Chapter 46: Inferno’s Embrace

Illusions barely worked on the sapling.

It only remained stunned for three to five seconds at most.

Lucy’s strategy was simple.

She cast an illusion from a distance, and when the stun was applied, she closed in and launched a rapid barrage of magic attacks.

She used teleportation for movement and employed flame-based skills, the sapling’s weakness, as her primary offensive tools.

Teleportation. Hellfire.

Flame-shaped spears shot from her fingertips, piercing various parts of the sapling’s body.

Though each spear was roughly the size of an adult male, the sapling’s massive frame made them look like mere needles.

At first, the sapling stood motionless, as if mocking her attacks, taking every spear with its bare body.

However, that arrogance was short-lived.

A massive explosion of flames erupted from the embedded spears, and the sapling let out a shriek of pain.

Hellfire attribute conversion: Heat Wave Spear.

A devastating skill that continuously extracted and condensed heat within its target, amplifying destruction.

Against plant-type monsters, its effect was overwhelming.

“Kiaaaaak!”

The sapling’s agonized cry echoed through the forest.

In response, the tree trunks coiled around its body shot out in all directions, lashing like whips.

Twenty-one trunks in total.

Their speed was like lightning, their angles and attack patterns limitless.

To an ordinary person, it would be a cataclysmic sight.

But to Lucy, it was meaningless.

Continuous teleportation.

An evasion technique executed every 0.1 seconds, moving at near-light speed.

She teleported and dodged attacks endlessly, leaving afterimages lingering in the air.

Even amidst this rapid movement, she countered with a double-spear attack, seamlessly controlling one in each hand.

It was a battle technique only Lucy, with her transcendent reflexes and magical prowess, could perform.

Seconds blurred into minutes.

Flames spread throughout the forest.

Lucy, waiting for the perfect moment, raised her hand and chanted.

“Summon Phoenix.”

From a magic circle carved into the air, a colossal firebird emerged.

The scattered flames in the forest surged toward the bird, fueling its growth.

Initially, it was only slightly larger than Lucy, but with each beat of its wings, it expanded, soon rivaling the sapling’s massive size.

Phoenix.

A summoned beast that grew stronger and larger the more flames it absorbed.

Lucy had allowed the fire to spread intentionally—just for this moment.

And it worked perfectly.

The firebird now dwarfed the sapling, illuminating the pitch-black night of Edem Garden like a second sun.

Sensing imminent danger, the sapling lashed its stems at the firebird.

Before they could make contact, they disintegrated into ash.

Lucy, positioned beneath the firebird and above the sapling, gazed down with a self-assured smirk, eyes flickering with reflected firelight.

She had been monitoring the sapling’s health points the entire time.

The fight was nearing its end.

“Surround my enemy with flames.”

At her command, the firebird dived.

Like a meteor of fire, it crashed into the sapling, engulfing it in a towering inferno.

A fierce explosion tore through the forest, sending a colossal mushroom cloud into the sky.

“Oh no… If this continues, we’ll burn down the entire forest.”

Rubia had told her that Edem Garden was a cultural treasure of Helathor.

Destroying it in a fit of battle-induced rage was not an option.

“Extermination.”

With a single word imbued with all her magic, the flames calmed instantly.

Soon, only blackened remains remained.

Among them, the Guardian lay helpless, drained of energy.

Hypnosis.

Even a being highly resistant to illusions would succumb when exhausted.

“Ugh…”

As expected, the Guardian’s head drooped under the spell’s influence.

“Return to your place. Sleep until I command otherwise.”

At her order, the Beast sluggishly retreated to his original position.

Lucy sighed, wiping sweat from her brow.

One problem was solved.

But in return, part of the forest had burned down.

The Hall of Satan’s Throne.

Under dim, ambient lighting, the Seven Great Demons knelt in formal deference.

The grand doors creaked open, and a lone figure strode in at a leisurely pace.

Did he even need an introduction?

Here in Helator, only two beings held authority equal to the Seven Great Demons: Lucy and one other.

Satan.

Having returned from a long campaign of war, he reclined onto his throne, betraying no signs of fatigue.

His attendant, the palace maid Rubia, followed closely, pouring him a glass of wine before bowing deeply.

“Shall I report?”

He had returned to his ancient castle after so long.

There was only one thing he wished to hear.

News of his only daughter, Lucy.

Despite finally finding and bringing back his lost daughter, circumstances had prevented him from speaking with her properly before war tore him away once again.

His heart had ached throughout the entire campaign.

“Yes, tell me everything.”

Rubia began recounting every detail—Lucy’s enrollment at Edem Garden, the enemy’s invasion of Satan Castle, and Lucy’s unexpected role in the battle.

Listening intently, Satan stroked his chin, eyes glinting with intrigue.

Lucy was far stronger than he had imagined.

To have personally subdued an intruder?

Breaking through the castle’s barrier meant the enemy had been no ordinary beast.

For Lucy to have defeated them so easily, her strength was undeniable.

‘Perhaps she could already be a one-star general. At such a young age… She is truly my daughter.’

He smiled, satisfied.

Just then, someone burst into the throne room without knocking.

A soldier—an information officer.

“Hey, you! Do you realize where you are?! How dare you—”

“I-I’m sorry… but this is urgent—”

“The protocol still—”

“Let him speak.” Satan said in his calm yet commanding voice.

“Y-Yes…”

The soldier relayed the latest incident at Edem Garden.

The tree spirit had awakened.

And of all people, Lucy had been there.

At this news, Satan immediately sprang from his throne.

He had once personally subdued that tree spirit himself. He knew its strength well.

He was about to rush to his daughter’s aid—

Until the soldier added,

“The tree spirit did awaken… but Lucy subdued it herself.”

“…What did you just say?”

“Lucy defeated the tree spirit on her own.”

“Are you certain?”

“Yes. Lord Abres, who was present, confirmed it.”

“Haha.”

Satan burst into laughter and slumped back onto his throne.

To have subdued that creature alone?

He had underestimated Lucy’s power.

‘Not just a one-star general… She may already be at the level of the Seven Great Demons.’

But how? How had she grown so strong so quickly?

Then he laughed again.

There was no need to wonder.

She was his daughter.

A being of absolute might since birth.

There was nothing more to question.

‘It’s like looking at my younger self.’

Pleased, Satan savored his wine.

“Bring Lucy—no, my daughter—here immediately. We have a father-daughter reunion long overdue.”

“Yes!”

Before the dust settled in Edem Garden, Abres was already on his way to Satan Castle with Lucy atop a sauropod.

He had received Satan’s direct order.

Lucy sat drowsily on the creature’s neck.

She was exhausted from being woken in the middle of the night.

‘If you have something to say, just wait until morning. Must it be now?’

Despite her complaints, she remained silent.

He was her father, after all.

“Are you uncomfortable? We’re almost there, just hold on a little longer.”

Soon, Satan Castle loomed ahead.

Even from afar, its presence was foreboding.