Leon's eyes were locked on the monster in the distance. Despite obliterating a considerable chunk of its main body—almost one-third—with his attack, the creature barely seemed fazed.

A haze of black miasma oozed off its body, drifting like smoke yet heavy enough to cling to the ground.

It paused for only a second. The large, grotesque eye he had aimed for was still intact—completely unharmed.

It wasn't that his attack had done no damage. While his strike appeared less effective than the light-elemental assaults from the two women, it had still caused harm.

A third of its mass had been shattered into pieces. The shattered fragments squirmed like worms, stitching themselves back together in grotesque patterns. Each fragment reattached with a wet squelch, louder than it had any right to be. About a quarter of that evaporated, just like it did when hit by light-elemental attacks. The rest slithered back toward the central mass, reforming its body—though slightly smaller than before.

It had definitely lost strength, but it remained a formidable foe.

My aim was perfect… Everything lined up, but in the last second, that damn eye vanished and reappeared on the other side of its hideous body.

The attack had halted the monster only momentarily. During that time, Aurelia and Crystalline were forced to focus on dodging the aftermath instead of pressing the assault.

If even a bit of that corrupted body touched them, they would need to waste considerable energy purifying themselves. In such a state, continuing the fight would be impossible. Falling to corruption would be worse than death.

They would have had to retreat—regardless of the consequences—leaving the rest of the city to fall under the monster's influence. It would grow stronger, gaining corrupted minions and spreading its abyssal filth even further.

But if either of them succumbed to it… There would be no saving this realm. It would all be over.

What terrified them most was the fact that such a high-ranking abyssal spawn had even reached this place.

They looked into each other's eyes, their determination solidifying. If only one of them had been present, this disaster might already have unfolded. They felt lucky—and even grateful—for the hotheaded young boy who had unknowingly saved them by killing the corrupted king.

His reckless action had saved an entire realm. But to complete the task, they had to finish this monstrosity. As bearers of the light affinity, it was their duty to wield the only element that could purify abyssal energy.

Crystalline looked into Leon's eyes and gave a nod of approval. His attack may not have been as effective as theirs, but it had clearly weakened the beast.

Still, a question lingered in both women's minds—how had a normal elemental attack done that much damage? It shouldn't have.

Yes, he used a lot of mana. However, even so, this wasn't how ordinary elements behaved in the face of abyssal corruption. Something was off. Something they didn't understand.

If only they knew just how much mana Leon had burned in that single strike, and how lethal his Rank 6 elemental affinity really was.

Seeing the nod from Liora's mother, Leon immediately began preparing another spear. This time, he intended to obliterate the eye entirely.

Crystalline blinked in surprise. She had assumed he'd depleted his mana reserves and was acknowledging his contribution with a gesture of thanks. But apparently, he still had more to give.

What an interesting boy, Crystalline thought. In all her hundreds of years, she had never seen anything like him. He was only an apprentice rank, yet his mana reserves rivaled her own.

She also sensed the constant prickling aura that seemed to stem from him—likely some ongoing technique—something that would require a massive amount of mana to maintain.

She figured this must be his final attack.

Leon planned to throw the spear even harder this time, testing just how powerful his physical strength had become.

He also felt the weakness in his previous strike—his affinity was temporarily only Rank 6. If it had been Rank 7, he might've taken out half its body or even the eye altogether.

Loriel, too, was stunned by the damage his attack had dealt.

There was only one explanation in her mind: the God of Life must be aiding the Holy Son.

Leon's eyes suddenly locked onto the grotesque black monster again. Its red eyes were now staring directly back at him. A low, guttural hiss echoed—not from its mouth, but from the dozens of eyes blinking open and closed in unison.

Oh shit.

He tensed as the creature started moving toward him—its speed matching the scale of its horrific body.

He wasn't afraid of its strength, but instead of its stench. He never wanted to smell that putrid scent again.

But just as it closed the distance by a few meters, both women intercepted it mid-charge. Leon released a deep sigh of relief, a breath that seemed to rise straight from his soul.

I really need to end this monstrosity before it gets any closer to the city…

He could easily retreat and finish the job with long-range attacks. But while he had no sympathy for the people in the city—they were strangers, after all—he didn't want them to die. Nor did he want the city destroyed.

They were resources. Only a few among them had potential, but that was enough. The more people he had under him, the stronger his future forces would be. And more importantly, he was still searching for rare elements.

He had already found the illusion element—a divine gift in his eyes. He planned to train for a long time to master it. And watching the two women fight with their masterful light-element control had sparked something inside him.

His elemental core buzzed with intensity. He could feel it—if he willed it, he could now create light-elemental energy and use it as he pleased. It might still be unrefined, even volatile, but the ability was there—all because he had witnessed this battle.

It wasn't just that. Leon had noticed the boots of light on both women's feet for a while—one brighter than the other. It was clearly some high-level technique.

Leon could feel it in his bones—given enough time, he could recreate it. It wouldn't be easy, but he was sure he would succeed. It was a strange, unfamiliar confidence he had begun to develop in himself.

The orb hadn't just granted him elemental affinities. It had elevated his comprehension of each element to an entirely new level. And during this time, he had also come to realize just how high his resistance was to every element.

But for now, he wouldn't use the light element. It wouldn't do much anyway. He didn't mind showing off his strength, but unnecessary attention from unfamiliar people was something he couldn't risk. Not yet.

Seraphine had finally stood up. He felt it. His gaze turned to her just as a new spear of destruction began forming in his hand—yet all his focus was on her.

Ignoring the three others whose mouths hung open beside him, he didn't even glance their way. He only knew they were shocked because of his spatial awareness.

"Are you alright, Seraphine?" His voice was warm, his smile gentle.

Loriel, once again overwhelmed by the sheer amount of mana he had just used, quickly shut her gaping mouth when she heard the Holy Son speak so tenderly to the purple-haired woman.

"Hehe~ I'm perfectly fine. I've reached Level 2 Aura now," she said proudly. She knew he had already sensed it, but telling him herself brought another level of satisfaction.

Leon, hearing her words, stretched out his hand and gently caressed her face.

"Good job," he said softly.

The chaos of battle seemed to fade, if only for a breath, leaving just the two of them in that fragile instant. His voice—low, caring—was like a melody in Seraphine's ears. That gentle touch on her face made her melt inside. Those simple words meant everything to her. They gave her even more motivation to keep getting stronger.

For a brief moment, the oppressive abyssal stench receded, replaced by a cleansing warmth of peace.

She knew she was still far from his level. But Leon wasn't her goal—he was someone she looked up to now. Her true goal was the golden-haired warrior fighting the black monster ahead of her.

Her aim had to remain human. She knew how monstrous Leon truly was. Seeing the reactions of those around him filled her with pride. But they had no idea—this was nothing compared to what he had accomplished inside the dimensional realm during training.

Competing with him wasn't realistic. Seraphine knew his power. He hadn't even begun to unleash his full potential yet. She could only imagine how strong he would become in the future.

Liora watched and blushed, sneaking glances at both of them. She felt so shy. She had never seen people so open about their affection. Her mom and dad's occasional bickering, which embarrassed her in private, felt tame in comparison.

This was public. These two clearly didn't care. It felt strange to Liora.

Her own heartbeat pounded louder in her ears than the distant clash of battle. Her face burned hot, her vision darting anywhere but at them.

But the next moment shattered all her assumptions. She nearly stumbled at the sight before her.

Her breath caught. Her eyes froze on one spot.

She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

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