Chapter 50

The more I used magical power to break through the flames, the more my body deteriorated.

Even knowing I couldn’t endure it, I couldn’t stop using magical power. Acrid smoke covered everything, making it difficult to see ahead.

“Lucas, where are you!”

I was using my small child’s body to avoid danger, but there were clear limitations.

‘I can’t hold out much longer.’

I needed to find him before the backlash from containing magical power in my body arrived. Following Lucas’s traces led me to an old storage room.

“Could he possibly be in here?”

The entrance to what appeared to be a rare book storage room was not visible. It seemed that collapsed bookshelves and their books had blocked the passage inside.

“My brother can’t come to places like this. He’s afraid of dark places because of memories from when he had an accident.”

‘If he’s not here.’

Considering my remaining strength, I might collapse before finding Lucas.

Unable to make a hasty decision, I decided to follow my intuition. I cleared away some of the books blocking the storage entrance and crawled inside.

Hot air had seeped in, making the storage room extremely hot.

“Lucas, are you here?”

As I looked around carefully, I saw a small figure huddled in the corner of the storage.

Relief washed over me the moment I discovered the beautiful silver hair I had been looking for. I hurriedly moved and embraced his body.

“You’re safe. Thank goodness, Lucas.”

“…my …fault.”

“Are you hurt? You’re okay, right?”

His body, exposed to heat for a long time, was hot like a fireball. Lucas didn’t respond at all to my hands feeling his body.

“…Lucas?”

Realizing something was wrong with him, I raised my head.

Lucas’s golden eyes, which had been full of vitality, were now hazy.

His hands trembled pathetically as he hugged his knees, and his hair was singed by fire. He seemed unable to recognize who was beside him.

‘Why has he become like this?’

Apart from faint scratches on his face, there were no noticeable wounds. This meant Lucas’s change was due to a mental issue.

“Lucas. Tristan is worried about you.”

“….”

“Lucas, can you hear me?”

“…my …fault. I… such…”

Wrong. He’s not listening.

I had seen soldiers change like this on battlefields before. Those gripped by fear lost their lives too easily.

“You need to go back. You.”

Even knowing it was an impossible dream, I wanted to be part of your future. If I could see that wonderful moment when you, who admired me, surpassed me.

“You called my past self a hero.”

If only I could stand proudly before you as a hero, just once.

‘I can’t leave you like this.’

Only at this final moment did I realize I had already taken this boy into my heart. It was similar to the feeling of looking at a cherished junior.

I didn’t want this child to die here.

“You won, Lucas.”

Since you made me, who longed for peace, choose you, you had to live.

I needed something that could awaken Lucas’s lost consciousness.

Something that could stimulate his collapsed mind. Someone who could evoke intense emotions to awaken him.

‘It’s Kashian.’

If I disregarded the consequences and contained magical power in my body, I could use magic briefly.

‘I don’t want to regret anymore.’

If I had used magic earlier with the resolve to die, I could have saved Juno. When she was healthy, I could have teleported her alone to the capital.

I blamed myself for giving up all those attempts, relying on shallow expectations of the original work. But this time, I would not lose anyone.

“You, at least, will be safe.”

Because I, your hero, have decided to make it so.

I closed my eyes and contained the overflowing magical power in the air within my body. The moment the magical power seeped into my blood, excruciating pain like my bones were being crushed came in waves.

‘I can do this!’

Every part of my body felt like it was burning and melting. Without giving up, I contained the magical power to the end and spread it throughout my body.

As I recited the final part of the formula calculated in my mind, the magical power erupting from my fingertips transformed into a brilliant light that enveloped my body.

“Lebroka (Transformation).”

My body, wrapped in light, changed according to the form in my memory. Even as my consciousness faded, a faint satisfaction arose.

‘I can save him.’

This magic I created as a grand magician wasn’t simply a spell that changed appearance. It could bring the physical abilities of the target I wanted to transform into.

‘However, I need to know the body I want to change into thoroughly.’

When the final magical power seeped into my body according to my will, I had become Kashian.

“Successfully completed.”

Having grown to nearly 2 meters tall, the storage room felt cramped with my elevated view. Brushing back my black hair that spread in all directions like a lion’s mane, I gauged the magical power within my body.

I could clearly feel the magical power flowing through every part of my body like a waterfall. It felt like I could accomplish anything now.

I picked up Lucas’s small body and met his gaze.

Even without me, you’ll be able to move forward.

“Your hero Kashian has come to save you, little one.”

When I grinned playfully, color seeped into Lucas’s golden eyes, and gradually his focus returned. He mumbled with a face like someone who had just woken from a dream.

“…Ka, Kashian?”

His hand, stretched toward my face in disbelief, repeatedly waved through the air.

I caught Lucas’s fingers and pressed my lips to the back of his hand, covered in wounds. It was a greeting gesture that knights use to show respect to other knights.

