Leah and Zero explained what had happened earlier together.
Since there were no important figures on the scene, the Grand Magician didn’t dare make decisions on his own and could only stick to the original plan.
They kept freezing and freezing, consuming the opponent’s magic.
Finally, ten minutes ago, the target’s magic was about to run out.
“This should do it. Though it took some time and effort, as long as it works, it’s a good method.”
The Grand Magician of the Magic Court said this, stepping forward to signal the others to stop, no longer continuing the freezing.
Then they saw the ice layer instantly melt, and the two out-of-control magicians thawed from their frozen state reignited.
“Impossible, they clearly have no magic left, how can they…?”
The burning hair answered that question.
When there was no magic left in the body, the flames found new fuel—namely, the body itself.
The surrounding Grand Magicians were stunned by this bizarre scene, unable to react, but fortunately, Leah knew what she had to do.
She really couldn’t hold it in anymore.
As the beloved Saintess, how could she just watch someone die in front of her?
Besides, having someone burned to death by a flame representing light—doesn’t that tarnish the name of our light?
“Goddess of Light above, please grant us the Holy Light of healing….”
This was what Ella saw when she woke up.
To be fair, this blessing truly cured all ailments, quickly extinguishing the flames and healing the burns.
The only problem was that the hair was already gone.
After the flames on their bodies were suppressed, the two out-of-control Grand Magicians made a final struggle, using the bit of magic they had just regained to create small sparks, which soon extinguished completely, leaving them collapsed and unconscious on the ground.
“It’s finally quiet. Thank you, Your Highness the Saintess.”
“No problem, just a small duty.”
It seemed like a harmonious and joyful ending.
In reality, Celes didn’t understand much about magic and such, so while everyone was busy discussing and moving about, her mind wandered elsewhere, her attention entirely on her companions.
She noticed that when Ella appeared, her gaze moved from Miss Leah, to Zero, and finally to herself.
Was that guilt in her eyes?
But why did the degree of guilt decrease in turn?
And Miss Leah, seeing Ella arrive, her eyes instantly lit up, happier than after saving two lives, but then she quickly pretended to be serious, as if hiding something.
Celes felt she shouldn’t entertain such divisive thoughts, but she couldn’t help it.
Her Master’s words kept echoing in her mind these days.
Could her companions have any feelings for Ella behind her back, to some extent?
“Celes, what did you just say?”
Zero asked her from the side.
“About behind your back?”
“N-Nothing.”
The girl shook her head, trying hard to suppress her strange thoughts.
The emergency room was dismissed, the two out-of-control magicians were taken away, and the girls of the Hero Squad headed to the dining hall for a small celebration, gathering again after several days apart.
“That’s basically it. Studying magic went awry, they lost control, running and burning all the way.”
At the dining table, Vina recounted her days on the mission with Ella.
“We followed the Compass for a while, found the route was straight, locked onto a predicted location, went ahead to ambush, and then, as you saw, brought them back.”
At this moment, Celes suddenly asked,
“After you got there ahead of time, did you all stay together that night?”
Leah, who was eating nearby, put down her knife and fork, touched her cheek, and puffed up her little bun face—speaking was impossible.
She had really thought she was the one who said that just now.
“Yeah.”
Vina tilted her head.
“Why not?”
Of course you’d stay together on a mission.
With limited conditions outside, it’s not like you can split rooms.
What’s wrong with sleeping normally?
Though they didn’t actually sleep normally the night before, that was Little Ella’s fault—a special case.
You can’t blame normal intentions for an accident.
That’s a classic slippery slope fallacy.
Her confident answer left Celes stunned.
If she could say it so firmly, it must really be fine.
Ella kept her head down, silently eating, not daring to say a word.
“What about those two?”
Zero changed the subject.
“Will they get better after waking up, or will they stay crazy?”
Vina shook her head.
“I don’t know.”
She didn’t know, and neither did the Grand Sage.
After finally getting a good night’s sleep, she woke up to a flood of news.
The good news was the original plan went smoothly, successfully draining the two out-of-control magicians’ magic.
Even better, despite the accident, the Saintess arrived and saved the day.
The rest was all bad news.
After moving the two to the courtyard outside the Magic Court, the Grand Sage had someone wake them up. Additionally—
“Go call Vina and her companions over.”
A few minutes later, all five girls of the Hero Squad were present.
“Old man, what’s the situation?”
Vina walked forward to check.
“Are they awake?”
As she spoke, the two in the center of the courtyard slowly regained consciousness.
The surrounding magicians became instantly alert, several already chanting freezing spells.
But this time, after waking, they didn’t ignite. Instead, they stared blankly at those around them.
“Grand Sage, Miss Vina, and…what happened?”
The voice was hoarse, like it had been smoked.
“That’s what we should be asking you.”
Vina tugged at her mouth.
“What did you do?”
After learning what had happened over the past days, the two who woke up—Gus and Guya—were stunned, unable to believe it.
“We did all that?”
“You didn’t know?”
Vina retorted.
Gus looked at Guya, Guya looked at Gus, and then they both shook their heads.
Standing at the edge, Ella softly asked,
“Have you been unconscious these past few days?”
“I…can’t remember. I don’t know what I was doing…”
Gus slumped, dispirited.
“Now I want to know—how did you end up like that?”
Vina asked directly.
“That night, what magic were you researching?”
“Researching… magic… right.”
Guya pushed Gus, who came to his senses and struggled to sit up.
“That night we were indeed researching a magic spell. Mainly, with winter coming, it was getting cold, but not unbearably so… cough, any water?”
His throat was dry from all the smoke.
After drinking two cups, Gus finally looked a bit better.
“Thanks, I’ll continue.”
“That night, before sleeping, I cast a continuous spell to heat the room. But after a while, I woke up from the heat. After canceling the spell, I tried to sleep again but felt a bit cold.”