Outer ocean off the Arcana Continent.

Beyond the endlessly deep ultramarine horizon, a red-sand continent barely peeked into view.

"We can see it now. The city up ahead is the Holy Land Canaan."

『Finally...』

The massive silver dragon answered the Archangel in a heavy tone.

"Now that we've come this far, even I can sense it. The Demon General of Wave's wavelength is gone. Either she's hiding her presence, or she's left the Holy Land entirely."

Fear beat the wings on her back.

"There's only one massive presence remaining."

『That unknown wavelength Elise was talking about, huh.』

Dragons had naturally sharp senses, but when it came to detecting presences, angels and demons had the advantage.

The former Demon King Elise's spiritual perception was in a class of its own, even among demons. That was why they'd been counting on her intel to track the ominous presence closing in on the Holy Land Canaan — but...

".........."

The very Elise they needed most had gone completely silent a short while ago. She'd said she would tell them immediately if she sensed anything urgent, yet she just kept staring toward the Holy Land without moving.

No — it was the look on her face.

"Elise?"

"...Amazing."

Demon Imperial Princess Eliselis Di Mariablaze.

The former Demon King — who had once ruled the Underworld with her jet-black miasma and struck fear into even the demons under her command — murmured that word in a voice she couldn't keep from trembling with excitement.

Her cheeks flushed, a smile even forming on her lips.

And then, just like that—

"Kyelse! Hurry, hurry up already!"

『What...?』

She started smacking the dragon's head beneath her. Slap, slap.

"Hurry, hurry! Fear, you fly faster too! Deep inside the Holy Land — there's a huge palace-looking building. Ren's in there!"

『Obviously he's there. That's why we're headed there - to meet up with him.』

"No no no, that's not what I mean!"

Elise smacked the dragon's head even harder.

It was like watching a jockey whipping a horse to make it go faster.

"Hurry! We're gonna miss it if we don't!"

"...Miss what, exactly?"

The Archangel asked, and the former Demon King went quiet for a moment. Then, almost like she was talking to herself:

"Nice one, Ren. You're looking pretty cool right now."

Holy Land Canaan, Main Spirit Palace — Hall of Prayer.

Sunlight poured into the sanctuary.

Floating above the altar was the Light-Form Higher Being.

It held hostile waves of light that could burn anything they touched and a cross-spear condensed from that same light. The thing it gazed down upon was a single boy knight.

"...I don't know why. I can't even explain it myself, but..."

The boy gripped the Crimson Spirit Sword in his right hand.

Behind him stood the four primordial spirits.

Not as servants bound to his command — more like they were watching over him from behind.

"I don't feel like I can lose to you."

At the same moment, Ren charged across the battered sanctuary.

A straight line. No tricks, no feints — just a dead sprint for the sunlit altar.

---And then, everything happened in an instant.---

Veiz Claw.

The voice of the Light-Form Higher Being.

A sound no dragon, demon, or angel could perceive. Like the voices of spirits, it was an ominous wave of sound that only an Ancienter could hear.

By the time that sound reached him, its claws of light should have already burned through its target — Ren.

...That was how it should have gone.

You can feel it. The presence of light. Dodge as it's reflected on the water's surface — your heart.

A splash of water. Driven by the voice of Undine as she cradled Elies in her arms, Ren ducked low mid-sprint.

The deadly blade of light passed right over his head.

Light.

The fastest speed in the natural world. By the time its glow entered your eyes, your whole body should already have been bathed in it and knocked flat — an attack impossible to react to.

But right now—

Right now, nothing scared him. It wouldn't hit. Every flash of light, every sound, even the currents of air swirling through the sanctuary — all of it was reflected in Undine's Water Mirror.

And then—

What turned that perception into the physical technique for super-speed evasion was—

That's the way! Faster than anyone — run across the earth!

Gnome, clinging to his shoulder.

...He could feel it.

...With every step, the ground beneath his feet was pushing him forward.

His strides carried the Breath of the earth. Each powerful kick against the ground gave him the explosive acceleration to dodge every blade of light closing in on him by a hair's breadth.

The altar.

