“I will sever the Walking Fire.”
Encrid said it in the mirror, and as soon as Esther heard it, she transformed into a panther and ran.
If she were a real panther, she wouldn’t have been able to run all day due to the lack of endurance.
But she was a witch, so she could run all day. And Cross Guard was not far, even at the speed of a panther.
Fortunately, she wasn’t walking along the Border Guard but near the Pen-Hanil riverbank, making it even closer. So, she raced towards Cross Guard.
The river didn’t pose a challenge; with the spell “Del Grecher’s Walkway”, she could cross it easily.
A thin sheet of ice formed beneath her feet as she ran, using it as a springboard.
She had transformed back into her human form to cast spells, but her strength remained the same, so her speed was far faster than an ordinary person’s.
She continued to race, shifting between panther and human form as needed, while using both spell and physical energy.
‘But is it too late?’
Though this thought crossed her mind, it didn’t slow her down.
If it were too late, stopping would mean nothing more than the end.
Esther pushed forward. She could easily sense the traces of Apostle Anella, the one who had manifested the Walking Fire, and followed them.
Crossing the river and heading towards Cross Guard, Esther instinctively changed direction.
A skilled witch could read the traces of spells.
This wasn’t a coincidence. It was connected to Encrid. If it was headed this way, then she needed to block any problems in advance.
Her judgment and actions were simultaneous.
There was no need to wait until the stars appeared or read the constellations. The magical scent was thick in the air.
Soon, the land where the spell had been manifested came into view. A pit, filled with the bodies of the dead, mostly burned to ash.
‘Golden Words, Annihilation Spell.’
It was truly the Walking Fire.
A forbidden spell, the Golden Words, an annihilation spell that consumed everything in its path before it could end.
As she approached the pit, a two-headed Man Beast sprang forward.
She had already sensed it and had no hesitation.
“D’muller’s Scythe.”
Esther waved her hand. Following her seemingly pointless gesture, the wind gathered, forming a blade that flew toward her target.
Thwack!
The two wind blades split and cut through the two-headed beast’s skull and body, slicing it in half. The creature fell, spewing black blood and entrails as it crumpled.
Still carrying the momentum of the run, it kept moving to the sides before finally stopping.
With her hand raised, Esther’s gaze shifted to one side. An illusion-cancelling spell had been cast.
She had sensed it purely by instinct. And once she sensed it, there was only one thing to do: attack.
Summoning a beast, she drew power from the runes and whispered the words of the spell that contained an existence.
“Come forth, Bonehead.”
It was a Flesh Golem, an improved version of the one Encrid had dealt with earlier.
At her gesture, a circle of light formed on the ground, and flesh and blood intertwined within it, creating the Golem.
The moment it was summoned, the Golem rushed forward without thinking.
The best way to break an illusion was through physical force.
It was an effective solution.
As the Golem hit the ground with a thud, the thin black veil surrounding the area wavered and dispersed, and a voice emerged.
“How dare you?”
A woman stepped out from within the veil and spoke. Esther saw her face but ignored it with an air of indifference as she continued to form seals.
‘She’s no ordinary opponent.’
Ignoring her didn’t mean underestimating her, but Esther considered speed to be more important at the moment.
The magical power she felt from the woman was overwhelming.
It was clear that the woman had more potent power than Esther currently had, a sign that she was still gathering her magic. Violet energy swirled above her shoulders.
“A witch, of all things.”
She spoke as though declaring herself a servant of the Gods.
While forming seals, Esther reflected on her current state.
Thanks to Encrid, most of the curses were already removed.
Now, she was rebuilding her spell world. She hadn’t regained her full power yet.
Was that a disadvantage? Perhaps. But it wasn’t a reason to stop.
Among the countless todays, there had been a day when Encrid had contacted her through a mirror. Each moment had led her to this point.
“Demon God, your sons and daughters are here.”
Apostle Anella shouted. She had recognized that Esther was no ordinary witch. She instinctively drew her sword, prepared for what came after the Walking Fire.
A creature, a modified ghoul, sprang out from between the bodies.
Each of them was a monster, dangerous with their enhanced physical abilities.
There were even skeletal soldiers born from the recombination of bones. A combination of necromancy and the spells they wielded.
The monsters’ bodies ignited. A group of fiery creatures with burning bodies.
Though normally these weapons wouldn’t be useful against the Walking Fire, they were deadly to those who had already been worn down by it.
Esther didn’t allow a single ember to fall from them.
She didn’t use Bonehead here. While physical force can sometimes counter physical force, that wasn’t effective in this case.
After recalling the Golem, she replenished her magical energy.
“Del Grecher’s Territory Marker.”
Borrowing power from another spell was a form of using the existence of the borrowed creature. For example, Dreler was a wind spirit who reveled in the joy of killing, while Del Grecher was a creature who had evolved from a four-legged beast living on glaciers.
Esther was a genius at blending borrowed spells with creation magic.
“Burn to ashes.”
Anella, an apostle who dealt with disasters and especially excelled at manipulating fire, saw the flames consuming the ghoul grow larger.
Esther pulled out a previously perfected but unrefined spell.
“Permafrost.”
Crack.
From beneath Esther’s feet, ice crystals spread outward, as if the ground itself was giving birth to them. The temperature plummeted despite the lack of a blizzard.
If one ventured to the northernmost end, a sky painted with colors beyond description would appear, and the ground would freeze with every breath.
That land was called Permafrost, the eternally frozen ground.
Spells were influenced by the words used. Esther’s spell was no different.
