Chapter 9

After exchanging looks of confusion with Poara,

I got right to the point.

“Poara, can you guide me to the ironwood path?”

“Sure, I’ll lead the way!”

Maybe it was because it was a mission as part of the Student Council,

but Poara started marching confidently into the forest.

It seemed like she wanted to successfully complete this mission in order to be promoted from a temporary member to a full one.

“I want to stop her, but…”

It’s best to resolve the Spirit Great Forest issue as quickly as possible.

I needed a plan, especially for the upcoming mock battle.

So, I followed Poara diligently into the Great Forest.

After traversing a fair distance,

I realized what being a Spirit Mage meant in the Spirit Great Forest.

Originally, during my first visit, the trees had stood densely in place.

But as soon as Poara started to move, the trees parted, and the grass split apart.

It was as if the entire forest was welcoming Poara.

“There’s a reason Nikita sent a Spirit Mage.”

The Spirit Great Forest is known to be extremely hostile to outsiders.

But Spirit Mages are different.

A Spirit Mage is someone favored by spirits.

Thus, the trees inhabited by spirits greeted the Spirit Mage.

“Especially Poara seems to have a different level of sensitivity than other Spirit Mages.”

I often heard about the Spirit Great Forest while playing the game.

Lucas, possessing spirit sensitivity, could also have a position as a Spirit Mage.

So being a Spirit Mage while visiting the Spirit Great Forest was clearly a different experience than visiting without that title.

But even so, she wasn’t on Poara’s level.

“She left during Act 4 because of the Boycott Incident.”

Poara was also a talented Spirit Mage to get into Jerion Academy.

That’s probably why the Student Council quickly accepted her as a temporary member.

“I’m glad I brought her along.”

With each of Poara’s confident strides, the forest opened a path for us.

Thanks to that, we could pass through the Spirit Great Forest quite easily.

Soon, I began to feel a chill.

The Spirit Great Forest is usually filled with warmth due to the spirits.

So feeling cold here was unusual.

“Ugh, it’s co-cold.”

However, both of us were suddenly confronted with a clear coldness that overtook us.

Then, before my eyes, a sight that should not have been appeared.

A spirit tree was as hard as steel.

As if even the spirit inside had turned into steel.

The tree had completely lost its vitality.

“W-What is this?”

This was Poara’s first time witnessing such a scene.

A look of shock crossed her face.

It was already a well-known story among the Spirit Mage students that the spirit trees had turned to iron,

but being a 1st-year student, Poara probably hadn’t ventured this deep before.

I approached the steel tree and felt it with my hand.

The cold seeped into my palm.

It was freezing.

Touching it felt like touching ice on a lake frozen in the bitter cold of winter.

“This has progressed more than I expected.”

Originally, this event should have been resolved in the latter part of Act 2 after the winter break.

But due to Lucas’s absence and some incident, it had dragged on until now.

My red eyes quietly surveyed the area.

“Poara, can you sense the spirits?”

“N-No, I can’t feel anything! It’s completely empty here!”

Poara’s face turned as pale as a ghost in response to my question.

Spirits are like nature.

If nature exists, it’s logical for spirits to exist too.

Moreover, the Spirit Great Forest has a much higher concentration of spirits than other places.

The absence of spirits in the Spirit Great Forest indicates an irreversible disaster.

“That’s right.”

I withdrew my hand from the steel tree.

The spirits were trapped within this iron.

So it was only natural that I couldn’t feel their presence.

“I’m going in. You wait here.”

“W-What? S-Senpai, isn’t it dangerous to go alone?”

“It’s fine. If things get risky, I’ll signal you, so just wait here.”

As a Spirit Mage, Poara could no longer be of help.

What was needed here was just one thing.

“A fierce flame that can even melt steel.”

Magung Academy Slayer.

The reason the third work was named after the Fire Butterfly Part.

All of this revolves around Lucas’s fiery determination, which is the key to solving all the incidents.

But right now.

With Lucas’s death, the flame of determination had completely extinguished.

The world had lost its blazing fire.

All that remained were ashes of burnt wood.

But.

Even burnt wood must ignite.

To maintain a world that had lost its flames.

I needed to become the kindling to spark a new fire.

I opened my bag.

Then I casually placed a bottle from inside next to the tree.

This was my insurance.

I looked at my hands, slightly trembling.

Having come this far, I was nervous about what was about to happen.

I clapped my hands to steady myself and stood up.

Instead, I pulled out something else from my bag.

As I retrieved it, wrapped in a special cloth, I felt a familiar warmth.

I laid it on the iron earth and unwrapped the cloth.

Fwooosh-

The gust of hot air that burst out from the fabric warmed my face.

The chill of steel around me was instantly consumed by the heat.

Wherever the cloth was uncovered, a rough red crystal appeared.

Within the crystal, a flicker of flame surged brightly.

This is what we call the essence of fire.

It’s the remains of a fire spirit that lived and died.

Yet the warmth held a fierce power reminiscent of the fire spirit in its prime.

“They must be losing their minds to see me carrying this.”

Transporting the remains of a spirit is a taboo for Spirit Mages.

But it didn’t matter to me.

I wasn’t a Spirit Mage anyway.

“I need to guide this world towards the proper path.”

So even if it’s a forbidden act, I’ll do whatever is necessary for that path.

I ignited a fire in the chill-laden steel forest.

In contrast to the blazing essence of fire, my eyes reflected a chilliness.

“Here it comes.”

As I raised my head, a fierce chill blew in from that direction.

