431. Diligent Damnation

[Will O’ Wisp - Lvl. 136]

“Willy?”

Edithe groaned as she stared up at the Grand Spirit. The [Will O’ Wisp] hovered over her, not facing the redhead. Even though he was simply a ball of flames, it was clear his gaze wasn’t focused on her. Rather, he looked on at the dark inferno— at the all-consuming void just ahead.

He flitted forward as his green fire turned blue. A cone of icy fire shot out, creating a sleet wall that stood as tall as even the battlements of Alyras. It was an odd sight— seeing fire turn to ice. But that was not the limit to Willy’s power.

Once the barrier was created, separating the Valiant Dreamers Company from the [Jinn]’s terrible flames, he turned back to Edithe. She raised her head as her body ached. She was bleeding. As were Hadrian and Ismail. They’d been struck by a stray streak of black fire, and she couldn’t do anything to block it.

But now, Willy was here. His wall of ice held off the black fire, and more than that, he descended upon her, Hadrian, and Ismail with a gentle warmth. Green healing flames that spread out, mending flesh rather than incinerating her skin into ash. The aching feeling soon vanished, burning away as Willy’s magic washed over her body.

“Ugh…”

Hadrian was the first to fully get to his feet. Edithe was next, following slowly behind him. She looked down towards her knitting flesh and shook her head. Hadrian placed a hand on her shoulder.

“Are you alright?”

“I-I’m fine… but Ismail—”

She cast her gaze towards the [Beastmaster]. Ismail Zuland was still lying there, groaning in pain. He had suffered the worst of the injuries, taking on the brunt of the black flames. His Pegasus hovered worriedly over him, and the healing flame continued to burn. Hadrian nodded and got to his feet.

“Hang in there…”

The leader of the Valiant Dreamers Company whispered as he uncorked a healing potion and tended to the [Beastmaster]. Meanwhile, Edithe finally rose to her feet. She clutched at her wounds as they faded away before looking up at the Grand Spirit before her.

Willy hadn’t said a thing since he arrived. He simply flitted before them, his flames wisping with the strong winds. She smiled at him, gratefully for his arrival.

“Thank you, Honored Spirit Willy.”

She bowed her head at the [Will O’ Wisp]. She gestured back towards Hadrian and Ismail as the [Beastmaster] slowly recovered.

“Without your help, we wouldn’t have possibly survived that Demon’s attack. I offer you my most heartfelt gratitude. Your presence is truly a blessing to us.”

For a moment, Willy just floated there, unresponsive. His gaze was blatantly fixed onto her— she could feel his stare even though he had no face. Edithe blinked at him, starting to feel a little bit uncomfortable. Something which she never thought she’d fel whilst in the middle of a raging battlefield.

“Honored Spirit—”

Edithe started. But the [Will O’ Wisp] spoke over her.

“Leave.”

His voice echoed for all of the Valiant Dreamers and their allies to hear. No— not just them. But the nearby soldiers and adventurers that were fighting looked towards Willy. Edithe blinked a few times.

“Excuse me?”

She asked, and Willy replied simply.

“No point.”

“No… point?”

“They. Handle.”

The [Will O’ Wisp] turned and gestured towards the dark inferno with his body. Edithe narrowed her eyes and saw the iridescent flames burning within the black fire. The redhead saw the moving shadows. The knight in shining armor. The [Hero] from another world.

And it was almost like they were enough to defeat the [Jinn]. As though everyone else was just collateral damage here. That they were throwing away their lives pointlessly. Willy continued, saying as much.

“Useless.”

“What?”

Edithe’s eyes grew wide. But he didn’t answer. Instead, he flew forward, leaving the staring redhead behind. As she slowly hung her gaze, the [Will O’ Wisp] flew to the other side of the battlefield, saving more lives.

It was annoying. Willy found it annoying. Being revered and treated like he was a force of nature— like he was simply a servant of the Spirit Lord— rather than an individual truly made him upset.

Honestly, he knew he probably should’ve phrased it more nicely. Edithe was Salvos’ friend after all. But the way she addressed him made him snap at her. Well, whatever. It had its intended effect.

