South of the Gas Tree Sea.
Three members of Blue Pegasus — Ichiya, Ivan, and Lyon — traveled cautiously together.
The atmosphere was heavy with hesitation, until Ivan couldn't hold back any longer.He spoke up, his voice uncertain:
"Master Ichiya..."
Ichiya turned around, striking what he thought was a handsome pose.With a glittering smile, he declared:
"A man doesn't sweat the small stuff!"
Ivan, unfazed, pressed on:"But... how did Ken know about the Magic Cruiser Christina? Logically speaking, he's never even seen it before..."
Ichiya seemed not to care at all, replying casually:
"Since we are comrades, don't overthink things. I believe in Brother Ken — because that's what it means to be a man!"
Ivan's eyes shone with admiration.
"As expected of Master Ichiya!"
While they were speaking, Lyon suddenly shouted excitedly:
"Look over there! Smoke! It must be the Christina!"
Without thinking, Lyon rushed ahead through the thick bushes.
There — emerging from the greenery — he saw it:The half-wrecked magic cruiser Christina, barely standing.
"...It really is here."
Once a majestic ship that soared proudly across the skies, Christina now lay broken and battered after the assault by the Six Demon Generals.
The cab had exploded, and half a wing was torn clean off.It looked hopeless — impossible to return to the skies.
Ichiya stepped forward and inspected it solemnly.
"The cab can be repaired by Ivan," he said after a moment. "But there are too many missing structural parts... I'm afraid—"
Lyon cut in, full of energy:
"No problem! I can replace the damaged parts with my Ice-Make magic!"
Without hesitation, Lyon clasped his fists together, magic surging through him.Frost gathered around the wounded ship — and with a flash of brilliant white light, a perfect pair of new wings formed, sculpted from solid ice.
The three members of Blue Pegasus cheered loudly, then immediately set to work repairing the cab.
Ichiya wiped a tear dramatically.
"Brother Ken's plan really is brilliant! Dividing our strengths like this — Christina will fly again! Men!"
Still, Lyon looked puzzled.
"...But how did Ken know I use Ice-Make magic? Did Gray tell him?"
For now, that was the only logical explanation they could think of.
Meanwhile...
Jura and Sherria were searching deeper within the Gas Tree Sea.
Suddenly, both of them stopped.
From the shadow beneath a giant tree ahead, a towering figure emerged, walking toward them slowly.
The man was built like a mountain — taller even than Jura — dressed in monk-like robes.Long orange hair trailed behind him, and his right arm clutched a strange, rune-covered magic book.
"Hoteye!" Jura said sharply, instantly recognizing him.
Without hesitation, he turned to Sherria:
"Retreat, quickly!"
"Got it!"
Jura knew Hoteye's magic specialized in devastating area attacks. Keeping Sherria — whose magic reserves were relatively low — nearby would only risk unnecessary injury.
As Sherria withdrew to safety, Jura stepped forward.
He thrust out his palm — and the ground rumbled as massive stone spikes erupted toward Hoteye!
But Hoteye simply smiled.
He casually waved his free hand —and the deadly spikes melted into soft mud before reaching him.
"Your magic makes the earth as hard as iron," Hoteye said with a chuckle."But my magic softens it.Your attacks are meaningless against me, aren't they?"
Jura's face tightened with concentration.
He breathed deeply, and his right hand glowed with an austere light as his fingers formed intricate signs.
The earth shook violently again.
"Rock Iron Pillar!"
Four colossal stone columns surged upward under Hoteye's feet — aiming to crush him.
But Hoteye repeated his trick.
The moment the pillars neared him, they twisted, bent, and collapsed into a heap of wet dirt.
"Didn't I say?" Hoteye smiled."Your earth magic is useless against me."
Gritting his teeth, Jura refused to back down.
He summoned more and more attacks — pillars, cones, walls — trying everything he could.
Hoteye softened them all with ease.
And so the battle dragged on.
Dozens, hundreds of rounds —the eastern Gas Tree Sea was torn apart by their clash, the terrain unrecognizable, covered in broken spires and upheaved earth.
But neither man had landed a real hit yet.
They were locked in a stalemate — until suddenly...
BOOM!
Both men sensed it simultaneously:A terrifying surge of magic exploded from beneath the ground!
A massive white pillar of light burst into the sky, warping the clouds and air itself.
Around the pillar, gray-black magic ripples shimmered, releasing eerie fluctuations.
Jura's expression changed drastically.
Even as one of the Holy Ten Wizards — even with all his strength —the force from this light made him feel as small as an ant.
"This magic..."Jura whispered, stunned."Could it be... Nirvana!?"
Hoteye's face also flashed with shock — but quickly shifted into excitement.
"So that's it!" Hoteye laughed."Nirvana was buried underground all along!"
"Because we kept slamming earth magic into the ground... the energy must have disturbed it and broken the seal!"
Realizing this, Jura's heart sank.
Ken warned us of this possibility...!
Nirvana has been awakened...!
If it fully activates, this mission will end in disaster!
Jura clenched his fists, about to move —when suddenly, a scream split the air.
"AAAHHH!!"
He looked up.
Hoteye — the man he'd fought for hundreds of rounds without pause —was now writhing on the ground, clutching his head in agony.
Jura narrowed his eyes cautiously.
Was this some new trick?
But then he heard it —Hoteye muttering hoarsely under his breath:
"Money... money... MONEY!"
The words grew weaker and weaker, until finally, Hoteye gasped:
"...I don't want it anymore."
Suddenly, he dropped his hands.
When Hoteye looked up, his eyes were clear.
"I don't want money anymore! It's true!"
"...Huh?"
Jura stared in shock.
Hoteye, ignoring his confusion, began sobbing emotionally:
"I desperately wanted to see my little brother... I thought I needed to be rich to find him... it's true!"
"But now I realize — I was wrong! I shouldn't have joined the Dark Guild! I shouldn't have fallen into evil! It's true!"
Before Jura could react, Hoteye lunged forward —and wrapped the stunned Jura in a bear hug, crying like a baby.
Tears poured onto Jura's shiny bald head.
"Seeing you... you reminded me of my brother... it's true!"
Jura, still utterly bewildered, managed to stammer:
"Is... is it because I look like him?"
Hoteye sniffled:
"No! Your bald head reminds me of the potatoes my brother loved to eat!"
"THIS ISN'T A POTATO, IT'S A HEAD!!"
Jura roared back instinctively.
In the middle of this chaos, realization finally hit him.
So this is the effect of Nirvana...It flips the heart — evil becomes good, and good becomes evil.
Hoteye's heart... has been purified!
Next Chapter: Nirvana's Awakening