World in the Painting: Ishruna · Madness Flame

Yet Flame Transmission could not truly sustain the Primal Fire. The souls that formed the foundation of the world were continuously burned away. Compared to Eden, the vibrant land that had existed when the world of Ishruna was first created hundreds of thousands of years ago, most of Ishruna was now covered in wind and snow.

The world was steadily dying. The area surrounding the Church was the last region where life remained active. Once this place, too, was swallowed by wind and snow, all of Ishruna would completely fall into silent extinction and return to chaos.

The last Holy King discovered this problem, but there was ultimately nothing he could do. Not only he, but every Flame Transmitter before him had discovered it as well. Yet without exception, they had all chosen Flame Transmission, prolonging the world's existence.

They believed that only by keeping the world alive could there be hope.

However, the final Flame Transmitter still disappointed everyone. He gave up on continuing the Flame Transmission and allowed the Primal Fire to go out.

Of course, he did not abandon Flame Transmission because the world was already on the verge of collapse and even transmitting the flame would only prolong it by a few hundred years. Rather, he had uncovered an even more fatal secret, one that forced him to abandon his duty as Flame Transmitter.

By this point, the sorrow in Princess Akasha's eyes was nearly overflowing, enough to break one's heart.

"He discovered that the Primal Fire had already been contaminated by the consciousness of the first Holy King. That consciousness, which wished to preserve the world, had been absorbed by the Primal Fire. And through the repeated burning of kindling, it had drawn in increasingly complex emotions."

"The Primal Fire was no longer the