Flower-Embedded, the queen of all divine beasts, spirits, fairies, and elves. People speculate that her power within the World Tree rivals that of a 9th-class mage.

But that’s only a slight misconception.

While 9th-class “mage warriors” have achieved their position through countless experiences and accumulated knowledge, Flower-Embedded reached her level purely through faith and meditation, a stark contrast in approach.

She may have memorized various strategies and battle manuals, but could she really conduct a battle like a textbook on the battlefield?

Absolutely not.

“…Tamgaltwin’s blessing…”

Flower-Embedded bit her lower lip, her expression hardening.

Behind her, green and purple wings, like those of a butterfly, extended from her back, allowing her to float effortlessly in the air. She figured that staying airborne would give her an advantage over Cheoriban, who specialized in earth magic.

But reality proved different.

As long as Cheoriban wished it, the earth was always there for him.

He could summon it as a platform anywhere and even call down meteors from the sky, negating any benefit she had from flight.

*Rumble…!*

The aerial fortress Aruun had summoned to provide sturdy support crumbled like a sandcastle.

This wasn’t even due to a special attack—just a shout from Cheoriban had done the job.

Aruun’s unique battle strategy involved summoning various creatures and objects from another realm to aid him, while Cheoriban had a special ability that automatically defended against all attacks.

But who could write such exceptional powers into any battle manual?

“Create an opening in the enemy and strike the gap. Then victory will be yours.”

The most fundamental rule of magic combat, explained on the first page of any combat manual.

But would “fundamental rules” work against Cheoriban?

This battle, where common logic failed, was an immense struggle for Flower-Embedded. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t think of a way to break through Cheoriban’s absolute defense.

Tamgaltwin’s blessing was perfect, seemingly endless.

Even without his conscious effort, a shield automatically surrounded him, requiring almost no mana at all.

Meanwhile, Flower-Embedded and Aruun’s mana was quickly being depleted.

Unlike Cheoriban, who relied on the earth’s energy to fight, they were exhausting their own mana to control the World Tree or summon creatures.

“…If we keep fighting like this, this land will dry up.”

Flower-Embedded forced the words out, and Cheoriban responded with a bitter smile.

“Sorry. Everywhere I pass always ends up in a drought. But with you around, shouldn’t it be fine? You can bless the land.”

How could he be so casual about it?

“In that case, give up now!”

Flower-Embedded swung her arm downward, sending hundreds of glowing purple butterflies shooting beams of light toward him.

*Boom! Boom! Boom!*

At the same time, acidic green sap shot from the roots of the World Tree like bullets, exploding into smoke upon contact with Cheoriban’s shield. Yet, there was no sensation of the barrier breaking.

This… this is what absolute invincibility means?

It was hard to believe. How could such an entity exist in this world?

She had thought “absolute invincibility” was merely a nickname.

If he truly was absolutely invincible… how could anyone possibly defeat him?

*Wuuung—!!*

Hearing vibrations from above, Flower-Embedded instinctively looked up.

The clouds had formed into an odd shape, almost resembling a giant “hand,” as though someone had assembled them intentionally.

The cloud hand slowly clenched into a fist, a magic circle forming in the hollow space, producing a massive “blade of blue lightning.”

“…The Blade of Judgment.”

Aruun’s voice cut emptily through the air. Realizing his intention, Flower-Embedded quickly wrapped her arms protectively around herself.

“He’s gone mad…!”

It seemed he had been holding back to avoid damaging the World Tree. But now, he was preparing a powerful spell that could upend the entire area.

Reluctantly, Flower-Embedded shifted the roots of the World Tree to push the ground further away and formed a shield with the roots, and just in time.

*CRACK!*

A massive blue lightning bolt slammed into the earth, shattering the floating ground completely.

“Urgh…”

Flower-Embedded spread her wings, flying into the air and forming a violet shield in front of her to block the shockwave. Yet, unable to withstand it, she was pushed backward.

After being thrown far back, she barely managed to stop herself from crashing into the World Tree. Comprehending the scale of the destruction, her eyes widened.

The area, no more than a kilometer from her starting point… had completely collapsed, disintegrated. The crater left behind looked as though it had been struck by a massive meteor.

Anyone would mistake it for divine retribution.

Not even Flower-Embedded or Cheoriban could unleash a spell with such destructive power.

‘This is the might of a 9th-class mage…!!’

She swiftly unfolded her wings and approached the crater. Sweeping away the clouds of smoke, she caught sight of Aruun, kneeling on the distant ground.

“A-Are you okay?”

“Cough!”

Rushing over, she let green life energy flow from her hands, but his condition was severe. Had he sustained internal injuries from casting that last spell?

“Damn… he actually counterattacked.”

“A counterattack…?”

Throughout the fight, Cheoriban had rarely attempted direct counterattacks, typically just flipping the ground to respond.

“Yes. I nearly forgot about his true ability.”

“…Ah.”

Though Cheoriban was known as “absolutely invincible” due to Tamgaltwin’s blessing, that wasn’t his real power.

That was merely one of the many abilities Cheoriban possessed.

“Thought control…”

Aruun, clutching his abdomen, slowly removed his hand to reveal a sharp blue lightning wound.

