Chapter 56
The Chaotic Spirit Burning in Longing for Its Master.
Kraush let out a small sigh.
‘It’s much weaker than I thought.’
The chaotic spirit, which could only be harmed by skills, was quite the annoyance for the Celestial Generation.
The reason it had obliterated a city back then was largely due to the absence of such skills.
Thus, Ignis, which transformed aura into skill form, was undoubtedly the most advantageous against the chaotic spirit.
However, despite that, Kraush defeated the chaotic spirit much more easily than he expected, leaving him a bit puzzled.
He thought there would be a hole or two in his body after this.
‘…Surprisingly, the chaotic spirit may have been somewhat purified in the Spirit King’s Forest?’
Kraush focused on the fact that the chaotic spirit was weaker than anticipated.
Perhaps it was a good choice for Crimson Garden to release the chaotic spirit into the Spirit King’s Forest.
‘Well, thinking back, the chaotic spirit turned into a true monster largely due to a chain of events.’
The chaotic spirit had grown uncontrollably strong for several reasons.
From sorcerers messing with spirit amplification magic, which was more dangerous than spirit magic itself, to the world being ravaged by various wars and erosion, leading to the Spirit King’s Forest becoming overrun, ultimately resulting in the chaotic spirit being engulfed by that chaos.
It had rapidly transformed from a being wandering aimlessly after the death of the Original Spirit Sage into an uncontrollable monster.
‘Good thing I can catch it now.’
As he sorted through his thoughts, Kraush took a deep breath and raised his hand.
Though it currently couldn’t regenerate due to being engulfed in Ignis, the real issue with the chaotic spirit was its regeneration ability.
No matter how much damage was dealt, over time it would just revert to its original state around its core.
Thus, to finally end the chaotic spirit, he absolutely had to remove that core.
The problem was that conventional attacks wouldn’t be able to destroy it.
‘Black Hood.’
With that in mind, Kraush activated Black Hood immediately.
With a surge of power in his hand, a pitch-black, round sphere cradled in his grasp emerged.
The moment Kraush held the core, the black liquid comprising the chaotic spirit began to slither towards him.
Since he had used the same method to defeat the chaotic spirit before, smashing the core this time would lead to the spirit’s death.
Kraush’s gaze met the core.
Inside it, darkness writhed, and it was filled with malevolence, making it something that couldn’t be used anywhere due to its overwhelming power of world erosion.
Thus, in the past, he had destroyed the core the instant he obtained it.
But Kraush had another idea this time.
‘In the end, if the source is world erosion…’
That meant it could be absorbed by the extreme blood poison!
“Crimson Garden.”
Hearing Kraush’s call, Crimson Garden emerged from the rubble of the broken dark wall.
“Get ready to say goodbye.”
Without wasting any time, Kraush began to absorb the world erosion contained within the core.
In that instant, Kraush looked up at the sunlight he felt on his head.
Before him unfolded a never-before-seen scene.
On a peaceful meadow.
A boy was spending a delightful time under the shade of a large tree with a girl who had emerald hair.
“Agni, how’s it? Isn’t it refreshing?”
The girl was fanning Agni’s face, who was lying down.
The gentle breeze caused Agni’s hair to flutter, and in turn, he smiled.
“It’s actually ticklish.”
“What? If it’s ticklish, then this is what you need!”
The girl then raised her hands and started to tickle Agni’s body all over.
Agni burst out laughing from the girl’s surprise attack and soon pulled her close to tickle her back.
Beyond those moments of joy, the two had experienced numerous events together.
Sometimes, they saved people as heroes, and at other times, they were praised as the founding figures of spirit magic.
However, as time cruelly flowed on without pause, the boy had grown into an old man.
Unlike the old man, the girl beside him remained unchanged.
Before the flickering campfire.
The aged Agni slowly closed his wrinkled eyes.
“Eri.”
“Yes, Agni, I’m right here. Did you call for me?”
“I’m sorry. It seems my time isn’t as endless as yours.”
Spirits live on the power of world erosion.
Humans, on the other hand, live with the limit of their lifespan.
The timelines of the two could never align.
“I wish I could show you more. My world hasn’t widened like yours.”
“Agni?”
“Eri.”
With great effort, Agni called Eri’s name.
He could no longer open his closed eyes.
“Because of you, my time was happy.”
The boy who dreamed of the world as a spirit sage had now become an old man, nearing the end of his lifespan.
Thus, at the very edge of that lifespan, the old man desired one thing.
That his happiness would reach her.
That she wouldn’t be sad after he was gone.
At the culmination of that wish, Agni took his last breath.
“Agni? Are you sleeping?”
The girl innocently called to Agni.
She didn’t understand the concept of death.
So, she thought he was simply asleep, as usual.
From that day on, the girl remained by Agni’s side.
Calling his name every day and anxiously waiting for him to awaken.
“Agni, it’s cold today. You might catch a cold.”
Sometimes, she would blow warm winds to cover him with a blanket.
She would also brew cocoa, placing it before his table, hoping he would smell the sweet aroma and wake up.