The Light-Form Higher Being raised its gleaming cross-spear high.

At the same moment, Ren swung up the Crimson Spirit Sword in his hand.

This is a one-time special lesson, got it!

Sylph's voice.

It bypassed air and distance entirely, sinking deep into his chest.

Don't fight the wind. Don't cut through it — find the place where you become one with it. The moment you understand the ideal arc for that, your sword becomes a wind faster than anything. —Follow me!

The cross-spear of light tore through the wind and shook the air.

Ren's sword, in contrast, was perfectly still.

Without disturbing even the faintest current, he entrusted the path of his blade to Sylph's Breath swirling through the sanctuary and simply held his sword with an empty mind.

...Yeah.

...Just letting the spirits' voices guide him.

This wasn't the same as a Spirit wielding a spirit armament imbued with a spirit's power.

Nor was it like any Ancienter in history who had summoned spirits and commanded them.

He didn't rely on the spirits' overwhelming power.

He didn't grow arrogant over being able to summon them.

He was simply loved by the spirits, listened to their voices, and learned the world's truths from them.

The only one in all of history—

The boy became a swordsman who studied under the spirits.

The Fake Brave Hero and the creature of light clashed.

————

The glittering cross-spear grazed his shoulder.

Searing heat and pain shot from his shoulder through his entire body. The impact was so intense it nearly ripped away his consciousness in an instant, his whole body seizing up, almost dropping him to his knees right there.

But—

"I've got people I want to protect."

Even so, the boy didn't stop.

He bit down on his lip and held on to consciousness.

Without sparing a glance at the fresh blood gushing from his right shoulder, he charged up onto the altar platform.

"So I..."

Ren's eyes didn't even register the monster in front of him.

—Elies.

—Kyelse, Fear, Elise.

The other Ancienter he'd met in the Holy Land.

And the irreplaceable Party companions who had set him on the journey to find the Encore.

He chased only the profiles of those girls flashing through the back of his mind.

"I can't afford to lose to something like you!"

He poured everything into the Crimson Spirit Sword. And then—

The mystic blade, alight with scorching flame, cut through the Light-Form Higher Being.

On the altar bathed in seven-colored sunlight—

"...Thanks."

Did it work?

"Yeah. Way more than enough for me."

Salamander's voice bounced with excitement, and Ren nodded to the spirit.

Behind him—

Crack.

A sharp, high-pitched fracturing sound echoed through the sanctuary.

————————

The Light-Form Higher Being, shattered along with its cross-spear of light, broke apart into countless gleaming fragments — like glass shattering — and vanished.

Thousands upon thousands of glowing shards.

They too faded in the sunlight pouring into the sanctuary, and finally disappeared as if melting back into the light itself.

The creature of light was gone.

The sunlit sanctuary returned to its true silence at last. The Demon General of Wave's barrier vanished a moment later.

"Lady Elies! Those terrible shocks just now — what was... Lady Elies!?"

The subordinates of the Party "Sacred Vessel of Canaan Pilgrimage" came flooding into the Hall of Prayer like a dam bursting.

First came Nebirim, the top-ranking Healer.

Then Thyrus, with Premier right behind him.

"W-Why is Lady Elies collapsed!? And what is all this!? The walls and floors were supposed to be shielded by barriers — how are they this wrecked!?"

"Ah... well..."

The Demon General of Wave had been sent to the Underworld and was already gone.

The Light-Form Higher Being had just vanished without a trace.

Neither of the two culprits was anywhere in sight.

"Ren, what happened here!?"

"I'll explain everything later. Just — please, help Elies first!"

Ren hurriedly sheathed his sword and ran over to the fallen holy maiden.

Nebirim, the top-ranking Healer, was already kneeling before her with a healing art active. Undine and Sylph watched over them nearby.

...They were worried about Elies too.

...Even with all these humans gathering around, they were still staying manifested.

Even after the battle had ended, the spirits remained.

"Premier, get every Healer in the Main Spirit Palace here. Now. Every second counts."

"Y-Yes, Master Thyrus!"

The Aria girl ran off without even remembering to bow.

