Chapter 483: Leena
The battle escalated in the jungle once Sein appeared, surpassing any prior conflict in intensity.
Although Sein had exhausted considerable mana in his travel over the past two weeks, his focus and mana reserves remained impressive, fueled by a newfound eagerness for combat.
This drive, emerging from his deepest consciousness, made Sein exceptionally fierce on the battlefield.
With Sein’s arrival, the three knights from the Ylli Knight Alliance faced significant disruption in their pursuit of the female black mage.
Under normal circumstances, any rational black magician would have seized the opportunity to escape. After all, this was the perfect time to flee with someone else diverting the enemy’s attention.
Black mages were never renowned for their virtuous character. Only a select few of the better ones among them managed to avoid becoming targets of major divine towers and knightly orders.
Contrary to expectations, the female black mage did not flee upon seeing Sein. Instead, a flicker of emotion flashed through her eyes.
Sein, now with his verdant flame body activated, looked dramatically different from his last appearance in Port Allen.
Nevertheless, the female black mage recognized him instantly.
No, she had already recognized Sein the moment he appeared.
Only those deeply interconnected could perceive the subtlest traces of each other, despite changes in appearance or demeanor.
The aura surrounding the tall female black mage inexplicably intensified, fueled by an unknown source of newfound strength.
Behind her, a vast expanse of umbra elemental particles materialized.
The elemental energy surrounding her mirrored Sein’s appearance in his verdant flame body form.
One was cloaked in the intense, scorching verdant flames, while the other was shrouded in oppressive dark energy.
Despite Sein’s intervention, the female black mage did not retreat. Instead, she conjured five umbra energy balls and hurled them at the three knights before her.
With Sein directly engaging the most formidable, black-armored knight, she dealt with the two lesser knights.
Once the target, she now, with Sein's assistance, turned the tide and began to gradually overpower her adversaries.
“What are you? A mage? Your constitution is absurd!” the black-armored knight exclaimed in astonishment.
With his verdant flame body activated, Sein’s constitution soared to an astonishing 400 points.
His other stats had also surged past 800 points, allowing him to wield strength comparable to that of a peak Rank One mage.
The scorching verdant flame elemental energy overwhelmed the alchemy armor of the black-armored knight facing Sein.
A layer of dark battle qi shield manifested around him.
Surprisingly, this knight wielded the rare umbra-elemental battle qi.
Yet, Sein’s verdant flames tore through the knight’s shield as effortlessly as light piercing the darkness, leaving new scars on his armor.
Taking a deep breath, the black-armored knight stared at Sein as if committing his face to memory before shouting to his comrades, "Let’s withdraw!"
Continuing the battle offered no advantage to the three knights.
The potential for death and injury was too high a price for either side, especially since their exploration of the Knight Continent was primarily for training.
Jeston, a knight of the Ylli Knight Alliance, was not prepared to jeopardize his life or his comrades’ at this early stage of the trial.
At Jeston’s command, the other two knights also retreated. Neither Sein nor the female black mage pursued them.
Jeston likely still had other trump cards up his sleeve to defend his life should the need arise.
Sein, driven by his convictions, would not hesitate to eliminate a few experts from the Ylli Knight Alliance.
However, the reality was that not everything was within his control, especially since the female black mage was not in good shape.
Her current burst of power was not sustainable for a long period.
As Jeston and his comrades disappeared into the distance, Sein, surrounded by the glow of his verdant flames, finally let out a sigh of relief.
That was the first time Sein had faced an expert from the Magus World of the same rank aside from black mages.
Battling such beings came with its unique set of constraints and challenges.
For the time being, Sein had aligned himself with the female black mage.
From a moral standpoint, it was not wrong to label Sein a black mage at this point.
Even so, Sein harbored no regrets.
The scorching verdant flames around him gradually died down. The large crystal on the tip of his Verdant Flame Heart Rod caught the light one last time before he stowed it away.
Turning to the female black mage, he found her gaze already on him.
The jungle around them bore the scars of the previous confrontation.
Yet, the flying elemental particles on the battlefield around them did nothing to disrupt the intensity of their mutual stare.
Compelled by an unknown force, Sein stepped forward, cautiously removing his mask, and ventured, “Leena?”
The moment he took off his mask and revealed his face, the tall, black-haired female mage in front of him lunged forward and embraced him.
Despite her differing height, appearance, and hair color from the Leena in Sein’s memory, he was certain that it was her!
The two, separated for nearly forty years, were finally back in each other’s arms.
Though Leena’s appearance had changed, the familiar rhythm of her heartbeat brought Sein back to his time at Mystralora City.
He remembered how he embraced Leena’s petite body on the bed in the dark room, feeling as if he had the entire world in his arms.
Since leaving the underground world, Sein had not been truly living.
Despite his constantly growing power and knowledge, he felt hollow, like a robot endlessly researching in his laboratory.
When bouts of depression and anxiety overwhelmed him, his only solace lay in fleeting encounters.
Selina, Eileen, and Marie held no significant place in his heart, not compared to Leena.
To Sein, Leena was a unique and unchanging presence in his life.
Now, with her back in his life, Sein was ready to open up completely.