11th September, 1507

Finn got up from the ground, then patted the dust on himself down and pretended as if nothing had happened, before proceeding to go help some of the girls that were still shaken by the experience with a reassuring smile on his face while he ignored the guys asking for help.

Lorien watched this with his mouth slightly agape as Finn's comforting presence enveloped the shaken girls, disbelief flickering in his eyes.

‘Weren’t you just screaming like a girl a few moments ago, what happened to your dignity, where’s your shamelessness’ Lorien thought feeling amazed at Finn’s shameless acts.

…

After everyone had settled down and prepared for what was to come, Elara who stood at the front announced in an authoritative voice, "The Realms Rite is a ceremony meant to determine if you have the talent, aptitude, and willpower to become a mighty Lexarch."

He paused for a few moments before continuing, "I will be randomly selecting you one by one to go to the base of the Luminar tree and pluck one of the flowers growing there. I'll explain what comes next after you've completed this task."

Finn contemplated for a few seconds and then raised his hand proudly and volunteered to be the first testee. Lorien watched Finn silently with incredulity in his eyes but he didn’t say anything as he let him take the lead.

Elara eyed Finn for a moment before responding in a hoarse voice, "Suit yourself."

Finn strode forward with an air of confidence, but his mind was filled with thoughts of impressing others and winning admiration. ‘If I can show everyone my strong side and be the first person to pass with flying marks’ he thought to himself, ‘then the girls will definitely fall head over heels for me!’.

From a normal person’s perspective, Finn was ‘desperate for love’.

After about 30 seconds of walking, Finn finally reached the base of the giant tree where he was greeted by the enchanting sight of magical flowers beckoning to be plucked. Just as he extended his hand to grasp them, a sudden movement caught his eye—a giant greyish-white and faintly transparent axe hurtling toward his neck.

Finn’s eyes turned wide open and his body froze in its spot as he watched the axe inch closer by the second.

CRASH!

With the reflexes honed through years of training since the tender age of six, Finn instinctively leaped backward and narrowly evaded the swinging axe as it crashed into the ground, sending dirt and debris flying into the air.

Finn's heart pounded against his ribcage as he turned to face the looming threat but when he saw the attacker, a surge of primal fear threatened to overwhelm him.

It was a 3-meter-tall minotaur that towered before him, a formidable sight to behold, its blood-red eyes gleaming with malice as saliva dripped from its menacing jaws. The sound of its heavy breathing filled the air as it was accompanied by the ominous thud of its hooves against the earth.

Another thing to note was a blue gem that was embedded into its chest that gave off an eerie glow.

Finn couldn't help but feel dwarfed by its sheer size and strength with his resolve wavering in the face of such a monstrous adversary.

Panic threatened to consume him but then he heard Elara's voice cut through the tension that felt like a lifeline. "I forgot to mention, but there will be a small test by the Luminar tree to see if you are worthy of the flower,"

“YOU FUC-”

Before Finn could even utter a curse in response, the minotaur charged towards him with surprising speed and its massive axe poised to cleave him in two.

Reacting on pure instinct, Finn shifted his body slightly sideways, narrowly avoiding the deadly strike.

Crash!

“Argh” Finn growled in pain under his breath as he held his shoulder and leaped backwards to build some distance between him and the minotaur.

The axe dug into the ground, but the razor-sharp edge of the axe had still managed to graze Finn as it sliced through a portion of his hair and his arm, leaving a shallow gash on his left shoulder before digging into the ground.

The minotaur took the axe out and then charged forward again as it did a horizontal slash. Being prepared this time, Finn ducked under the axe, avoiding the attack. He then quickly built some distance again as he started analyzing the situation and looking to exploit anything of use.

‘The minotaur has a much larger body than me and I have no way of competing with its speed or strength, but it has no technique in its attacks, so they are easy to avoid. Even with that, logically speaking even if all the kids behind me joined in the battle, all of us would die without being able to put up a fight, not even Kai with his immense strength can do anything against that thing’.

