Chapter 624

624.

‘Great Spirit of Fire?’

“Yes. You too have the bl**d of the Tengkon royal family, do you not? If so, I can save you from this crisis!”

Ista spoke confidently.

“I’ve spent a long time researching your bloodline! As a descendant of Tengkon, you can utilize my power without even a contract!”

The reason Ista decided to help Reina was simple.

‘I’m doomed!’

Through her encounter with Leo, Ista immediately realized that her life as a spirit had taken a dark turn. The place she had meticulously cultivated for so long had been utterly destroyed. To make matters worse, all the subordinate spirits she had under her control were now under Elshi’s power. Not only that, but these spirits held significant hostility towards her.

In this situation, Ista couldn’t help but recall her past deeds.

‘I used to order them to gather the earliest dewdrops that caught the sunlight!’

“Sorry! Sorry!”

Alcia was the first to escape Ista’s dominion and had been her longest-serving subordinate spirit.

Even Alcia was the frequent target of such oppressive behavior.

‘They might torment me for the rest of my life!’

Ista had considered fleeing from Leo. Although she had lost her base and subordinate spirits, she was still a Great Spirit after all.

But escaping wasn’t an option either:

‘Fire spirits are actually the better kind. They won’t try to annihilate me at least. But the other Great Spirits are different.’

Ista had a severely strained relationship with the Great Spirits.

‘Especially Undine, the spirit of the deep seas! She will surely aim to destroy me!’

A long time ago, Ista had destroyed Undine’s base. Since then, Undine had harbored intense resentment towards Ista.

‘If Undine knows that I’ve not only lost my base but all my subordinate spirits as well, she’ll certainly seek revenge.’

Ista trembled out of fear.

‘Ultimately, the pledge with Leo Flove is necessary for my own safety right now!’

Any other summoner would definitely seek to form a pact with Ista.

A Great Spirit is an entity worthy of respect in its own right.

‘But Leo Flove doesn’t value me enough.’

As a Great Spirit, I wouldn’t be treated like a common stone by the roadside.

Yet, it was also unlikely that Leo would give me special treatment.

Initially, the very reason Ista rejected Leo’s offer for a pledge was because she couldn’t bear the fact that she was of little worth to Leo.

‘Leo Flove has already made pacts with the Great Spirit of Light, Rael, and some unknown spirit.’

Moreover, Leo has three Familiars.

In Ista’s memory, there was only one summoner who could be compared to today’s Leo Flove: the King of Wisdom, Lissinas.

‘If I have to make a pact, I want to be treated well!’

Determined to receive proper treatment at all costs, Ista’s attention turned towards Reina, who was caught in her crisis. Ista knew Leo had come here to rescue his mother. Moreover, Reina possessed the bloodline of Tengkon.

‘If I lend her my strength and rescue her, she might respect me!’

At the very least, she would avoid being harassed by her former subordinate spirits.

Reina knew well that members of the Tengkon royal family had been protected by the Purifying Spirit. Leo was also inheriting the legacy of Tengkon this time. Thus, it wouldn’t be unusual for her to make a pact with the Spirit of Purification.

But imploring her for help?

‘Why do Leo and all his affiliated spirits have to be strange?’

Shaking off the brief doubts, Reina addressed Ista.

“So… you’re saying you can lend me your strength?”

“Yes! If I help you overcome this crisis, please speak highly of me to Leo Flove!”

“What?”

“Please! Allow me to assist you! It’s a matter of life or d*ath for me as a spirit!”

Reina also knew that the royal family of Tengkon was blessed by the Purifying Spirit, and Leo was inheriting Tengkon’s legacy. It wasn’t odd for her to make a pact with the Spirit of Purification.

But asking for help?

‘Why are the summoners who get involved with Leo all weird?’

Pushing aside this fleeting thought, Reina spoke to Ista.

‘So… you’re saying you can lend me your strength?’

“Yes! If you do, you can escape this crisis!”

‘Can you give me enough strength to stand against this guy too?’

“Fight against? This one?”

‘Yes. Please lend me your strength.’

‘Do you fully understand the meaning of this? Are you prepared to stake your life?’

Suddenly, Ista’s voice grew icy.

Leo, who thoroughly toyed with Zorea, was an irregular monster. Despite his many victories over countless heroes and the catastrophic power he wielded, the readiness Ista mentioned wasn’t just about facing a formidable opponent.

