Artificial Flame Spirit

I, Seyi Falt, was in the Elf Nation Anemosgive.

I had come to the King because I wanted to say a thing or two to the foolish man who ruled this country and called himself the King of the Forest.

And then, the one there was Sutherland—one of my master’s disciples.

“Huh. It’s Sutherland. You were alive?”

“Hiiiiiiiiii! S-senpaiiiii! Why!? Why is Seyi-senpai aliiiiive!?”

The ripped elf who had been lounging on the throne was trembling violently.

“How rude. Don’t talk about me like I’m a ghost.”

“If you’re not a ghost, then who the hell are you!?”

“I said I’m Seyi Falt herself.”

“But senpai… you were supposed to have died after getting caught up in the monster parade 500 years ago…!”

“I stayed alive in a suspended state. Up until just recently.”

“N-no… way…”

Sutherland looked utterly stunned.

I mean, I was surprised this guy was alive too.

Ah, but right—elves live longer than humans.

So it wasn’t strange that someone could still be alive even after 500 years.

“S-Sutherland-sama, what is the meaning of this!? Hurry and defeat that woman!”

For some reason, Abukuzenii—the workshop chief—was there and said that. (Even though I should have removed him physically.)

“Y-you idiot! Y-you… do you have any idea who this person is!?”

“W-who is she…?”

“Among us, the Apostles of Flamel, the strongest… and the most feared—The First Apostle! The King of All Phenomena, Seyi Falt!”

The Apostles of Flamel meant the disciples of my master, Nicholas Flamel.

Each apostle had an order… or rather, a ranking my master decided on his own.

The First Apostle meant me. And “King of All Phenomena” was also a nickname my master decided on his own.

“There’s no way you can beat The First Apostle! You’ll die!”

“I-I don’t understand what Sutherland-sama is saying at all… but is it really fine to let that woman run free like this!? You must be strong as well, yes!?”

“Even if I am, that woman is on a completely different level!”

What were they even arguing about…?

“I came because I have business with you, Sutherland. Looks like you’ve been taking things too far.”

With a treasured magic potion in hand, I walked up to the cocky Sutherland.

“W-wait, senpai! It’s a misunderstanding!”

“It’s true you staged a coup, set up evil guilds all over the country, and raked in money, right?”

“W-well, that part is true, but…”

“I can’t just overlook it. As a fellow Apostle of Flamel. Your behavior drags master’s name through the mud. As your senior disciple, I can’t ignore it.”

I didn’t especially like that worthless master of mine.

But I did respect him as an alchemist.

So I had to properly educate this idiot junior disciple who was lowering master’s credibility.

So that he would never trouble master again.

“D-damn youuu! If it’s come to this, I don’t care anymore! I’ll do it! I’ll do ittt!”

Sutherland curled his finger with a flick.

At that instant, I felt like someone was choking my neck from behind.

Even when I turned around, there was no one there.

“H-haha! That’s right, Sutherland-sama! You have that invincible power! That woman will go down in one shot!”

“Who are you saying will go down in one shot?”

“Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat!?”

I coughed a little, but the suffocating feeling from earlier was already gone.

“T-that’s impossible!? Sutherland-sama’s invincible power… didn’t work!?”

“What ‘invincible power.’ Something this cheap isn’t a power at all.”

“What do you mean!? You… did you solve the mystery of Sutherland-sama’s power that no one could figure out!?”

It wasn’t some big secret.

“The real cause of that suffocating feeling… is poison gas.”

“P-poison gas!?”

“Yeah. You gather carbon dioxide in the air and other harmful components with alchemy, then generate gas around the target. The suffocation makes it feel like someone is choking you from behind.”

It wasn’t a power, and it wasn’t magic.

It was just a trick using alchemy.

As an alchemist, my skill was higher.

A technique at this level could be resisted.

…But still… still…

“You used techniques master taught you for wrongdoing? Haha… don’t screw with me.”

I pinched test tubes between my fingers and crossed my arms in front of my chest.

“I’ll punish you in master’s place.”

“Geh! Th-that…! That potion is—!”

I threw every test tube.

They struck each other midair and produced steam overhead.

With a roaring surge of intense heat, that thing appeared.

A fire demon with a scorching body.

“S-s-s-s—Artificial Flame Spirit: Spirits Fireeeee!?”

It was one of alchemy’s hidden secrets.

It applied the technique of creating a human-like lifeform through alchemy… a homunculus.

To build a great spirit artificially by human hands.

What I made was an Artificial Flame Spirit modeled after the great fire spirit Ifrit—Spirits Fire.

Before the red giant that was tall enough to crane one’s neck at, Sutherland collapsed backward onto his rear.

“Aba… ababababa…”

Abukuzenii had completely lost the will to fight. Of course he had—staring straight at a spirit this dangerous would do that.

Its body temperature easily exceeded several thousand degrees.

Just standing there felt like my skin would burn, and even breathing made my chest tighten.

“Spirits Fire. Punch him.”

“N-nooooooo! I’m sorry, Seyi-senpai! Please, please forgive me! I won’t do it again!”

“Nope. Don’t they say an idiot won’t heal unless he dies?”

So I said.

“Well, for now… die once. It’s fine—I have a Revival Potion♡”

Spirits Fire raised its scorching demonic hand high, then swung it down with full force toward the idiot junior disciple.

“Nooooooooo! Help meeeeeeeeeeeee!”

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM…!