The Greatest

Introduction:

➤First part: The Chosen

➤Second part: The Rebel

➤Third part: The Survivor

Map of the Six Nations (Nevaeh)

A past of wars between opposing forces resulted in the collapse of the magic society. So the Legendary Ones, a group of high-status wizards, took it upon themselves to rebuild the six nations by uniting them under one rule.

The union of the six nations was given the name Nevaeh and to avoid repeating previous mistakes, the wand regime was established; from the age of ten, every wizard born in Nevaeh is obliged to use a wand to use their magic. If they refuse and use other forms of spellcasting, they are labeled as rebel wizards and are persecuted to the last consequences.

Park Sunghoon knows perfectly well the importance of staying within the limits of the regime; he just smiles and follows the rules without protest. He has done so all his life and continues to do so as his feet advance step by step towards what will be his destiny.

The red hood covers part of his face, despite that, the enormous emblem of the Park’s makes it clear that it is him. Everyone in the six nations knows his name; they know that the great Park Sunghoon is in his golden moment. The crowd cheers and some even cry, others look at him with envy wishing to be in his place.

Before entering, he takes a look at his parents who remain unchanged standing to his right. As usual, there is no reaction from them. Just a stern look that screams:do not disappoint us.

After sighing, he descends the stone stairs towards the underground caves. As he advances, the trembling in his hands grows, so he puts them in the pockets of his robe even though he knows he is alone. The feeling of having millions of eyes on him is so difficult to fade that he already feels like a regular companion.

He takes off his neat shoes out of respect, leaving them on the edge of the divine lagoon. The icy temperature of the water makes him shudder, even so, he does not back down and begins to rummage through the millions of crystals scattered on the surface.

There is a blue glow that attracts his attention, so he takes the spherical crystal with some hesitation. The sphere is so round and smooth, it radiates perfection wherever you look at it and Sunghoon almost feels that unreal.

He can feel the intense beating of his heart racing from the way it hits his chest. He’s so nervous that the desire to abandon everything keeps tickling the back of his mind.

“Great prophet, enlighten me with your wisdom and show me the way.”

It’s almost instantly after his prayer that the crystal lights up. Faint images appear before his eyes with soft brushstrokes until they gain strength and once he analyzes them, all the air in his lungs escapes in a disbelieving sigh.

The sequence is fast, it passes in front of him like lightning so he can’t help but doubt. His confused laughter doesn’t take long to come out, heard as a dry sound that bounces off the walls of the cave and produces a brief echo.

Sunghoon stands up still with the stone in his hands. He repeats it over and over again until his eyes beg for a break. He doesn’t understand what’s happening, did he get the wrong crystal?

He looks at the lagoon at his feet. Nothing, all the crystals look so dull that they give the impression of being nothing more than simple dead stones.

It has to be that one, it’s his projection stone that’s in his hands, so why is he seeing Sim Jake in what is supposed to be the prophecy of his life?

«It’s a mistake» he thinks immediately. Maybe it’s even a bad joke from his friends, although Sunghoon doesn’t classify them as such. He finds them tiresome because they never stop bragging about the positions their parents hold in Nevaeh. Unfortunately, sending them flying means putting the Park clan’s relations with other major clans at risk, so he resigns himself to spending time with them even if he ends up infected by their pedantic and egocentric attitudes.

He activated his stone once more, praying in silence to see a completely different sequence, but when he saw the same images, he closed his eyelids.

Sim Jake was there, raising his wand with a look so determined that for a moment he shuddered. He was the protagonist of the great prophecy, the one that sentenced the fate of the entire magical world and in which he was supposed to be the protagonist.

He didn’t understand it even though he analyzed it from every possible point of view and that frustrated him, because if there is something he hates more than disorder, it is feeling confused.

Soon anger bubbled in his stomach, exploding when combined with the disappointment in his heart. He spent his entire life since he learned to walk training for that moment! Maybe he wasn’t in the best physical condition, he couldn’t even come close to being compared to his companions from the Red House, but he met all the other requirements.

Son of two great wizards, descendant of the powerful Park clan whose antiquity is even greater than the formation of Nevaeh. He pronounces each language of magic without difficulty, he even keeps in his memory every book and lesson and was named the star apprentice of the Mounheist Boarding School, very intelligent and diligent, so, why is not he the one who appears in the vision?

