At that time, when the fight was going on, Lucavion was also observing Elara from the corner of his eyes.
Since most of the monsters for the beginner waves were rather on the weaker side, he was able to easily overcome any of these situations without much mistakes.
He’d positioned himself deliberately, ensuring he had a clear view of her movements, her spells, and the choices she made in combat. After all, observing her was one of the reasons he had chosen the fourth station.
And as the skirmish unfolded, things developed just as he had expected.
Elara’s skill was evident—her control over ice magic precise, her casting swift, and her presence on the battlefield steady. The crystalline frost forming at her feet, the lethal efficiency of her spells, and the way she adapted to the flow of the fight all spoke to her training and talent.
‘Impressive,’ Lucavion thought, his smirk faint but approving. ‘But flawed.’
His sharp gaze caught the details others overlooked. The spell choices she made often seemed disproportionate to the threats she faced. For smaller, weaker monsters, she occasionally overcompensated, using high-tier spells that drained her mana unnecessarily. Meanwhile, against tougher creatures, her initial responses were occasionally lacking, as though she underestimated the danger they posed until she adjusted mid-combat.
[Humph…] Vitaliara’s voice purred in his mind, laced with genuine observation. [She’s quite good.]
‘Really?’ Lucavion thought, his tone skeptical as he watched her cast another high-tier spell against a mid-tier monster, freezing it completely but wasting valuable resources in the process. ‘She’s talented, yes, but raw.’
[You sound unimpressed,] Vitaliara remarked, her tail flicking lightly against his neck. [Shouldn’t you be cheering her on?]
‘This isn’t about cheering,’ he replied inwardly, his smirk growing faintly. ‘This is about understanding. She has power, but no nuance. Her inexperience shows in how she uses that power.’
[Care to explain, oh wise one?]
Lucavion’s gaze didn’t waver from Elara as she regrouped, her staff glowing faintly as she prepared another spell. ‘She doesn’t understand the monsters she’s facing—not fully. She’s compensating with raw force when precision would suffice. Against weaker enemies, she’s wasting mana. Against stronger ones, she’s playing catch-up because she doesn’t recognize their threat until it’s too late.’
Vitaliara hummed thoughtfully. [I see what you mean. She’s adjusting on the fly, but her lack of knowledge is forcing her to fight harder, not smarter.]
‘Exactly,’ Lucavion agreed, his smirk softening into something more contemplative. ‘She doesn’t have a framework to rely on. No understanding of the creatures’ strengths, weaknesses, or patterns. That’s her blind spot.’
He didn’t mention to Vitaliara the real reason for his insight—the fact that he already knew Elara’s strengths and weaknesses from the novel. It was a delicate balance to maintain, keeping his knowledge of this world’s underlying story to himself while leveraging it as a tool.
[Still, she held her own,] Vitaliara pointed out, her tone almost defensive. [You can’t deny that.]
‘True,’ Lucavion admitted. ‘Her raw talent carried her through, and her determination is… admirable. But talent only gets you so far. Without knowledge, she’s at a disadvantage she doesn’t even realize she has.’
His gaze flicked briefly to Cedric, who remained close to Elara, offering her a mana potion and a steadying word. The man’s protective instincts were clear, and while Lucavion found them slightly grating, he couldn’t deny their value. Elara needed grounding, and Cedric provided that—though Lucavion noted with a faint smirk how Cedric’s sharp glares occasionally turned his way.
‘At least she has support,’ Lucavion thought, his expression briefly amused. ‘Even if he looks like he wants to cut me down for existing.’ Your next chapter awaits on empire
[You’re thinking too much again,] Vitaliara teased, her voice light. [Just admit she’s got potential and move on.]
Lucavion’s smirk twisted into something faintly amused as he adjusted his grip on his weapon, his gaze flicking toward Vitaliara’s glowing form on his shoulder. ‘When did you start taking her side?’ he mused inwardly. ‘What happened to the Vitaliara who spent all her time critiquing her every move?’
Vitaliara hummed softly, her tail curling lightly around his neck. [Indeed, it is strange, isn’t it?] she replied, her tone reflective rather than defensive. [But… I don’t know. I suppose there’s something about her that feels familiar. I can’t quite place it, but it’s there.]
Lucavion raised an eyebrow, though his expression remained otherwise neutral. ‘Familiar?’
