A girl with snow-white hair and eyes that glistened like platinum starlight floated through the blue sky. Sitting cross-legged on a broom, she embodied the quintessential image of a witch in flight.

Speed: 290 km/h.

It was fast, but for someone like her, who could teleport freely, this speed was nothing more than a breezy ride for leisure.

“Ugh, so dull!”

As she shouted mid-flight, her voice echoed faintly. It wasn’t real; her body was an illusion.

“No matter how much I enhance my senses, 20% is the limit…”

The White Witch, the Queen of Witches—Scarlett had ultimately failed to perfect the art of creating a second physical body. Forming another body violated the laws of the world.

“Should I start digging up graves?”

It had been a century since she rejected the grotesque practice of animating corpses with souls, considering it too unbecoming for the Queen of Witches.

“Whatever, I’ll settle for this. It’s been centuries since I’ve had any freedom.”

She sprawled across her broom and crossed her legs, her skirt hiking up dangerously. But at such an altitude, there was no pervert around to steal a glance.

Until a telepathic voice hit her ears like a sledgehammer.

“Queen of Witches.”

“Ahh!”

Startled, Scarlett flailed and nearly fell off her broom as a gray-clad man appeared in midair.

“Stop fooling around.”

At his command, Scarlett, who had been plummeting, halted as if snagged on an invisible hanger. With a pout, she gathered her skirt, waved a finger, and the broom floated back under her to support her.

“Peeking at a lady isn’t exactly gentlemanly, is it?”

Climbing back on her broom, Scarlett crossed her legs and folded her arms.

Her body twisted in mock annoyance, but the ‘Moon of Ash’ showed no reaction.

“So, why are you here? Couldn’t you have come directly to my place, Ashen Moon? I could’ve shown you some hospitality.”

With long gray hair and cold, piercing eyes, the handsome man ignored her teasing and snapped his fingers.

Snap.

It was a light gesture, but the result was anything but light.

The azure sky darkened into a deep violet, like a curtain being drawn, and countless stars and galaxies etched themselves across it.

“Wow…”

Scarlett frowned, gazing at the array of stars.

Some stars were dimming, others flaring up in explosive bursts, but curiously, there wasn’t a single star being born.

“The view’s a lot different from last time.”

“The worlds are no longer being created.”

“Of course! Because we’re here.”

“That’s not right. Even with us here, ‘other versions of us’ should exist in other worlds.”

“Are you talking about parallel worlds? Oh, I don’t believe in those.”

“Don’t change the subject, Queen of Witches.”

“Ugh, serious talk is so boring. Can’t I just rest? Huh?”

The Ashen Moon ignored her and pointed to a particular spot where a star was fading.

“Wow, that’s beautiful, right?”

Her casual comment met his somber reply.

“It’s the world where the Dark Dragon was born. It crumbled in an instant.”

“Did you see it yourself?”

Scarlett’s eyes sparkled as she asked, but Ashen Moon turned away.

Beyond them…

Countless stars were falling like a downpour. They weren’t mere shooting stars; they were massive, far beyond that.

“All worlds are dying.”

“And that’s bad?”

“No. The cycle of birth and death is natural.”

“Then what’s the problem?”

“No new worlds are being born. And… this world we stand in isn’t heading toward its death.”

His eyes darkened as he stepped closer to Scarlett.

“That’s the problem.”

“Oh, really? I didn’t know.”

“Last night, one of the laws governing this world’s death was broken. It must be related to you. What happened?”

“Hmm~ That’s a lady’s secret. Do you really need to know?”

“I didn’t expect you to tell me easily.”

Ashen Moon spread his palm, causing the space above it to condense. It wasn’t gray, black, or white—just a tangible clump of space itself.

“Wait, are you going to fight me?”

With a dazed expression, Scarlett pointed at herself with her index finger.

“Maybe reconsider?”

“It’s not a fight. It’s a threat.”

“Ooh, scary.”

Feigning fear, she wrapped her arms around herself and shook her head dramatically before opening her eyes and smirking.

“But here’s the thing—I’m not really here!”

Ashen Moon clenched his palm, twisting Scarlett’s body with all his strength.

Crunch.

Her limbs bent unnaturally, and her body fragmented into dozens of pieces, yet the smile never left her face.

“I told you~ Come to my place. Use that fancy teleportation of yours!”

Her mocking laughter rang out, echoing like a witch’s cackle as her body disintegrated into dust. Ashen Moon opened his palm again with a grim expression.

A ticket appeared, reading, *“Come, or I’ll turn you into a frog!”*

Crinkle, snap.

He crushed the ticket, breaking it down to its atomic level.

Though it was disappointing to miss the chance to catch Scarlett, he hadn’t intended to capture her seriously.

