The mountain slowly rose as if it were alive and moving.

The beasts scattered like a flock of birds, and Ludger soared into the sky to capture the unfolding scene from above.

What emerged, pushing the forest outward as it rose, was a mountain of stone.

That jagged peak had the massive sword Velkat had just hurled embedded in it.

But both Ludger and Velkat sensed it at the same time—

This was not a natural phenomenon.

It was far closer to something moving with intent.

Ludger had seen something like this before.

“...No way.”

It had been during the time he traveled the world with his master, Grander.

While sailing out on the open ocean, Ludger had once gazed at the horizon just before dawn.

And there—it had appeared.

A colossal figure emerging from the early morning sea mist, revealing its immense form.

It resembled a massive whale, but with more fins and delicate tentacle-like appendages trailing from its back.

That overwhelming presence was an emotion unlike anything one could experience in life.

Terrifying, yet somehow familiar. Solemn, yet strikingly beautiful.

A spirit born from nature itself, one imbued with the will of the world.

The pinnacle of all such spirits—

“Elemental Lord.”

Just its existence alone was enough to provoke the deepest instincts in all living beings.

It remained a mystery of the world, one still unexplained, a manifestation of awe itself.

And now, the Elemental Lord of Earth—one facet of that force—had appeared.

Ruuuumble.

The world itself trembled.

The mere act of the Elemental Lord raising its head caused the air to quiver.

Given the sheer size of the entity bursting from the ground, an earthquake should have been inevitable. But surprisingly, the earth remained calmer than ever.

A mountain rises from bare ground, yet there’s no sound? It’s hard to believe even as I witness it.

That was the nature of the Elemental Lord of Earth.

Because it was the land itself in this region, revealing its form brought no disruption to the earth.

And that size...

Even from a great distance, Ludger couldn’t fully take in the entirety of its figure.

But he could make out the general shape.

No offense to real turtles, but the creature resembled an enormous turtle.

There was simply no other way to describe it.

The gigantic mountain of stone that had burst upward was the Elemental Lord’s shell.

The massive sword Velkat had fired was still embedded in that shell—yet it looked pitifully small in comparison.

“...Why is the Elemental Lord here?”

Elemental Lords were said to exist only in the most remote, untouched corners of the world.

Even confirmed sightings were extremely rare.

In fact, there had only been three recorded cases:

The Elemental Lord of Water, who usually remained in the deep sea and occasionally surfaced.

The Elemental Lord of Ice, believed to exist at the far edge of the frozen north beyond the sea.

The Elemental Lord of Fire, dwelling in the depths of volcanic magma, burning eternally.

And now, at this moment, a new Elemental Lord had been witnessed—

The Elemental Lord of Earth.

With its long neck extended and head raised high, the Earth Lord radiated an overwhelming presence.

It was only natural.

After all, this was the mountain itself, alive and breathing.

If one isn’t awed by this, then what else is left in the world to inspire awe?

The Earth Lord was so immense that it could be clearly seen even from far away.

“G-Good heavens...”

Those waiting at the forward base turned pale as they saw the stone turtle looming above the forest.

In the already tense situation where the leyline could erupt at any moment, a massive creature had now emerged.

The weak-willed foamed at the mouth and fainted. Some fell into full-blown panic.

“Everyone, please calm down!”

Yekaterina struggled to soothe the people.

But even as she said that, she was no less bewildered.

The old Mage Tower mages had returned. The leyline they headed toward had erupted.

Just when she thought it was all over, the leyline beneath the Mansion of Secrets stabilized—and a giant monster had emerged.

Even if she tried to make sense of it all, her mind couldn’t keep up.

“What... is happening?”

All one could do from the sidelines was pray desperately.

Pray that this would all end safely.

* * *

Ludger stared at the Earth Elemental Lord.

He had no idea why this entity, which had never been seen before, had suddenly appeared.

But the moment he looked into the creature’s vast, flawless eyes—

He understood the reason, without needing to hear it.

“...I see. You want to stop this disaster too.”

The Elemental Lord did not respond.

But given the very ground its massive limbs were rooted in, Ludger’s words were essentially correct.

The collapse of the Kasarr Basin—

The great catastrophe it would cause—

The Earth Lord had come to prevent it.

As the steward of this vast land, it could not bear to let it fall to ruin.

And so, it had blocked the ruptured leyline with its own body.

No, beyond that—it was actively restoring the fractured earth and stabilizing the trembling leyline.

It’s stabilizing a twisted leyline...

The leyline flowing through the Kasarr Basin was a torrent of immense energy.

Quantifying such a thing was meaningless. Once ruptured, it was considered impossible to stop.

But the Earth Elemental Lord had done it effortlessly.

A force nearly miraculous to mankind.

A reminder of how truly transcendent the Elemental Lords were.

BOOM!

Suddenly, an enormous explosion erupted above the Earth Lord’s head.

It was an attack—from Velkat, furious at the entity’s appearance.

“Why?!”

The appearance of the Elemental Lord, which had shattered all his plans, felt like the sky collapsing.

He had poured everything into this.

Years of planning. Gathering knowledge. Seeking aid.

He’d even burned through his own life in pursuit of his goal.

And now—this?

A natural disaster. That was the only term that came to mind.

A living natural disaster had interfered with his plans.

“Why?!”

The mysterious power that had been fading—almost gone—was beginning to rise again.

Which meant that the prison he’d barely managed to break was now restoring itself.

No.

It couldn’t end like this.

Not after everything he’d done to get here.

