Taeyeon had returned home after negotiating with King about the essential information to defeat Mage 01. Now they knew his strengths and weaknesses and were prepared to take him on. He definitely wouldn’t be an easier target until Sunny was ready to fight him also, however, something else from their conversation with King continued to play over and over again in Taeyeon’s mind. Just a little statement he had said that wouldn’t go away.

*Flash back to the King Interrogation*

“…As you can tell from my back, I no longer possess the powers of the emerald green stone. I’m half, no a quarter of the threat I used to be since I lost my magic…”

Taeyeon recalled the site of his back when they had first entered the cell and indeed it had changed. A giant green dragon tattoo had once been there symbolizing his mastery of a king conjuration, but now it had vanished. What did this mean? Was King’s king conjure ready to be taken once more? And would Taeyeon even be allowed to do so? She pulled the emerald green stone from her pocket and examined it. “Is this what it’s going to take for us to win?” She questioned. She focused deeply on the rock and before she knew it she had entered the emerald green stone’s realm and could see Vermilion, except she wasn’t completely orange, nor green. Her overall appearance was orange which included her hood, her top, and her shorts, but the studs upon her sleeves, her belt and the belt itself was now and emerald green. Her bow was still the classic bright orange, but the arrows she was firing were emerald just like Taeyeon had done before. The final difference between this figure and Vermilion was her hands. Taeyeon had believed these to be emerald green gloves, but as she approached towards her, she realized they were actually dragon-like claws, like King had when he used his King conjure. It was a fascinating sight, since these projections usually demonstrated what her powers would be like once she had completed the trials of the soul stone. “Do you still go by Vermilion?” Taeyeon jokingly questioned. The bright orange and green figure turned to face Taeyeon and bowed before she spoke. “You can address me as you wish, it is an honor to be in your presence,” Vermilion said.

“Damn, this is the first time a soul stone spirit had treated me with so much respect before completing the trials.” Taeyeon laughed.

“Trials? What trials?” Vermilion questioned.

“Wait, there are no trials?” Taeyeon questioned. Vermilion simply remained where she was, confused as to what Taeyeon was talking about. “How am I going to unlock the emerald King conjure? How am I going to become you?” Taeyeon questioned.

“I am afraid I don’t know what you mean Taeyeon, you’ve already completed your King conjure trials. You finished them a few years ago when you traveled to the Grand Canyon to meet Hyoyeon.” Vermilion stated.

“But that was merely for the phoenix king conjure, what about the dragon?” Vermilion turned away from Taeyeon and continued to shoot a target with perfect precision each time.

“Well, there’s the rudeness I usually expect, but it’s not the same as the other times.” Taeyeon thought.

“Hey, dragon! Can you hear me? We need to talk.” Before Taeyeon knew it a massive green dragon flew down and landed right before her. This was the first time they had met in person, but it was strange to hear the dragon not bickering with the Phoenix soul. “What do you need?” the dragon asked.

“I don’t understand what’s going on here. How do I master the emerald soul stone and gain King’s tattoo?” Taeyeon questioned. The dragon turned its head towards Vermilion and began to speak. “Tae, you’ve traveled to a point where no previous mage has ever reached before. Not even the first four mages had managed to master multiple king spells of their artifacts, they always had favorites. However, you’ve created a balance between both bonds from your soul stones. A legendary feat that will go down in history.” The dragon stated.

“I guess you’re trying to tell me subtly that you have no idea what to do from here?” Taeyeon rolled her eyes.

“Exactly right Tae, you alone have forged this path, so you alone can pave the rest of the journey.” The dragon confirmed.

“Wow, first Sunny and now me? Mage 01 and Elder Cosmic keep boasting about creating a new generation, but it feels like we’re the ones launching the new generation. I mean, think about it right, Tiffany and I managed to master our king conjures faster than any other mages. Tiffany actually did it faster than me and the twins displayed unbelievable mastery in the fraction of the time I had my stone. Elder Cosmic is so desperate to construct a new age, but it already exists.” Taeyeon stated.

“She doesn’t care about a new age Tae, you and I both know she’s only doing this to create millions of magical slaves to do her bidding. She cares not about advancing the possibilities of magic.” The dragon retorted.

“Yeah, you’re right and this is why we won’t let her succeed. A new generation will stand at the end of this battle, but it won’t be the one they wish for.” Taeyeon smiled.

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