Erica lay unconscious on a bed in the infirmary. Jericho sat beside her, a look of amazement still on his face—though it was paired with a proud smile.
Moments later, the door opened and the others entered.
"Is she alright? Why hasn't she woken up yet?" Clover asked, clearly worried.
"She's fine," Jericho reassured her. "She just used too much soul energy at once. Once her body replenishes it, she'll wake up."
"Jericho," William said, frowning slightly, "you looked especially impressed by what the commander just did. Can you explain why? I never thought she had something like that."
"It was far stronger than anything she's shown before," Alice added nervously. "It honestly scared me."
"Don't worry," Jericho said with a calm smile. "Erica is perfectly fine. Her ability simply evolved."
The others exchanged confused looks.
"Evolved?" Rose repeated. "What do you mean by that, Lord Jericho?"
Jericho then began explaining the fundamentals of soul energy.
"There are four core elements that will be the most common in the world—water, fire, wind, and earth. Each of them has three higher classes, each more powerful than the last. Beyond those, there are extremely rare abilities known as Chaos-Class abilities—like mine."
He glanced at Erica.
"In Erica's case, she's reached the highest stage of the flame element… Lava."
He laughed softly. "I swear, she never stops surprising me."
"You've got to be kidding me…" William muttered, letting out a heavy sigh.
"Oh my… the commander is incredible," Alice said with a blissful smile.
"Jericho, am I right in guessing you weren't expecting that?" Clover asked thoughtfully. "Is it really that rare to ascend to the next level of an element?"
"That's a very good question," Jericho replied. "Soul energy capacity stops increasing after a certain age, and that capacity determines how far you can progress within your element."
"In Erica's case, she only began using soul energy at nineteen. She's already past the age cap, yet she reached this level with barely three months of training. It's an incredible feat. Now imagine if she had started training from a young age…"
He laughed again. "That thought alone is terrifying."
"I thought I'd already seen everything she could do," he added. "Yet she keeps proving me wrong."
"What exactly is this age cap?" Clover asked.
"Most people begin sensing soul energy between the ages of eight and ten," Jericho explained. "They then have until around seventeen to improve it. Seventeen is the cap for about ninety-eight percent of people—though for a rare few, it may be slightly earlier or later."
The others nodded, still stunned by Erica's achievement. From that moment on, Clover's respect for Erica deepened completely—she now saw her not only as an equal, but as a rival.
⸻
Moments later, Erica slowly regained consciousness.
She opened her eyes to find everyone gathered around her and pushed herself up into a seated position, groaning softly.
"Ugh… my head… w-what happened?"
"Are you feeling alright, Erica?" Jericho asked gently. "You used an enormous amount of soul energy. Were you really holding back that much before?"
His words jogged her memory.
"Oh no… I did it again!" Erica exclaimed. "I'm so sorry, Princess Clover! I'll pay for all the damages—please forgive me! I honestly didn't expect it to be that destructive…"
Slow smiles and quiet laughter spread through the room.
"It's fine," Clover said calmly. "With the rise of soul energy, I would've had to rebuild the dome anyway to withstand what's coming. Besides, with ancient technology involved, I doubt you could afford all of it."
"That's so mean—and blunt," Erica sighed.
Clover turned toward the door.
"I'm glad you're alright," she said over her shoulder. "And… call me Clover. No need for titles."
She paused.
"Come on, Rose. We have work to do."
Rose bowed respectfully and hurried after her.
"Oh—and Erica," Clover added without turning back. "I won't lose to you."
With that, she exited the room.
The remaining four stood frozen.
"…What was that about?" William asked.
Jericho laughed.
"Well, Erica, it looks like Clover now sees you as a rival." He grinned. "Good luck."
Erica blinked in surprise, then slowly sighed.
"I can't believe it… being rivals with someone that amazing," she muttered. "What a pain…"
But despite her complaint, there was a small, satisfied smile on her face.
⸻
"Commander—!"
Erica jumped, startled as William's voice suddenly rang out.
"Do you mind explaining what you just did?" he continued, clearly agitated. "What was that? Since when could you command the highest level of your element? You just learned about soul energy, crying out loud!"
His emotions were tangled—part awe, part worry. He was deeply impressed, yet equally frightened, because he didn't understand what was happening to Erica, and in his mind, that meant she might be in real danger.
"Calm down, Willy…" Erica replied with a nervous smile. "You'll age faster if you keep scrunching your face like that."
"This is the face I was born with," William snapped. "And don't call me Willy."
Erica chuckled softly before responding.
"Well… it started after our fight with the Lost on the road to Warmark—four days ago. That was the first time I completely exhausted my soul energy. But instead of feeling drained afterward, I felt… strangely rejuvenated."
She paused, choosing her words carefully.
