Five hundred years ago, the elven chief's timely awakening thwarted the demon's scheme.
But the demon wasn't so easily deterred. He cast the Reincarnation Magic: Spirit Cycle of Rebirth across the entire elven race, sowing the seeds for what would eventually become the Eye of the Midnight Sun.
Of course, it wasn't out of kindness. The demon had simply turned the elves—and especially Patry, the one also chosen by a four-leaf grimoire—into pawns on his board.
His method of controlling Patry and the other elves was through this reincarnation spell, which implanted a "wicked heart" in each of their souls. This "wicked heart" amplified their inner darkness: hatred for humanity, and an obsession with reviving their people—driving them to act exactly as the demon desired.
But Laiah's darkness was different. He bore far less malice than the others.
The elves had once possessed many noble traits. Their hatred stemmed not only from the pain inflicted by humans, but from the crushing betrayal of their hopes.
The first Wizard King, Lumiere, had been a close friend to Licht, leader of the elves. The two had dreamed of harmony between elves and humans. Lumiere and his sister Tetia had even been accepted by the elves—Tetia and Licht were lovers and had conceived a child.
But on the day of their wedding, tragedy struck.
In a place known only to Lumiere, a mana-collecting device of his design was unleashed, raining destruction down through his own light magic.
That betrayal—seemingly by the very humans they had come to trust—was what led the elves to abandon hope entirely.
But Laiah knew the truth. He knew Lumiere had never lied. He hadn't betrayed them.
That's why Laiah's hatred ran shallower than his kin's. All he truly wanted was to see his dear comrade again.
He kept the truth from the others because he feared that if they lost their reason for vengeance, they'd lose the will to keep fighting.
This—this was the real reason Charles had sought him out.
But now, first, he had to bring Laiah back to his senses.
Even in his berserk state, Laiah's combat awareness remained razor-sharp.
With a flash, he crossed a dozen meters in an instant and appeared right in front of Charles.
Charles instinctively retreated, hurling a wall of fire to push the pursuing Laiah back.
"Tch!" Laiah clicked his tongue in frustration at having missed his opportunity.
The False Laiah — His magic was Imitation Magic, allowing him to use any magic from a grimoire whose cover he had touched. The time he'd touched Yami's grimoire hadn't been for show—it was to copy his Dark Magic.
Even though his magic was unusual, Charles wasn't keen on letting him test whether his Dragon Slayer and World Magic could be mimicked.
"Imitation Magic: Dark-Cloaked Dim Slash!"
With a swing of his dark magic katana, Laiah launched a crescent-shaped slash of black energy.
It was Charles's first time on the receiving end of Yami's magic, and now he understood—what made it so dangerous wasn't the raw power, but its uncanny ability to draw in everything it touched.
The flames Charles cast were absorbed into the arc of darkness.
He flipped out of its path, boosting himself forward with another blast of fire to close in on Laiah.
"Imitation Magic: Invisible Seeker!"
Charles passed straight through Laiah's transparent body—his attack crashing harmlessly into the lava beyond.
This was the Intangibility Magic of the disgraced former captain of the Purple Orcas, Gueldre. Unlike certain other dimensional powers, this magic made the caster's physical presence vanish entirely.
Fortunately, Laiah, not being fully awakened, couldn't use two magics at once. If he could attack while intangible, Charles might as well surrender now.
"Imitation Magic: Judgment Light Blades!"
Reappearing, Laiah conjured a storm of glowing fishbone-shaped blades and sent them flying toward Charles.
Charles didn't immediately activate Dragon Blood Mode—he wanted to see how far he could go with just his current growth.
"Fire Dragon's Radiant Blaze!"
He fused flames in both hands into a searing fireball and hurled it into the incoming volley.
The fireball smashed through the light blades and slammed into Laiah.
When the flames dispersed, Laiah was visibly burned.
"Imitation Magic: Healing Light Particles!"
A warm glow bathed him, and the burns rapidly vanished. The fury on Laiah's face lessened as some of his rationality returned.
Charles smiled. Good. He's coming back to himself.
Yes, Laiah must have realized his disadvantage. It wasn't just that Charles had grown stronger—this was the interior of Yultim Volcano, deep in a fire-elemental mana zone. Fire mana abounded, while other attributes were scarce.
It was a battlefield Charles had carefully chosen for himself.
Any non-fire magic Laiah used here was weaker and drained more mana. And fire magic was useless against Charles.
This was a strategic setup that separated Charles from the usual Bulls who charged in without thinking.
I deserve a smug moment, honestly, Charles thought proudly.
Meanwhile, Laiah was trying to figure out how to regain control.
But Charles wasn't going to give him the chance.
"Fire Dragon's Claw!"
"Imitation Magic: Dark-Cloaked Dim Slash!"
Charles kicked through the black slash and, surrounded by flames, punched forward.
"Imitation Magic: Water Curtain!"
His punch struck a wall of water, only for his flames to consume the barrier entirely.
In the outside world, evaporated water would quickly condense into mist. But inside this blazing inferno, it simply vanished like chalk wiped from a board.
Charles had to hand it to Laiah—Imitation Magic had glaring strengths and weaknesses.
The upside? Access to multiple magic types meant fewer weaknesses and greater adaptability.
The downside? He could never surpass the original users. For instance, Laiah could use Yami's Dark Magic, but he could never replicate something like Dimension Slash.
Still, in a world where magic power reigned supreme, Laiah had more than enough raw mana to brute-force his way through.
And the fact that he could still use water magic effectively here, in the volcano's core, showed just how powerful he was.
"Imitation Magic: Gale Javelin!"
Hovering midair, Laiah condensed a whirlwind into a long spear and hurled it at Charles.
Charles leaned back into a backbend to dodge it, only to find himself engulfed by a cloud of ominous purple smoke.
Laiah had followed up with Poison Magic—Charles had no intention of finding out just how deadly those toxins were.
"Fire Dragon's Roar!"
Even with minimal mana, Charles conjured a colossal plume of fire.
No matter how virulent the poison, it stood no chance against such searing flames.
As the fire cleared the miasma, Charles spotted Laiah crouching with both hands on the ground.
He knew that formation.
"Imitation Magic: Stone Spike Forest!"
A deadly spell was coming next.
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