He needed to dissuade these converging armies from wasting their lives. It was glaringly obvious that the [Jinn] would be taken care of by Salvos, Orgaf, Daniel, and that Human knight. Whoever she was— Willy might not have known her, but she was incredibly strong for a Human at her level.

All they had to do was locate the true body of the [Jinn], and the Demon would easily perish. All Willy was trying to do was save Edithe’s life and prevent any unnecessary casualties.

“Leave.”

He repeated himself to another group of foolish Humans trying to charge the dark inferno. They hesitated. Willy just sighed. He watched as a thin streak of black flames lance out, and he prepared to intercept it. But a cone of fire and ice shot out from a nearby hill. Willy paused and turned to face the source of the spell.

“Useless?”

A voice asked. Edithe stood there, lowering her staff as she started forward. He stared at her.

“Why—”

“I am not useless.”

She spoke as she held Willy’s gaze.

“I can still fight. And not just me, but everyone else here. They’ve fought to protect the city— they’re the reason half of Alyras hasn’t been burned to the ground.”

“You’re not Salvos.”

He flitted before her, his flames shifting blue.

“I am not Salvos. We will die.”

“I am not Salvos. But I am still Edithe Dawnrise. One of the Liberators of the Plaguelands. I am still an adventurer. A Valiant Dreamer. I can still do something. And so can you.”

Edithe lowered her staff and took a step forward.

“You’re a Grand Spirit—”

“Shut up.”

She blinked. There was a moment where she hesitated. Willy knew she could sense the annoyance in his voice— it was very much palpable. But Edithe steeled herself.

“But you are a Grand Spirit. A Level 136 [Will O’ Wisp].”

“So?”

He asked, growing more irritated by the minute.

“I’m a Spirit. And?”

Just because he was a Spirit, it didn’t mean he was a miracle-worker. He couldn’t answer prayers. He couldn’t cure incurable illnesses. He tried— he really did. And he was tired of it. Of all the expectations placed on him. Just because he was a Spirit. He knew his limits, and he wasn’t going to push himself beyond his bounds.

But Edithe didn’t shy back in the face of his frustrated questioning. Instead, she held his gaze without fear.

“It means we can do something.”

Willy paused. And Edithe continued.

“You’re right that Salvos, Daniel, Orgaf, and Kaitlin Darkhelm can defeat the [Jinn] on their own. But how long will that take? How many innocent lives will that [Jinn] kill before that happens? Just look!”

The redhead pointed towards the moving armies. They ebbed and flow like the ocean tides in the morning, always receding, but always returning stronger. They helped push the dark inferno back— they battled its stray flames, keeping it from spreading too far.

“If it weren’t for us, the [Jinn]’s flames would still be expanding. Consuming. Destroying the city. Even with all of Salvos’ clones. Even if all of the Vaun Qieur Empire’s Swordsguard Forces were here. This [Jinn] is a calamity. It cannot be contained— that’s why we have to work together.”

Willy stared at Edithe. He wanted to rebuke her statements. But, this time, he spoke only one word. And it wasn’t on purpose.

“Pointless.”

“I know what it’s like to fight a pointless battle. I lost my best friends in a pointless battle. This isn’t one. We can save so many more lives if we help. Trust me and lend me your strength.”

Eidthe proffered Willy a hand. He hesitated.

Once, Salvos asked Willy why he didn’t just save the other monsters at the bottom of the Bloodied Gulf. He could fly, after all. Well, he didn’t answer her then.

But the truth was simple: it was because he was tired of failing. Despite his best efforts— always trying, always striving to fulfill what Humans wanted for him— he would eventually fail.

Save so many more lives? He was a Spirit, not a guardian. Not a deity. Not a protector.

A Spirit. Not an Honored Spirit. Not a thing to be worshipped. Not a God.

“Look, everyone is fighting. They’re doing their best. Shouldn’t we do our part as well?”

Edithe gestured back to her company. They pressed on, even without her. Even after Willy’s warning. Nobody heeded his words. Regardless of the threat, they pressed on. Those idiots.

“Do it yourself if you want to die.”

Willy snapped back. He spoke a full sentence not because he was frustrated, but because he didn’t want to deal with this anymore.

