees as if he was trying to run away from something with all his might. Quickly, he made a distance of a few dozens of meters while continuing to maneuver flexibly amongst the trees.

If one were to look at his movements carefully, they would notice that with each step placed on a burning tree, his body would utilize a strange type of green energy to prevent the fires from burning his feet.

"ROAR!" An angry roar echoed throughout the forest as a giant yellow bear appeared from a region of pure flaming grass, looking closely at its form one would see strange red markings on its fur swirled around like the design patterns of flames. The yellow bear was ten meters tall and five meters wide with big sharp claws that emitted burning hot flashes.

It sped towards the young man with unstoppable momentum as it slashed its talons against the towering tree the boy had used as a foothold.

BOOM! The tree was instantly smashed into pieces, sending splintered wood that blazed with fire everywhere as the yellow bear swiftly made its way over appearing right behind the boy in one continuous assault.

As if he could feel death approaching, the boy quickly dodged by spinning his body to the side, narrowly avoiding the assault. Sadly though, he lost his step, which caused him to trip, hitting his head on a sizeable burning branch.

"Ouch! Look what you caused; you damn bear!" The young man roared angrily at the bear as he held his forehead. He had light green hair that reached his down his neck, a youthful face which gave off a kind of heroic charm and wore a cotton shirt with no sleeves, exposing his thin but muscular arms with spacious trousers that had a black sash tied around his waist.

On his back was a massive two-handed sword about 1.6 meters tall that was of a unique shape like an enormous creature's fang, wrapped with a white cloth. As the yellow bear heard his words, it instantly became more enraged as fumes of flames began to blow from its nostrils. It then lifted its head and roared to the heavens as if proclaiming his death, "ROOAAARRRR!"

Shortly after, its body markings started to glow in a bright red color as flames appeared over it, the forces within its being began to gather in preparation for its ultimate attack.

As he saw this, the young man couldn't help but smile as he jumped up from the ground and grabbed his sword from his back. He pulled the string on the wrappings causing the savage-looking sword to unveil its jagged edge, glistening in a cold light when he dashed towards the yellow bear in full stride.

"Foul thing, you've chased me long enough, let's end this now!" He roared as clusters of green energies gathered on the massive sword, causing shine in a radiant light.

"Dragonic Arts: Dragon Slash!" As he shouted, he swung the large sword at the yellow bear's direction, releasing a full green crescent slash wave that had continued to expand for a few dozens of meters in size.

Shing! The hum of the sword resounded as the slash wave approached the yellow bear in an instant. If one looked at it carefully, they would even notice that behind the slash wave was an indistinct figure of a noble majestic creature.

While this happened, the bear which had fully charged up its attack quickly unleashed its ultimate attack, lunging from the ground towards the green slash wave looking like a meteor covered in a ball of blazing flames.

BOOM! Instantly a loud explosion occurred, which created a shockwave that destroyed most of the surroundings within a radius of a hundred or so meters. The figures of both the green-haired youth and the yellow bear were blown away by the shockwaves.

A large wound opened up on the flesh of the yellow bear with blood pouring out nonstop, as it fell it balanced itself on the floor with a flip and backed up with a shocked but fierce look in its eyes as it glared at the boy violently.

As he saw this, the green-haired youth soon swiftly ran away, turning into a green remnant shade that left the outskirts of the Meteor Forest.

"Whew! That was a close call, angering a Rank 4 Meteor Bear one step from the peak just for its Meteor Fire Fruit, I must be out of my mind! Why the hell did master send me to acquire such a thing? If I didn't use a bit of my prestige, then I wouldn't even be able to wound its skin," The green-haired youth said in a grievance tone as he looked at the bright red fruit in his hands, after a short while he placed it back within his knapsack.

"Well, no point complain now, it's time to head back, after all, today's the day," The green-haired youth said while shaking his head, he jumped away from a towering tree and made his way across vast woods heading towards a distant area.

******

In a lively and small village, people were seen bustling the street as they went about their daily lives, merchants were selling local specialties, farmers were out tending the fields, as the occasional stragglers and wanderers walked around and engaged in chatter with the locals.

This village was placed within a valley surrounding by three hills and had no apparent boundaries. A few scattered houses could even be seen built on top of these hills, with a wide river snaking its way through the center of the village, making its way out to the vast fields that stretched beyond the horizon.

Suddenly, a green-haired figure whose clothing was slightly torn up and had dirty green hair appeared at the edge of the horizon, swiftly making his way towards the village. As soon as he reached its entrance, he was greeted by a crudely painted signboard that welcomed all travelers and wanderers alike, saying 'Welcome to the Village of Vale.'

As the green-haired youth made his way through the entrance passing by the local crowd, a sturdy-looking man red-haired man with a full beard walked over and greeted.

"Haha! Would you look at this? What kind of trouble did you get into this time, eh, Rajen? You look so beat up! Don't tell me you went to challenge that Freakish Golden Bird of Mount Jubi one last time?" The man said as he looked at Rajen with a mocking expression.

