Staring at the White-robed Youth who had returned from the dead, Scorching Flame remained silent for a few seconds. She tightened her grip on her warhammer and replied.
“I wouldn’t call myself the strongest in history. Right now, I’m just an ordinary Magical Girl.”
“How you view yourself is your business, but our internal evaluation will not change,” the White-robed Youth said with a smile.
“Besides, even if you are unwilling to hear it, I will force myself to finish what I have to say.”
“…Suit yourself. If you can still stand up by then, then say whatever you want.”
Scorching Flame looked coldly at the White-robed Youth and charged once more.
This time, her speed was even greater than before, and the force of her swing was even more violent.
In the blink of an eye, Scorching Flame was already in front of the White-robed Youth, bringing her warhammer down with a heavy blow.
The youth watched with a smile as the warhammer struck his body. He made no attempt to dodge, directly taking the fatal hit.
In the next second, the body of the White-robed Youth collapsed, falling like a kite with a severed string.
Watching the opponent die once again, Scorching Flame scanned her surroundings.
She immediately controlled her flames and began to incinerate the corpses on the scene.
Within a few minutes, the bodies of the Black-robed Believers and every trace of the White-robed Youth were reduced to ash and smoke by the fire, leaving nothing behind.
She waited in place for a short while. After seeing that the White-robed Youth did not resurrect again, Scorching Flame breathed a sigh of relief and prepared to leave the Church.
However, just as she reached the entrance of the Church once more, that familiar voice drifted from behind her again.
“Miss Scorching Flame, did you know? Humans are truly fragile creatures.”
“Extreme heat, sub-zero cold, hunger, dehydration, accidental illness… There are too many things in this world that can easily kill us humans.”
Scorching Flame turned back in shock, unable to understand how the White-robed Youth had resurrected.
Yet, the reality was right before her eyes.
The black-and-white energy ball from earlier appeared above the Church once more.
Countless tentacles rose from the floor, swirling together to form a humanoid shape, reconstructing the body of the White-robed Youth.
When the tentacles stopped swirling, the black-and-white energy ball settled onto the humanoid mass.
Then, under Scorching Flame’s watchful gaze, the youth’s handsome face appeared once more.
“I have been thinking for a very long time about how to ensure that all humans under heaven do not have to suffer, and how to allow them to enjoy a beautiful life forever.”
“I have searched through all of history, studied every philosophical school of thought, and learned every theoretical branch of knowledge, yet I still could not find the Answer.”
“I was unwilling to give up. I wanted to find a path that leads to a bright future. I wanted to create a world filled with happiness and beauty.”
“Finally, early one morning, I felt the presence of the Great Night Lord, and I understood everything.”
As the White-robed Youth continued to speak, the spacious Church began to tremble inexplicably.
Scorching Flame’s heart sank. Gripping her warhammer, she charged toward the White-robed Youth again.
Just like before, she only needed a few attacks to shatter his body. She could easily incinerate his remains and even destroy the Church’s pulpit with a casual swing.
But when she reached the Church doors, the voice of the White-robed Youth appeared in her ear like a phantom once again, recounting his theories to her.
“Miss Scorching Flame, did you know? The greatest creation of humanity was never the internet or the computer, but the method of passing down knowledge.”
“Knowledge derived from the summaries and corrections of countless people over thousands of years can be easily passed down through speech or records.”
“Standing on the shoulders of giants, humanity constantly innovates its own perception, continuously understands the essence of the world, and gradually realizes how to deal with all the hardships in this world.”
Hearing this long-winded speech, Scorching Flame knit her brows slightly. She raised her warhammer and launched another charge at him.
But this time, things began to go wrong.
As she flew, tentacles continuously sprouted from all over the Church, blocking her path.
Although these tentacles died within three seconds under the influence of her Thermal Field, they successfully slowed her down.
Even more bizarrely, when she was only forty or fifty steps away from the White-robed Youth, several humanoid Black-robed Monsters made of tentacles crawled out of the ground, howling as they attacked her.
Even though all these obstacles were fragile before Scorching Flame, her heart grew inexplicably uneasy at this sudden shift.
“Knowledge is great. If we want to create a world where everyone can be happy, then knowledge is absolutely indispensable.”
“If possible, it would be best for everyone to possess the same equivalent knowledge and understand all the mysteries of this world. Only then can the dangers and torments plaguing humanity be resolved.”
“And after meeting the Night Lord and being personally converted by Him, I finally figured out how to create a perfect world.”
“That is—Everyone Like a Dragon.”
Hearing these nonsensical words, Scorching Flame furrowed her brow tightly and smashed aside a nearby Black-robed Monster.
Then, taking advantage of the moment before new monsters could appear, she dashed forward.
She aimed her warhammer at the White-robed Youth’s head and shouted angrily.
“Is your so-called ‘Everyone Like a Dragon’ just turning humans into these mindless tentacles? You really are shameless!”
“Hehe, you misunderstand.”
The White-robed Youth smiled and raised his frail arm to block Scorching Flame’s burning strike.
Even though his arm was easily shattered by her blow and he no longer had a hand, he seized the opportunity to retreat dozens of steps.
Looking at the youth’s calm, smiling face, Scorching Flame shook her left hand, and her expression became serious for the first time.
From that last strike, she felt it—the opponent’s physical strength had been enhanced.
While this level of reinforcement still couldn’t stop her attacks, if he could improve dozens or even hundreds or thousands of times more, the situation on the field would likely be reversed.
‘It seems I need to uncover the secret to his constant resurrection and finish him for good before he undergoes a qualitative change.’
Having identified her next objective, Scorching Flame let out a small breath and watched the youth, ready to charge again at any moment.
Standing not far from her, the White-robed Youth offered a warm smile and explained.
“You just said that I personally converted my compatriots into mindless tentacles, correct?”
“That’s right,” Scorching Flame admitted with a slight nod.
“Then, what would you think if I said that at this very moment, the knowledge they have acquired has merged into one, and their consciousnesses can freely disperse to every corner of the world?”
Scorching Flame froze for a moment, not quite understanding his meaning.
The White-robed Youth smiled and gave her a bow. He pointed toward the ceiling of the Church, showing her the meaning behind his words.
The moment Scorching Flame looked up, a black-and-white energy ball fell from the ceiling and landed on one of the mindless Black-robed Monsters.
Immediately after, the shape of that monster rapidly shifted, and even its facial features changed.
Then, the reborn Black-robed Monster roared, speaking in human words that were as clear as day.
“Get out of the Night Lord’s Church, Magical Girl Scorching Flame!”
“You have no right to obstruct humanity’s journey toward a better future!”