The staircase seemed to stretch on forever.
Nevertheless, Vane and his companions pushed their exhausted bodies into a sprint, determined to see if the depths had been tainted by Orphide’s influence. If they found any traces of corruption, they planned to purify it using Squal’s magic or Vane’s own power.
The stairs were hewn from stone, their surfaces intermittently swallowed by patches of moss that clung to the walls, floor, and ceiling.
After several minutes of running, the seven felt a sudden rush of air.
They emerged into a location deep within Windea—a colossal cavern that looked as if the heart of a massive stone cylinder had been hollowed out.
"What is... this place?"
"Look... over there!" Charlotte pointed toward the center of the void.
The cavern featured a circular ledge built along the perimeter at the level where they stood. From this path, several arched bridges extended like spokes toward the center.
In the heart of the hollow, a sphere of light formed by an intricate web of emerald and azure lines drifted in the air. Surrounding this primary sphere were several smaller orbs of light, floating as if to form a protective ring.
But the great sphere in the center was being devoured by a roiling black mist. Just as Ren had feared, the changes being wrought deep within Windea were poisoning the very mana of the land.
"I suspect this is a sacred site where Windea’s mana converges," Charlotte said. "What do you all think?"
"I agree," Kaito said.
Following his lead, Squal spoke with a weary but firm expression. "Then let us purify it quickly."
However, as they attempted to cross the arched bridges, they were repelled by a fierce gale. They were nearly tossed into the abyss. If they fell from this height, where the bottom was lost in shadows... no one dared to imagine the outcome.
They knew they had to bypass the wind, but it was no natural storm. It was a barrier meant to protect the power at the center of Windea, and they could find no way to suppress it.
Squal unleashed his magic. First, a spell to unravel curses. Next, he cast a high-tier White Magic spell designed to repel evil. The wind blocking the bridge slackened, yet Orphide’s power continued to defile Windea’s essence.
Just as they were considering using Vane’s power to break the overwhelming force of the Demon King Cult, Charlotte squinted at the floating lights.
"Is that—?"
Her vision was the keenest among the seven. Among the smaller orbs surrounding the central sphere, she had spotted something unique. Unlike its neighbors, one sphere was enveloped entirely in Wind Mana.
And within that sphere, something lay dormant.
"Why... why is it here?"
Like Kaito a year prior, she found herself doubting her own eyes. But there was no mistaking it. Although she had only ever seen it in old scrolls, the silhouette visible within the gale and light was the unmistakable form of a specific bow.
The bow of the Rofelia family’s ancestor—the weapon of one of the Seven Heroes.
The mystery of its presence was no different from when Airia had been discovered. It was a moment that suggested some grander design was at play.
She could not ignore that weapon. The bow that rested there, as if anchoring the very winds of Windea, was the Wind King Bow Sylphina, a relic blessed by the Wind Spirit.
Should she take it? How could she even reach it?
While Charlotte hesitated, her six companions also caught sight of Sylphina within the light. Suddenly, the wind and brilliance surrounding the bow subsided, and the weapon began to drift slowly downward.
"Wait!"
Charlotte sprinted, forgetting her sprained ankle. Even as a searing, throbbing pain flared in her leg, she didn't slow down. She used Wind Magic to draw the falling bow toward her. Instead of tumbling into the abyss, Sylphina settled perfectly into her hands.
"Upperclassman Sharo!"
Vane caught Charlotte as she stumbled, but their momentum sent them both rolling onto the arched bridge. Clutching Sylphina, Charlotte apologized to Vane for the collision before quickly thanking him.
As the others rushed to join them, Charlotte stood up with Vane’s help. Despite the sharp reminder of her injury, she looked at the relic in her hands.
"...Why was this bow here?" she asked, clutching Sylphina close.
Sera stood beside her. "Hey, Sharo... is that really what I think it is?"
"Yes. I don’t know why it was here, but... I suppose it's the same as what happened with Airia."
"Sounds about right," Kaito said with a grin. "I still don't know why mine showed up like that, but maybe our ancestors' power decided to call out to us."
"Perhaps," Charlotte murmured.
She looked toward the black mana assaulting the massive central sphere. It was sharp and straight, like a dark arrow. In response, the Sylphina in her arms began to glow with a brilliant emerald light, as if communicating with her.
"It feels like this child is telling me to use her."
It was a majestic bow, appearing as if carved from a single piece of flawless jade and adorned with intricate woodwork. Its string was spun from gold. Though it looked taut and unyielding, the resistance was surprisingly light when Charlotte drew it back.
Confirming the bow's weight, she stepped past her companions and focused on the sphere of light. All she had to do was draw the string, just as she always did, and take one deep breath.
She didn't need a physical arrow. By focusing her will into her fingertips, a shaft of Wind Magic manifested on the string. Without looking back, she spoke.
"This bow is incredibly strong! Everyone, make sure you don't get blown off the bridge!"
As the magic arrow formed, a violent gale erupted around Sylphina. A wind far more powerful than any Charlotte had ever summoned before swirled around the legendary relic. The air turned a visible shade of emerald, spiraling toward the tip of the notched arrow.
However, her exhaustion from the battle with Orphide made her hands shake, and her aim wavered. Her sprained ankle made it impossible to plant her feet firmly.
"If you miss, I'll mock you for the rest of my life!"
Spurred by the provocation from Lizred, whom she had always treated like a little sister, Charlotte glanced back. She saw Lizred biting her lip, her eyes brimming with tears of worry. Seeing that face, the strength returned to Charlotte’s trembling legs.
"Hmph. Keep dreaming, you brat."
"I'll say it as much as I want! If that's what it takes to get you focused!"
"Don't get the wrong idea. I don't need my little sister worrying about me." Charlotte paused. "But... I've always been a sucker for your nagging, Liz."
