Strongest Kingdom: My Op Kingdom Got Transported Along With Me

Chapter 287: Chapter 286: Spirit Master

The shockwave blasts Gorvak and Selira back, rubble vaporizing where they had stood.

The street is a furnace, every stone glowing red, every breath heavy with ash. Gorvak digs his boots into the molten ground, his axe braced against the wave of fire. Selira spins through the backlash, her flames snapping outward like wings before she steadies herself on a half-melted wall.

Both of them are breathing heavier than before. The fire spirit stands tall at the center of the inferno, its body a writhing colossus of molten flame, molten blood dripping into rivers of magma beneath it.

Selira spits blood from the corner of her lips, her eyes narrowing.

”...We might need to go all out with this one.”

Gorvak growls, planting the head of his axe into the ground to steady his trembling arms. His voice gruff but tinged with grudging respect.

”So it’s really true... a spirit beast is stronger in the same tier.”

The spirit’s roar shakes the very foundations of Ember City, its golden eyes glaring at them like suns. It raises both of its molten fists, each one larger than Gorvak himself, and slams them down.

The ground detonates. Lava geysers erupt, splattering across the street, turning stone into rivers of glowing orange.

Selira reacts first. She thrusts her palms forward, violet fire surging into a storm, meeting the spirit’s flames. Her unnatural blaze eats through part of the firestorm, but the pressure drives her to one knee.

”Damn it—it’s pressing even me down...”

Gorvak charges through the blaze, his skin blistering, his armor glowing red. He swings his axe with both hands, the strike carrying the weight of mountains. It collides with the spirit’s arm—

CLAAANG!

A shockwave bursts outward, vaporizing rubble. Gorvak’s teeth grit, his axe biting into molten flame as if it were metal, sparks flying. The spirit reels, but only for a moment. Its other arm lashes out, a blazing backhand that smashes Gorvak across the street and into a collapsing tower.

BOOOOM!

Gorvak crashes through two walls before he stops, coughing blood, but his laughter follows.

”Ghahaha...! Now that’s a fight!”

Selira snarls, flames coiling tighter around her body. Her aura flares bright, painting the burning district in unnatural colors.

”Enough holding back.”

Selira’s flames spiral upward, licking at the night sky until the heavens themselves are dyed red. Her aura pulses in waves, every heartbeat an eruption of fire that devours the scarlet blaze around her. The molten air bends to her will, the cobblestones beneath her feet cracking and splitting as if the city itself recoils from her power.

Her voice is sharp, almost a hiss as she glares at the spirit.

”Gorvak, no more games. We bring this thing down—together.”

Alix’s carriage rocks gently as the tremors from the eastern quarter reach even here. Through the slitted windows, the sky is lit red as though a second sun has been born, molten plumes clawing into the heavens. The screams of men, the roars of warriors, and the rumble of collapsing walls all bleed together into a single symphony of war.

Alix leans forward, crimson eyes narrowing. The corners of his lips curve faintly as he sees the towering figure of flame rise above the ruins.

”Wait...” Alix is a little shocked. ”Is that an elemental spirit beast.”

For a brief moment, silence folds around him. His gaze hardens, but his thoughts drift inward.

Spirit beasts exist here...

He remembers, in the game, apart from warriors and mages class, there were spirit masters. And he remembers her: the girl who walked the adventurer’s path, and had chosen the Spirit Master class. Unlike the others, she had stayed by his side longer than most. For someone who was always alone, Alix had, for once, found a friend.

His jaw tightens. His eyes glimmer faintly.

”So... this world has them too.”

Then, his presence sharpens, dragging the atmosphere in the carriage taut like a drawn bowstring. He speaks, his tone absolute.

”Mhazul.”

Mhazul bows his head instantly.

”Yes, your Majesty.”

Alix’s eyes never leave the towering inferno beast clawing at Gorvak and Selira.

”We’re going to capture that spirit beast.”

”As you command, my King.”