The Queen of Witches had hidden her true form for centuries. Finding even her illusion was an achievement.

“But still… I learned something valuable.”

Muttering to himself, Ashen Moon looked down at the world before disappearing into the fabric of space.

Meanwhile, in the sky, hundreds and thousands of stars continued to fall.

Once they were all extinguished, only one star would remain.

---

At Stella, autumn brought with it a sense of anticipation among the students due to a small event held on campus.

The school-wide tournament to select representatives for the *League of Spirits* was about to begin.

While some might picture a modest school event, Stella’s was on an entirely different level.

Students dedicated solely to competing in the *League of Spirits* enrolled specifically for that purpose, forming teams and clubs. With nearly a thousand elite Stella magic warriors participating seriously, the scale was beyond comparison.

Spectators bought tickets just to watch the tournament, and attendance often exceeded ten thousand—more than a mid-sized regional competition.

Pulleim submitted the registration form for the ‘Pulleim Team’ with a smile. 

The team included Baek Yuseol, Aizel, Mayuseong, and Haewonryang, with no substitutes. Even so, five members were enough to compete.

Despite being hastily assembled, they were considered contenders for the championship.

The only problem? Most of the team had never played *League of Spirits* before.

This meant they had to cram practice sessions with less than two weeks left until the tournament.

‘How much did they care about the tournament in the original story?’

Baek Yuseol wasn’t part of the original romance fantasy, so he could be excluded.

Aizel, the *All-Rounder*, was a character with the *Versatile* trait. In the original story, it was mentioned briefly that she developed pro-level skills after only watching the game a few times. She even won the tournament.

She had defeated Hong Biyeon’s team, who had participated as rivals, and then advanced to the world championship, where she defeated Zelieal, creating an unforgettable thrill.

I still remembered it vividly.

The victory was so exhilarating that I rewatched that scene more than ten times.

‘As for Mayuseong and Haewonryang…’

There was no record of them participating in the tournament in the original story.

*League of Spirits* was a side story, and Aizel formed teams with various supporting characters, so lead characters rarely appeared.

‘Baek Yuseol will be fine.’

He was good at everything.

Although he claimed he’d never played and didn’t want to, he’d become the most reliable asset when the game started.

“Wow…”

The professor who took the application adjusted his glasses and clicked his tongue.

“The team members are impressive. This will be something to watch. The official Stella representatives will be on edge.”

“Ah, we haven’t even practiced properly, so there’s no need to be nervous. Magic warriors and pro players are different.”

Out of modesty, I said that, but someone tapped Pulleim’s shoulder from the side.

“That’s true. Pro players and magic warriors are different.”

“Huh?”

Pulleim, annoyed but not hurt by the tap, rubbed her arm and looked at the person.

The girl, around 170 cm tall, was someone Pulleim had to crane her neck to look up at. Her straight-cut bangs gave the impression of a no-nonsense personality.

‘Gayu Rin…?’

She wore the Stella uniform, but I’d never encountered her on campus.

Pulleim remembered her name.

Not because she was famous, but because she was Aizel’s first opponent in the tournament in the original story—a rival Aizel defeated.

“I know you’re skilled magic warriors. But it’s different in the arena. You must’ve gathered such a team thinking you could win, but… you’re better off quitting now.”

Gayu Rin’s cold words hung in the air before she submitted her application and walked away. Her confident stride was impressive, but her rudeness left me stunned.

“What’s her deal?”

“Ah, sorry about that. She’s intense, as you can see. She’s training to be a pro player.”

“Uh, yeah, I know

.”

Pulleim wasn’t annoyed just because Gayu Rin provoked her.

It was odd that she aimed her provocation at her instead of Aizel.

‘I feel bad for Aizel.’

The story had changed so much that Aizel didn’t even get the chance to form a team. Originally, she entered the tournament to break away from her entangled relationships with Emperor Scalben, Princess Hong Biyeon, and others. But now, none of that had happened.

Seeing Aizel still studying diligently in the practice room even as the tournament approached was proof of how relaxed and stable her life had become.

“As you know, *League of Spirits* players are often looked down upon by magic warriors. That’s why she’s so defensive. And you guys didn’t even train for this. She probably thought you were looking down on the sport.”

It was true.

There was even a saying that those who couldn’t handle the life of a magic warrior escaped to *League of Spirits*.

But I wasn’t looking down on it.

I had no reason to underestimate it, especially when we formed a team just to avoid Scalben.

“Sports are sports, and combat is combat. There’s no reason to look down on it, right?”

“It’d be nice if all mages thought like you. Anyway, take your application. The *League of Spirits* practice facilities will now be open to you, so make use of them. The time is short, but do your best.”

“Of course.”

Two weeks?

A day would be enough.