From the rear lines, Mimi watched in horror as Delarosa teetered on the edge of defeat. Panic gripped her like a vice.
I–I have to do something! If I don’t… Delarosa will… But if I rush in blindly, I’ll just get in the way… I’ll be completely useless.
Her thoughts spun in circles as she scrambled for a solution. Something—anything—that could help.
Wait… didn’t Meira say that if Delarosa and I got too far apart, she’d be automatically ejected from the battle zone…?
A fair distance already separated them, but not enough for the system to trigger. Apparently, the boundary hadn’t recognized Delarosa as too far gone just yet.
What if Mimi did move, fast and far? If she put enough distance between them, Delarosa would be forcibly transported out, away from danger. It would mean the conversation with the Emperor Treant would never happen, and Mimi herself would be left behind… possibly to die.
Still, if Delarosa were killed here, the outcome would be the same… or worse.
Delarosa got involved in all of this out of pure kindness… not because she had to. She doesn’t deserve to die for it.
Mimi clenched her fists, resolve hardening. She was just about to bolt away from Delarosa when—
A voice echoed faintly in her mind.
Use me.
She froze.
That voice… it was unmistakable.
Kuusha.
Her bodyguard, who had already died. She heard nothing more. Maybe it had been her imagination. A phantom born of desperation. But the voice had sparked a memory, a detail she’d completely forgotten in the chaos. Kuusha’s magical power crystal. She still had it. Tucked in her pocket, a keepsake she’d held onto ever since her death.
With trembling hands, Mimi pulled it out.
She didn’t know much about magical power crystals. She didn’t realize this one could enhance her magical power. But the moment she looked at it, she felt it deep in her chest: This will help me. This will give me strength.
Kuusha had been with her since childhood. A loyal servant, yes, but more than that, a protector. A constant. She’d scolded her when she slacked off, worried endlessly, hovered like an overbearing older sister… but Mimi had always known her heart was in the right place. And she loved her for it.
Part of her wanted to keep the crystal forever, to treasure it as a memento of someone irreplaceable. But now wasn’t the time for sentiment.
Please, Kuusha… lend me your strength!
Clutching the magicite tightly to her chest, Mimi drew in a sharp breath and felt it.
Power.
It surged through her like wildfire, hot and unfamiliar, but undeniably real. The magic power flowed into her body in waves, each one stronger than the last, flooding her limbs with heat and resolve.
Up ahead, the white giant raised its hand, arcane light gathering in its palm. It was about to finish Delarosa off.
No… I have to move. I have to do something. Now!
Mimi prepared to cast a spell. Her first instinct was Fireball—simple, familiar—but she knew it wouldn’t be enough, not against something like that.
I need something stronger… I need… Delarosa’s spell.
Dragon Flame.
She’d never cast it before. Not even once. But she’d seen Delarosa use it several times. She knew how it looked, how it sounded, and how it felt when it roared past.
And now, thanks to Kuusha’s crystal, she had the magical power to wield it.
I can do this… I have to do this!
Mimi closed her eyes and summoned the image with every ounce of focus she had: a colossal dragon, born of fire and fury, erupting from her soul and consuming the enemy in a blaze of unstoppable heat.
She opened her eyes.
“Dragon Flame!!!” Mimi screamed, her voice cracking with desperation and fierce determination as the blazing spell burst from her hands, the image of a flaming dragon surging forth just as she had imagined.