The strength Ista originally intended to lend was minimal—only enough to escape from Zorea.

But what Reina sought was something much greater.

Among the countless elements, flames were especially wild and perilous.

Reina understood that the essence of this flame was one that would destroy its user along with the enemy.

“Long ago, you lost your Aura, correct? That means there’s no protective means against my flames. Should you make even a small mistake controlling my flames, they will consume you.”

‘I know.’

Reina said calmly.

‘But now, I need the strength to stand against this person.’

Even if taking Ista’s power meant facing danger, there was no guarantee of success.

But…

‘Maybe I could be of some help to those kids, at the very least.’

Reina thought about the Hero Candidates who were fighting for the Flob territory.

Last summer, when the training camp was held in Flob Territory, Reina noticed how Leo looked at the Hero Candidates—his eyes reflecting an eager desire for them to grow. Though fundamentally different, those eyes were similar to how parents looked upon their children.

‘He was an unusual child since he was little.’

Leo never cried as a baby and was far beyond his years.

‘Sometimes, the brat looks down on me, as if I’m a child. And sometimes, he looks at me as if I’m utterly pitiful.’

Reina complained.

‘How am I supposed to figure out if he’s my son or my friend?’

Even so…

‘I still know because he’s my child.’

Reina knew that Leo had an unimaginably massive goal.

‘A goal he needs these children to achieve.’

She couldn’t sit idly by while her child’s comrades were in peril.

‘Besides, I am technically their senior, right?’

Despite currently being powerless and having exited the stage, borrowing Ista’s power would at least prevent her from being a burden.

As a former peer of the same path, she couldn’t let the younger generation falter.

Even if it meant sacrificing herself.

‘Supporting the next generation as they head towards the future. That’s an adult’s responsibility.’

That’s why, even now,

She was trying to ascend a stage she should have gracefully exited long ago.

‘Just a slight mistake, and you’re dead. Even if you survive by luck, there might be terrible aftereffects. Are you sure you won’t regret this?’

‘I might regret it. But…’

Reina’s eyes burned.

‘If I run away now, this man is certainly going to attack our townsfolk.’

Zorea had cast away all pretenses of civility. Driven by rage, he would massacre the people of Flob.

And currently, none of the Hero Candidates had the strength to stop him.

‘That must not happen.’

Ultimately, Reina would regret not fighting here today.

So…

‘I’ll choose to fight and regret it later.’

Reina’s firm resolution made Ista fall silent.

‘Yes… you do come from such a lineage. No matter how many generations pass, it remains unchanged. Even if Tengkon’s name disappears, you remain constant.’

The noble virtue of someone willing to sacrifice themselves for others has always been a hallmark of those of Tengkon descent.

‘That’s why I chose you.’

It wasn’t only because your lineage suited the purifying flames I possessed. It was because of your principles I chose the Tengkon bloodline.

“Still mocking me, woman…?”

At that moment, an intense killing intent burst from Zorea’s body.

“Let’s see if you can keep laughing!”

As Zorea sneered and raised his hand,

Swoosh!

“…”

Reina’s hand grabbed Zorea’s twisted wrist tightly around her neck.

“A futile resistance.”

With a derisive smirk, Zorea mocked her.

Whoosh!

“!”

From Reina’s hand, a blue flame surged upward.

“No!”

Startled, Zorea couldn’t help but scream as the purifying flames instantly turned his hand into ash.

At that moment, a blazing sword-like wave of fire flickered.

Zorea narrowly avoided being struck but stared in disbelief at Reina, now cloaked in blue flames and floating in the air.

Small flames emerged from beneath Reina’s heels, forming wings.

The flames encased her like armor, with both her hands burning with a flaming sword and spear.

Though the flames undoubtedly belonged to Ista, it was Reina who controlled them skillfully.

As the flames burned according to her will, Reina clenched her fists tightly.

A sensation long lost returned to her.

The goal of becoming a Hero that she could no longer achieve and had to give up…

A different self she lost before she was ready…

‘If this ends now, I will never return to this moment.’

Therefore, she must give her all.

‘Going beyond my limits… This is likely going to be the last time in my life.’

Whoosh!

Flames erupted from Reina’s body beyond her prime.

Seeing this, Zorea couldn’t conceal his disbelief and asked.

“You… What exactly are you?”

“Me?”

Reina’s lips curved into a mischievous grin, both eerie and alluring.

That was literally…

“A witch.”

The very smile of a witch.