Chapter 154
The Final, After All (1)
Especially the people of the Empire—the citizens of Lailord—glared with increasingly vicious eyes and gripped their weapons tightly.
Hah… After all the prosperity they had been given… it wasn’t as if he had granted mercy to these vermin.
But more than the vermin’s desperate struggles, Lailord could not endure the gaze of a single being—Cloria—looking at him so desperately.
That gaze was not directed at a great solar spirit, but at these pitiful vermin. A look of helplessness, gazing down at him as if she didn’t know what to do.
From deep within his chest, a boiling sensation began to surge. His stomach twisted, and the heat climbed toward the top of his head.
The rebellion against him—and the pity directed at him—were very different reactions, yet the only emotion rising in Lailord was one:
Rage.
“You little… you wretched little things…”
Flare. The flames ignited once more. They rose slowly around the Emperor before suddenly bursting outward in all directions.
“Ahhh!”
“Kyah!”
Screams erupted from all around as the fire spread explosively.
“Die! Burn as offerings to the flames and be cleansed!”
Aidan instinctively stepped forward to shield against the fire. Hieldieta clicked her tongue, joining a moment later.
With Hieldieta’s vigorous energy after a long rest, Lailord’s power, already destabilized, stood no chance against them.
The soldiers behind Aidan and Hieldieta could be safely protected by the semi-circular barrier spreading around them.
The problem was the Imperial soldiers.
When pierced by Risilia and gone berserk, perhaps he had lost reason—but now, the Emperor himself, with clear intent, was burning the Imperial army, his own people.
“Aaahhh!!”
“P-please! Spare me!”
“Ahahaha! Ahahahahaha!”
Hearing the horrific screams echoing around him, the Emperor laughed loudly.
“If they cannot be mine, I do not need them! Burn it all!!”
Watching the battlefield blaze like a hellscape,
Ah! Ahhh!
Cloria sobbed almost as if screaming. She flew desperately above the Imperial army, but with her power, she could not quell even a fraction of the flames.
Cloria! Dangerous!
Just as the fire nearly reached Cloria, Hieldieta, startled, swooped in and caught her in his arms.
With Hieldieta gone, the northern barrier weakened slightly—but not enough to endanger the northern troops.
Aidan, standing tall with the Ice Sea Sword planted into the ground and both hands raised, alone possessed enough power, along with King Hielgreen, to protect his people.
Brody stood beside him, glaring fiercely at Emperor Lailord, resting his hand atop Aidan’s on the sword.
The wind blew fiercely, making their clothes and hair whip about, yet they remained still and calm as an ice wall.
The people of Hielgreen could not tear their eyes away from the royal couple’s steadfast forms—standing in front to protect them all.
This image, contrasted with the Emperor burning his own people, engraved itself deep in their hearts.
The northern troops could not loudly rejoice at seeing the enemy struck down by their Emperor, but they clenched their teeth, tears glinting in their eyes.
After a fleeting moment, Cloria, in Hieldieta’s embrace, spoke desperately.
“Hieldieta, protect the people.”
Hieldieta sighed and answered.
Of course I will. How could I just watch when you’re like this?
He radiated power while looking at her smiling face. Instantly, the flames consuming the Imperial army froze solid.
The icy cold spread not only to quench the flames but pressed down upon Emperor Lailord himself.
“Graaah!”
The Emperor roared and struggled, but it was futile. Frost began to form in his luxurious golden hair.
Hah… haah…
His throat burned painfully. Inside Myla, the frozen sharp ice crystals pricked at her membranes. He could survive the fire’s heat, but only barely.
The Emperor’s once-perfect form began to crumble, marred by blood, dust, and ice. His furious expression made her feel even smaller.
Then—
“Your Majesty! My flame, my light, my sun, my perfect lord!”
A figure with a flamboyant presence leapt boldly into the dying flames.
Disheveled in appearance and clothing, but his golden hair shone brilliantly in the fire’s light.
It was the Duke of the Empire, Jax MacCarthy.
“Didn’t you promise me a flawless, perfect future?”
Jax leapt forward and embraced Myla Riley tightly, as if trying to melt her with his warmth.
The Emperor glared, trying to push him away.
“Let go! How dare your filthy hands—”
“…Filthy?”
“Release me and step back!”
But with the elemental powers controlled by Hieldieta, the Emperor could not restrain Jax. Due to the size difference, she could not break free.
Jax, expressionless, embraced the Emperor even more tightly.
“Hah…”
He was replaying the words he had just heard.
