Chapter 624

## Book 1 Chapter 624

### 624.

‘Are you the Great Spirit of Fire?’

—Indeed. The lineage of the Tungkon royalty runs through your veins, correct? If that is the case, I have the power to rescue you from this predicament!

Istar spoke with absolute certainty.

—I have spent ages studying your family line! As long as you possess the Tungkon blood, I can grant you my strength without requiring a formal pact!

The motivation behind Istar’s desire to aid Raina was entirely straightforward.

‘I am completely ruined!’

The elemental realized right away that his existence as a spirit had been utterly upended ever since he crossed paths with Leo.

The sanctuary he had carefully preserved for centuries had already been completely destroyed. Worse still, every single minor spirit under his command had defected to Elsy. To make matters more dire, those lesser elementals who swore allegiance to Elsy now harbored a profound animosity toward him.

Faced with this reality, Istar could not help but reflect on his past behavior.

‘I demanded they collect the precise morning dew touched by the very first rays of dawn!’

‘Forgive me! Please forgive me!’

Arsia, the very first to break free from Istar’s control, had actually been his longest-serving servant. Yet, he had routinely inflicted such harsh treatment even upon Arsia.

‘Those underlings might spend eternity making my life a living hell!’

He briefly considered fleeing from Leo entirely. Even though his domain was shattered and his followers were gone, his status as a Great Spirit was still intact. Nevertheless, he quickly abandoned the idea of flight.

‘My own fire kin are relatively polite; they won’t seek my total destruction. But the other entities holding the title of Great Spirit will not be so merciful.’

Istar had incredibly hostile relationships with the other elemental lords.

‘Particularly Undine, the ruler of the deep oceans! She will undoubtedly try to erase my very existence!’

In the distant past, Istar had completely demolished the oceanic spirit’s sanctuary. Ever since that day, Undine had held a fierce resentment against him. If she discovered that he was now homeless and entirely stripped of his subordinate elementals, she would seize the perfect opportunity to exact her long-awaited vengeance.

A cold shudder ran through Istar.

‘When it comes down to it, securing my own protection requires forming an alliance with Leo Plov!’

Any ordinary magic practitioner would have desperately begged for a contract with Istar. After all, a Great Spirit commanded absolute reverence merely by existing.

‘However, to someone like Leo Plov, my value isn’t nearly as absolute!’

He likely wouldn’t be tossed aside like common gravel, given his status. Yet, he couldn’t expect any extraordinary reverence either. The fundamental reason Istar had rejected Leo’s proposal in the first place was his pride; he couldn’t bear the thought of being just another ordinary asset to him.

‘Leo Plov has already bound himself not just to Larel, the Great Spirit of Light, but to that mysterious, unidentifiable entity as well.’

Not to mention his command over the Three Great Mythical Beasts. In all of Istar’s historical recollections, only a single master could match the caliber of the current Leo Plov: the legendary Rishinas, known as the King of Wisdom.

‘If I must enter a bond, I intend to earn a position of respect!’

While the spirit frantically searched for a way to secure favorable standing, his gaze landed on Raina, who was currently in dire jeopardy. Istar was well aware that Leo’s primary objective in coming to this location was to rescue his mother. Fortuitously, Raina possessed the blood of the Tungkon.

‘If I provide her with my energy and deliver her from danger, I will earn his goodwill!’

At a minimum, it would prevent his former underlings from making him their target.

—Let us strike a bargain, Raina Plov!

‘A bargain?’

—Precisely! Use my capabilities to transcend this immediate peril! In return, all I ask is that you put in a good word for me with Leo Plov afterward!

‘Pardon?’

—I beg of you! Allow me to assist you! My entire future existence hinges upon this moment!

—

Raina was conscious of the fact that those born to the Tungkon royalty carried the divine favor of the Spirit of Purification. Furthermore, Leo was actively claiming the heritage of the Tungkon during this endeavor. Therefore, it wouldn’t be unusual for a connection to form with the Spirit of Purification.

Yet, for such an entity to desperately plead to offer assistance?

‘Why does every single creature connected to Leo seem so bizarre?’

Casting aside her brief bewilderment, Raina addressed Istar.

‘Are you saying… you can grant me your energy?’

—Yes! With it, breaking free from this danger is entirely achievable!

‘In that case, can you give me enough power to stand my ground and oppose this man?’

—Oppose him? You want to fight?

‘Yes. Bestow your power upon me.’

—You comprehend the full weight of that request, do you not? Are you truly ready to gamble with your own mortality?

Istar’s tone abruptly grew ice-cold.

The adversary, who had been completely played with by Leo previously, was still an extraordinary terror. He remained a figure of ruinous capability who had ended the lives of many champions. Naturally, confronting such an antagonist demanded a willingness to sacrifice everything.

Yet, the determination Istar was referring to went far beyond the standard resolve needed to face a formidable foe. The initial support Istar proposed was intended solely for fleeing from Zora. However, Raina was demanding a level of force far exceeding a mere retreat.

Out of all the natural forces, fire possessed exceptionally violent and perilous attributes. The capacity to reduce even one’s own body to cinders for the sake of destroying a foe was the true nature of the hearth.

—Your internal aura vanished ages ago, did it not? That implies you possess no defensive barrier to shield your physical form from my blazing heat. The very instant your concentration wavers while channeling this energy, my own fire will consume you.

‘I am fully aware.’