Amidst the flurry of attacks, Finn's gaze locked onto a glimmering object embedded in the minotaur's chest—a radiant blue gem pulsating with an otherworldly light. In that moment of clarity, Finn hypothesized the key to victory might lie in destroying the gem, a daunting task in the midst of battle but a chance nonetheless.

The crowd of youths watched the battle unfold, their faces contorted in a mixture of horror and anxiety. Fear gnawed at their hearts as they grappled with the looming threat of the minotaur, realizing that they would be the next ones to face that thing. The weight of their collective dread hung heavy in the air, overshadowing any glimmer of hope for victory in the face of such overwhelming odds.

...

After formulating a plan in his mind, Finn discarded his sandals and threw them away. He felt the cool grass beneath his bare feet as he awaited his opportunity to strike. With each passing moment, tension hung thick in the air as Finn continued to barely dodge the attacks of the minotaur.

Then it came—the minotaur raised its arms in preparation for a devastating vertical slash. Seizing the moment, Finn leaped backward, narrowly evading the axe as it cleaved into the ground with a resounding thud.

But Finn's next move was completely unexpected—one that defied logic and reason.

With a daring leap, he propelled himself toward the towering minotaur, defying the laws of combat and common sense alike. Anyone could tell Finn had no way to effectively deal damage to the 3-meter-tall monster with just his flimsy body and he was also in the air now without any way to dodge an attack that might come his way and that was exactly what happened next.

The minotaur reacted with lightning speed, wrenching its axe from the earth and unleashing a vicious upward slash. Before the axe reached Finn, he acted with courage born of desperation as he used his bare feet to grab onto the blade of the axe.

With bare feet gripping the blade of the axe with surprising tenacity, he braced himself against the onslaught of the axe as it threw him upwards. Finn held his breath as he felt the force of the attack propel him skyward at a dizzying 90-degree angle.

Finn was sent flying at impressive speeds into the air before his ascent finally stopped, he found himself 50 meters high and bathed in the surreal beauty of his surroundings—the verdant landscape stretching out beneath him and the starry sky embracing him in its vast expanse.

Finn didn’t take the opportunity to take this view in because in a few moments, his head might be rolling on the ground.

As he started descending, he saw the menacing minotaur on the ground staring intently at him with its blood-curdling eyes and its axe in a ready position to take his life. He felt a surge of fear and adrenaline coursing through his veins but he did not lose hope. He knew he had one chance to beat this deadly beast. Then he sucked in a breath of air and yelled at the top of his lungs as loud as he could.

“LORIENNNNN!”

From within the crowd, Lorien's voice rang out as he said with eager anticipation and unwavering determination “I was wondering when you were going to call for your saviour”.

Lorien reached into his pocket and produced a gleaming silver ring, its gem shimmering in the light. In a mesmerizing display of mysticism, the ring lit up and suddenly a golden boar spear materialized in his hand, its shaft glinting with the brilliance of pure gold.

With a swift motion, Lorien hoisted the spear over his shoulder as his muscles tensed with readiness and then he ran in Finn’s direction. With each step he closed the distance to Finn, his determination became more and more resolute.

Then with a thunderous stomp, Lorien halted his momemtum and with all his might, he hurled the spear towards Finn, the air singing with its flight.

As Finn plummeted through the air, a surge of relief washed over him when he saw the spear rushing toward him with incredible speed.

With his quick thinking, Finn had previously formulated a daring plan: to provoke the minotaur into an upward slash and using its momentum to launch himself into the air and then catch the spear.

He did not dare think of trying to intercept the weapon on the ground, knowing the minotaur would see it coming but now, with the creature's attention solely focused on him, Finn seized the opportunity and prepared to execute his bold maneuver.

Just as Finn's mind raced with thoughts of his next move, a sudden and unexpected turn of events sent a shiver down his spine, chilling him to the core.

The minotaur, defying all his expectations unleashed a startling maneuver. Instead of awaiting Finn's descent and intercepting him down there, the beast had jumped using its monstrous legs to propel itself towards Finn with astonishing agility as it was intent on ending his life mid-air.

