With his sword tied to him, William carefully strolled through Shepherd's Grove.
He recognised this forest instantly, no matter how overgrown it had become, because of the haunting memories that plagued his mind about the descent of Twilight's Dawn, and the ridiculously chilly presence of that man, Melatose.
His imposing stature and his icy blade were etched into his mind.
Since then, he subconsciously kept a mental note to be sceptical of anyone in this forest, because he just didn't want to face something that terrifying again.
Sure, he was able to stand up to Melatose at that moment, but as more time passed, the more William realised how terrifying the experience truly was. That man, a grandmaster, would be able to strike down an army consisting of thousands of him in an instant.
He was just that terrifying with that insurmountable strength of his, that was able to slice his arm off cleanly without blinking an eye.
"…Since he called himself a grandmaster, I'm dreading to see what the others out there who call themselves grandmasters are capable of…"
William shivered. It was absolute insanity, the level that mere mortals like him could reach.
"To think that there could be way stronger people than him out there… I'm even freaking myself out…"
Suddenly, the branches of nearby trees rustled, and William even heard the sounds of conversation nearing.
"Huh?"
William sneaked behind a tree and listened out for what appeared to be the sound of murmurs and quietly spoken words.
Through the overgrown, verdant scenery, the two werewolves clawed their way through the countless branches and leaves blocking their vision. They wore bracelets on their arms and one of these werewolves seemed just a tad familiar to William.
"…The plan is going well." One of the werewolves said.
"Our growing legion, the Lupus Wildhunt, has finally grown far enough to be able to handle the thorns in our side during the time the plan is executed. With "that" weapon also by our side, nothing will stop us!" The other werewolf arrogantly asserted.
"This land will make the perfect place for our masters' arrival!"
'…The werewolves… I have a suspicion that… no, they must be connected to that Rift!' William thought.
'I need to defeat them and collect all the information they have. There is some unseen danger that I think they're messing around with… and since I don't know where Sarah and the others are, I can't afford to let them get hurt.'
'But… will I be able to handle two werewolves…?'
William shook his head, warding his doubts.
'They're just ordinary werewolves! As far as I know, they don't use Mana! All I have to watch out for is their constant attacks and any tricks they're hiding. I'll be extra careful, so this time…'
"I'll take the both of you down!" William shouted while suddenly dashing from his hiding spot in an attempt to startle the two werewolves.
He succeeded and pulled out his sword to slice one of the werewolves' heads clean off. However, despite his blade being relatively good quality, William lacked both the body and the proper technique to use its full strength while sprinting into a full jump and shouting his lungs out.
Heck, he couldn't even use its full strength anyway, because he was too weak, physically-speaking.
And now, his blade was stuck in the tough flesh of one of the werewolves' meaty necks. The beast glared and snarled at him, and lunged a claw at him intending to rip his face off.
But, William managed to pull his blade out in time and blocked the attempt at his life, jumping back and landing a few steps away. He panted heavily and stared at the two beasts with tremendous determination.
'…Don't feel fear… Don't feel fear…'
"Hahaha… it's you!" One of the werewolves cackled, "The human boy who I swore I would get revenge against! You're still in this forest?! What a great opportunity!"
"I was waiting for a chance to devour your flesh!"
William glared at the werewolf.
"I guess all werewolves are just evil from birth, huh?!"
"Not all of us. There are some particularly pathetic strays among us… but they never live that long to tell the tale!" The other werewolf roared, as they charged at him.
William kept his eyes open and focused. However, this time, as he prepared to strike, things felt unusual.
Perhaps it was because he realised he wouldn't stand a chance against two werewolves at the same time, and his rushed decision would now cost him his life.
But even still, his eyes alone could penetrate their flesh with his level of intensity. Yet, to beat such tough opponents at his level, he needed more than just extreme focus.
He needed to grip his blade with as much strength as he possibly could, and summon as much strength from it as he could manage.
Without the help of novels, William doubted the fact that he would've known how to hold a sword at all. However, because of them, his creativity expanded heaps and heaps and helped him develop his power more and more.
And then, he could use that towards his power of Golden Ink, which could help him create a painted world with his sword. That was far more useful than a flashy transformation that did nothing else but give him wings. He needed to embrace practicality instead of flashiness, and fully form his world stance!
At that moment, William saw a painting of the old, blazing sun appear briefly and cocoon his eyes.
A painting that envisioned the beginning: the old world that the Twilight's Dawn destroyed.
And that painting imbued his blade with the same blaze that caused the sun to shine upon the old Earth for so many years. A determination, which surpassed the limitations of living and non-living.
To blaze.
A world stance containing a painting of a world's "Power to Blaze," which he combined with his first Art Form: Penetrating Thrust!
"Take this!"
This single-blade stroke almost tore his hand open, and his arm felt the pressure of an ability that had unleashed 1% of its true potential for the first time.
However, it allowed him to possess the strength to obliterate the werewolf, who most dearly wanted to devour him, in a single strike.
Tears of diluted blood began to well in William's eyes, as using such an overwhelming burst of power for the first time created a great impact akin to waves across his body. His sword dropped to the ground, and he felt his heart's pulse beginning to crumble.
But, he remained standing. The Power to Blaze that he saw there imbued him with a powerful effect. A terrifying amount of tenacity and determination.
This would be his true power, the true potential of ink, that could create worlds within mere paintings and canvas and yet rely on his world stance to bring out.
This power could bring out emotions deep inside him and others, make the unreal real and even turn false miracles into reality.
"…You… you… you slayed my wolven brother…" The remaining werewolf stuttered, overwhelmed with pure terror.
"…"
"Yes…"
"Yes, I did."
"So… are you… gonna answer my questions now?" William asked, blood dripping from his mouth, while gazing at the werewolf with an unbreakable might.
…
A few hours passed afterwards, and William, who scrambled to find his way out of Shepherd's Grove, finally found the route to the city, and could even see it from afar.
"Ah…"
"So, this is what the city looks like now…"