The carriage doors swing open with a metallic groan, heat pouring in like the breath of a furnace. Alix steps out first, his crimson gaze fixed on the raging titan of flame. His aura presses outward in a low hum, invisible but suffocating, bending the night air around him.

Behind him, Mhazul follows. The massive monster rolls his shoulders, and with a rattling clank, two enormous war axes unfurl at his sides. Black iron chains link them to the bracers fused into his forearms, the links rattling with every step. He tightens his fists, the weapons answering like hungry beasts straining to be unleashed.

The ground trembles again as the fire spirit slams both fists down at Gorvak and Selira. The two rulers barely deflect the blow, their bodies thrown backward into molten rubble, coughing blood.

Selira’s eyes widen when she sees Alix.

”What are you doing here, your majesty?”

Alix didn’t answer her.

Alix walking calmly toward the battlefield, black coat untouched by ash, his eyes gleaming like twin suns in the inferno. The suffocating presence that follows him dwarfs even the fire spirit’s overwhelming aura.

The spirit roars, sensing a greater threat approaching. Flames burst skyward, the surrounding streets melting into a lake of lava. Its golden eyes lock on Alix, and with both arms it hurls a tidal wave of flame straight at him.

FWOOOOOSH!

The city quakes as the inferno rushes forward—

—but Mhazul steps in first.

”Back down!” His voice booms like thunder.

He spins, the twin war axes whirling on their chains. The weapons carve circles of blacksteel arcs, shredding through the tidal wave. Flames are split apart, torn into spirals of embers. Mhazul slams both axes into the ground with a roar, the chains rattling like thunderclaps. The flames scatter, diverted upward in a fiery geyser that explodes harmlessly into the sky.

The sky is still raining sparks when Alix finally moves.

He raises one hand, palm open, and the raging titan halts its next swing. The fire spirit thrashes, its molten fists trembling in the air as though an invisible wall clamps down on its very essence. The street quakes beneath its weight, but the beast cannot move forward.

Selira’s breath catches. Gorvak, bloodied but grinning, mutters through broken teeth,

”...He stopped it... with just his hand?”

other hand a crystal emerge—dark at first, but as soon as it touches the open air, its surface gleams with hungry veins of light, pulsing in rhythm like a living heart.

The fire spirit lets out a deafening roar, sensing danger. It writhes harder, its molten body twisting, but Alix’s raised hand doesn’t even tremble. His voice cuts through the inferno, calm yet absolute.

”Struggle all you like. It won’t matter.”

The crystal flares.

A vortex of light erupts from its core, and the world tilts. The flames wrapping the spirit peel away, shredded into streams of energy that whip toward the crystal. Its molten skin cracks, fragments of its essence ripped free like sparks into a storm. The suction is relentless, the pull absolute—like the will of the world itself has turned against the beast.

The spirit lets out a final roar, one that shakes Ember City to its foundations. It lashes out with both arms, striking the ground, but the blows land weak, almost desperate. Its body unravels, flame by flame, piece by piece, dragged screaming into the crystal.

In mere breaths, the towering colossus is no more. The battlefield, once molten and raging, is left barren—just blackened stone and rivers of cooling magma. The crystal in Alix’s hand glows brilliantly, the image of a burning core flickering deep inside, as though the spirit has been caged within.

Alix closes his fingers around it, the light dimming to a steady pulse.

Silence follows—staggering silence.

Alix doesn’t spare them a glance. Without a word, he turns on his heel, coat swaying lightly against the scorched wind. The crystal vanishes into his grasp as if it belongs there, and his steady footsteps echo against the broken street. His presence lingers like a weight even after he moves past, the silence swallowing his absence.

Mhazul lingers, his shadow falling long over the battered forms of Gorvak and Selira. His chains rattle faintly as he lifts one axe and rests it across his shoulder. His eyes are cold, his voice carrying the sharpness of command.

”You two. Stop wasting time. Help your soldiers and finish taking this city. Don’t make his Majesty wait.”