As the miasma on Astrid's body surged and billowed, Rozen naturally understood why she could act so brazenly.
Because this witch possessed an immortal body.
Yes.
An immortal body.
Why was it that even someone as old as Edward Rutherford would be considered a junior before her, yet Astrid remained so young?
Why was it that, even after Rozen had crushed her hand, Irori had slashed her back, and Yaya had kicked her face in, Astrid could still bounce around in high spirits as though completely unharmed?
The reason was simple—Astrid had already transformed herself into miasma.
Or rather, she had become a condensed entity of miasma.
Miasma, as previously explained, is the power of death, a twisted form of spiritual energy known as reiki, the power of life.
In other words, miasma originates from reiki.
And reiki represents the life force of all things.
Reiki and miasma are two sides of the same coin—one represents light, the other shadow; one symbolizes life, the other death—but they can transform into each other.
Yin and yang in harmony, life and death interwoven—that is the essence of Onmyojutsu.
By harnessing this property, Astrid could convert people's reiki into miasma—including her own.
As a result, she became a miasma-based entity, capable of converting living beings into miasma to replenish herself. This not only allowed her to remain forever youthful but also granted her immortality. As long as miasma existed in the world, she would never die.
That was the truly terrifying aspect of the Golden Rose—not only wicked and cruel, but eternal, continuing to plague the world.
Given this, Astrid naturally scoffed at Rozen's threats.
Perhaps she had indeed stumbled this time.
But she was immortal. Eternal. Eventually, she would return.
When that time came, Astrid would not only take revenge on Rozen, but also drag his descendants, family, and friends into hell and torment them mercilessly—only then would her anger be quelled.
Thus, even at this low point, Astrid remained the proud great witch.
Rozen might be powerful, but in her eyes, he could never truly defeat her.
Astrid had completely forgotten that Rozen had already said—
Miasma?
To him, that sort of thing was utterly useless.
"Swoosh!"
In the next instant, a spear appeared in Rozen's hand.
It was a long spear gleaming in pure white, designed with a cutting-edge aesthetic. Its mechanical lines were sleek, and both its tip and shaft were of a variable structure—sharp and light like the wings of a machine.
"Splurt!"
With a ripping sound, Rozen, gripping the white spear, didn't hesitate in the slightest. With a flick of his hand, the spear tore through the air and pierced Astrid's abdomen, viciously impaling her.
"Hum!"
Almost simultaneously, the spearhead glowed with a complex magical array. The interlocking and rotating glyphs radiated divine energy.
"Ssshh...!"
Under the influence of this divine energy, the surging miasma from Astrid's body melted away like snow, vanishing into thin air.
"Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh...!"
Astrid let out a scream of agony.
A scream more anguished than any she had ever made before—so intense that it made everyone present tremble.
But no one trembled more than Astrid herself.
Because, to her horror, she discovered that not only had her miasma disappeared, but her body could no longer transform into miasma, and her internal magic had evaporated entirely, leaving behind only a wounded mortal body, grievously injured and vulnerable.
"No! No!"
Astrid screamed in terror.
Rozen, holding the white spear, looked at the howling Astrid with a half-smile.
"This spear realizes a magical formula called the Divine Vibration Wave Drive Technique, which is inscribed directly onto the shaft, giving birth to this divine weapon—its name is — Tenyuryo."
Rozen cast a meaningful glance at Astrid and said:
"It possesses a unique power, capable of cutting through all barriers and erasing all magic. No matter how strong your Miasma Magic is, in front of this spear, it's completely nullified—and even erased."
Now, Astrid's Miasma Magic had been entirely neutralized, and her immortal body had reverted to mortal flesh.
Naturally, any further injuries could no longer be healed with miasma—she could no longer maintain her undying body.
"This is a holy spear capable of killing demons, capable of slaying beings that are ageless and immortal." Rozen spoke playfully: "So, oh illustrious Golden Rose, do you still think I can't bring you down?"
With those words, Rozen pulled out Tenyuryo, sending blood splattering, and without pause, thrust again—piercing through Astrid's heart and out through her back.
Astrid screamed once more.
This time, however, her scream carried overwhelming terror.
Feeling the life draining from her body, Astrid was finally afraid.
"Wait! Don't kill me!"
Astrid cried out, her fear uncontrollable.
"I'll give you Panta Rhei! I'll even hand over the Seth family's Spirit Magic and Miasma Magic heritage! Just don't kill me!"
Faced with the real threat of death, Astrid's pride utterly crumbled.
This was the true face of the witch.
And the so-called Panta Rhei was the time manipulation magic Astrid had mastered. Just as Rozen had speculated, it was a cosmic truth-level secret magic capable of freely manipulating time—if mastered fully, it could allow one to travel into the past or future.
Of course, modern magus had yet to reach such a level—just like Gram and Infinite Chain Reaction, no one had yet achieved the true theoretical pinnacle. Even the Order of the Rose could only use rituals to perform partial effects of Panta Rhei, and Bahamut only carried a hyper-simplified version of it.
Hundreds of years later, a great magus managed to partially decode the secrets of Panta Rhei, which is how the grimoire Lemegeton was sent from the future to the current era.
The reason Astrid was able to obtain Lemegeton was largely because she possessed knowledge of Panta Rhei.
Now, to save her life, she was prepared to hand it over, along with the family's ancient Spirit Magic and Miasma Magic.
However...
"I gave you the chance to buy your life earlier, and you didn't value it. Now you want to bargain again—don't you think it's too late?"
Rozen chuckled.
That smile terrified Astrid.
Just as Rozen was about to pull the spear again, Astrid shouted desperately—
"I can also tell you the truth behind the massacre of the Akabane clan!"
At those words, the smile on Rozen's face froze—and his expression finally changed.