Chapter 500 It Is Time to Settle the Matter

“……”

Hulim Heyerar stared blankly at her own hands.

What she had failed to achieve despite grueling training for so long—she had done it effortlessly now? Not only that, she had even overcome the limitation of being unable to cast multiple instances at once!

It was too strange.

Even if her psionic power was growing continuously right now, it had only just begun. Her total psionic reserves should not have changed much from before.

Why was this happening……

The only explanation Hulim could think of was that her psionic power had undergone some kind of qualitative transformation.

The immunity to the negative effects of psionic depletion from Effect Two had probably hinted at this change all along.

“……Come to think of it, I once heard Irus say that if psionic power grows strong enough, it can directly influence reality. There are even tales that psionic power itself hides the path to apotheosis.”

“……”

Lifting the upper limit of psionic power……

Could it be that——

Transcendent Diffusion, just like Infinite Strike, would let her reach a godlike level if she let her power grow naturally?

Hulim fell silent.

“……”

“Well, regardless, growing stronger is never a bad thing.”

A powerful new ability.

And complete mastery of the Annihilation Divine Light.

Hulim’s strength had leaped to a new height in an extremely short time.

And now, with her power vastly increased, there was still one matter waiting for her to resolve……

She slowly lifted her head,

her gaze piercing through the temple’s vault straight up to the surface.

“There is no point in staying here any longer. Now……”

“It is time to end this.”

Boom——!

A flash of crimson light,

and a passage to the surface opened in an instant.

Hulim vanished from the underground chamber a moment later.

……

“Hurry! We’ll be out of the lava zone just ahead!”

As undamaged land reappeared in sight,

the Dwarven Legion, thanks to the relentless efforts of Aralond and Fulmir, had finally escaped the most dangerous eruption zone and reached relatively safe ground.

The moment their feet touched solid earth again, many dwarves wore expressions of relief, as if they had returned from the brink of death.

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

“We’re finally out. I’ve never felt so relieved just to stand on solid ground.”

Charkin stamped his foot hard on the earth and sighed.

On top of that, he thought he would not be able to smith for quite a while—

he had seen enough of furnaces and fire for the time being……

“Master, once we cross this mountain ahead, we’ll be completely clear of the danger zone.”

“Mm……” Fulmir nodded, staring up at the tall mountain before them.

It was not a particularly large mountain, but crossing it would drain the army’s stamina considerably.

And right now, after a long, forced march, the dwarven soldiers were utterly exhausted. Marching straight over the mountain would slow their pace to a crawl.

“Aralond, have the legion rest first to recover their stamina. Once they’re rested, we’ll cross the mountain in one go.”

“Very well.”

Aralond understood the urgency and nodded at once.

He turned and shouted:

“Everyone, halt! Rest in place! Use your recovery potions freely—we depart in exactly half an hour!”

Upon receiving the order,

the exhausted dwarves sat down one after another, pulling out their potions to restore their strength. Many even removed their armor to cool down.

At the rear of the column, Laki approached Irus.

“Hey, Irus—why didn’t those girls catch up?”

“Mm……”

Irus glanced back at the lava-choked landscape behind them, thinking quietly.

“I’m not sure either…… Perhaps they’ve made some kind of discovery.”

“? What could they possibly discover in a place like this? What if they’ve run into danger?”

“Calm down, little Laki~.”

“As long as Hulim is with them, they’ll be fine—even if we’re the ones in trouble.”

“……” Laki had no retort.

“It’s the truth…… But saying it so plainly makes me feel rather incompetent. That girl Hulim……”

Laki could not help but recall the scene of that sky-piercing strike earlier.

It was simply inconceivable, no matter how she thought about it.

A mighty demon that had left so many of them struggling for so long——

obliterated in a single blow……

Could that girl be any more absurd?

Was this really power that belonged in this world?

“Huh? Laki, look——”

Irus suddenly pointed up at the sky.

“There they are~.”

“Oh?”

Laki followed her gaze, and spotted a crimson dragon flying straight toward them.

“So they really are safe. Wonder what they were doing to take so long…… Wait a minute—Hulim isn’t on its back——”

Boom!

Before Laki could finish,

the ground beneath their feet shook violently.

……

“I found them!”

“Really?! Where? Let me see!”

Prarlulu clung to Ignir’s back, scrambling eagerly toward his neck.

Whoosh~!

A fierce gust of wind buffeted her, making her sway unsteadily.

“Hey, be careful! Don’t fall——”

“Wah!”

Before he could finish, Prarlulu slipped and tumbled downward.

“Hey——!!!”

A hand shot out in an instant.

“Got you.”

Before she could fall completely, she was grabbed and pulled back up.

Ignir let out a sigh of relief.

“Honestly, if you keep being this reckless, I won’t let you ride me anymore—not even if you’re the Hero.”

“I-I’m sorry…… Thank you, Miko.”

Prarlulu covered her face, flustered and ashamed.

“You’re welcome. But look—there’s Lady Laki and the others.”

“Ah, really?!”

Prarlulu immediately lowered her hands and stood up excitedly.

The moment she spotted the group on the ground ahead, she waved her hand vigorously.

“Lady Irus!”

“They can’t hear you from this far.”

“Lady Irus!”

“I’m saying……”

“Lady Irus!”

She wasn’t listening at all……

Ignir fell silent.

Is this little Hero’s head alright?

Sigh…… A worrying future.

He silently fretted over Prarlulu’s future for two seconds, then tilted his body slightly, descending toward the Dwarven Legion’s position.

Boom!

A sudden, deafening boom rang out.

Ignir froze mid-air, halting his flight at once.

His golden pupils stared blankly at the mountain ahead, his mouth dropping open in shock.

This couldn’t be happening……

“What’s going on?! We’re this far away and it’s still shaking this hard?!”

“Little Laki……”

“What is it?”

“This…… doesn’t seem to be coming from the Red Mist Volcano.”

“……”

Laki’s face paled, and she slowly turned her head to stare at the mountain behind them.

She remembered one crucial fact.

The Red Mist Volcano was not just a single volcano——

it was the largest volcanic cluster in the world.

“No……”

Boom——!!!

And then,

the mountain exploded before their very eyes.

……

High above the massive volcanic caldera,

Bang!

A crimson beam suddenly shot upward from its center, vanishing into the sky.

Shwoop!

Without warning, a figure appeared above the caldera.

Hulim looked down at the hellish landscape below and frowned slightly.

“What a terrible sight……”

Sure enough, even if low-tier spells were boosted to Sixth-Tier via Infinite Strike, their simplistic effects could not resolve the current situation at all.

But high-tier spells with special effects were a different story.

“……I recall a spell that might work.”