“Have you been waiting long?”

I had words for this child who had trembled while facing his own fears in this dark place.

“Everything will be alright now.”

I’ll take your nightmares away.

Lucas shuddered and blinked repeatedly in disbelief. His golden eyes, focused solely on me, held a faint warmth.

“Is it really you, Kashian?”

“Yes.”

“How can you, who is already dead, be here?”

“I came to save you.”

Lucas’s lips trembled as he frowned in disbelief, then he broke into sorrowful tears.

I listened attentively to the old pain he was releasing.

“I, I have a younger sister, but I, I again couldn’t do anything.”

“It’s okay. Your presence here is proof of your courage.”

If you, who knew there was a fire but didn’t run away and searched for me, aren’t honorable, then who could be a hero before you?

I put a peeled candy into Lucas’s mouth as he was about to burst into full tears. Making him close his eyes, which had become round like a rabbit’s, I murmured.

“Everyone fails to protect something.”

“Uh… sniff.”

As I gently rubbed his reddened eyes, Lucas sobbed. Gasping for breath, he leaned his cheek against the back of my hand and let tears fall.

His first request to his idol matched my expectations without the slightest deviation.

“P-please save my younger sister Liat.”

“I will.”

“…Really?”

“Yes. Have you been deceived often?”

The magic would last only 10 minutes.

Within that time, I had to use this body to escape from here. Despite the tight schedule, strangely, it didn’t feel impossible.

‘Because Lucas is here.’

Knights were a species that became stronger than anyone else in front of those they needed to protect. I picked up Lucas with one arm and retrieved the fallen sword.

“Little one, you haven’t seen any Sword Masters except your father, right?”

“…hiccup.”

“See with your own eyes. Whether Kashian’s swordsmanship or your father’s is more excellent.”

My talent wasn’t enough to surpass the Grand Duke, the main villain of the original work. But I was confident in the swordsmanship I had created while navigating life-threatening situations.

I pulled Lucas’s hand and placed it on the sword hilt.

“Let’s get out of here together.”

After taking a deep breath, I swung the sword infused with magical power, creating a powerful wind pressure.

CRASH!

The storage door shattered against the wind pressure, allowing light to seep into the previously dark storage. Tears flowed down Lucas’s cheeks at the light coloring his vision.

“It’s bright…”

The flames that had spread throughout the library illuminated everything brightly.

Tracing the flow with magical power, I delivered sword strikes again and again along the path I had created.

Until all the fires were extinguished and the boy in my arms was safe. Faint sunlight seeped through the cracked library ceiling.

I sensed the end had come, but I regretted nothing.

***

Having poured out everything, I stepped into a deep dream.

It was truly surreal, an unattainable dream of the future.

In the dream, Lucas and Tristan had become adults. I continuously clapped my hands toward Lucas, who was wearing a splendid suit.

His silver hair, neatly swept back, absorbed the ceiling light and shone brilliantly.

“I missed you, Liat.”

Lucas’s strong arms, steadily trained, embraced me and lifted me into the air. His golden eyes, tinged with joy, curved into half-moons.

“I was worried about whether you were eating well and sleeping well, so I couldn’t be at ease for even a moment.”

“I’m dying of happiness here. Step aside, brother. You’re interfering with my reunion with the little one.”

“…You’re here too, Tristan.”

“Does it make sense for me to be late on a day like this? Little one, how’s my hair today? You like my hair, don’t you?”

Tristan, with his red hair tied back in a ponytail, made his purple eyes shine. The silver earrings jingling at his ears were extremely beautiful.

‘They’ve grown up splendidly.’

His face, which was already comparable to a masterpiece painting, had become more than a living sculpture now that he was an adult.

Tristan, who playfully pulled my cheek, gave a mischievous smile. Lucas, who approached, removed Tristan’s hand that was touching me.

“Don’t touch carelessly. You’ll spread germs.”

“Are you done talking? Some brother you are!”

“Will you stop crying every night, saying you miss Liat?”

“You bastard!”

At Lucas’s words, Tristan’s face turned as red as a carrot.

‘They still don’t get along well.’

In a way, that was so like the two of them that it made me laugh. When I let out a small laugh, both of their gazes turned to me simultaneously.

Soon, beautiful smiles spread across both their faces at the same time.

“Shall we go then?”

“Let’s go, little one.”

Tristan, who elegantly bowed at the waist, kissed the tip of my hand and stood on my right. On the opposite side, Lucas, who had tidied his attire, took his place.

As the huge doors reminiscent of an imperial palace opened left and right, bright light poured in. It felt like I would wake from the dream once those doors fully opened.

“By the way, how do I look as an adult?”

At my question, the two, momentarily perplexed, had bright smiles form at the corners of their mouths.

“Very…”

Before I could hear the answer spoken simultaneously, the space filled with light collapsed.

It was time to wake from the dream.