Raina replied without a trace of panic.

‘Even so, I require the capacity to strike back against this opponent right now.’

Even if she accepted the severe hazards of wielding Istar’s essence, winning the battle remained an impossibility.

And yet…

‘I can at least provide a shield or assistance to those young ones.’

Raina’s mind turned to the aspiring heroes currently engaging in battle to defend the Plov lands.

During the previous summer season, while the educational camp was underway within the Plov domain, Raina had observed the manner in which Leo observed those young trainees. His gaze carried an intense desire to see them mature swiftly. While distinct in nature, it mirrored the affectionate watchfulness a guardian maintains over their offspring.

‘He was an unusual boy right from his infancy.’

Leo had never shed a single tear as a newborn, displaying an eerie maturity far beyond his years.

‘On occasion, he stares at me—his own mother—with a knowing, almost condescending expression, as though observing an infant. On other occasions, his gaze is filled with deep, sincere sorrow for me.’

Raina sighed inwardly.

‘It is difficult to determine whether he is truly my child or a contemporary peer.’

Even so.

‘As his mother, I understand instinctively.’

She knew Leo harbored a monumental objective that stretched far beyond her comprehension.

‘Moreover, those youth are absolutely vital for him to realize that dream.’

She refused to remain passive while the allies her son had selected were pushed to the brink of destruction.

‘More than anything, I am their predecessor, am I not?’

Granted, she had long since been stripped of her strength and stepped away from the battlefield. Granted, devoid of Istar’s essence, she would amount to nothing more than an impediment. Yet, as a veteran who had previously treaded the exact same journey, she could not permit the next generation to be shattered. Even if she had to lay down her life in the process.

‘Guiding the youth so they may forge ahead into tomorrow—that is the responsibility of those who came before.’

For that precise reason, at this very moment, she was attempting to drag her body back onto the grand stage she had been forced to leave behind years ago.

—A single momentary lapse will result in a meaningless, miserable death. Even in the fortunate event of your survival, you will likely endure permanent, crippling consequences. Are you absolutely certain you will not look back with remorse?

‘If it comes to that, remorse is certain. However…’

Raina’s gaze ignited with fierce determination.

‘If I choose flight over this confrontation… this monster will undoubtedly vent his malice upon the local villagers.’

Zora had discarded every shred of his deceitful facade. He was fully prepared to slaughter the inhabitants of the Plov domain simply to appease his boiling frustration. Furthermore, the young trainees possessed no means to halt such an atrocity at present.

Such an outcome was completely unacceptable. Ultimately, avoiding the battle now would bring her the deepest sorrow of all.

If that was the case…

‘I would much rather stand my ground, fight, and face whatever regrets follow.’

Istar became quiet, awed by Raina’s unwavering resolve.

—Ah… your family line has always been defined by this exact nature. It remains steadfast, passing from one era to the next. No matter how many times your forms alter, or if the designation of Tungkon fades from memory, your core identity never wavers.

The sublime dignity of offering up one’s own well-being for the sake of others—such noble spirits had consistently emerged from the Tungkon ancestry.

—Indeed. That is precisely the reason I aligned with your kind.

It was not merely due to their biological compatibility with the Flame of Purification under his control that he historically established bonds with them. He had picked the Tungkon family because of their unyielding convictions.

—

“You dare to mock me with that smile, woman…?!”

Simultaneously, a suffocating aura of murderous intent radiated from Zora’s frame.

“Let us discover how long that expression remains on your face!”

Just as Zora lifted his arm with a sinister sneer—

*Thud!*

“…?”

Raina’s fingers suddenly clamped around Zora’s wrist, which was tightly constricting her throat.

“A futile struggle,” Zora sneered, completely unimpressed.

*Blaze!*

“…!”

A torrent of azure fire erupted directly from Raina’s grip.

“Aaargh!”

Zora let out a terrified scream as the Flame of Purification instantaneously reduced his hand to mere cinders. Concurrently, a sharp, blazing blade energy burst outward. Evading the searing energy by a hair’s breadth, Zora stared in absolute disbelief at Raina, who was now levitating above the ground, completely enveloped in a brilliant azure conflagration.

Miniature wings formed of pure fire manifested at Raina’s ankles. The incendiary energy wrapped around her torso like a suit of luminous armor, while a radiant blade and a blazing lance materialized in her respective hands.

While the ultimate source of this elemental power was undeniably Istar, the individual dictating its movements with absolute autonomy was none other than Raina. Observing the fires that danced in perfect alignment with her intent, Raina squeezed her fists shut.

A profound feeling she believed vanished forever was suddenly reawakened. The aspiration to stand as a champion—a path that had been closed off to her, a dream she was forced to relinquish. A part of her identity she had been compelled to cast away before her mind could even process the loss.

‘Once this battle concludes, there will be no coming back to this realm of power.’

Because of that truth, she had to pour everything into this single moment.

‘Exceeding my boundaries like this… this marks the absolute final instance of my existence.’

*Roar!*

An inferno surpassing even the peak of her youth burst forth from Raina’s form. Witnessing this display, Zora questioned her in utter bewilderment.

“What… what sort of entity are you?!”

“Who am I?”

Raina’s mouth twisted into a distinct arc. It was a playful, nearly devilish smirk—yet it simultaneously held an unsettling, mesmerizing allure.

It was, precisely defined:

“A witch.”

The quintessential grin of a sorceress.