"I thought that was normal—just the body recovering—so I didn't tell Jericho. But after my fight with Jace's general, I noticed something else. Whenever I used my strongest flame technique, Grand Burst Inferno, I didn't feel tired anymore. It was the opposite."
She clenched her fist slightly.
"I felt like I could unleash it five… maybe six more times. It was strange, but we were in the middle of a crisis, so I didn't think too deeply about it."
She exhaled slowly.
"When I finally had time to meditate and resume my daily training, I realized I had unlocked the next—and highest—phase of the flame element."
Her gaze shifted to the sword resting beside her. She gently stroked its surface, a blissful smile forming on her face.
"But a normal sword wouldn't let me truly test it. So I kept it to myself and focused on improving my control. Then today… I got incredibly lucky."
She hesitated, then corrected herself.
"Clover—had the exact kind of weapon we were planning to create. A blade capable of fully channeling soul energy. I couldn't pass up the chance to finally test my new level with a worthy weapon."
She let out a small, embarrassed laugh.
"And… well, the result is what you all saw."
Her shoulders slumped slightly.
"I honestly wasn't expecting it to be that destructive. That was my strongest Lava technique, though. I can only use three Lava techniques for now."
She sighed apologetically.
"I feel terrible… especially about the training dome."
She avoided eye contact, clearly weighed down by guilt.
For a moment, the room was silent.
Then Jericho and Alice exchanged a look.
And burst out laughing.
"Oh, Erica…" Jericho said between laughs. "You were already a force of nature before learning about soul energy. Now?" He shook his head. "You're a monster of a human."
"Your potential is incredible," he added, still laughing. "And honestly? Terrifying."
"Indeed," Alice chimed in with a playful grin. "Commander, you could easily become a villain and rule the world if you wanted. Like a demonoid lord."
That was the final straw—Jericho laughed so hard tears formed in his eyes.
"…Is that supposed to be a compliment?" Erica sighed. "And Jericho, you're really not one to talk."
"Come on, Alice," William groaned. "Not you too. You were the only normal one in this group. Don't let those two influence you."
"Hey—what's that supposed to mean, Willy?"
Jericho and Erica spoke in unison.
"For the love of the gods," William lamented, rubbing his temples, "stop calling me Willy."
⸻
On the other side of the castle, Clover made her way toward her laboratory, Rose walking beside her. As they entered one of the busier hallways, they immediately sensed something was wrong.
The castle was in a state of panic.
Guards were on high alert. Maids were being escorted toward safe areas. Orders were being shouted from every direction.
Princess Diamond stood at the center of it all, surrounded by royal guards, barking commands with urgency.
Clover and Rose approached quickly.
"Sis Dia?" Clover called out. "What's going on? Why is everyone panicking?"
"Oh, Tio!" Princess Diamond exclaimed. "You need to find somewhere safe immediately!"
"…Why?" Clover asked, confused.
"We're under attack again," Diamond said grimly.
"What?" Clover blinked. "Who? Why? How? From where?"
"Didn't you hear that massive explosion a few minutes ago?" Diamond said. "I sent scouts to investigate, and they reported it came from the training dome."
At that, Clover and Rose exchanged glances.
Then… giggled.
Diamond stared at them, stunned.
"…Why are you laughing?" she demanded. "This is serious, Tio!"
"Oh—please forgive us, sis," Clover said, trying to compose herself. "But you really don't need to worry. I can assure you, we're not under any kind of attack."
Diamond frowned, unconvinced.
"Your Highness," Rose added politely, "Princess Clover is right. That wasn't an enemy attack. It was our friends from Righteous testing the new weapon Princess Clover provided."
Diamond looked even more confused.
"Remember the meeting?" Clover continued. "When I mentioned I had a weapon crafted from the material they were searching for?"
Diamond slowly nodded.
"That was the weapon Erica used. The explosion you heard—and the state of the training dome—were caused by that."
The realization slowly sank in.
Princess Diamond froze.
Then, her face turned bright red.
"…Oh no. Oh no, oh no, oh no…"
She suddenly pointed at the nearest royal guard.
"You—go inform everyone that it was a false alarm! And issue an apology on my behalf!"
"Yes, Your Highness!" the guard replied before rushing off.
The moment he left, Diamond buried her face in her hands.
"I panicked so badly…" she groaned. "I really thought we were under attack again. I even gave a speech…!"
She whimpered in embarrassment.
Clover placed a reassuring hand on her back.
"It's alright," she said gently—though her smile betrayed a hint of teasing. "Look on the bright side. You proved you'd make a fantastic queen. The guards' respect for you definitely grew today."
"…Aaaaargh! Why me?!" Princess Diamond cried out, wishing desperately she could turn back time.
She noticed Clover was teasing her just a little, and despite herself, she smiled.
The three of them laughed together as they made their way back through the castle.