“…How can you be so unreasonable!” Alnea said, glaring at Yuri, as he weaved his way through the net of Fire, Wind, Earth, and Lightning. The only element missing was Water. And it had been missing for quite a while. Was it because they had been transformed through Fire? Maybe. But that was not important. Nothing was. Only the girls—

  “Sometimes, I envy you, Tresting,” the Fire Servant said, reminding Alnea of his presence. “To have three girls coming to your rescue…”

  “…Leave them out of your schemes, Whitebud,” Alnea said, glaring at the Fire Servant. “Or I will hunt you down from Ann to the Grand Chasms if I have to.”

  “You misunderstand me,” the Fire Servant said, shaking his head, as he fled from the abomination with the kaleidoscopic flames. “I was just expressing my admiration for the bond you share… Besides, do I really need to do anything?”

  “Wha—

  As the girls came closer to him, the Enthralled Wanderers finally noticed their presence. Glancing at their new prey, the abominations let out their signature shriek, before rushing towards them. To his relief, only three of them went after the girls. One from the four besieging him, and two from the Fire Servant’s side. But that did not make much of a difference in their situation. Especially for the Fire Servant.

  “Have you thought about it, Tresting?”

  “I—

  “Do not listen to this Optah tongued bastard,” Cecilia said, as she clashed with the abominations head on. “Just sit tight. We will rescue you in no time.”

  “Even if they rescue you, what will you do next?” the Fire Servant said, glancing at Alnea with a mocking smile. “I hope you have not forgotten your situation, Tresting. You cannot escape. And without you, they will not either. What do you think will happen then?”

  “…What is your plan?”

  “I knew you would make the right choice,” the Fire Servant said, letting out a smile for the first time in a while. One that irked both Alnea, and the girls in the distance. Especially Cecilia, who began cursing the lunatic right away. But she had to focus most of her attention on the abominations she was facing. Three of them. And unlike him, she preferred clashing against them head on.

  Fortunately, she also had Vestia and Yuri to support her, so she was not facing much trouble. Still, as the Fire Servant had implied in his words, how long could she last? A couple of minutes? Maybe even a quarter of an hour. It would still not be enough. Against the abominations with a nigh infinite amount of Spirit Power, unless they could crush them with absolute power, nothing would be enough. In time, they would lose their strength, and…

  “Just get to the point.”

  “The plan is simple,” the Fire Servant said, pointing to the abomination chasing after him. “You help me hold off this bastard, and I will take care of the rest of them.”

  “…Do I really look that stupid to you?” Alnea said, sneering at the Fire Servant. “Stop fooling around, Whitebud. Do you have a plan or not?”

  “That is the only plan I have. And your only choice.”

  “…Forget it. What did I even expect from a bastard like you?”

  “…Thing about it again, Tresting. You do not have much time left.”

  “Indeed,” Yuri said, narrowing her eyes at the Fire Servant. “The time has come.”

  “See, even your teammate is agreeing with me.”

  “Agreeing with you?” Yuri shook her head. “I was talking to Vestia.”

  “…Has the pressure finally gotten to your head?” the Fire Servant said, showing pity in his eyes, before turning back to Alnea. “You should hurry up Tresting, lest the situation get completely out of control.”

  “The situation is already out of your control,” Vestia said, but not the one next to Yuri. That Vestia was just a phantom, that dissipated as soon as Vestia’s voice came, bringing everyone’s attention to the figure that appeared in the opposite direction. “Everything is ready.”

  “Then what are we waiting for?”

  “What are you—

  Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

  It—They began as a spark. Blindingly beautiful sparks, that spread into wildfires in an instant. And from that wildfire, they transformed into raging volcanoes, leaving only chaos and destruction in their wake. The kind that none of the Arcanas and Glyphs unleashed in the Final World up till then had wrought. Especially since all of their destructive prowess was condensed within a radius of just a couple of metres.

  It was only natural then, for the Eternal Flames that erupted with all their might in an instant, to annihilate everything they touched. Be it the scorched ground on which they were born, or the Enthralled Wanderers that happened to be standing above them. And while they were at it, they did not forget to shake world as well. Such destructive flames…

  For a moment, all that Alnea could see and hear were the flames. Even the ground, quaking in their fear, was screaming their names. That too, in seven places at once. Three targeting the three abominations besieging him, and four in the path of the Fire Servant, engulfing both the lunatic, and a couple of other abominations around him, including the one burning in the kaleidoscopic flames.

