The first thing I felt when I opened my eyes was.
The sensation of being held by someone.
Swish-swish.
A careful touch was felt.
It was the feeling of slowly stroking my back.
I slowly lifted my head to assess the situation.
“…Huh?”
Perhaps because I stirred, the hand stroking my back stopped, and I met eyes with the person holding me.
It was the Demon Sword Empress.
She widened her eyes as she looked at me.
“…You’re… awake?”
“…”
The Demon Sword Empress, with an expression that looked utterly exhausted.
Seeing her, I was at a loss for words.
“Why…?”
Why is she like this? As I looked around with a puzzled expression.
“…!”
I had to be shocked as soon as I saw it. The situation was far from ordinary.
All around, unknown black shapes were piled up.
Their traces were gradually fading, but the appearance was extremely unsettling.
Moreover.
‘It’s burned?’
Traces of flames also remained in the surroundings.
I could tell as soon as I saw it.
That those were flames I had emitted.
Whoosh.
The flames that hadn’t fully extinguished and were still warming the ground were brilliant.
Moreover, they were blue and flickering blue.
‘Blue flames?’
Originally, the flames I emitted should have been tinged with crimson.
Or black flames mixed with demonic qi, that would be normal.
Seeing blue flames burning brilliantly meant it was the influence of blood qi.
Why were such flames remaining on this land?
Feeling a strange aura, I applied strength to my fingertips.
Whoosh-!
Flames blossomed.
Seeing that, I frowned.
They were blue flames.
“What the.”
I clearly hadn’t drawn up blood qi.
Since demonic qi was also quietly dormant, normally, flames mixed with crimson should have burst forth.
‘…This.’
The flames blooming at my fingertips, no matter how I looked at them, were exactly…