Clenching his teeth, Velkat created another massive iron sword and fired it at the Earth Lord’s head.

The electrified iron blade shot forth at nearly the speed of sound and struck between the Lord’s eyes.

But despite the massive explosion—nothing happened.

The Elemental Lord didn’t even flinch, as if the attack hadn’t tickled.

The iron sword, now warped and bent, bounced off with a metallic thud.

Velkat gritted his teeth harder.

His armor groaned. Blood vessels burst inside his body.

His physical form, pushed beyond its limit, was breaking down.

Just a little more... just a little...

This moment had been foreseen the day he visited Victor for one final request.

—Ohoho, what a surprise. That Lesley would ask me for something like this.

Victor had laughed his eerie laugh as he handed over a vial with his gloved hand.

—Here it is. Thanks to this, I had an absolutely delightful experiment! Oh, don’t worry about the effects. I guarantee it! With this, you’ll be able to go beyond 300% of your usual ability!

Victor had spun once in his chair, peering at Velkat through his glasses.

—But it carries an immense burden. As someone who’s worked alongside you, I’ll give you some advice as a fellow First Order. Don’t use it.

It was the most serious advice Victor had ever given.

—If you use it, you’ll die. Not just die—you’ll die in agony. Your brain will be destroyed. You won’t even recognize yourself when you die. What could be more horrifying than that?

Victor’s face, always smiling, had briefly held weight and gravity.

Velkat now recalled that conversation.

Right. What had he said in reply to Victor?

“...That’s what I wanted.”

Yes. That’s what he’d said.

But why was that memory surfacing now?

Velkat didn’t know.

Because his brain—meant to hold such realizations—was breaking down.

A side effect of the drug and the brutal strain on his body.

Parts of Velkat’s overheated brain cells had burned out.

“I... I...”

Bleeding inside his armor, Velkat gazed blankly at the Elemental Lord.

The Earth Lord looked back up at him.

A pitiful mortal. And the one behind the plot to collapse the Kasarr Basin.

The Lord had already grasped everything happening upon this land.

Thus, it held no anger toward Velkat. No arrogance or indignation.

Just... for a moment, pity.

That pity vanished quickly, replaced by apathy.

“...!”

Velkat couldn’t bear the gaze of the being ✪ Nоvеlіgһt ✪ (Official version) who had ruined everything.

He gripped his Magnetta Sword and charged toward the Elemental Lord.

To the mountain, he was no more than an ant.

The Lord watched him quietly—then opened its jaws.

From a maw larger and deeper than any cave in the world came a shockwave louder than thunder.

It was simply a breath.

Yet that exhale alone struck Velkat and hurled him far into the distance.

The beasts of the forest bowed their heads at the sight.

In the face of nature’s awe, they paid respect to the higher being who had blessed their land.

Even the spirit beast, ruler of the forest, was no exception.

With the leyline now fully stabilized, the Elemental Lord slowly turned and began to depart.

Being one with the earth, the Lord had no need to walk on four legs.

It moved as if swimming—its head buried, gliding as though the ground were liquid.

Yet the land didn’t split or shake in its wake.

The forest naturally parted to let it pass and healed itself after it went by.

The shell slightly protruding above the ground passed through the mist barrier of the Kasarr Basin.

A moment later, the dome of mist rippled, and its flow began to twist, forming holes.

“...We’ve received great aid.”

Watching it all unfold, Ludger turned toward the direction of the forward base—as if something had occurred to him.

* * *

Velkat slowly opened his eyes, struggling to lift his eyelids.

Where... was he?

His entire body felt like it was about to be torn apart, but he pushed himself into a sitting position.

Clatter.

The shattered fragments of his armor fell from his body with a lifeless sound.

Only then could Velkat survey his surroundings.

This was the outermost edge of the Kasarr Basin.

The edge of the forest, right against the mist barrier.

The ground around him was filled with broken craters and scattered metal debris.

...Did I lose?

That breath from the Elemental Lord—

It had sent Velkat flying, slamming him into the earth.

He recalled what had happened at the last moment.

His summoned creature, Gold Crow, had caught him in midair and cushioned the fall.

Thanks to that, Velkat had survived.

His armor was destroyed. Gold Crow was gone.

But he was still alive.

Velkat’s gaze turned toward the mist wall.

“...!”

Normally, that place would be a hazy, white wall of fog.

But now, a massive hole had been torn open.

Beyond it, the colossal mountain-like back of the Earth Elemental Lord was disappearing beyond the mountain range.

The trail it left behind.

Velkat slowly stood.

His steps were unsteady, but his mind was clear.

Hadn’t Victor warned that both body and mind would be destroyed?

Velkat chuckled faintly.

A clear mind, under these conditions, only meant one thing—

That his state was so serious, it was a miracle he was even conscious.

If he didn’t receive treatment immediately, he’d die before long.

If he fled through the breach in the mist, perhaps he could survive.

But Velkat, stumbling, walked the opposite way.

Not toward the mist, but deeper into the forest.

Haa... haa...

He didn’t know how far he walked, panting.

He tripped more than once—and every time, he rose again.

Each time he got up, bones cracked and muscles screamed.

Yet Velkat never uttered a single groan of pain.

Rustle.

A sound of leaves underfoot—and someone appeared before him.

Velkat’s blurry gaze focused forward.

There, a small boy with brown hair was staring at him.

Velkat’s eyes widened as he recognized the boy.

He tried to call out the boy’s name with trembling lips, and he would have—if the boy hadn’t spoken first.

“...Who are you, mister?”