He looked at the three statues that stood gigantic and glorious inside the cavern. He thought of complaining, but all thoughts ended up fading when he remembered that one could not call the name of the Three Divine Ones in vain.

“Why...?”

Why him and not me...?

Seconds after whispering it, he denied it. In a childish outburst he threw the stone with all his strength into one of the many tunnels, watching it disappear into the thick darkness that the torches cannot fight.

“He is not the Chosen One and I will prove it!”

He left the cavern with a firm step, ignoring the weight of the tiny stone in his pocket. How long was that vision going to haunt him?

He didn’t give it any importance, nor did he look at the crowd of wizards who stood in his way. They all wanted to hear about his prophecy, but no one could know, at least not until he managed to decipher its meaning.

When someone asked him how his journey had gone, he only managed to mutter a dry“everything’s fine”before slipping away into the crowd.

No one objected or doubted his words, because they were used to never seeing Park Sunghoon’s true face.

Watching him like a hawk from a distance wasn’t the smartest decision he’d ever made in his life, although it was quite effective in confirming his suspicions; Sim Jake is the clumsiest and most unskilled wizard that can exist within the Mounheist Boarding School.

“He’s short, he doesn’t have a single percentage of muscle mass.”

“He stumbles when casting spells and mispronounces most of the spells.”

“He trips everywhere, by the Three Divine Ones!”

Sim Jake is a second-year wizard assigned to the Yellow House, of course he remembers it, their eyes met on the first day of school after he was admitted. A Wandler Tier being accepted into the Mounheist Boarding School was a topic that was talked about for months until it was slowly forgotten. Even he let it go over time.

Even though the anti-shapeshifters laws had been repealed half a century ago, there were still places where they were not welcome. Mounheist was no exception and that was why they had not admitted any wizards with those characteristics in fifty years. It was not until Jake and Soobin appeared that that old streak was broken.

To say that he knows nothing about the shapeshifters would be a blatant lie. He studied them out of curiosity, wanting to understand their behavior and the workings of their shapeshifting magic. A mortal wizard and a shapeshifting wizard were very similar in appearance, but there were major variations that made the difference. Even they themselves did not resemble each other.

The Wandler Tier are Sunghoon’s favorites, even if he never admits it out loud. They are a very powerful race of shapeshifters descended from the extinct Levitanes.

Unlike their ancestors who had the ability to mutate into huge dragons or feathered serpents, the Wandler Tier focused more on their animal side. Unfortunately, Jake didn’t seem to be very good at handling that side, because it was very common to see him in the hallways with his color-changing irises shining.

There were even times when if he was surprised or experienced a very strong emotion, his fangs would sharpen and his nails would turn into deadly claws. He was a mess from head to toe! How was Nevaeh going to be saved if it was in the hands of Sim Jake? The six nations would be lost!

Imaginary flashes of the imminent catastrophe blinded his mind as he watched him walk down the wide hallway of the dining room. Jake walked along happily, completely oblivious to his inquisitive gaze and acid thoughts. In an instant he even stopped to adjust his huge round glasses by pushing them up the bridge of his nose. Had he mentioned that the shapeshifter was blind without those things? No? Well, now you know.

Sunghoon was seconds away from going crazy.

He almost reached the table he shared with his small group of friends. The group of outcasts, Sunghoon supposes when he sees that his table is located too close to the trash cans. Before he managed to take a seat, Park Jihoon, one of the best players of the Hiddenite’s Labyrinth, but also one of the biggest bullies of wizards at the boarding school, took out his wand and cast a spell directly at the floor under Jake’s feet.

No one seemed to notice it or care to warn him. The once dry and neat floor was now wet and slippery, so his fall was inevitable. His entire tray spilled, staining his uniform and part of his face.

Silence reigned and only then did all eyes fall on him. Sunghoon didn’t know what to feel, what the hell were they expecting now? To see Jake cry and humiliate himself more than he already had?

Jake just sighed, wiping his face with a slap. Once he started to clean up the small mess he had created, the interest of the others disappeared as quickly as it arose. Only he continued with his eyes fixed on his actions, sending a sour look to Jihoon after hearing him laugh with his friends. They were so loud and annoying that Sunghoon was tempted to silence them with a spell and although he had been invited on more than one occasion to the popular’s table, he always rejected it because he values ​​his moments of silence and concentration very much, preferring to sneak through the hallways or go into the Central Library.