“Agni, it’s summer. You can hear the cicadas outside. I heard that Delon’s daughter next door, who was born recently, is getting married. Time flies so fast.”
Occasionally, she would cool the air with a gust of wind and place watermelon, which she had sourced from somewhere, on Agni’s table.
It was in season, and he always enjoyed it when it was cool.
And then it was spring, summer, autumn, winter.
Time kept flowing on.
The girl chatted about all the things that happened that day, doing her best to ensure Agni could sleep peacefully.
She waited for him.
Waiting and waiting.
However, Agni’s body gradually turned to bone, and he never opened his eyes again.
“Agni, I’m getting tired. I want to talk to you again.”
The girl missed the time they had spent together conversing.
She longed for Agni’s smiling face, his sometimes sad expression, and those days when he would get angry.
“Agni.”
She missed him deeply.
“I really miss you, Agni.”
Though she didn’t want to believe it, the girl realized the truth.
Her master would never open his eyes again.
And that it meant farewell.
On the day the skeletal remains fell apart, the girl’s heart shattered simultaneously.
The first farewell for a spirit who knew nothing of parting was an unbearable reality.
In a world without the boy, there was no place for the girl.
“Ah, Agni.”
The girl mourned for the boy until the very end and was engulfed by chaos.
Flash-
Kraush’s eyes slowly opened.
What he saw was a pure white sphere.
As he gazed at that sphere, a girl appeared before him.
Her emerald hair was faded and she stood there, her face hard to recognize, half of it destroyed.
Yet he could still read the emotions in that face.
A mix of resignation and acceptance.
The girl slowly smiled, looking at Kraush and Crimson Garden beside him.
Taking off the respirator that was on her face, Crimson Garden approached.
“…I’m sorry. I thought I shouldn’t interfere in your farewell. But, I suppose a comforter is needed in farewells.”
She reached out and enveloped the girl in an embrace.
She thought the girl would definitely realize her goodbye and depart.
Once the paper dies, Crimson Garden would no longer be able to see the world.
However, the feelings she harbored for Agni were stronger than expected, and that ultimately led the girl toward ruin.
Afterward, it would have been her responsibility to care for the girl, who was left behind by Agni.
Crimson Garden felt deeply sorry for not being able to take full responsibility for her.
Slowly, the girl began to disappear in that embrace.
In the arms of Crimson Garden, who emitted a similar energy to Agni, she quietly transformed into motes of light, flying high into the sky.
Kraush looked up at the shimmering light floating into the sky.
At least, he hoped that the motes of light would reach the one she so dearly missed.
＊ ＊ ＊
After safely storing the sphere in his pocket, Kraush and Crimson Garden exited the Spirit King’s Forest.
The soldiers saluted her, expressing their gratitude, and Crimson Garden politely returned the gesture.
As Kraush walked beside her, he glanced at her and asked.
“Are you okay?”
Kraush had only gleaned bits and pieces of Eri’s memories while absorbing the power of world erosion.
But Crimson Garden was different.
She had seen and experienced the world through Agni’s eyes.
So, she couldn’t bring herself to end Eri, even though she could.
“I’m fine.”
Crimson Garden replied with a deep breath.
“Immortals go through such things.”
Crimson Garden was an immortal who had lived longer than Eri.
Kraush couldn’t even fathom how long her life had been.
All he knew was that it had been far too long.
She must have gone through countless farewells.
And she must have lamented the deaths of the subordinates she cherished.
Yet, she created another subordinate.
That was her only way of witnessing the world.
An endless life repeats endless farewells with those who live finite lives.
Perhaps the reason Crimson Garden wanted to erase her immortality was that she didn’t want to experience those farewells any longer.
“I’ll take your immortality.”
Thus, Kraush turned to Crimson Garden and said.
Hearing this, Crimson Garden let out a bewildered laugh for a moment as she raised her hand.
Then a raven flew down and perched on her hand.
“Right, I’ll have to make you stronger for that.”
To break the shackles of immortality, Crimson Garden needed to make Kraush stronger.
That was the only way to sever the bond of immortality.
The raven that had settled on Kraush’s shoulder lowered its head and took flight.
[ Now hurry and resurrect that spirit named Dorothy. ]
“Absolutely.”
Kraush pulled out the sphere he had stored in his pocket.
It was none other than the Egg of the Spirit King.
The core that emerges when the spirit is destroyed.
That was precisely what the Egg of the Spirit King was.
Thanks to Kraush absorbing all the power of world erosion, the egg was in a pristine state.
Now all that remained was to locate Dorothy’s core to resurrect her.
The problem was the location of that core.
‘…The Empress.’
Aslan’s mother and the head of the Igrit family.
She surely held Dorothy’s core.
So, Kraush had to steal Dorothy’s core from her.
But it was clear that he couldn’t accomplish that alone.
It would be too easy to get caught before even infiltrating the Empress’s chamber.
‘There’s no need for me to steal it myself.’
He just needed to make allies who could retrieve the core for him.
And Kraush already had someone in mind to introduce to those allies.
“I’m going to meet Lirina.”
It was time to get introduced to the guy, Aslan.
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