Darkness began to engulf my surroundings.

The strange sound of something scraping against the steel ground echoed in my ears.

Shiver-

A shiver coursed through my body as I took a breath.

And soon, a figure emerged from the darkness before my eyes.

It was a being made of chilling steel.

It resembled both a sword and a woman with long hair.

A being that should have been a deity of the land,

but for some unknown reason, became cursed and fell into ruin.

The world calls this being ‘Mystery.’

It was the first time I’d encountered a Mystery since embodying the Fire Butterfly Part today.

＊ ＊ ＊

In the Spirit Great Forest of the northern Dragon Mountain range,

I’m now face to face with a Mystery.

In front of me stands a woman forged from icy steel.

The chill emanating from her has turned the spirit trees into iron.

I carefully straightened my posture.

Mystery, ‘Steel Empress.’

The being that could not become a god roams aimlessly, finding a place here in the Spirit Great Forest.

Originally, the power of the spirits inhabiting the Spirit Great Forest would have been a delicious treat for Mystery.

But prior to that, the Spirit Sovereign, on the brink of becoming a deity, had guarded the forest.

Thus, Mysteries couldn’t just waltz into the Spirit Great Forest.

“But the Spirit Sovereign, who had resided here, ultimately completed their term and became a divine being.”

As a result, the position of the Spirit Sovereign became vacant.

With the sudden vacancy, the protection that the Spirit Great Forest enjoyed disappeared.

Thus, the Steel Empress lurked into the Spirit Great Forest.

“This is the reason…”

This is why the Steel Empress came into the Spirit Great Forest.

“The protagonist, Lucas, will melt the Steel Empress with the flame of determination and defeat her.”

The Steel Empress desires to rid herself of the chill within her.

That chill isn’t originally hers but is a power gained from becoming a Mystery.

A Mystery that could not become a deity harbors deep self-loathing.

Thus, the Steel Empress wishes to constantly shed the power she has acquired.

That’s why the Steel Empress recognizes Lucas’s flame of determination.

And she becomes a moth drawn to the flame, trying to steal it from him.

After defeating the Steel Empress,

Lucas receives expressions of gratitude from the spirits.

During that process, the newly elected Spirit Sovereign offers Lucas a pact.

This is the route of Lucas, the Spirit Mage.

“But Lucas isn’t here right now.”

There’s no flame of determination that can melt her.

All that remains is at best the essence of fire.

But the essence of fire is enough to draw her out.

More than anything, she craves warmth.

She will chase after anything with warmth.

[ Ugh, heeh. ]

As expected, the Steel Empress started charging towards me.

The direction she was heading was the essence of fire I had placed before her.

Yearning for warmth, she threw herself at the essence of fire.

Sssssizzle!

But the cold from the Steel Empress quickly extinguished the essence of fire.

The essence of fire holds the power of just one spirit.

Against someone who could turn even the tree inhabited by spirits into steel, the essence of fire had no chance of survival.

[ Ugh, ughhh. ]

Crack! Clang!

The Steel Empress crushed the extinguished essence of fire.

Thud!

At the same time, the ground beneath her feet morphed into fierce steel.

She was furious for not having filled herself with warmth.

The winds, laden with chill, began to whip violently.

Perhaps frightened, the spirit trees trembled like aspens.

The Steel Empress slowly turned her head this way.

The light disappeared, and darkness began to consume the surroundings.

Chill-

Once again, a shiver ran down my spine.

Mysteries are beings that should have become deities but have not.

Their powers are obviously far beyond those of humans.

Maybe that’s why my body is speaking.

Telling me to run away immediately.

No matter how many times I played through the Fire Butterfly Part, that was just a game.

Now, facing a being so unreal, fear crept in unbidden.

My body shook with instinctive fear.

There’s no helping it.

No matter how much I may know about this world.

I’m still a human.

The bizarre danger that stands before me, now turned real, terrifies me.

Yet there was something even more frightening.

“Facing such a monster, I realize.”

I suddenly fell into this world without warning.

While I know this world better than anyone, I’m also a confusing entity who hasn’t truly lived it.

That’s who I am.

It’s terrifying.

When this world became a realm I didn’t fully understand.

I don’t know what I could possibly do.

So I struggled desperately to fill the void left by our protagonist.

Otherwise, I would become a useless presence in this world.

“A cog in the machine.”

They say humans are social animals.

Humans fear when the cogs in their machine start coming apart.

I’ve experienced that once.

During my days when I was known as a promising talent.

An unexpected injury dashed my dreams, and I was thrown into society unprotected.

I felt utterly worthless.

So I know that fear well.

That’s why I could immerse myself in the Fire Butterfly Part.

I had escaped into games from my derailed life.

But now.

Even my refuge is collapsing and misaligning.

My only sanctuary is driving me away.

Somewhere along the line, my fist clenched tightly.

Enduring through a post-bad ending world is both my obsession and my stubbornness.

Yet whether it’s obsession or stubbornness,

I want to protect this world.

This is the place that has become my only escape and happiness.

So I’ll do anything now, and in the future.

I raised my head.

The Steel Empress, that mysterious being, appeared before me.

The Steel Empress will become the basis and strength for my future.

This was originally a trial that Lucas needed to undergo.

I would take on the first of these trials.

My crimson eyes shone fiercely.

I was no longer afraid of the Steel Empress.

I knew something even scarier than her.

Even without the flame of determination,

I raised my fists while igniting a different flame of determination.

“Come on.”

I will make this world continue for my sake.