“I can’t.”

She responded simply. He looked at her, puzzled and annoyed.

“Why not?”

“Because as I am right now, I am not strong enough. But you? You are stronger than me. Not because you’re a Spirit— but because you are.”

The [Will O’ Wisp] hesitated. That… was true. Edithe was nearly 20 levels below him. However, it still made no sense why she was so desperate for his help. She saw him not as a miracle-worker, yet she still called for him. And that… piqued his curiosity.

“Just give me this chance, please.”

Edithe said as she looked pleadingly at the [Will O’ Wisp]. Eventually, Willy acquiesced.

“If you die, it’s your fault.”

He flitted down to her, and a smile slipped onto her face.

“Of course. But I won’t. Come here.”

She raised her staff at him. Willy watched as the tip of the artifact shone. She whispered quietly, just soft enough for the [Will O’ Wisp] to hear.

“[Recall Skill: Patron of the Skills]!”

For a moment, Willy didn’t understand what just happened. Then his mind was inundated with a myriad of notifications. And he knew what to do.

Temporary Skill [A Guardian’s Blessing] Obtained!

Temporary Skill [The Indomitable Valkyrie] Obtained!

Temporary Skill [Vindication of They] Obtained!

Edithe raised her staff at him as he reeled.

“This… how…?”

“I used to be a [Summoner]. I’m not one anymore because I broke my vow.”

Willy looked at Edithe. I see, he thought, then he turned to the dark inferno as Edithe stepped up next to him.

“So did I.”

That was all he said as Edithe pointed her staff at him, and he felt her power surging through him. She grinned as he began casting his new Skills.

“[A Guardian’s Blessing]. [The Indomitable Valkyrie]. And—”

Hadrian raised his head. He saw the twinkling light— looked as these spheres of life essence rose and flew across the battlefield. He looked in the direction where it had flown, and he smiled.

“Watch out!”

I called out as I swooped down and yanked Orgaf away from a blast of black flames. The [Jinn]’s outer form twisted. Orgaf gasped as I lowered him back to the ground, onto a nearby valley.

“Are you alright?”

“Yeah, thanks. I lost the last of my clones from that, though.”

He cursed as he glanced back to the [Jinn]. I looked up at the contorted face staring down at me from the black canvas. My clone— my last clone here— circled around it, unable to draw too close because of the heat. Only Kaitlin Darkhelm dared venture further into the dark inferno, but even she couldn’t press into the heart of the storm.

“We can’t just give up. We need to get to the—”

I started. Then I paused. I narrowed my eyes as my gaze was drawn to the battlefield behind me. And I saw the little stars speckling the ground. The balls of light that rose and converged into a nearby hilltop. I blinked, even with [Manifestation of the Old Gods].

“Edithe?”

Then I frowned.

“And Willy…?”

I leaned back and grinned.

“Huh. Nice.”

At one point in her life— for the longest time— Edithe had been a [Summoner]. She fought and hid behind the strength of her Spirits, lending them her strength in battle. Then she broke her sacred contract with them, and she was never to fight alongside a Spirit ever again.

Until today.

“Then let us break our vows again—”

Edithe offered Willy her strength. Her power. She gave him her Skills, and even that wasn’t enough. So, now, she guided him with her mana. Taught him how to use her power.

The corpses littering the battlefield shone. Their essences were drawn into the Grand Spirit’s body as the flaming ball collapsed. Yet, she felt what he felt, and she knew he didn’t feel any pain. All he felt was the power of their will left behind— their desire to put a stop to the [Jinn].

Edithe gritted her teeth as she poured her mana into Willy, giving him everything she could to help defeat the [Jinn].

“Together!”

All at once, Willy blasted forward. His entire form expanded. It was like he was becoming a storm— no, a typhoon. No longer was he the tiny [Will O’ Wisp], but he was now a tornado of flames. Just like the [Jinn], he’d inhabited a greater form.

It was the wrath of all that had fallen. The redemption of the deceased. The weight of their failures borne by a single Grand Spirit, aided by a former [Summoner], and unleashed back into the dark inferno.

Willy crashed into the black flames, and the all-consuming void… started to peel away.

“[Vindication of They].”