There was no doubt—this was the very spell he had cast from the sky.

“How… did this happen?”

“During the spell, he intercepted part of the magic. Annoyingly enough, he has abilities related to ‘thought’… Cough!”

Aruun leaned on the ground, spitting up blood as Flower-Embedded quickly cast a spell to stabilize him.

Without immediate treatment, the wounds would be fatal. His mana circuits were entangled to the extent that an ordinary mage might have lost their magic forever.

Fortunately, he was a 9th-class mage adept with mana, so it hadn’t reached that point… but if Cheoriban were to launch another counterattack in this state?

‘This is dangerous.’

Though his wounds were critical, her priority was to protect him. Aruun might have previously trespassed against the World Tree, but she couldn’t let him die in vain.

With blue and purple mana swirling in her hands, Flower-Embedded turned sharply, focusing on the mist beyond.

*Step.*

Cheoriban emerged from the mist, his body covered in wounds. It seemed even he couldn’t completely shrug off the force of that lightning, as his body was lined with cuts.

‘Only this much damage…!’

It was shocking that even a spell of such apocalyptic scale inflicted so little harm.

Of course, that was only Flower-Embedded’s perspective.

‘The Elf Queen is still standing, but the mage is down.’

Cheoriban examined his state with weary eyes.

‘…The earth does not respond.’

It was the first time someone had completely shattered his “virtually invincible earth blessing.”

This was no ordinary blessing.

The protective shield carried the sincere power of the Twelve Moons, Tamgaltwin’s essence, a shield that perhaps could even contend with the Twelve Moons themselves.

But this was the end of it.

Even if his shield was broken, Aruun had fallen, and Flower-Embedded appeared nearly out of power.

‘…Could I die if we keep fighting?’

Flower-Embedded still seemed capable of fighting. The World Tree continuously bestowed its blessing upon her, replenishing her mana as the earth did for him.

‘I’m not certain.’

He shook his head.

If he weren’t careful, the worst outcome might occur—both of them could lose their lives before he even had a chance to die.

Cheoriban no longer wanted blood on his hands. How many lives had been lost because of him?

A child once threw a stone toward him in jest, and an entire village was destroyed as a result.

Someone spilled water on him by accident, and a city was swallowed whole.

Whether it was a shoulder bump or a shout directed his way… Tamgaltwin’s overprotection deemed every slight as a “threat”…

How many, how many lives had been lost?

He tried to avoid people as much as possible, to live quietly in isolation.

But by then, too much resentment had built up, and countless avengers had come for his life, only to meet empty deaths.

He ran, and kept running.

But they continued to appear, recklessly offering up their lives before him.

“Looks like we’re all tired. Let’s end the fight here.”

“….”

Cheoriban clenched and unclenched his fists, checking his mana state, and turned to walk away.

“Well then… I’ll be going.”

“What the…?”

He truly seemed to have no will to fight, vanishing quickly into the mist. Flower-Embedded watched him retreat in silence.

“What just… happened…?”

She had been prepared to risk her life, yet just before the battle concluded, he suddenly forfeited and left.

What was he thinking?

Cheoriban disappeared, his mana trail entirely fading into the distance, and as the tension lifted, Flower-Embedded collapsed to the ground.

*Thud!*

“Oh…”

She stared blankly

 at the ground, her eyes wavering.

If such a monster ever invaded her World Tree again, could she truly fend him off?

The very thought was daunting.

“…Do you understand now? That is a black mage blessed by the Twelve Moons.”

Aruun spoke, struggling to stem his own bleeding.

“If another Twelve Moons-blessed opponent were to appear… perhaps we could manage. But their pure power alone is overwhelming. Damn it.”

“...Another Twelve Moons-blessed foe… are you certain?”

“Yes. The powers of the Twelve Moons possess infinite potential. As far as I know, no one like that exists in this world…”

Aruun trailed off, wincing in pain. Normally, Flower-Embedded would have rushed to heal him, but her mind was suddenly overwhelmed with thoughts.

‘The love of the Twelve Moons…’

Isn’t there already someone blessed by the Twelve Moons right here?

That someone was none other than herself.

Because she received such overwhelming love, she was cursed. But thinking about it, that curse was only one part of the Twelve Moons’ grand abilities.

‘If I could control the blessing of the Twelve Moons…’

A glimmer of hope appeared on her face as the mist completely cleared.

“Damn, I lost the battle, but the sky’s absurdly clear…”

Aruun muttered before he fell flat on his back, and Flower-Embedded belatedly approached him, beginning his treatment.

“We should… pursue him…”

Opportunities to capture Cheoriban were rare. Aruun, still clinging to hope, mumbled those words just as—

*Boom!*

A loud explosion erupted from a distance.

“Ugh, what’s…?”

The pain intensified with the shock, but Aruun didn’t turn his head.

Then, realizing something, his eyes widened.

“No way…”

The explosion from the direction where Cheoriban had disappeared—someone else had begun fighting him.

But it couldn’t be an ordinary mage facing him.

“This is serious…”

Realizing the gravity of the situation, both Flower-Embedded and Aruun turned pale.