CHAPTER 49: Isla’s wrath

Leina’s body trembled, her breath ragged as she pushed every ounce of her strength into the magic barrier.

The pressure was unbearable.

The ground quaked beneath her, the very air around them warped under the weight of the monstrous presence beyond the wall.

“Are you able to withstand this?!” one of the sorcerers shouted, panic edging his voice.

Leina gritted her teeth, her grip tightening around her staff.

“It won’t last for long—” she forced the words out, steadying her stance despite the exhaustion gnawing at her.

“We need to prepare a counterattack before it fully breaks through!”

The others exchanged uneasy glances, hesitation flickering in their eyes.

Then—

One of the sorcerers, a scholar among them, took a step back.

His face was pale—his hands shaking as he clutched his wand.

“That… Lunaflora…” his voice was barely above a whisper.

The others turned to him, uncertainty growing.

“It’s the Ancient One.”

The words hung in the air like a curse.

“Isla.”

Leina’s eyes widened.

The scholar’s breath was uneven as he continued, his tone laced with fear.

“We studied it before… in the old history records.”

He swallowed hard, his fingers trembling.

“That flower… that High Greed—”

“It’s faster than you think.”

The sorcerers standing nearby stiffened.

As the realization sank in, the weight of the truth gripped their hearts.

This wasn’t just a Greed.

This was the very entity that nearly destroyed Velmore before.

And now—

It had returned.

“We can’t defeat it ourselves…! We need the Sapphire Heart Scythe to seal it again..!”

His voice broke, fear seeping into his words.

A sharp crack splintered through the air—

The barrier trembled.

Leina’s legs weakened, but she held firm, pouring every last drop of magic into keeping it intact.

But she was running out of time.

Her vision blurred, her breath ragged, but she refused to waver.

Not when they were running out of time.

The magic barrier cracked again—a jagged fracture splitting through its glowing surface like shattered glass.

Leina’s grip tightened around her staff, her knuckles turning white.

A deep, burning irritation surged inside her.

“We don’t have enough time..!”

Her voice rang through the air, filled with both urgency and command.

She clenched her jaw, forcing her vision to steady as she pushed one final surge of energy into the barrier—buying them just a few more seconds.

“Prepare your attack—NOW!”

The sorcerers snapped out of their fear, jolted into action.

Leina’s magic barrier—her final line of defense—

It was fading.

The moment her barrier collapsed, the other sorcerers reacted instantly, raising their own shields, protecting the villages, protecting themselves to intercept the incoming attack.

But—

Some weren’t fast enough.

Then—

BOOM.

The sky exploded into a rain of deadly projectiles—jagged, searing, and fast.

The Lunaflora struck.

A maelstrom of destruction engulfed the battlefield.

Leina barely had time to move before she threw herself behind one of the remaining barriers.

The flower’s attack crashed into the sorcerers’ defenses, sending shockwaves rippling across the field.

The ground shattered beneath them.

Screams filled the air.

Smoke and dust clouded her vision.

Through the deafening chaos, she could hear the sounds of the people running, shouting—some crying out in pain.

Her fingers trembled as she forced herself up, her breath ragged.

The battlefield had become a nightmare.

And in the midst of it all—

The Lunaflora loomed.

Unstoppable.

Relentless.

Just as the battlefield teetered on the edge of despair—

A thunderous boom cut through the chaos.

A streak of light—blazing, fast, piercing.

Then—

CRACK!

A magic lance slammed into the flower’s massive form, sending a ripple of force through its twisted petals and corrupted vines.

The monster flinched, its massive tendrils recoiling from the strike.

A powerful voice roared over the battlefield.

“CHARGE!!”

The high-ranking officer stood at the forefront, his armor gleaming with the energy of his Sapphire Heart—

The Mage Knight.

His command thundered across the field, igniting new resolve into the soldiers.

From behind him—

The archers moved.

A line of marksmen stood poised, their bows raised, their arrows ablaze with fire magic. The Sapphire Hearts embedded within them pulsed like celestial stars, crackling with raw energy.

Then—

They loosed their arrows.

A storm of flame-laced projectiles tore through the air, streaking in a wave of molten light.

Each arrow found its mark, piercing through the Greed-infested petals—fire igniting on impact, consuming its corrupted flesh in a burning inferno.

A roar.