Though it only covered a small radius, it froze everything within it. The flames died out, and the creatures with burning bodies were rendered unstable.
“…You cast such a spell without preparation or sacrifices?”
Anella was truly astonished. There was a spell known as Disaster Blizzard, a Golden Word spell that couldn’t be cast without freezing some of the caster’s body as an offering.
But now, she was experiencing something of similar strength without any sacrifice.
Though the radius wasn’t vast, it was enough to stun her.
But she wouldn’t let it happen without retaliation. As she spoke, she moved her magic and began chanting.
“Flame Dancer of Maelrak.”
She too cast a spell, and as she did, flames erupted from Anella’s body, spreading in all directions.
One side burned with flames while the other froze with cold.
Whoosh.
Even the wind felt frozen, sharp as a blade.
“Frostwind Scythe.”
Esther cast another spell. It was a reconfiguration of D’muller’s Scythe.
Anella’s eyes widened. Was she about to cast yet another type of spell, even after implementing Permafrost?
To summarize, after several spells exchanged, Esther emerged victorious and Anella perished.
The skill difference wasn’t enormous. In a battle between wizards, victory often depended on how well they prepared, but neither could have anticipated this exact scenario.
Esther was slightly at a disadvantage due to her exhaustion from the run.
But her sense of handling spells, coupled with the creative spells she had designed, made up for it.
In simpler terms, the difference in genius was glaring.
It was early winter, and naturally, a spell that dropped the temperature was more useful than one that generated fire.
A great witch was always able to turn the surrounding environment to her advantage.
That’s why it’s said that no one can defeat a witch in her hut.
‘I overdid it.’
However, it was clear her body had been strained. Esther’s whole body trembled. She would need to eat something that could restore warmth or wrap herself in a heated cloak like Rem’s.
She couldn’t go far immediately, so she headed for Cross Guard.
Finding Encrid wasn’t hard. He was probably aware that she had created the spell objects he used.
She arrived quickly after finding traces of the tools she had made. Despite wearing a robe designed to keep her warm, her body was still trembling.
The early winter winds felt as if they were piercing her bones.
It was cold. So cold that she felt like she was experiencing it for the first time.
“Esther?”
There, before her stood Encrid.
He was the same as always. His blue eyes pierced the darkness of the early morning, and despite the night not yet ending, he held an undying flame within him.
“Hold me.”
Esther whispered as she lost consciousness.
* * *
Encrid instinctively held Esther. Her skin was icy like an icicle. Her face was pale, and frost clung to her hair.
“Luagarne.”
“She’s awake.”
“Call the lord and bring some heatstones.”
“Understood.”
Luagarne swiftly ran off, and Encrid held Esther in his arms.
He didn’t know exactly what had happened, but he had a feeling.
‘Somehow, this feels like it might be related to me.’
Trusting his intuition, he placed her on the bed. He had seen people suffering from frostbite before.
It was during a time when a mad noble insisted on harvesting herbs from the polar regions.
It was sheer madness, but back then, Krona was desperate, so there was no choice. He became a guide, and three companions died from frostbite.
The ones who survived still had to lose their toes.
If not for a passing priest helping them, they probably all would have perished.
“You carry the sun within your chest.”
That was what the priest had said. While everyone else was freezing to death, Encrid had managed to endure, prompting the remark.
“If I leave her, she’ll freeze to death.”
Encrid muttered to himself as he lay down on the bed with Esther. Covering them with a blanket, he held her close and spoke.
“Prepare some warm water, Delma.”
“What? Oh, yes.”
The inn worker, who had woken early in the morning, had seen a woman suddenly arrive and then be embraced by his hero.
‘A lover?’
That might have been the case.
Feeling the atmosphere was strange, he ended up secretly watching, only for Encrid to notice and call him over.
“Not too hot.”
“Yes.”
Encrid removed Esther’s robe and his own shirt, holding her against him.
The temperature inside her robe was still freezing. He was careful not to look at her body—he didn’t want his eyes gouged out.
For a whole day and night, he held her close, asking Luagarne to help bathe her in lukewarm water, dry her off, and then hold her again.
“My body temperature is too low to warm her properly.”
Frog’s body temperature was lower than a human’s, so Luagarne could only express concern.
“I’ve brought every heatstone in the city.”
The lord had managed to procure a few heatstones. This wretched, poor city was full of drugs and gambling dens but lacked necessities when truly needed.
Though this would likely change in the future.
Encrid held Esther in his arms for two days. Only then did her body temperature gradually return. Color slowly came back to her face as well.
At dawn, as Encrid woke again with Esther in his arms, he opened his eyes to find himself staring into blue eyes, just like his own.
“Did you sleep well?”
Encrid asked.
“Why? Are we... in the same bed?”
Esther replied, her memory momentarily fragmented.
“There’s no better way to restore a dropped body temperature.”
Though he didn’t literally carry the sun in his chest, he was likely the only one capable of holding Esther and enduring it.
Just breathing, she seemed to lower the ambient temperature. As if she had brought some curse with her.
Encrid had endured it, but not everyone could. Even Delma complained of the cold from merely being nearby, refusing to approach.
Even as Encrid held her, his Will naturally stirred, swirling within his body.
It was proof that the artificial cold radiating from her wasn’t natural.
It was undoubtedly magical, but there was no one to ask for clarification. What choice did he have but to endure it?
Still, explaining it all in detail felt unnecessary.
Encrid, with a casual tone, spoke.
“You used to snuggle up to me all the time when you were in panther form.”
At his words, Esther silently stared into his eyes for a moment.
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