Peace Hunter

Afterward, Duchess Arlet descended back to the ground; there was nothing more she could do, given that the woman had already fired arrows at her knights, freezing them all to death. Shortly after, the woman also descended to join Duchess Arlet. Upon reaching the ground, she shattered the ice bow she had created into pieces. Then, she fixed her gaze on Duchess Arlet, her eyes still glowing brightly.

"Since all your knights are dead, I can now focus on fighting you. Come, keep me company for a little exercise, 'white-haired human'," the woman said.

She then conjured a sword made of ice. Gripping it in her right hand, she prepared to strike Duchess Arlet, who likewise readied herself for the attack.

"She could easily kill me with her magic or by manipulating the objects around us, yet she chooses to attack me using only a sword made of ice magic. She spoke of 'exercise'—it seems she is underestimating me. Well, that works in my favor; I will prove that I am not someone to be taken lightly. I will make her regret not using her magic or the surrounding objects against me. I will also avenge my fallen knights," Duchess Arlet thought.

With that, Duchess Arlet lunged toward the woman to attack. Simultaneously, the woman also darted toward Duchess Arlet. Both intended to strike their opponent with their weapons, and the blades clashed. They then continued to exchange blows at close quarters, wielding their respective weapons. Neither managed to land a hit on the other, as their weapons constantly clashed; the exchange between them was fierce.

Then, after a prolonged clash, Duchess Arlet suddenly surged with power and launched a direct attack. The woman managed to block the strike with her sword, but because Duchess Arlet had amplified the force behind her blade, the woman could not fully withstand the impact; her sword was knocked upward. Spotting an opening as the woman's blade was forced high, Duchess Arlet immediately landed a decisive blow.

~San Lucia Art: Freezing Air Slash~

Duchess Arlet struck the woman squarely in the stomach. The force of the blow sent the woman sliding several meters backward while remaining on her feet. She nearly crashed into a block of ice behind her but managed to brace herself and come to a halt just before impact. Once stopped, she clutched her stomach, which had been frozen by Duchess Arlet's attack.

"An attack that freezes the air and anything the weapon touches, huh? Interesting," the woman remarked.

She then squeezed the frozen area of ​​her stomach. The ice encasing her midsection began to crack and shatter under her grip. Once the ice fell away, there was not a single wound visible on her stomach—a sight that left Duchess Arlet astonished.

"Not a single attack I’ve unleashed has had any effect on her. I know she’s a Dragon—that’s why I’ve been pouring so much Mana into every strike, hoping to wound her. But why isn't she hurt at all? Is her skin different from an ordinary Dragon's because she’s a Dragon leader?" Duchess Arlet wondered.

She looked perplexed as she pondered this. Meanwhile, the woman gripped her sword once more, preparing to strike at Duchess Arlet.

"Hmm, if I recall correctly, the way to use that same technique is like this..." the woman said.

She then darted rapidly toward Duchess Arlet, launching an immediate attack. Despite her preoccupation, Duchess Arlet reacted instantly, parrying the blow with her rapier. Their weapons clashed. As they locked blades, Duchess Arlet was startled to see her rapier slowly beginning to freeze over.

"This technique... could it be...?" Duchess Arlet murmured.

She immediately surged with power, knocking the woman's sword back. With the woman's blade deflected and an opening in her defense exposed, Duchess Arlet launched a counterattack.

~San Lucia Art: Icebending Slash~

Duchess Arlet pointed the tip of her rapier toward the ground beneath her. She dragged the tip along the earth, then swiftly swung the blade toward the woman in a slashing motion. The physical slash missed its mark, but the technique wasn't actually intended to strike with the rapier itself—it was meant to attack with something else entirely. Just as Duchess Arlet directed her slash toward the woman, a massive, sharp-tipped chunk of ice suddenly erupted from the ground beneath her feet. It instantly impaled the woman in the stomach, driving her backward until she slammed into the ice formations behind her.

*BOOMM

The sound of impact echoed as the woman collided with the ice. A cloud of white dust and mist now filled the area where she had struck.

Meanwhile, Duchess Arlet stood clutching her rapier, gazing at the spot where the woman had crashed. She appeared visibly exhausted, her breathing becoming increasingly ragged.

"*Haaah... *haaah... That attack might not have been enough to defeat her, but it should have wounded her. I saw with my own eyes that she was pierced by that ice spike. More importantly, I never expected her to use the 'Freezing Air Slash' technique. It’s a good thing I realized it in time; otherwise, my rapier would likely be frozen solid by now," Duchess Arlet said, examining her weapon.

A patch of frost had formed along the middle of her rapier. After inspecting the rapier, she turned her gaze back to the impact site. The area was still shrouded in dust and mist, but a silhouette could be seen emerging from within. Moments later, the figure stepped out—it was the same woman Duchess Arlet had just sent flying. She appeared completely unscathed, despite having been slammed into the ice. Duchess Arlet was stunned at the sight.

"You've got to be kidding me!?! Didn't that woman just get pierced by the chunk of ice I created with my rapier!?! Why isn't her body injured at all!?! She looks completely unharmed," exclaimed a shocked Duchess Arlet.

