Chapter 95: Interlude 2 – Ashen Flames

On the way back to Hero Academy, the engine powered by mana stones rumbled inside the magi-car like thunder, and an awkward silence weighed heavily in the air.

Professor Baldwin, gripping the steering wheel, kept her gaze firmly out the window. It was as if she was doing everything she could to avoid eye contact with me. I sat in the passenger seat, watching her cheeks and ears still flushed red, and finally let out a long sigh before breaking the silence.

“How long do you plan to keep avoiding me?”

Professor Baldwin replied in a flustered voice, “A-avoiding you? Dale, I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

Her eyes remained fixed on the same scenery that we had been passing for the last three hours.

I stared at her. “You’re going to crash like that.”

“

Hmph

. That’s not something a cadet without a license should be worried about.”

“I do know how to drive,” I said firmly.

“Come back with a license and I might believe you.”

It seemed as if the casual banter helped ease the tension a little. Professor Baldwin’s eyes finally met mine. But the moment they did, she groaned and quickly turned her head away in panic. I sighed, lightly touching my lips, which still held the lingering softness from last night.

She said, “Forget it. What happened yesterday was an accident.”

“Understood.”

“No, actually, don’t forget it.”

Am I supposed to forget it or not?

Professor Baldwin leaned her forehead against the steering wheel, exhaling deeply again and again. “

Haah!

This is driving me crazy. What the hell was I thinking?”

As though she had decided things couldn’t go on like this, she pulled the magi-car over. “I’ll go get some fresh air.”

𝐟𝚛𝕖𝚎𝕨𝗲𝐛𝚗𝐨𝐯𝐞𝕝.𝐜𝗼𝗺

Outside, she pulled a cigarette from her coat. Before she could reach for her lighter, I flicked my fingers, and flames burst from my fingertips. Though the Primordial Flame was originally meant to burn away soul stigmata, completely different in nature from normal fire, with careful adjustment, I could manipulate it for ordinary use.

Professor Baldwin narrowed her eyes, staring at the fire dancing on my fingertips. “That flame... It must be the power that has been dormant inside you. Did you finally learn to control it? Is that the reason for your sudden growth lately?”

I looked at her in surprise. “You knew?”

I was aware that she had noticed the Blessing of Resurrection, but for her to have sensed even the Primordial Flame was beyond my expectations.

She explained, “I don’t know exactly what it is. Just that there’s a tremendous power lying dormant within you.”

“That’s...”

As I hesitated, debating whether I should tell her about the Primordial Flame, she gently shook her head. “No need to explain. I’m sure you have your reasons.”

“Thank you.”

“But there is one thing I would like to ask.” She brought the cigarette to the flame at my fingertip and took a long drag. “The gray aura mixed with fire that you used when you defeated the crocodile demonic monster, what exactly is it?”

What I had gained from awakening the Ashen Flame Style wasn’t just a new sword technique. Previously, I used to create aura by limiting my mana to the bare minimum. But this time, I had poured out my full power, burning my mana to its limits, which resulted in a completely different, uniquely colored aura.

I created flames even before when I used aura, but it never felt like this. Previously, it had been like faint flames flickering over a gray aura. But now, the flames and aura had fused, burning as one. It was a seamless blend, rather than two layers.

“I’m... not really sure how to explain it.”

It was a technique I had only awakened a few days ago. I didn’t fully understand its power or effects yet, and there was no way I could explain it to her properly.

“

Hmm

. Then does it have a name?” she asked.

“A name...”

I hadn’t officially named it. But as soon as she asked, two words came to mind.

“Ashen Flame.”

It was a delicate flame lingering in the ashes. Of course, calling it “delicate” was probably laughable, given that this was the Primordial Flame that once incinerated the Tree of Creation in the ancient past, but in appearance, it fit perfectly.

“Ashen Flame,

huh.

The name suits it well.” Professor Baldwin exhaled smoke in a long breath. “That wasn’t something I saw during the midterm evaluations. Did you learn it recently?”

“That’s correct.”

She put out the cigarette, narrowing her eyes. “

Hmm!

”

“Is something wrong?”

She shook her head. “No, nothing wrong, exactly. It’s just... it feels a bit unstable. Like it’s unbalanced somehow.”

“Well, it’s a new technique, after all. The flame inside me isn’t exactly easy to control. The energy of fire might just be too strong compared to my original power, which causes that imbalance.”

The Ashen Flame Style itself was something I had used for the first time during that recent battle.