"Lady Nebirim... how is Lady Elies?"

"Unknown."

The top-ranking officer answered Thyrus with a grave expression, her healing art still going.

"There are no external wounds. I can sense traces of some powerful art on Lady Elies, and yet — I can't identify it at all. I can't read what it is. What kind of attack could have done this...?"

The woman in violet vestments muttered almost to herself, biting down on her lower lip.

"Ren."

"Elies... she took that attack to shield me. The blame is mine."

Under Thyrus's sidelong gaze, Ren pressed a hand to the right shoulder the light spear had pierced and clenched his jaw.

...The nature of the attack and its symptoms were both unknown.

...Could even a top-ranking Healer treat something like that?

Gathering more Healers probably wouldn't change anything. But all he could do right now was believe — cling to the future where Elies pulled through. And that wish—

"I'll lend a hand with her treatment."

Providence.

As if the very word "heaven-sent" had taken form, the one who appeared through the shattered ceiling — destroyed in the fierce battle with the Demon General of Wave — was a golden-haired Archangel.

"Fear-senpai!"

"Sorry to keep you waiting."

She landed gracefully from a height that made everyone look up. Probably mindful of the humans around her — the wings that should have been on her back were already hidden.

"Please, senpai! There's no time to explain — just treat the girl over there!"

"Yes, I know."

The Archangel answered with a warm smile.

"Your shoulder wound needs looking at too, but that human girl comes first, doesn't she?"

She must have already taken in the entire sanctuary before she even landed. With a nod, the Archangel walked briskly over to Elies.

"...Who are you?"

"My name is Fear. Does it help if I say I'm a member of the Party 'Knight of Reincarnation'?"

"You!?"

Nebirim spun around, eyes wide at Fear's answer.

And then—

"Yo, Ren! Sorry for the wait!"

Stained glass shattered.

The one who came crashing through the ceiling window was a demon in the form of a little girl.

"Elise?"

"Man, you won't believe it. I got so shocked I couldn't wait anymore, so I jumped off Kyelse's back and came straight here."

She spun once in midair and stuck the landing.

"Ren, that was incredible! How'd you get so strong all of a sudden?"

"...Huh? Oh, right. Were you watching?"

Elise could probably sense the signs of a battle, at least.

That said, even a former Demon King couldn't hear the spirits' voices. There was no way for her to know that four spirits had been cheering him on.

...Right.

...So from Elise's perspective, it really did look like I just suddenly got stronger.

What was he supposed to tell her? While Ren was still mulling that over—

"Hey! Fear, Elise — don't you dare ditch me and rush ahead!"

The ceiling's stained glass shattered again.

Bathed in dazzling sunlight, the one who appeared was the lovely silver-haired Dragon Princess.

"All right, Ren — where's this 'bad feeling' Elise was talking about? Now that I'm here, I'll take out whatever it is in one—"

"...Nah, it's already over."

"What? It's over?"

Kyelse stood there with her fists clenched and fully fired up, blinking in confusion.

"How boring..."

"See, Kyelse? You were too slow and missed all the action."

"S-Shut up! I couldn't fly properly because of the seasickness — it's not my fault!"

The dragon girl turned away with a huff.

Beside her, the former Demon King watched with a smug grin.

And then—

"Fear-senpai, how's Elies doing...?"

"Don't worry. My healing arts were taught to me personally by Lady Resflaze, you know?"

The golden-haired Archangel turned back to him with a wink.

And at that—

"Right. Then... good."

At last, Ren remembered how to smile.

His companions were here. They'd come running the moment he was in danger. He'd never felt anything so reassuring in his life.

"Ren, what happened with that wound?"

"It's basically a scratch. Still bleeding a little, but it's nothing."

He answered Kyelse as she looked up at his shoulder, then sat down on the sunlit altar.

Fear and the subordinates of the Party "Sacred Vessel of Canaan Pilgrimage" tended to the holy maiden, while Kyelse and Elise stayed by his side.

He looked at them all and let out a long breath of relief.

"...That's what I'd like to say, but honestly — I'm at my limit."

And with that, Ren collapsed flat on his back.