From beneath the collapsed merchant cart, Lencar did not blink as Fuegoleon descended like a falling star.
Flames curled around the captain's boots, coiling upward in slow spirals—patient, regal, controlled. Nothing like Leopold's wild, exuberant fire. This was the heat of sovereignty.
Lencar remained perfectly still.
From here, he saw everything:
The subtle widening of Rades' eyes.
The stiffening of Asta's shoulders.
Noelle's breath catching in her throat.
The undead armies faltering at their master's panic.
Good.
This was the moment he had waited for.
The moment he needed to observe, measure, and confirm.
Fuegoleon Vermillion.
The royal line's chosen flame.
Lencar leaned closer in the shadow, his eyes narrowing.
"Show me," he whispered silently.
"Show me what a magic knight captain really is capable of."
The battlefield answered.
Asta had seen strong people before.
But this? This felt like standing under a mountain about to fall.
Flames danced around Fuegoleon like they were alive—obedient pets circling their master.
Rades screeched, pointing a trembling finger.
"Y–You shouldn't even be here yet!! This wasn't the order! I'm not ready for YOU!"
Fuegoleon didn't spare him a glance.
Instead, he addressed Noelle.
"Silver girl. The shield you formed—impressive."
Noelle almost choked. "M–Me?!"
Asta grinned. "See?! I told you you're amazing!"
Noelle's face turned red, but she couldn't hide her pride.
Fuegoleon then turned to Asta.
"And you—boy with no mana. Your swings are unrefined… but your resolve is unmistakable."
Asta puffed up his chest. "Thank you, Captain Fuegoleon!"
Leopold vibrated with excitement. "Brother, brother! Did you see me?!"
"I did," Fuegoleon answered calmly.
"With improvement, your flames will reach their true potential."
Leopold nearly died of joy.
Rades, however, stomped his foot furiously.
"STOP IGNORING ME!!"
Fuegoleon finally looked at him.
Everything went silent.
The captain's voice cut through the battlefield like a blade.
"You. Necromancer. These undead… are nothing but desecrated corpses. You shame the kingdom with your atrocities."
Rades flinched.
Fuegoleon raised a hand.
The air heated.
Stone cracked underfoot.
The undead nearest to him burst into ash without even being touched.
"W–Wait—STOP!!" Rades screamed.
"I'm not done with my masterpiece yet!"
But Fuegoleon was already moving.
Fuegoleon appeared in front of Rades in a burst of flame.
Not teleported.
Not enhanced.
Just so fast it felt inevitable.
Rades recoiled, summoning dozens of undead between them.
"F–Frankenstein!! Defend me!"
The massive stitched monster swung its enormous arm.
Fuegoleon caught it.
With one hand.
Asta's jaw dropped to the floor.
Noelle gasped.
Leopold stared in complete hero-worship.
Fuegoleon tightened his grip, and flames surged from his palm, racing up the monster's arm.
"Burn."
The fire consumed Frankenstein entirely, leaving nothing—no body, no smoke, not even ash.
Rades shrieked and stumbled back. "Th–That took me months to make—!! How dare y—!"
Fuegoleon lifted a finger.
A small flame hovered there.
The tiniest ember Asta had ever seen.
But the heat…
Even from ten meters away, Asta felt it scorch his skin.
Fuegoleon flicked it.
FWIP.
The ember shot through three undead soldiers, detonating like miniature suns.
Rades felt his legs shake.
Fuegoleon approached him, eyes stern.
"You hold grudges against nobles. That is understandable."
"But taking it out on civilians…? Depraved."
Rades' rage spiked in panic.
"Shut UP!!! They deserve it!! They LAUGHED at me! They said I wasn't worthy of being a Magic Knight!"
Fuegoleon stopped.
"You are not."
Rades froze.
Then—Fuegoleon raised his hand.
A flame formed above his palm.
Not chaotic.
Not wild.
Perfectly spherical.
Contained.
Heavy with judgment.
A Verdict Flame.
"No more corpses will cry because of your selfishness."
"N–NO, WAIT—!!"
The sphere expanded.
"NO! NO NO NO—!!!"
Fuegoleon unleashed it.
The blast engulfed Rades entirely.
Asta and the others shielded their eyes.
A shockwave rolled through the street, scattering rubble, incinerating stray undead, and lighting the entire sky orange.
When the flames subsided…
Rades was on his knees, coughing, burned but alive—barely.
Fuegoleon had deliberately avoided killing him.
Asta lowered his sword. "Captain… you're amazing."
Leopold whispered, "He held back… he actually held back."
Noelle trembled with awe. "So this is… a true captain."
But someone else saw more.
From the shadows, Lencar narrowed his eyes.
"…His flames are too perfect. Controlled to the atom. His mana flow is impossibly smooth."
Lencar's pulse quickened.
Satisfied, he sank deeper into cover.
This was the moment he had calculated would matter most.
And fate did not disappoint.
Rades coughed, wheezing. "Y–You… you self–righteous noble bastard… I wasn't alone…"
Fuegoleon turned.
"Who else is involved?"
Rades laughed weakly. "Y–You'll see…"
Lencar's breath caught.
There—
A ripple in mana.
A texture he knew.
Spatial distortion.
Fuegoleon sensed it half a second later.
He raised his arm—
But it was too late.
The space behind him cracked open like shattered glass.
A swirling, violet portal tore itself into existence.
From inside, an unmarked masked mage reached out and grabbed Fuegoleon's arm.
Asta's eyes went wide. "CAPTAIN!! WATCH OUT!!"
Fuegoleon twisted, but the grip was absolute, reinforced by layered runes of spatial bind.
The masked mage's voice was calm.
Emotionless.
"Target secured."
Fuegoleon's flames erupted.
The stone beneath him melted.
Air roared.
The vortex shook.
But the spell was designed for him specifically.
Even his flames could not melt space fast enough.
Noelle screamed, "Someone—help him!!"
Asta sprinted toward them, slamming his anti-magic sword into the portal.
But the vortex rejected him violently.
BZZZT—!!
Asta was thrown back, skidding across the stone.
"AAGH—!"
Leopold's flames surged to stop the attacker.
The masked mage didn't even look.
A second spatial crack opened, swallowing Leopold's spell entirely.
Fuegoleon's expression finally shifted.
Not fear.
But annoyance.
"I see… you are not here for the capital."
The masked mage nodded slightly.
"We were sent for you."
Lencar's eyes sharpened.
This was the moment the timeline pivoted.
Fuegoleon burst into full power.
Flames roared like a dragon.
The ground split.
Heat waves distorted the world.
But the portal swallowed half his body.
Asta desperately swung again.
"LET HIM GO—!!"
The anti-magic blade sliced the air…
…and passed straight through the spatial fracture harmlessly.
Fuegoleon's final words echoed across the crumbling street.
"Protect the kingdom… in my stead."
Then—
SHUUUM—
The portal snapped shut.
The flames vanished.
Fuegoleon was gone.
The street was silent.
Noelle covered her mouth.
Leopold collapsed to his knees, trembling.
Asta gritted his teeth, fists shaking.
"Dammit… DAMMIT!!"
Hidden in the shadows, Lencar exhaled.
"…So this is the sequence that leads to the rise of the next flame."
His heartbeat slowed back to normal.
He stood.
This was the moment everything changed.
And he had seen it all.