The sun was scorching high above, burning everything it touched. It was as if every ray of lightning broke through the treetops and came straight at me, hitting my skin like hot needles. The air was thick, almost palpable with heat, and the insistent buzzing of the cicadas mixed with the shrill cries of the birds. Even so, I didn't move. I stood there, cross-legged on the rough forest floor, motionless like a statue forgotten by time - the bow firmly between my fingers, as if it were an extension of my own body.
It had been more than two hours, maybe even longer. I had lost track of time. Sweat ran down my face, seeping into my eyebrows, down my temples and onto the dry ground. My back was soaked, sticking to my shirt, forming a dark stain that was slowly growing. But my hand, the one holding the bow, remained as firm as wrought iron. No tremor. No hesitation. I couldn't afford that.
The sun began to move, the golden light now slanting towards the west. I felt a change in the air. A wave of thick clouds slid lazily across the sky, casting denser shadows over the forest. An unexpected breeze blew from the east, rustling the leaves above me, and for a brief moment, I felt relief. The wind brought with it a subtle freshness, like a gentle whisper in the midst of tension.
But I soon realized: the change in the weather was a warning. The clouds were getting heavier by the minute. The smell in the air... it was damp. The rain would come soon.
I closed my eyes.
I needed to listen.
My ears searched for every sound: the rustle of leaves, the distant snap of a dry twig, the flapping of restless wings. One by one, the noises became more distinct. It was as if my whole body - right down to the space between my eyebrows - was focused on this task. Everything around me disappeared and only the sounds remained.
That's when I felt it.
A vivid image sprang into my mind - reddish shadows, pulsating like racing hearts. Living shapes dancing under a crimson light, vibrating with intensity. I couldn't see them with my eyes, but they were there, in my consciousness.
My eyes snapped open.
Instinct took over.
My body rose in a quick, precise movement. In a split second, my hand plunged into the quiver at my side, grabbed an arrow and, with a fluid gesture, the bow was tensioned.
I fired.
The arrow's piercing whistle tore through the air, describing a perfect curve before crashing hard into a rabbit's flank, just as it was preparing to flee. A second later, before the approaching snake could strike, a new arrow left my fingers and pierced the snake's head, bursting it like a ripe fruit.
There was no hesitation.
Three more arrows broke like a dance. Three targets. Three dry hits. Three small creatures silenced before they could escape. Each arrow was an extension of my will. Precise, fast, cold as ice blades.
And then the silence returned.
Only my heart, beating hard.
Only my breath, steady.
Just me, there - alone, with the metallic taste of concentration still on my tongue.
Of the animals hit, two were birds. I saw their bodies fall from the sky one after the other, like dry leaves blown away by the wind. Their feathers floated in the air for a few seconds before touching the ground.
At the same moment, I felt a burning between my eyes, right in the center of my forehead - as if an ember had been lit there. A red light pulsed in my vision, a ghostly glow that seemed to expand from the inside out. It felt strange... as if my bones were heating up from the inside, inch by inch.
I touched my forehead with my fingertips and felt a strange impression - three thin lines that throbbed, like living veins. I saw it in the reflection of my blade: the vessels protruded from the top of my nose and spread across my head, tracing bright, red, almost mystical paths.
Three months. Just three months since I became a novice warrior... and now I had reached the rank of veteran.
- That's the level valued in the army, according to Dad. - I murmured quietly, feeling a warmth rise in my chest. A smile broke out on my lips. And that wasn't all - it grew wider, almost childish, and turned into a loud laugh that echoed through the trees. For the first time in days, I allowed myself to laugh without fear.
- I hope he'll be proud..." I whispered again, almost like a prayer.
I lay on the ground, feeling the cold earth against my back, still damp with sweat. The forest was alive around me, but for a few seconds, it was just me and that cloud-covered sky.
But I knew I couldn't settle. There was still a lot I couldn't do.
- Now... I need to learn to shoot without relying on my hearing - I said to myself, looking at the bow next to me. - Only with the special sense...
This thought brought me back to the challenge. Until then, I had used my physical senses to "see" the targets: I could hear the slightest sound, feel the air move, distinguish shapes and silhouettes. But that was just the beginning. The next step required much more.
He had to feel the "light of life" - that energy that vibrates within living beings. A warmth, a pulse, something I was only now beginning to understand. It was like seeing the world in a different light. The precision increased little by little, almost imperceptibly, but I knew I was approaching a limit. A point where effort alone might not be enough.
When I got home, I rushed to tell my father about my progress.
He wasn't surprised.
He just looked at me for a moment. His eyes shone for a split second, as if he were proud... or perhaps cautious. Then, without smiling, he started talking about ways to improve my training, strategies, techniques, ways to refine what I had already learned.
But there was something wrong. I sensed it.
Something in the tone of his voice, in the way he looked at me - as if he was... disappointed. Angry, perhaps.
I didn't ask. I just stood there, listening.
When I got back to my room, I couldn't sleep. I tossed and turned in bed, my thoughts spinning like leaves in the wind. Was I going too slowly? Was I not the heir he had hoped for?
The doubt was like a splinter in my chest.
So I made a decision.
If I wasn't good enough yet... I would become so.
Five months later, there I was.