[Yes,] Vitaliara continued, her voice quieting as though she were searching for the words. [Not entirely, but… something resonates. It’s like a fragment of a memory, blurry and out of reach. Maybe it’s nothing. Or maybe it’s just… her determination. It reminds me of someone.]
Lucavion’s smirk faltered for the briefest moment, replaced by a flicker of something unspoken. His thoughts shifted inward, brushing against truths he had no intention of sharing—not yet, at least.
‘It’s because she’s the daughter of Master,’ he thought, the weight of the realization settling within him. He’d known it from the start, of course, but seeing Vitaliara—Master’s familiar—unconsciously drawn to Elara only confirmed what he already understood.
Still, he said nothing of it aloud, his sharp mind keeping the revelation locked away for now. It’s not the time. Not yet.
“Well, whatever the reason,” he said instead, his voice light but tinged with a trace of mischief, “don’t let her newfound favor go to your head. You’ve been surprisingly lenient.”
[Don’t get used to it,] Vitaliara retorted with a faint huff, though her teasing tone returned quickly. [She still has plenty to learn. I’m just saying she’s not entirely hopeless.]
Lucavion chuckled softly, his gaze flicking back toward Elara as she steadied herself, her staff glowing faintly with frost as she prepared for the next wave. ‘Not hopeless, huh? High praise coming from you.’
The sea began to churn again, signaling the arrival of more creatures. Lucavion adjusted his stance, his smirk returning as he prepared to meet the chaos head-on.
‘Let’s see how she handles what’s next,’ he thought, his blade gleaming faintly with the soft flicker of the Flame of Equinox.
‘And…..I am really close to breakthrough….Indeed, this was what I had been lacking all this time….’
As the scene with Elara and the battle continued, Lucavion’s focus subtly shifted inward. He began to sense the coiling of energy deep within him—a restlessness in his [Flame of Equinox], like a predator denied its feast. The pulse of the flame resonated with every slain monster, but it remained unsatisfied.
‘So, that’s what I’ve been missing,’ he mused, his gaze flicking to the battlefield strewn with the remains of lesser creatures. His blade moved almost reflexively, cutting down another foe with a clean, effortless strike. ‘A concentrated flow of death energy. Not a single kill or a formidable foe, but an overwhelming release. A true storm of destruction.’
[You look… different,] Vitaliara remarked, her voice laced with curiosity. [What’s on your mind?]
Lucavion let out a low chuckle, his grip on his weapon steady. ‘The answer to my breakthrough,’ he replied. ‘I always thought I needed stronger opponents to cross into the 4-star realm, but I’ve been looking at it wrong. The Flame of Equinox isn’t just about power—it’s about balance, about feeding on the essence of life and death in harmony.’
[And what does that mean for now?] Vitaliara’s tone sharpened, sensing the shift in his resolve.
‘It means this battle isn’t just a skirmish anymore,’ Lucavion thought, a faint smirk curling at his lips. ‘It’s the perfect crucible.’
And just as he had said that, the monsters surged again, their numbers growing as the intermediate waves began.
Lucavion stepped forward, his blade igniting with the flame, its light casting a crimson glow against the shadowed terrain. His strikes grew sharper, more decisive, each one releasing bursts of energy that fed the hungry flame.
He could feel the shift within him, the subtle cracking of the barrier that had held him back for so long. Each monster he felled added to the growing tide, their deaths fueling the equilibrium of the flame.
[Lucavion…] Vitaliara’s voice was low, almost reverent. [What are you planning?]
He paused briefly, casting her a glance that held both amusement and determination. ‘Just watch. This isn’t something I can explain—it’s something you’ll feel when it happens.’
With that, he surged into the heart of the battle, his movements a seamless blend of precision and ferocity. Each swing of his blade ignited the flame further, the energy radiating from him growing with every passing moment. It wasn’t just the monsters that fell—it was the atmosphere itself, thick with the raw essence of death, that began to shift.
The world seemed to hold its breath as Lucavion pushed himself further, the flame roaring to life around him. And then, as the wave of monsters broke against him like water against stone, he felt it—a shattering within, followed by an all-consuming heat.
The breakthrough came like a flood, the Flame of Equinox surging to a new level. It wasn’t just power; it was clarity, balance, and control, all coalescing into a single, undeniable force.
‘Indeed, that was what I had been missing.’