Perhaps it was precisely because she cared for the girl like family. She couldn't bring herself to be honest and say thank you; she just wanted to show off her best side.
Charlotte steadied her aim. This time, there was no swaying, no trembling.
The master archer, Charlotte Rofelia.
The winds around Sylphina settled into a hum, as if the bow were smiling. The ritual to judge the new master was over.
"If you've accepted me as your master—" Charlotte released the string. "—then go and purge that filth!"
The sacred wind transformed into a bolt of emerald lightning. The black mana attacking the central sphere shifted, forming dozens of shadowy arms that reached out to intercept the projectile. But as they touched the wind, the shadows were shattered and erased.
The remaining arms twisted frantically, but they couldn't even graze the flash of light. The arrow pierced straight through Orphide’s mana just as it was about to reach the light sphere’s core.
The Great Cavern was suddenly filled with green mana that twinkled like a swarm of fireflies. A wind reached the seven companions, carrying a purity that seemed to wash their very souls. As the pressure vanished, Charlotte’s body swayed.
Sera caught her. "Not bad, Sharo," she said with a radiant smile.
For the seven, their battle had finally reached its conclusion.
The ripples of Charlotte using Sylphina reached the temple where Ren was fighting.
The temple's exterior was an open colonnade, offering a clear view of the surrounding landscape. Even at night, the star-filled sky provided enough light to see.
In this sacred plaza, Priest Orphide’s breathing was shallow and ragged. Cradling one of his arms, he surveyed the shifting state of Windea’s mana before leaping out into the center of the colonnade.
"I never imagined I would be so utterly thwarted," Orphide said. His composure remained intact, a faint, cool smile still lingering on his face.
However, he would never speak of the girl he called "that person." Information about her was more precious to him than his own life.
He was cornered. Even with his powers bolstered by the Holy Relic, he could not win this fight. His only remaining goal was a draw that felt as close to victory as possible.
"...I am a priest."
Orphide clutched his torso with both arms and released a wave of black energy that knocked Ren back.
"I have no intention of bowing my head to a child of Elfen!"
In that split second, he manifested a glowing purple magic circle upon the stone plaza. The mana surging from it was pure destruction, capable of reducing a person to ash with a mere touch.
In the center of the circle, Orphide’s knees finally gave out. He smiled as he slumped against a pile of fallen rubble, sliding down to sit upon the broken pavement. He no longer had the strength to stand.
Orphide spoke to Ren, who stood a dozen meils away. "How does it sound? A rematch in the world of the dead?"
"Did you really think I'd agree to that?"
"I didn't. But I truly wish you would. You see, you are far too dangerous to leave behind."
Ren thrust the Water Magic Sword into the ground and gripped the Mithril Magic Sword with both hands. Silver and jet-black mana, too vast to be contained by the blade alone, coiled around his arms.
He thought of the moment before he left Erendil, when Licia and Fiona had seen him off. The two colors of mana reminded him of them. Even in this desperate moment, he felt emboldened.
"...I'm going home as soon as I finish this."
As the magic circle’s power reached its breaking point, the seated Orphide reached out toward Ren. Destruction gathered at his fingertips.
Ren raised the Mithril Magic Sword high.
Then came the sound of the wind being severed.
A massive beam of light, comparable to Lizred’s Dragon's Breath, erupted from Orphide’s hand. It shared the purple hue of the magic circle, wreathed in mana that flickered like hellfire. It tore through the stone pavement as it surged toward Ren.
At the same time, Ren brought the Mithril Magic Sword down, unleashing the Authority Sword.
This was the end. A final, head-on clash of will and power.
Ren’s Authority Sword met the incoming blast, slowly but surely grinding away the enemy's light.
"Guh...!"
But Ren was paying a heavy price. One of his arms was being scorched by Orphide’s mana. A searing pain from the curse began to eat into the very fibers of his muscles. Yet, his grip on the Mithril Magic Sword did not falter.
"Impossible... Even after all this, you still—!?"
The end was sudden and vivid.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Ren let out a roar as he swung the Mithril Magic Sword down with everything he had left.
A vortex of storms and purple lightning collided and then burst into a wind that carried no malice. The silver and jet-black flash pulverized Orphide’s light, shattered the magic circle, and purified the corruption entirely.
Orphide’s mana dissipated into particles of light that drifted softly through the air. The ferocity of the battle was replaced by a profound silence. It was a beautiful, dreamlike scene where the remnants of the magic circle mixed with the cool blue mana of the Water Magic Sword.
The dancing droplets of light and water seemed to move in slow motion.
Orphide remained sitting where he was. "Magnificent..."
He wouldn't let the descendants or Ren take this moment from him.
"To think this day would end... with such a beautiful, ill-fated sight."
Faced with that forbidden beauty, and without Ren needing to strike again, Orphide’s life simply faded away. He stayed true to his resolve never to be captured by the Empire, smiling at Ren until the very moment his heart stopped.
Others had witnessed the end of the struggle—Vane and his companions.
They had reached the surface just after Orphide deployed the magic circle, arriving in time to see the final clash. They had seen the space filled with blue crystals and the collision of silver and black mana. They had sensed that something terrible was happening while they were climbing the stairs, but they had never imagined the scale of the battle.
"........."
The fight was over. Ren stood in silence, offering no words. His arm hung limp and exhausted from the final exertion. No one knew what thoughts were crossing his mind.
Finally, one girl spoke.
Lizred, watching Ren’s silent back as the dust settled, whispered.
"...So that's him."
She continued, her voice soft but filled with realization.
"That is the Strong Sword Saint, Ren Ashton."
A gentle wind brushed through the night in Windea. It felt peaceful, as if the land itself were offering its gratitude at the battle's end.