The flower shrieked—its massive, writhing form convulsing under the onslaught.

But—

It wasn’t done fighting.

As the arrows struck, the ground rumbled.

A new threat emerged.

The very earth split apart.

Dark, gnarled roots burst from below—twisting, writhing—alive.

With terrifying speed—

They lunged.

“Aaghh—!!”

Some were struck mid-air, their bodies flung backward with devastating force.

Others barely managed to dodge, rolling across the dirt as the vine-tendrils lashed out like hungry beasts.

The Greed had awakened fully.

And it wouldn’t go down easily.

The battlefield erupted into chaos once more.

The officer gritted his teeth, forcing another lance of magic forward to keep the monster at bay—

But the Lunaflora was already recovering.

It was angry.

Leina, still struggling to catch her breath, watched in horror.

“It’s adapting…!” she gasped.

The Greed had learned from their attacks.

It was retaliating with unpredictable speed—

This fight was far from over.

“This won’t work—!”

Leina pressed herself against the barrier, her breath ragged.

Her hands trembled around her staff as she watched the monster grow.

This wasn’t the Lunaflora she had once nurtured in her garden.

This was something else.

Something terrifying.

Leina’s heart pounded as her vision blurred.

“I’ve.. never seen a High Greed grow like this…”

The flower’s massive vines coiled, its roots digging deeper, drawing energy from the very land itself.

Then—

It struck.

A massive vine lashed out, smashing through barriers like they were nothing—sending shards of magic scattering through the battlefield.

“WATCH OUT—!” someone screamed.

Leina flinched, shielding her face as the barrier she hid behind shattered into fragments.

A wave of energy crashed over her, sending her stumbling backward.

Dust and debris filled the air—the battlefield swallowed in chaos.

And the Lunaflora prepared to unleash another onslaught of roots—

But—

A gleaming silver arc slashed through its opening.

A flash of movement.

A single strike.

From the safety of their shelter, the villagers watched the sky—
their eyes fixed on the chaos unfolding above.

Then—a gasp.

“The Sapphire Heart Scythe…!”

“Was it Whisker…?!” someone exclaimed,

“No…” Grandpa Otto stepped forward.

To Leina’s notice—

It was Baihou.

He tore through the battlefield, his Sapphire Heart Scythe a blur of lethal precision.

Spinning—slashing—unstoppable.

Every swing severed the writhing tendrils that lunged toward him, his speed faster than the Greed could track.

The air cracked as he landed—hard.

His boots skidded across the dirt, and with a final powerful arc, he drove his scythe into the ground.

The impact sent a shockwave through the battlefield, his momentum carrying him backward—

Right toward Leina.

Leina staggered as Baihou landed near her, his breath sharp, his stance momentarily unsteady.

But before she could react—

The others arrived.

Like a storm—they attacked.

Helion’s strings of fate snapped forward, ensnaring the flower’s massive frame just in time.

The Greed lurched, its movements stunned by the unseen force holding it in place.

Then—

The sky darkened.

A howl of wind tore through the battlefield.

Leina’s eyes widened.

Above them—

A raven.

Anna’s summon unleashed its power—

A storm of dagger-like shards rained down in a violent torrent, piercing into the flower with deadly precision.

The sheer force of the attack rippled through the air, wind currents twisting around them, sending dust and petals flying in a whirlwind of chaos.

Leina stood frozen—overwhelmed by the battle unfolding before her.

Then—

“Leina—!”

She startled.

Before she could process what was happening—

Baihou pulled her into a tight embrace.

Leina’s breath hitched—eyes wide.

“I’m glad… you’re alright..”

His voice was low, barely above a whisper, but she felt it.

His arms held onto her tightly, like he was afraid she’d disappear.

“Baihou..?” Leina’s body stiffening for a moment.

As Baihou and Leina loosened their hold, Leina’s expression shifted to concern.

“What happened…?”

Baihou exhaled, his tone firm but heavy.

“We fought a different one… We believe the roots were transmitted here while we were facing another High Greed elsewhere.”

Leina’s eyes widened. “That means… there are two Lunaflora High Greeds?”

Baihou nodded, his gaze darkening. “Now, our real opponent is Isla. If we can destroy its core… we can end this.”

His sharp eyes flickered toward the battlefield, where his teammates fought the monstrous flower, each attack met with relentless resistance.

