---

Wham! As Conra turned his head, his gaze fell upon Sophia, who had collapsed to the ground, unconscious and powerless. Gabrielle was holding her, preventing her head from hitting the ground, but as a spirit, Gabrielle had no physical strength to do more. That was the limit of what she could do.

“Master!”

“Sophia!”

Conra and Hildegard rushed over, taking Sophia from Gabrielle. They removed her armor and laid her down as comfortably as possible. Conra placed the back of his hand on Sophia’s forehead, his face on the verge of tears. Her face was burning with intense heat.

“Ah, this… what should we do?”

Sophia’s symptoms were, to put it simply, internal injuries caused by Qi deviation and a demonic influence. However, Conra, who had yet to learn about Qi manipulation or Chakras from Sophia, had no knowledge of how to deal with this.

All Conra could do was cast healing spells from time to time to prevent her body from being damaged by the heat and place a cold towel on her forehead. Hildegard, too, was in the same boat. She infused Sophia’s body with Light Power, hoping for a healing effect, but the results were minimal.

However, no matter what they did or knew, Sophia’s awakening had nothing to do with their actions. At this moment, only Sophia herself could determine her condition.

+++++

Why had it come to this?

Sophia suppressed the urge to sigh and mechanically began to move.

Was it in a pitch-black darkness? Or perhaps in a blinding light? It was a paradoxical, indescribable space—if it could even be called a space. In this incomprehensible world, Sophia was now fighting.

Against another version of herself, formed from condensed blue lightning.

She countered attacks with counterattacks, and counterattacks with more counterattacks.

They knew each other’s techniques perfectly. Sophia’s repertoire of techniques was vast, but she had mastered every single one from start to finish.

Their styles were complete opposites. Sophia moved with controlled, precise movements to achieve maximum efficiency, while the blue Sophia followed a wild, intuitive, and unrestrained style.

Yet, the battle continued for what felt like a thousand days.

If it had gone according to Sophia’s intentions, the battle would have been clean and rational. The repeated counters would have eventually given her a slight advantage.

If it had gone according to the blue Sophia’s intentions, the battle would have descended into a chaotic, unpredictable mess where a single misstep could turn the tide.

‘Is it a matter of willpower?’

Both Sophia and the blue Sophia shared the same willpower. Willpower, or mental strength, is a subjective element, often judged only by the results it produces. But this logic didn’t apply to Sophia.

The inner world where they clashed was a place where willpower and mental strength held meaning. The outcome of their techniques depended solely on the firmness of their will and the completeness of their awareness. With equal willpower and complete mastery of their abilities, the clash between the two Sophias could only result in a stalemate.

The battle took place in every corner of the inner world. At times, they fought in valleys surrounded by the patterns of the Taiji and Bagua, and at other times, they clashed among the branches of a massive tree adorned with runes.

Sometimes they fought on the surface of a stormy sea, and the next moment, they battled in the crushing depths of the ocean where no light could reach.

They fought in spaces where directions were inverted, in worlds where a single movement took eons, and in moments where time itself was measured in fractions of a second.

At one point, they grew large enough to grasp entire galaxies in their hands, and the next, they shrank smaller than tachyon particles, colliding within electron clouds.

In this inner world, where only their perceptions mattered, Sophia and the blue Sophia gradually began to resemble each other.

Sophia’s body started to mix with a blue light, while the blue Sophia began to take on Sophia’s original light. Unaware of this change, they continued their relentless battle.

In the final moment, both Sophias drew upon the same technique—no, it was more of a mental technique. Yes, it was none other than the Immovable King Wisdom Technique.

As the technique, which calms the mind and frees one from the cycle of life, death, and attachment, activated, light burst forth from both Sophias. The golden light from Sophia and the jade light from the blue Sophia clashed in the air… but instead of colliding, they passed through each other.

The two Sophias, now enveloped in golden and jade light, vanished like smoke, as if their intense battle had never happened.

‘Hmm, so this is as far as it goes.’

And then, Sophia, who had been observing everything, opened her eyes.

+++++

As Sophia regained consciousness, she checked her body and let out a bitter smile.

‘What a mess.’

Was this the price of facing formidable enemies in continuous battles? Or was it because she had deliberately let her consciousness and Qi run wild during the final moments of her fight with the dragon? While she had regained some of her past life’s power, her body was in shambles.

‘Well, this should heal with half a day of rest.’

Thanks to regaining some of her past life’s power, Sophia’s recovery ability had reached unprecedented levels. The turbid and impure energies within her body had been partially expelled, and pure Prana now cascaded down like a waterfall from her crown.

Most of this Prana was healing her body, but some of it merged with her internal Qi, Kundalini, and the ethereal muscles and brain imprinted on her soul, accelerating her growth.

In any case, her body would recover naturally without the need for Light Power.

As she slowly opened her eyes and sat up, Sophia noticed the commotion around her.

“Master! Master! You’re awake! Thank goodness, waaahhh, thank goodness, waaahhh——.”

Conra clung to her like a puppy, bawling his eyes out.

“Wow, you’re really awake! Please take care of yourself! I aged ten years!”

Hildegard, pale-faced, plopped down beside her.

From a distance, strangers were glancing at them curiously.

Conra continued to sob, his tears and snot soaking Sophia’s clothes. Sophia gave up on thinking as she watched the boy cry.

The situation calmed down after some time. After flicking Conra’s forehead to silence him, Sophia frowned at the stains on her clothes. Hildegard chuckled and said,

“Cut him some slack. He was completely out of it while you were unconscious. He tried to hold it together, but it all came pouring out the moment you woke up.”

“I know. But for a warrior and a practitioner, losing composure over something like this is unacceptable.”

Sophia understood the ordeal Conra had gone through, but as a teacher, she couldn’t condone such emotional instability. Well, he was still young and hadn’t been under her guidance for long. Time would temper him, she thought vaguely.

“More importantly, what happened after that?”

“Ah, I almost forgot about that.”

“Ugh, that’s the most important thing.”

Sophia furrowed her brow in disbelief as Hildegard laughed.

“Haha, I guess I was out of it too. Anyway, where should I start?”

“From the beginning, please.”

“Hmm, alright. Let’s start with what happened after you defeated the dragon.”

Hildegard then recounted the events following Sophia’s defeat of the dragon.

After the dragon fell, Hildegard recalled the events just before its appearance. Through the remains of a witch-turned-demon, a Great Demon from somewhere beyond had declared war, and a massive surge of evil energy had followed.

Most of it had been eradicated by Sophia, and a significant portion had coalesced into the dragon, but some had scattered across the continent. Given the potential for this to spark further incidents, the Church Order needed to be fully aware of the situation.

Hildegard sent a detailed report to the Church’s headquarters and received a reply about half a month later, around the time Sophia woke up.

“Perfect timing. So, have you checked the contents of the letter?”

“Yes. I brought it with me. Do you want to see it?”

“Thank you. Hand it over.”

Sophia unfolded the letter and nodded in agreement after reading it. The contents were straightforward.

‘We have reviewed your report. Fortunately, the Church has also observed the spread of the strange energy you mentioned. There have been reports of unusual phenomena across the continent, but they are still manageable. As we formulate countermeasures, we need the judgment and advice of those on the ground. As a Paladin Knight and a member with legitimate proposal and decision-making rights, please attend the upcoming Concilium (Council).’

 

---