Fed up, he stood up suddenly from his lonely table. The roar generated by his hands hitting the clean white table attracted several glances, although he cared little and instead, he walked with long steps until he stood in front of Jake.

“They’re worse than children,” he muttered, bending down. “Let me help you.” He offered his hand, but Jake waved it away and jumped up. However, he didn’t stop him from helping him pick up the tray from the floor.

“Thank you,” he murmured out of pure courtesy. His cheeks were a bright red almost as intense as the tone of his hair and without warning, he hurried out, leaving him standing in the hallway.

His brow furrowed. He thought he saw a violet hue take over Jake’s aquamarine irises, so he interpreted it as embarrassment. His feet moved on their own as he decided to follow him, searching for him through the halls of the boarding school until he found him without much difficulty. Either Jake was very predictable or he was very good at locating wizards.

He found him sheltered under one of the many enchanted stairs. Once he was next to him, the stairs came to life and turned over their heads. He ignored the annoying voice insisting that they step on the steps and focused on the nervous Jake who refused to look at him.

He raised one of his hands and Jake immediately reacted by covering his head and cowering in place. Sunghoon didn’t stop his actions, but he did give him a strange look while his fingers scratched behind his furry ears in his reddish hair.

He had mutated into a gray wolf. Not completely, but you could see the mix between his wizard and animal features; his slit pupils, sharp fangs and ears and tail sticking out. He wondered if it was embarrassment that caused it or if he should blame another stronger emotion.

The shapeshifter’s tail shook calmly and without being able to avoid it, his right foot moved in time with the caresses on his head. A deep sound tore through his vocal cords, coming out as a soft whimper that made Sunghoon open his eyelids in surprise.

“I’m sorry,” he apologized when he realized his actions. He chose to pretend not to have heard him and just brushed it off with a simple gesture.

They soon fell into a somewhat tense silence. Jake was distracted by watching his hands while Sunghoon continued to pay attention to each of the entrances that appeared and disappeared, doors, stairs and passages, they were never still and he found it fun to calculate which one would appear next and where. When a door materialized on the wall in front of them, he ignored it. Passages and stairs were acceptable, but doors were not since they contained many surprises; either you fell off a cliff or ended up trapped in 1890 and those were the least unpleasant options.

The slight cry of an injured puppy reached his ears. Surprised, he looked at the Wandler Tier who was already watching him with his ears drooping. He seemed to be begging him for something and that act made him get clumsy.

“What’s wrong with you?”

“We really wanted to eat that chocolate cupcake!”

Silence.

“Just appear one and that’s it,” he said dryly.

Jake didn’t stop whining. His wolf was in complete control of his actions at that moment.

“We don’t know how! We never got that spell.”

It was curious the way his wizard and animal side combined. He felt like he was in front of a small defenseless puppy, but at the same time he couldn’t forget that he was dealing with a wizard with reason. The sound of his tongue clicking startles Jake and before he can say anything else, a cupcake with huge chocolate chips and white frosting appears with ease.

The change is so fast that it impresses him. Pink takes over his irises and now there is really a puppy watching him with admiration. The golden fur of the animal stands out among the red strands and the happy thump of his tail is impossible to ignore.

“Don’t cry anymore, you look like a kicked puppy,” after handing him the dessert and watching Jake taking it silently, he put his wand back in the hiding place under his sleeve.

The shapeshifter obeyed, taking discreet bites of the cake and throwing small glances at him from time to time. There was something, a voice in the back of his mind reproaching him for things. Hesitant to speak, he swayed a little on his own feet before daring to speak, “Do they bother you often?”

Jake shrugged. There was some frosting smeared on his glasses, though he chose not to tell him since he already looked pretty embarrassed.

The grimace that formed on his lips was one of pure disgust. As much as he thought about it, he couldn’t understand the trainees’ reasons for bothering him. Yes, he was clumsy, but it feels like watching a lost puppy trying to adjust to a new environment. Disturbing him when Jake didn’t really bother anyone seemed foolish to him.

“Fine.”

Jake watched him walk away still without making a sound. His head tilted to the side in curiosity, looking for a better hearing. He thought he heard something about“sticking them to the walls,”though he’s not quite sure.

After that day, Park Jihoon never bothered him again and only maybe Sunghoon ended up in the punishment zone for a couple of days.

Although those are nothing more than rumors.