Rajen smiled and responded, "Hey Busan, it's not like I always get into trouble every time I go out, you know. After my tenth battle with the Golden Bird, I had already managed to fight it to a draw; there's no way it could cause me to be in a distressed condition."

"Is that so?" Busan asked as he skeptically looked at Rajen's appearance while stroking his beard., he knew full well about the strength of the Golden Bird, but for Rajen to defeat it meant something else to his eyes.

As Rajen was feeling embarrassed and did not wish to talk about the dangerous Meteor Forest, he changed the topic, "Enough about me, what are you doing here instead of at home? Are you trying to sneak off from your sweetheart Anne again?" He said in a provocative tone.

As he heard this, Busan smiled and replied, "No! I'm busy, can't you see I'm all dressed up, and professional, ready to get some work finally."

"Whatever you say," Rajen replied with an unconvinced look on his face and rolling his eyes.

Busan frowned in anger as he shouted and pushed Rajen forwards, "You stinking punk aren't you late! Hurry and get lost; your master should already be waiting for you!"

"Damn! It's your fault for taking up my time!" Rajen said in a flurried manner as he dashed into the distance towards a house on top of a hill.

"Kid, have a good journey, and remember to visit here in the future!" Busan said as he watched Rajen from the entrance, his eyes flashing in a strange light as he looked at his back.

"Yeah, I will do so, you take care too!" Rajen replied in a hurry. Soon, his figure vanished into the hills.

"BUSAN! WHERE ARE YOU? THINKING OF GETTING AWAY AGAIN!" A furious roar sounded from the crowded street as a busty woman dressed in casual clothes appeared, soon the people in the area started laughing.

"Oh, look Busan's in trouble again," An old street vendor said.

"Haha! He should get what he deserves! Isn't this his 100 attempt at trying to find a mistress?" Another local said.

"Oh, shit! Damn you Rajen!" Busan yelled in a flurried manner as he hurriedly dashed in the opposite direction of the street

"You cannot get away!" The woman shouted as she quickly caught up, and harshly grabbed him by his ears.

*******

Inside an old shack, an elderly man sat with a deep look in his eyes as he gazed at a picture on the wall. He had a bald head with wrappings around it flowing down his back to the floor and wore an old martial robe with long sleeves, both his arms were covered by the sleeves and held behind his back.

As he gazed at the picture frame in silence, eventually the sounds of quick footsteps sounded outside the hut as Rajen appeared through the doorway.

"Master Yoshi, I'm back, are you ready yet?" Rajen asked.

"Hmm, Rajen, I see your back from your trip to the Meteor Forest, how were your results?" Yoshi asked as he put away the picture along with his other valuables and crossed his arms behind his back.

Hearing his question, Rajen pulled out the Meteor Fire Fruit from his knapsack, which instantly lit up the room as he replied, "Master, I've acquired it! However, it was protected by a yellow meteor bear," He said with a slight amount of grievance shown on his face.

"Oh! A yellow meteor bear? It must have been a cub. Good job! With this, you can trade it to Mage Union or any other association in a town or city for force stones. You'll need them to get supplies on your journey to the Adventures Union to take their entrance test," Yoshi said with a look of satisfaction on his face.

Rajen frowned as he heard this, he looked at Master Yoshii and spoke. "Me? Master, aren't we journeying together?"

"Sigh... no, I will not be coming with you. Rajen, this is where your journey begins, and I have my own path to walk. Now that I have trained you to a decent level, it is time for me to continue my mission," Yoshi said with a solemn look.

"But master!" Rajen said while feeling a wave of sadness in his heart.

"No-buts! Rajen, you are now grown and are fully capable of protecting yourself. Years ago, when I had found you, I had already decided that once you are 17 years of age, you will be ready to seek the truths about your origins. However, you will get nowhere by blindly searching the vast world. Thus, I suggest that you join the Adventurers Union. There you will be able to gain the experience and information you need to aid you in your journey," Yoshi said with a solemn tone.

Although he was trying to be strict if one looked deep in his eyes, they would see the affection of a master that raised a disciple akin to a son.

"Master... I understand. I will do my best to seek my true origins and find what remains of my kin," Rajen said after suppressing his sadness and focusing on his real goals, he looked at Master Yoshi with a firm look on his face.

"Good! You always were a clever child, now go, someday we will meet again," Master Yoshi said as he turned his back towards Rajen.

"Master, I will not disappoint you! I will not fail my life's purpose!" Rajen said as he vanished from the room, leaving behind Master Yoshi, who soon after left the shack.

On a distant cliff that stood a reasonable distance away from Vale Village, Rajen stood looking back at the village he stayed for ten years and spoke with his voice trailing off into the wind. "Farewell, everyone, my quest starts here..."

Swish! Quickly, his form leaped from the cliff, jumping towards the distance, transforming into a silhouette that vanished across the horizon.