The creature was aware—it was adapting, hunting, waiting.

“The core…” A voice interrupted.

A sorcerer approached, his face lined with unease. “It’s hard to break… We could only seal it last time.”

Baihou’s stance didn’t waver. “It’s possible. We’ve done it before—just like with the previous High Greed.”

The man hesitated. “P-previous…?”

Then—

“Baihou.”

Leina’s voice was steady, unwavering.

Baihou turned to look at her.

“I’m going to use my Finalist. But… there’s a risk. The spell requires a long duration to cast.”

Baihou’s breath hitched—a spell with a long charge time on a battlefield like this was dangerous.

"You're going to use Fatebreaker..!?"

But before he could respond—

Anna’s wolf leaped forward, its massive form shielding them from the devastating blow.

BOOM.

The impact was coming straight for them.

“Baihou! Careful!” Anna’s voice rang out as she stepped in,

The man earlier staggered.

He then saw the Raven, which took to the skies—its dark wings cutting through the battlefield.

The flower Greed screeched, and from the ground—

More minions sprouted.

Tiny carnivorous flowers, their vines snapping hungrily as they crawled toward them, multiplying rapidly.

Baihou’s jaw tightened. He watched carefully, his golden gaze darting between the battlefield and the monster’s pattern.

Then—he made his decision.

”…It’s possible. We’ll cover you!”

Leina’s eyes widened slightly. She knew Baihou was fast, but even he was taking a risk.

“But—”

Baihou turned toward the others. His stance strong, his voice commanding.

“Guys! Back her up! We’re going to use Leina’s Fatebreaker!”

Kaziel flashed into existence in a crackle of lightning, landing just a few feet away. His gaze snapped to Baihou, immediately understanding the plan.

“Right…!”

Then—

In a split second, the flower lunged toward him, its massive body moving at full speed, intending to crush him whole.

But Kaziel was too fast. He vanished again.

The plant slammed into the ground instead, where the minions at—

CRACK—BOOM!

The earth split open, sending shockwaves rippling across the battlefield.

The impact was catastrophic.

Anna’s wolf—

Vanished.

The shockwave hit hard, sending Baihou and Leina flying in separate directions.

The sorcerers managed to shield themselves with their magic but it sent them backward.

Leina crashed into the ground, the impact knocking the wind out of her.

For a moment, her vision blurred.

“Damn it—” she hissed, forcing herself up.

Her hands trembled against the dirt, her limbs weak, her mind racing.

As her gaze lifted, she took in the sight before her—

Her friends—her teammates—still fighting.

The battlefield was a blur of motion—

They were fighting for her.

They were giving her time.

Leina’s fingers clenched into fists.

“I can’t stop here.”

Just as Leina struggled to push herself up, a swift blur landed beside her—

Sakura.

“Leina..!”

Before Leina could respond, Sakura tossed something toward her.

A Sapphire Heart stone.

Leina caught it, feeling its familiar energy pulse in her hands.

“Use this… its a vitality restoration.”

Leina’s eyes widened in realization. This was exactly what she needed—a chance to recover.

But then—she paused.

Sakura wasn’t using one.

“But then… what about yo—”

Her words stopped short.

Because Sakura was already gone.

Leina’s breath hitched as she whipped her head around.

Sakura was in motion.

She had rushed toward the battlefield, intercepting the incoming strike that had been aimed at the remaining sorcerers.

A massive root lunged—sharp, fast, deadly.

But before it could reach them—

Sakura was there.

She twisted mid-air, her Jagged Rapture Blade slicing through the root with a clean, devastating strike.

BOOM.

The severed root crashed into the ground, mere inches from the sorcerers.

Sakura stumbled from the impacts, her breath heavy, but she never faltered.

She was still standing.

Still fighting.

A Thalvarian—like Sakura—still standing, still fighting, enduring such a surge of energy…

Leina paused, her thoughts spiraling—but only for a moment.

Then, she shook it off, forcing herself to refocus.

With a deep breath, she tightened her grip around the Sapphire Heart stone, its cool surface pressing against her palm.

“There’s no time for this… I need to focus now.”

As if in response, a rush of energy surged through her.

Warmth. Strength.

Her wounds stabilized, her body responding to the revitalizing magic.

She gripped her staff.

“Let’s do this.”