Professor Baldwin fell into deep thought for a moment before slowly shaking her head. “No. It’s the opposite.”

“Sorry?”

“It’s not that the flame is too strong, causing imbalance. It’s that your innate power is too strong. That’s what is throwing it off.”

Confused, I just blinked at her. “What do you mean?”

She stepped closer, reached out, and pulled me into a kiss. Unlike last night, there was no thrill, no warmth, just contact. Her Cursed-Eye shimmered in violet. She gently touched her lips and nodded. “Just as I thought. I wasn’t sure yesterday, but now I am.”

“About what?”

Professor Baldwin raised two fingers. “There are two, two immense powers dormant inside you, Dale. Not one, but two.”

Two powers are sleeping inside me? What kind of nonsense is that?

I thought.

She continued, “The fire you used is the weaker one. That’s why the balance felt off.”

“W-wait. What do you mean by that?”

She was saying that there was a force inside me stronger than the Primordial Flame? That was absurd. If I had that kind of power, would I really have been called a mere “last place hero” in my past life?

She explained, “As I said earlier, I don’t know the full picture. All I can say is that something like that exists. For now, it’s not something you need to worry about. Whether strong or weak, neither of those forces is one you can control at this point anyway.”

Professor Baldwin then stepped back into the magi-car. Trying to make sense of what I had heard, I followed her in.

She glanced my way, a glint of curiosity lighting up her eyes. “

Hmmm

. Still, I can’t help but wonder. When the day comes that you can control both of those powers, what kind of being will you become?”

Her violet eyes scanned me from head to toe. “You might even become a monster capable of tearing that so-called Demon God to shreds.”

I stayed silent.

She smirked playfully and shrugged. “

Heh

. Just kidding. Well, let’s get moving.”

With a roar of its engine, the magi-car sped off.

***

We didn’t arrive back at the Hero Academy until late evening. After saying goodbye to Professor Baldwin, I returned to my dorm room, sat on my bed, and furrowed my brows. Her words echoed in my mind like a lingering bell.

“Not one, but two...”

I opened my palm and summoned the Ashen Flame. A fire, laced with gray aura, ignited in my hand. Just feeling it burn gave me chills. That was how powerful it was. It consumed a lot of mana, but it was definitely powerful.

Building upon the insight I gained from Yurina, I had mixed the Primordial Flame into my mana and created a new force. The Ashen Flame Style I had unleashed with that power had been shockingly strong, surprising even me.

However, using it felt awkward. For thousands of years, I had conditioned myself to conserve mana and use it sparingly. Now, I had to dredge up every last drop of precious mana and explode it outward to use this force. It was like a frugal man who normally pinched every coin suddenly walking into a luxury boutique and sweeping everything off the shelves.

It felt exhilarating, yet deep inside, I couldn’t shake the unease. I wondered if it was really okay. Regardless of what I thought, I had to get used to it over time. Having experienced its power firsthand, I could no longer afford to stick with my old, conservative ways of using mana.

“But what exactly was Professor Baldwin talking about?”

According to her, there was another power inside me besides the Primordial Flame. It was something I had never once come across in my previous life, despite how long it was. There was no way someone like me could have such power.

Suddenly, a memory flashed through my mind. It was the scene I saw in my mindscape: The Primordial Flame had retreated in fear, as if terrified, desperately fleeing from my hand and collapsing the entire mindscape to escape. At that time, the roles of predator and prey were reversed.

“Ah...”

Another thought rose to the surface:

Why was my soul stigmata left unharmed?

According to the legends, the Primordial Flame was said to burn away soul stigmatas and everything within them: the mana, the blessings, all of it. And it wasn’t a baseless rumor. The flame had burned away the Blessing of Distortion that the Archbishop of Dreams and Fantasies used. It also incinerated the poison concocted with the Archbishop of Beasts’ power.

So, the question was why it couldn’t burn away my Blessing of Resurrection. Back then, when I had absorbed the Primordial Flame into my body, I was convinced I would die. I thought the soul stigmata engraved on my chest would be consumed by fire. Yet, the mark over my heart remained intact. More than intact, it actually managed to contain the flame.

Professor Baldwin’s words circled through my thoughts again.

“Not one, but two.”

I muttered, “One, no, two,

huh

.”

That meant there was something else in me. What was this second power that devoured even the Primordial Flame? My mind spiraled with questions that had no answers as the night deepened outside the window, with darkness spreading like a thickening veil across the sky.