"What do you mean by that?"
"That the boy is frighteningly intelligent."
"What did he find?"
The little girl placed a finger on her chin, tapping it a few times as if deciding whether she would reveal it or not. After a few seconds, she smiled playfully.
"If he doesn't try to keep it to himself in a stupid way, then you'll find out."
"If you're going to say that, you should at least reveal it."
Elaris looked slightly disappointed. She didn't like when people said something and refused to reveal the rest. It only made her curiosity grow. At least the girl had said Enrico might reveal it to her later.
The little girl hopped down from the stone, giving no sign that she intended to answer any more questions Elaris might ask.
"You came here for the blessing, right?"
"Yes, Lady Skadi."
"Oh, it's been years since someone called me by my name."
The little girl turned toward her curiously. Snapping her fingers, she seemed to remember something that had happened long ago.
"Of course, you're that elf's daughter. He was the only one I revealed my true name to after he protected the blessing."
"Yes, my father talked a lot about you when I was younger. He said he met you when he was young and that you were incredibly strong. Could you tell me more about that past? He didn't tell me everything—"
"Calm down, girl. I'll talk if you manage to surprise me."
Elaris stepped into a clean battlefield. At the center, a white cocoon began to crack the moment she set foot on the field.
"This is your opponent. She doesn't speak, so you can call her Snowfall."
As it finished hatching, a pale white hand emerged from the cocoon. Gradually, a woman—more like a ghost—stepped out. The first thing she observed was the little girl, sensing something familiar. That was because they only knew Skadi's released form. In the state she was in now, none of them could sense their lord's magic.
"She doesn't seem to recognize you."
"It's better this way. I want to see up close how you'll handle this fight. If I showed my true form here, Snowfall wouldn't be able to focus."
Skadi pointed toward the field, signaling her to enter. Elaris stepped forward and immediately felt a colder chill than before.
'I'm feeling cold even with resistance?'
She had ice magic and therefore a certain resistance. Feeling cold regardless meant Snowfall's affinity was stronger than hers. According to her father, this creature possessed a snow affinity. Similar to ice, yet different at the same time.
"I hope we have a good fight, Lady Snowfall."
Snowfall tilted her head curiously but immediately summoned heavy snowfall that covered the entire area. Elaris raised her hands, her Lúmen'Thyr gauntlets glinting, and assumed a very familiar stance.
'Isn't that that boy's stance?'
Having seen it during the previous fight, Skadi raised an eyebrow. It seemed the girl fought like Enrico, though he hadn't taught her. It looked more like she had incorporated his style into her own repertoire.
'Possibly she merged the two into one… I wonder how that boy will react when he finds out someone copied his battle stance?'
As Skadi pondered, the fight between Elaris and Snowfall began. A kick to the ground scattered the snow, revealing her opponent right behind her. Turning her head sharply, Elaris drove her fist forward, activating the Lúmen'Thyr gauntlet's ability.
[Lúmen'Thyr Gauntlet – Rare Rank: Concentrated magical impact. When used with the user's affinity, it can cause different effects upon striking a target.]
The gauntlet struck Snowfall in the chest, and immediately Snowfall felt her body's magic freeze for a brief moment, interrupting her mana flow. Several more punches followed in rapid succession, striking her face.
Without mana, she couldn't do much and had to retreat using her unique ability.
[Snow Phantom: The user becomes intangible for five seconds and can freeze magic or physical strikes that attempt to hit her at the same circle level.]
Elaris' gauntlets froze, but by channeling her own ice magic, she turned the frost into water. Placing her hands on the ground, she summoned multiple spinning ice spikes around her. The attack passed through Snowfall, but Elaris already expected that. She only wanted to measure how long the unique ability lasted.
'Five seconds.'
As Snowfall distanced herself before being pierced again, Elaris immediately understood the timing. She fused her claw magic with the Lúmen'Thyr gauntlets, taking on a more bestial appearance. The claws enhanced her attack power and cutting damage—perfect for harming her opponent.
Snowfall advanced, her spectral body gliding over the snow without leaving marks, her feet barely touching the ground. The temperature dropped even further as she raised her arm and fired a compressed blade of snow horizontally.
Elaris leaned back by mere centimeters, the white blade slicing the air in front of her face. Before regaining full posture, she pivoted on her heel and launched an upward strike with her clawed gauntlets.
"Lúmen'Thyr Claws."
The blow pierced Snowfall's shoulder—or at least it should have. Her form fragmented into flurries for a moment, reappearing two steps behind. The ground beneath Elaris instantly froze, trapping her boots in thick ice. Without hesitation, she channeled mana through her gauntlets and discharged a concentrated impact downward. The ice shattered in a circular radius, shards scattering across the white arena.
Raising her hands, Snowfall summoned compressed columns of snow that erupted from the ground in sequence, forming an instant labyrinth.
"Lúmen'Thyr Ice Punch."
The walls weren't like ordinary ice—they were dense, absorbing part of the impact even as Elaris smashed through them with reinforced punches.
"Hehe, it's much more fun watching up close."
Skadi seemed entertained. Even if this level was far beneath her, it was still enjoyable to watch battles without constantly worrying about guarding the blessing.
"I'm rooting for you, Snowfall."
Elaris' ears twitched slightly in dissatisfaction, while Snowfall looked confused at the little girl cheering for her—and honestly, that only made her want to win the fight even more.