Moving between the attacks launched by Snowfall, she closed in on her opponent. Passing between two blades of snow, the gauntlet's ability activated again. With her fist raised, she struck, magic gathering around it and intensifying. Turning intangible, Snowfall passed through Elaris, freezing the princess's entire body.
'Elven Mana Explosion.'
Using the royal family's unique ability, a wave of mana shattered the ice into pieces. That unique skill granted her control over the elven mana within her body.
Elven mana was purer than what humans used, one of the reasons everyone in that dimension was born with stronger and more powerful elemental magic. But the mana she controlled with her unique ability was like a second affinity for the royal family—a pure state of mana.
"Magic Amplification."
That also meant she could use this unique ability to enhance her magic, transforming it into a stronger affinity. The ice claw took on a bluish-white hue—so intensely white that it appeared blue from certain angles.
"Pure Ice Magic – Ice Beasts."
Running toward her opponent, she leapt into the air as three animals made of ice rose from the snowy ground—a bear, a fox, and a leopard. The three attacked from different directions.
The first strike came from the bear, which tried to tear Snowfall in half with its claws. Turning intangible, she let the paw pass through her, freezing the entire body of the ice bear—even though it was already made of ice. It was strange in a way.
The other two ice beasts did not approach her. Instead, they circled continuously, waiting for the five seconds to end. She tried to use her intangibility to hunt Elaris, but the princess had vanished. Snowfall moved upward, flying to gain distance and a better vantage point.
"Clever, but not enough."
The air above her seemed to shatter like crystal. From within the frozen fragments, Elaris appeared with her palms aimed at Snowfall's back.
"Ice Thrust."
From her palms, a shining pillar of ice struck Snowfall, sending her downward. The two remaining beasts immediately bit into her arms. Light blue blood dripped from them as the fox and leopard tore at her. Taking advantage of her enemy being restrained, Elaris descended with a powerful downward kick that split the air.
The kick caused a tremor in the area, but when the scattered snow settled, countless snow spikes surrounded the exact spot where Snowfall had been.
The two ice beasts had been shredded by those spikes, and Elaris's leg had been pierced by more than one of them—whether attack or defense, she did not know. In one moment she had struck her opponent's back, and in the next she was the one wounded.
'Don't tell me she literally turned into ice?'
It made sense. Someone at circle six could do that if they had an abnormal elemental affinity, a unique ability, or awakened magical ability. Considering her opponent had already shown a unique ability and her affinity was strong—but not enough—it could only be…
'A magical ability awakened upon reaching circle six.'
"Yes, Snowfall, finish her!"
The shouting behind her was irritating, but now was not the time to focus on that. The spikes grew further, piercing deeper into her leg and thrusting toward her. Forcing herself backward faster than the incoming attack, Elaris pulled her leg free and formed ice wings from her back to block the remaining strikes.
Snow moved beneath her feet, lifting her. Suspended in the air, she was launched toward another cluster of growing spikes. Creating a platform midair, she stepped with her good leg and leapt upward again. Her wings spread, allowing her to fly and create distance.
'I can feel even my bones freezing… it hurts.'
Blood streamed from her leg, so she used her magic to encase it in ice, stopping the bleeding.
'She has something very special… I suppose it's time to find out what that necklace he gave me does.'
Her opponent had now fully merged with the snow itself, capable of becoming ice, and to make matters worse, snow began falling from above—granting her even greater advantage.
'What is this item?'
'You could say it's like one I made for myself, only better.'
Remembering his words, she took the necklace as, below her, a mountain of snow shaped like a spear prepared to launch upward. Apparently, Enrico had made it for her some time ago. She just didn't know exactly when—only had a vague idea. The giant spear suddenly shot upward.
'It's quite pretty.'
She placed it around her neck with a small smile, even as the spear was only centimeters from piercing her stomach. Before it could connect, Skadi—who had been watching with amusement—suddenly grew serious.
"I think these youngsters are more frightening than I thought."
An explosion of mana shattered the spear into countless fragments. Snowfall, who had been merged with the surrounding snow—especially the mass gathering above Elaris—was forced back into her physical form. Not because her ability had been magically canceled. She knew exactly what had happened. It was something difficult to forget.
Someone with a stronger affinity than hers had appeared and taken control of the entire area, preventing her from activating her ability. Slightly frightened, she saw a white figure beginning to emerge. The surrounding snow stopped moving chaotically.
"This is better than I expected."
The blue snowflake at her neck expanded slightly, and the surrounding mana shifted rhythm. There was no explosion, only a steady pressure spreading across the field. Her hair gained a lighter tone, almost silver at the tips. Her skin turned paler, like cold porcelain. Small crystalline marks appeared along her arms and neck, resembling fine transparent ice scales.
The wings that had once been formed through technique now emerged naturally—larger and firmer, made of compact, well-defined ice. The air around her stabilized simply by her presence.
"Who could have made such a powerful artifact?"
Skadi, watching the fight, was certain there was no longer any way for her creation to win. Somehow, Elaris had reached the level of mana control of a circle seven mage while still being circle six.