"Beautiful."
Ide stared at the magic circle in Ur's hand, his expression filled with the kind of awe usually reserved for fine art.
Compared to the exquisite, frosty-blue circle Ur held, the five-pointed star formation used by the Five Elders seemed crude and simplistic.
"Cough."
Ur wasn't sure if he was praising her magic or flattering her, but a faint blush dusted her cheeks regardless. She waved her hand, dismissing the magic circle.
"If you want to learn magic, you need a healthy body first!" she said softly. "Once your injuries are fully healed, I can teach you. It won't be too late then."
Ur didn't want to rush him. Magic was something that required patience; haste makes waste. It had to be improved step by step.
"I understand," Ide nodded. "I'll rest up properly."
She was right. He wasn't in great shape. His current condition really wasn't suited for learning something as high-level as magic.
"Good."
Ur breathed a sigh of relief.
She was glad Ide wasn't one of those bitter, tragic types hell-bent on learning magic just for revenge.
Living in the Kingdom of Iceberg, Ur had seen too many people like that. She had a soft spot for them and always tried to help, but magic required talent. Not everyone was cut out for it.
She had seen the despair on too many faces when their dreams shattered. She didn't want to see that look on Ide's face.
Okay, fine. Mostly it was because he was handsome.
"Ur! Bad news!"
Just then, the door to the wooden cottage burst open. A pretty girl with short blonde hair and fair skin rushed in, sounding frantic. "Bandits are attacking the town! The mayor needs your help, now!"
"Bandits?"
Ur frowned. "Lawless scum."
"Got it," she said, already moving. "Susan, stay here and watch Ide. I'll be back soon."
Before she even finished the sentence, she was out the door and sprinting toward the town.
---
"So, your name is Ide, right?"
The blonde girl, Susan, walked slowly over to the small bed where Ide lay. She smiled down at him. "Let me take care of you for now."
"Don't worry about Ur. Those bandits don't stand a chance against her," she added confidently. "She might be young, but she's the strongest wizard in the entire Kingdom of Iceberg."
To Susan—and everyone else in town—sending Ur to deal with bandits was like sending a sledgehammer to crack a nut. The problem was as good as solved.
"Bandits, huh?"
Ide frowned slightly. His gaze drifted to his beloved sword resting by his waist.
Maybe it's time to stretch my legs, he thought. Call it rehab.
---
In Town.
"Gyahahaha!"
"Listen up! Hand over all your food, money, and women! Right now!"
"Or I'll level this town and slaughter every last one of you!"
Perched atop a massive magical beast the size of a two-story building, Barclay the "Vile Bandit"—notorious throughout the kingdom—laughed maniacally. Hundreds of his subordinates surrounded him.
Having already ransacked several other towns, Barclay looked at this one like a wolf looking at a lamb.
"Leave now while you still can," the town mayor said coldly. He was an old man over seventy with a white beard, but he stood his ground before Barclay and the towering beast without flinching. "Or Ur won't let you get away with this!"
"Ur?"
Barclay looked genuinely surprised. "You mean Ur Milkovich? The famous Ice Wizard?"
"Exactly," the mayor said, relieved. "Since you know how powerful she is, get the hell out of my town!"
It seemed Ur's reputation carried weight.
"Bwahahaha!"
Barclay didn't let the mayor finish. He burst into laughter, his eyes gleaming with mockery. "Old man, what makes you think we came here without a plan to deal with her?"
"W-what?!"
The mayor froze, a sinking feeling in his gut.
"Interesting."
A voice, sharp with killing intent, cut through the air from above Barclay. "I'd like to see exactly how you plan to 'deal' with me."
A chill ran down Barclay's spine, freezing him from head to toe.
"You are..."
He looked up. Standing on a nearby rooftop was a young woman with short hair and a beautiful face, looking down at him with eyes as cold as ice.
"It's Ur!"
"Ur is here to save us!"
Cheers erupted from the townsfolk. The look of despair vanished, replaced by relief.
"So, you're Ur Milkovich?!" Barclay shouted, trying to mask his fear with bluster. "The strongest wizard in the kingdom?"
"That's me," Ur replied calmly, her face grim.
"Get her!" Barclay yelled at his men. "Take her down!"
"Huh?"
"Me? Fight Ur?"
"Boss, that's Ur! The strongest wizard in the kingdom!"
His minions weren't idiots. They knew a suicide mission when they saw one.
"Cowards!" Barclay roared, furious. "No matter how big her reputation is, she's just an eighteen-year-old girl! Listen up! Whoever takes her down gets three million jewels!"
"Three million?!"
Money talks. The fear in the bandits' eyes was instantly replaced by greed.
"Let's get her!"
"Boss is right! She's just one girl! We have the numbers!"
Driven by avarice, hundreds of bandits charged at Ur.
"Heh."
"Numbers mean nothing," Ur sneered. "Just a mob of rabble."
She smirked, slamming her right fist into her left palm in her signature stance.
"Ice-Make..."