A chill ran down my spine. It felt as if a block of ice had been smeared directly on her skin.

　Erdis felt a harsh chill in his throat, but opened his blue eyes and said the words. What manifested was a swirl of mist that looked like sludge, black and yet so heavy that it seemed to sink into the ground.

　The Great Temple of Flimsulath, a place of majestic tranquility. The black of the elves covers its white walls, forcibly trampling them down. The force of it was as if it were trying to bite into the very fabric of space.

　It was a curse. A cursed mist to bring humans to their knees.

　Therefore, no one can escape the curse. As long as the target is a human, as long as they are those who once left the lap of the spirits, the spell of the elves will always catch them in its fangs, shaking off all causality.

　The art of capturing humans, glaring at them, and harming them.

　Spiritualism has come a long way from its original place. But this is seijutsu now. This curse is nothing more than the grace of spirits. Erdis's blue eyes looked down the great hallway. Her long, thin eyelashes fluttered.

　One by one, the white clad knights of the Great Church were being swallowed up by the black and disappearing below. They will not die, the fog will only take away their consciousness and make them succumb.

　The name "knight of the temple" may sound like a great name, but it is still a human being. If you're human, you're no better than a common soldier to Elddis. The chemistry is just too bad.

　Elddis's lips were slightly wet. My control of the field is going well. Her necromancy was definitely chewing up and swallowing her enemies from the edges.

　The fact that Kalia had flown out of sight with Garrus was a concern, but it did not affect the situation. As long as Kalia can attract the enemy leader, she will eventually be able to swallow the entire Order.

　So there shouldn't be any problem. 　

　But Erdis's guts were shriveled and heavy. It was as if the inside of her body had turned to hard stone. Her back teeth chattered.

　Erdis's body was so cold that she felt as if she were freezing from hair to toe. She could feel her breath getting rougher and rougher. There's no heat in her breath either.

　Of course. I know very well that this extremely cold land is not suitable for an elf, and I was prepared for some distortions if I called a spirit into my body in such a place.

　Therefore, Erdis does not pay attention to such things.

　The one thing that stuck in Elddis' mind and refused to come off. It's just the palpitations of her heart.

　The heart is not just screaming and writhing with exuberance and trembling in her chest. Rather, the cause is of the exact opposite nature.

　--An entity called fright or fear is making the heart beat wildly.

　I don't know what it is. I don't even know why I'm trembling. But Erdis knew that what was now covering her heart and her whole body was the emotion of fear.

　There is something... Vaguely speaking, that was what fear was.

　Something that Erdis had sensed from the moment he stepped into this great temple. A feeling of oppression, as if she were being looked down upon from far above.

　The mere sight of it made her cheeks twitch. A presence so dense that it felt like a weight was dragging on my limbs.

　The presence became deeper and thicker around the time Elddis invoked necromancy.

　It's as if they resonate with each other, approaching as if they were familiar.

　What it really is. Erdis understood. But she could only look away desperately. Scary. Horrible. Fearful.

　These feelings ripped through Elddis's heart. Feelings she'd never remembered, never thought about. She felt like falling to her knees and hugging herself.

　Sweat poured from Elddis's forehead, even though it was not hot. Her vision was completely blank. I want to give in. I want to cower in the presence of my former master.

　But even if I did, I couldn't really expose myself to that here.

　Caria-Bardnick swung her blade dangerously into the enemy ranks, hoping to attract the leader of the enemy. Fialat-La-Borgograd is also working with Lugis.

　Both of them have shown their behavior to him in no small measure.

　So how can I be the only one to kneel? How could I be the only one to show such disrespect?

　For Erdis, Kalia and Fialaat were people with whom he had some familiarity through Lugis. It is safe to say that he has more feelings for them than elves have for humans.

　However, that does not mean that they are not friendly and easy to get along with. At least, when it comes to him, everyone has fangs. Fangs that can cut through an opponent.

　His blue eyes gleam with a piercing flame.

　--I'm not giving up a single piece, Caria. I'm not willing to give up a single bit of my life, Caria, even to the point of slaughtering the founding giants with my own hands.


　I'm not willing to give up a single piece, Caria.




　Fialat-La-Borgograd's black eyes took in the scene with a kind of stunned look.

　The Great Elven Disaster. It is said to be a curse of the gods, and it is now unfolding before our eyes. I could see the Cathedral Knights, the pride of the Archdiocese, falling down, clutching their eye sockets and chest.

　There was nothing I could do about it. They may not be dead yet, but they are all falling, unable to even draw the edge of their swords.

　Wonderful. Spiritualism, the original form of magic. Even its roots have been split, but now the essence of it is revealed here.

　Wisdom and reason are what Phialat accepts and desires. The whole scene below fascinates Fialaat and attracts his black eyes to no end. As a sorcerer, it is an undeniable good fortune to have encountered this sight.

　At the same time, however, Fialaat feels a shiver rise in his chest. A feeling so ugly, so slippery, so inexpressible.

　It's just jealousy. I'm not sure what to do. The first thing you need to do is to look at your eyes.

　The first time I saw it, it was in the corner of my eye.

　The first thing you need to do is to look at your eyes. Can I control the enemy with this level of control? Will I be able to bring my opponent to his knees with such ease?

　The depths of my skull became congested with such thoughts, and my eyes narrowed. I was thinking too much.

　The solution was simple. Why didn't Lugis take my hand right here? You can figure out why your magic was not relied on.

　It's because Rougis thought that I couldn't do such a thing, that it was too heavy a burden to bear.

　What a pity.

　Even if it were difficult, I would have done it all if he had told me to. We've done it with the civil war in Gazalia and the turmoil in Belle Fain.

　And so it is this time, too. It's true that we'll have to break a few bones, but we'll have accomplished what Lugis is talking about. I'm sure of it. Fialaert's fingers tightened.

　And yet, Erdis was the one who demanded that Lugis thank him as if he were a follower, and Lugis was the one who easily obliged.

　To tell the truth, Fialaat's heart is very complicated, as if he was shown a relationship that he did not have. It's no exaggeration to say that I even felt my eyes watering.

　After all... If asked to clarify the relationship between himself and Lugis, Fialaert would close his small lips a little.

　First it was employer and adventurer, now it's companion.

　But what of the special relationship? The covenant still lives. There is no doubt that the magic that bit into his soul is still driving a wedge there.

　But if there is any relationship that can be put into words, it is not. I did not shield him like Caria did, nor did I make him a knight like Erdis did.

　When I think about it, I feel miserable and left out.

　This is not the place for it, but the more I try to dismiss the thought, the more it comes up again from deep within my heart.

　--I swore I'd make him golden. I swore I would make him gold, but what good would I be once he was gold?

　Fialaert gnashed his teeth at such an indescribable thought. He saw Lugis beside him, his eyes gleaming.