  What came next, was a clash between the kaleidoscopic and Eternal Flames, devouring everything around them. Even the other abominations. The only thing that escaped their clash was a wisp of blood red flame, that ran away after abandoning most of its body. But neither of the flames paid any attention to that little wisp. It was of no consequence. At the moment, they had only one thought. To devour each other.

  In contrast, the rest of the Enthralled Wanderers just stood in silence, watching the battle. Be it the ones who were spared from the wrath of the Eternal Flames, or the ones already on their way to their deaths. Then again, the moment they became Enthralled, their fate was already doomed. Still, as Enthralled Wanderers, they could have lived much longer. For hours, at the very least.

  Yet, with half their bodies gone, and the other half covered in Eternal Flames, not even the Origin Sea could prolong their lives. Though none of that had anything to do with Alnea. If he did not count creating the Eternal Flames, that is. But that was not his fault. He just created the Glyph Tokens. The one to actually use them—

  Alnea stumbled in his steps, as he tried to back away from the ongoing clash of flames just some ten metres away from him. The heat was making him uncomfortable, and so was the prospect of what might come next. But his head… Though the flames did not hurt him, the sound and the shockwaves still made him feel a little dizzy. Enough to disorient him, and make him lose his balance. Just as he was about to fall down though, he felt a pair of hands grab his shoulders and pull him up.

  “Let’s go,” Vestia said, wrapping Alnea’s right hand around her shoulders, before quickly pulling him away from the Enthralled Wanderers, regrouping with the girls some distance away.

  “See, I told you,” Cecilia said, with a wide grin on her face, only to receive a glare from Alnea in return, as he removed his hands from Vestia’s shoulders, and regained his balance.

  “…You three are too reckless…”

  “Look who is talking.”

  “…I was not reckless this time.”

  “Then do you mind telling us how you got surrounded by Enthralled Wanderers?”

  “…It was an accident. In any case, do not be so reckless again in the future.”

  “If you do not want us to be reckless, then you should not get into such a situation in the first place,” Cecilia said with snort, turning her face away from. “Let’s leave this idiot alone.”

  “…I am sorry,” Alnea said, letting out a sigh, as he suppressed the waves in his Heart. “I overreacted a little. But that is because I worry about you. All three of you. If something were to happen…”

  “Then you should also understand why we could not leave without you,” Yuri said, before glancing at the abominations in the distance. “We can discuss this later. Let us get out of here first.”

  “…You go first,” Alnea said, trying not to let his emotions show on his face. “I will come after you.”

  “Huh?” Cecilia said, turning back to him with confusion. “Why can we not leave together?”

  “…I will tell you about it later. There is no time to discuss right now. Just go. I will be right behind you.”

  “…Are you sure?”

  “I am. Now, hurry up and leave.”

  “…You are not very good at lying, you know?” Vestia said, as her lips stretched out into an amused grin. “But that is also what I like about you.”

  “…This not the time to fool around, Vestia.”

  “That is what we should be saying to you,” Cecilia said, glaring at him, as she took out a Blood Card from within her robe. “What do you think this is?”

  “…That… Is that…”

  “That’s right. It is your Blood Card.”

  “Where did you find it?”

  “The more important question is, how were you planning on leaving without this?”

  “…I…”

  “Were you planning on first sending us away, and then go look for it by yourself?”

  “Seriously, how can you be so careless as to lose something so important?”

  “He probably dropped it when he was possessed.”

  “But that still does not give him the excuse to lie to us.”

  “Indeed… What kind of punishment do you think we should give him this time?”

  “Something that he will remember for a long time.”

  “Hmmm… I think I have an idea…”

  “…We can discuss his punishment later. Cecilia, give him his Blood Card. We need to leave right now.”

  “…This is not over,” Cecilia said with a snort, as she shoved Alnea’s Blood Card back into his hands. “Just wait until we get back…”

  “If he goes back,” Vestia said, flashing a sly grin. “Who knows, he might just trick us into leaving, only to stay back and fight those flames…”

  “…You have already said so much, do I still have a choice?” Alnea said, smiling helplessly, before glancing at the flames clashing in the distance one last time. “Besides, there is no shame in running away from those ridiculous flames…”