Meanwhile, the woman continued walking toward Duchess Arlet.

"The attacks you've unleashed are truly fascinating. What kind of attack will you use against me this time?" the woman asked.

Duchess Arlet did not answer the woman's question; instead, she immediately prepared to launch a counterattack.

~San Lucia Art: Snow Blade Dance Technique~

Ten rapiers made of ice materialized and hovered around Duchess Arlet. She then darted toward the woman, who was walking in her direction.

"I see—so that’s the kind of attack you’re using this time. Very well, I’ll take you on," the woman said.

She grasped the ice sword she had created with her right hand once more. Meanwhile, Duchess Arlet had closed the distance and immediately struck at the woman with the rapier she held. However, the woman instantly parried the blow with her own sword. Just as Duchess Arlet’s initial strike failed, the ten ice rapiers hovering around her surged forward to attack. Yet, they were immediately blocked by ten ice swords that suddenly appeared and hovered around the woman. Duchess Arlet was startled by this, while the woman simply smiled at her.

"We are both using the same technique now. Let’s see whose version is superior," the woman said.

Duchess Arlet and the woman then engaged in close-quarters combat, trading blows with their respective weapons. The conjured weapons hovering around them clashed with one another as well. This intense close-range battle continued for several minutes.

-

A few minutes later.

The close-quarters battle came to a halt. The two of them were now keeping their distance from one another.

"Hmm, are you done attacking me? I haven't had enough of a exercise yet, so come at me again—unleash all your techniques and magic," the woman said.

She appeared completely unscathed; ten ice swords still hovered around her. In contrast, Duchess Arlet had sustained numerous injuries—mostly lacerations from sharp objects. The ice rapiers that had previously surrounded her were gone, and she looked exhausted, her breathing becoming increasingly ragged.

*Haaaahhhh... haaaahhhhh... haaaaahhhhh*

Duchess Arlet panted heavily as she stared at the woman.

"None of my attacks have had any effect on her. It’s truly bizarre—is a Dragon leader really this powerful? I haven't been able to wound her in the slightest. No, some of my attacks did hit her—I saw them connect, like when she was pierced by that chunk of ice I created. Yet, after being pierced, her body seemed perfectly fine. Is she using rapid-healing magic? Or was I attacking a clone or an illusion all along, tricked into thinking I was actually damaging her? This is so confusing," Duchess Arlet thought.

She continued to rack her brain, searching for a way to defeat the woman.

"What should I do? If I can't defeat that woman, I won't be able to return to the San Lucia city. Even trying to flee would be futile; she would simply hunt me down or manipulate the terrain of these mountains to block my escape. Should I just give up, seeing as there seems to be no other way to defeat her?" Duchess Arlet wondered.

Just as she was contemplating surrender, a potential solution to defeat the woman suddenly occurred to her.

"That technique... Yes, that's it. That technique might just work. Although it is one of the San Lucia family's forbidden and dangerous techniques, it is the only option I can think of right now. Rather than giving up, I choose to use it. I will defeat her so I can return to San Lucia and see my husband and children again," Duchess Arlet resolved.

With that, Duchess Arlet suddenly raised her rapier high with both hands.

"It looks like you're about to attack me again with that technique of yours. That's good—come at me," the woman said, watching as Duchess Arlet raised her rapier.

As Duchess Arlet lifted her rapier, the snow in the surrounding area—both the freshly falling flakes and the snow already on the ground—suddenly began to move toward her. It wasn't just the snow; chunks of ice nearby also began to disintegrate into fine powder and drift toward her. The snow and ice dust swirled around Duchess Arlet, enveloping her entire body, from the tip of the raised rapier down to her feet on the ground. This swirling mass of snow and ice dust continued to surround and cover her for a full minute.

Then, a minute later, the snow and ice dust encasing Duchess Arlet suddenly hardened. The hardened shell of snow and ice made it appear as though she were inside an egg. Moments later, the hardened casing began to crack. A brilliant white light—reminiscent of ice or snow—shone through the fissures. The cracks widened until the hardened shell finally shattered completely. Once the shell had disintegrated, the area was instantly illuminated by that same brilliant white light.

Soon, the light began to fade away. When it vanished, Duchess Arlet was revealed, still holding her rapier—but her appearance had changed. She was now wearing a short dress with a scarf draped around her neck; both the dress and the scarf were a pure, snowy white. As Duchess Arlet donned the gown, her entire body appeared enveloped in an aura of intensely dense ice magic. Beyond her altered appearance, the wounds that had previously marked her body had vanished. There was another striking change as well: while her eyes had originally been light blue with ordinary pupils, those pupils had now transformed into the shape of white ice crystals.

~San Lucia Art Forbidden Technique : Armor of Ice Spirits – Scintillans Glacies~

Meanwhile, the woman kept her gaze fixed on Duchess Arlet, whose appearance had undergone such a transformation.

"'Armor of Ice Spirits'? Of all the techniques and spells she employs, that one sounds ridiculous to me," the woman remarked.

-To be continued-

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