SWNOVELXO Chapter 11: Chapter 11 – The Flame That Fights Back
The cavern pulsed like a heartbeat as Veil hovered before the Mana Stone, cloak swaying in the rising energy.
Show, fists ablaze, stepped forward.
> Show: "You're not walking away with that stone."
Veil's masked smirk deepened.
> Veil: "Then burn trying to stop me."
In an instant, he vanished into a blur of black.
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⚔️ Duel Begins – Shadow vs Flame
Veil struck from behind—
A sharp shadow blade raked across Show's shoulder. He staggered.
> "What—when did he—?!"
Karen shouted from behind:
> "He's phasing through the shadows! Stay out of his blind spots!"
Show spun around and launched a ring of fire, but Veil darted through it like mist.
> Veil: "Your fire's too loud. Mine… is silent."
He appeared directly above and slammed a Shadow Pulse down.
BOOM! The cavern shook as Show was knocked to the ground.
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🔥 Finding the Rhythm
Show coughed, wiping blood from his lip.
> "I can't match his speed… but I can force him into patterns."
He threw a fire bolt at the ceiling — blasting down shards of crystal. As Veil dodged, Show used the reflection of flames on the fragments to track his movement.
> Show (thinking): "There—his steps flicker before he strikes."
The next attack came from the left—Show blocked it with a flame shield, then countered with a rising Flare Uppercut. It grazed Veil's mask.
> Veil: "Not bad... but not enough."
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🕳️ Veil Unleashed
Veil's aura suddenly swelled, his cloak dissolving into smoke-like shadow tendrils.
> "Let me show you what real magic looks like."
Dark sigils appeared beneath his feet—Shadow Dome.
The light around the cavern dimmed. The others could barely see.
Show was alone—trapped in a sphere of void and silence.
Veil's voice echoed from all directions.
> Veil: "You fight well… but you're fighting alone. That's your flaw."
Strike after strike hit Show from every side — legs, ribs, back. He couldn't track the attacks. His flames flickered — weakened.
> Show (kneeling, gasping): "I'm… not alone…"
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🌟 The Awakening of the Mana Stone
Then—
A pulse from the center of the cavern.
The Mana Stone began to glow violently, golden tendrils of light arcing like lightning.
Show's eyes widened as his chest ignited—not from flame, but from pure energy.
A voice—no, a presence—whispered in his mind.
> ???: "You burn not just from fire… but from purpose."
The shadows began to crack.
Flames roared back to life—now golden-edged, wild, and dancing.
The Shadow Dome shattered like glass.
Show rose—eyes blazing orange and gold, flames forming phoenix-like wings behind him.
Veil took a cautious step back.
> Veil: "…What are you?"
> Show: "I'm the one thing your shadows can't touch."
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> TO BE CONTINUED