“Filthy hands?”
To him, noble, so desperately striving for perfection, dedicating everything to follow her… only to be called filthy, directly by her mouth.
“Of course… that explains it,” he muttered under his breath. Madness and determination burned in his eyes.
“Ugh!”
The Emperor suddenly retched blood.
In Jax’s hands, pressed against her back, was a sharply honed dagger.
“Cough… you… you bastard…!!”
Ignoring the shout, Jax pressed down and held her tighter. Blood ran down his arm to the floor.
“You intended to live perfectly and beautifully, oh, so dazzlingly, while leaving me as nothing more than dust on the road?”
His verbose speech, combined with his wicked smile, felt sinister. He was like a madman performing on stage.
The Emperor’s face contorted in rage.
“Damn it. Cough… don’t interfere. Get out of here!”
Jax smiled perfectly, exposing his teeth.
“Ahahaha, ahahahahaha!”
Breathing in his characteristic controlled tone, he laughed heartily. The awkward actor on stage had suddenly made Myla, his co-star, appear ridiculous—the entire scene became a farce.
“Your Majesty, my magnificent Emperor, to whom I dedicate all—I told you, Jax would follow you.”
“I can’t let go!”
Jax gripped her tighter.
“Let’s go together, Your Majesty. If I cannot become perfect—”
Vuuuuuh. Hot energy radiated from the dagger Jax had pressed into her back. Beautiful, intricate patterns appeared, parallel to the Emperor’s spine. The magic circle, triggered multiple times, began to shine brilliantly.
The sword was a MacCarthy family relic, infused with the power of the Fire Spirit over generations—a token of loyalty.
“You will fall, and that will suffice.”
Jax whispered sweetly. The Emperor’s expression twisted painfully.
Exhausted, she could not resist the power radiating from the dagger—elemental fire beyond her control.
“Argh! Get away! Step back! This cannot… it cannot be!!”
Even the last scrap of composure vanished. Myla struggled awkwardly to remove Jax.
But the tighter she tried, the deeper his grip became. It was a fierce, overwhelming embrace.
The scorching flames began to consume them both from her back outward.
“Hahaha, ahahahahaha! Fall? That will never happen! With your noble flame, this fire—we shall become perfect!!!”
“Ahhh! Nooo!! This cannot happen! This cannot!! The end cannot be like this!!!”
The laughter and screams created a horrifying harmony. The flames wrapped them together, dancing wildly.
As the sunlike golden hair scattered for the last time,
When the flames vanished, nothing remained.
❖ ❖ ❖
Can fire burn itself? He wasn’t dead. Somewhere, he would appear again.
Hieldieta comforted Cloria, who had been sobbing for a long time. Though he didn’t want to sugarcoat Lailord’s end, comforting Cloria came first.
“Shall we?”
Cloria accepted the comfort sincerely, quickly shaking off any lingering sadness, her dull gray aura returning to a bright, lively green.
Good. Next time he appears, make sure to handle it properly! Don’t let him misbehave!
Hieldieta sighed but did not interfere with her determination.
Even if he wasn’t dead, would that proud fool dare appear before them again?
If by chance he did, they would not allow him to act freely. Though he had fallen due to the consequences of his sins, they still felt it wasn’t enough for all he had done.
I should have dealt with him myself…
Suppressing his anger silently, without showing it to Cloria,
Beep, beep!
A tiny, bright red creature flapped its wings and approached.
“Oh! Nizia Ryle?!”
The Fire Spirit familiar, Nizia Ryle, had shrunk to the size of a palm after Lailord—the source of its life—disappeared.
Cute, pitiable, and endearing. I’ll take care of you until Lailord returns.
“Huh? A plant spirit raising a fire-type familiar? Will it burn? No, it’s fine this way.”
Cloria lifted Nizia Ryle onto Hieldieta’s shoulder.
Puff. A wisp of smoke rose where they touched, but the small familiar was unaffected by Hieldieta’s icy nature, seemingly content with the cold.
Hieldieta sighed deeply again.
“Cloria… you really are…”
“Really? Really~ Isn’t that good for me?”
The plant spirit giggled, green energy dancing across the battlefield.
Brody’s devastated land, scorched by Sidamo, began sprouting new sprouts, sturdy bushes, and towering trees.
If there is anyone incapable of killing, it would be Cloria.
Both the Empire’s citizens and Hielgreen’s soldiers lowered their weapons and relaxed their shoulders.
Cloria’s generosity had absorbed all their anxieties.