This unforeseen twist dashed all of Finn's hopes and left his carefully crafted strategy in ruins.

Finn's heart sank as he realized the flaw in his plan: the precise positioning required for him to catch the spear had been disrupted by the minotaur's unexpected leap. Although the spear might still reach him before the minotaur, it would be too late as the minotaur would already be towering over him ready to slice him in half.

With Finn's descent remaining constant, the spear needed to be thrown with pinpoint accuracy directly below him. However, the minotaur's sudden maneuver had thrown off this delicate balance, leaving Finn vulnerable.

As he contemplated the grim reality, dread coiled in the pit of his stomach. With the minotaur coming closer and closer ready to strike, Finn faced a race against time to salvage any hope of survival amidst the chaos of battle.

Just as Finn was about to give up all hope, his gaze caught a glimmer of gold emanating from his side. With a surge of hope, he realized it was the spear which should have been a few seconds late had now miraculously appeared beside him!

Its golden glow seemed to pierce through the darkness, a beacon of life amidst the turmoil engulfing Finn.

With a swift motion, Finn seized the spear with a grin spreading across his face. In a euphoric tone, he exclaimed, "Seems like our Ashbourne has improved yet again!"

It seemed Lorien had become stronger in recent years which allowed him to throw the spear with more strength than normal and make it reach Finn sooner than expected.

Harnessing the spear's momentum, Finn twisted his body in a full 360 rotation. As the spear's momentum remained strong, Finn with unwavering determination stretched his arm back as far as he could and aimed directly at the minotaur below and then redirected the spear with all his might.

As the minotaur charged ahead, it noticed its opponent had grabbed a weapon and had already thrown it his way.

Despite wanting to block the spear, it couldn't move its arms quickly enough. The minotaur had jumped with all its might before and was now moving fast, but its opponent and the spear now boosted by Lorien's throw and Finn's extra push, were moving even faster. The spear was closing in rapidly, too fast for the minotaur’s axe to move in a blocking position.

Thrust!

The spear slipped past the minotaur's arms and impaled it in the chest, shattering the blue crystal that rested there.

“MOARRRRR!”

The minotaur's bellow of pain echoed through the landscape as its massive form slowly started dissolving into transparency with each roar diminishing until it flickered into nothingness, leaving behind only a faint glimmering light.

The crowd erupted into a cacophony of cheers for Finn, their enthusiasm matched only by the reverence in their hearts.

Despite lacking the prestigious title of a Lexarch, Finn had accomplished what many deemed impossible. He had defeated a beast that could only be beat by a Lexarch. His feat stood as a testament to courage and skill, earning him the admiration and respect of all who witnessed his triumph.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH!”

The crowd fell silent when an ear-piercing voice reached their ears, and all eyes turned upward toward the source of the voice. It was Finn who was once again emitting high-pitched screams like a little girl with tears streaming upwards from his eyes while plummeting from the sky and snot dangling from his nose.

His meticulously calculated plan to defeat the minotaur had succeeded, but he had overlooked the aftermath of how he was going to get back down safely.

Falling from the height of a 15-story building, he braced himself for impact and his screams still echoing in the air.

Finn closed his eyes and prayed fervently as he repented, hoping for salvation in the afterlife.

‘Mom, I'm sorry for all the times I blamed the dog for my own farts and the time I used your expensive face cream as hand lotion. I promise if I get out of this mess, I'll make it up to you’

Just as he was repenting, anticipating his impending doom, he felt a sudden lightness envelop him. Arms swiftly encircled his legs and upper back, slowly halting his descent to a stop. With a mixture of relief and curiosity, Finn cautiously opened his eyes to behold a handsome figure with a chiselled jawline, eagle-sharp eyes, and strands of hair cascading down his shoulder.

Before Finn could meet the gates of the afterlife, it was none other than Elara Swift who swooped in to catch him, averting the disaster.