Peace Hunter

"That technique sounds ridiculous to me," the woman said.

She kept her eyes fixed on Duchess Arlet. Suddenly, Duchess Arlet darted toward her and unleashed a swift slash. The strike was so rapid that, before one could even register the movement, Duchess Arlet had already swept past her and was standing at her back. Immediately, a thick chunk of ice erupted from the woman's body, extending in a straight line from the top of her head down to her lower abdomen. She dropped to both knees as the ice suddenly manifested upon her; she remained kneeling with her head bowed, without collapsing fully to the ground.

Having landed the hit, Duchess Arlet turned to look at her. The woman appeared to be kneeling, but moments later, she began to rise.

"This attack resembles the one you used to freeze me earlier, yet the ice magic behind it is far more potent. It seems that 'Armor of Ice Spirits' technique of yours significantly amplifies your ice magic. An impressive technique—though it still strikes me as ridiculous. Why would a human name a technique after Ice Spirits?" the woman asked as she slowly stood up.

Once upright, she gripped the ice formation clinging to her body, spanning from her head to her lower abdomen. Moments later, the ice shattered into pieces under her grasp. She then turned to look back at Duchess Arlet.

"That last attack was decent, but it wasn't enough to defeat—" the woman began.

But before she could finish her sentence, Duchess Arlet swiftly unleashed a long-range slash with her rapier. A white ice slash erupted from the strike Duchess Arlet had unleashed. The attack struck the woman squarely, sending her flying backward until she slammed into the rocks and ice chunks behind her.

*BOOM*

The sound of impact echoed as the woman collided with the rocks and ice. A cloud of white dust and mist billowed up around the point of impact. Even after sending the woman crashing into the debris, Duchess Arlet kept up a relentless barrage of ranged attacks aimed at that very spot. Successive ice slashes rained down on the woman, creating a rapid-fire series of impact sounds.

*BOOM* *BOOM* *BOOM*

The dust and mist shrouding the area grew increasingly dense. A few minutes later, Duchess Arlet ceased her barrage. She gazed toward the spot where the woman lay, now veiled in the white haze. Duchess Arlet appeared slightly winded as she watched; as she exhaled, more white vapor than usual escaped her lips.

Then, just as Duchess Arlet was watching the dust-shrouded area, an arrow suddenly shot out from within the haze. It sped rapidly toward Duchess Arlet, aiming straight for her head. She quickly tried to dodge by shifting her head to the side, but the arrow was too fast to evade completely. It grazed her right cheek, leaving a wound. Duchess Arlet then turned her gaze back toward the woman's location.

From the direction of the woman—who was still shrouded in a cloud of dust and smoke—another arrow was fired at Duchess Arlet. It streaked rapidly toward her, but she deftly parried it with her rapier. She chose to deflect the projectile rather than dodge, deeming evasion too risky after having previously been injured while attempting to avoid an arrow. Following that initial parry, a barrage of arrows came flying at her in rapid succession; yet, despite the relentless assault, Duchess Arlet managed to deflect every single one.

A few minutes later, the barrage of arrows ceased. Even so, Duchess Arlet remained on guard, ready for any further attacks. The haze of dust and smoke enveloping the area slowly began to clear. As it dissipated, the woman came into view, walking toward Duchess Arlet while holding a bow made of ice—the same type of bow she had used to fire upon Duke San Lucia’s knights. Remarkably, she appeared completely unscathed, despite Duchess Arlet having landed a direct hit with an ice slash and followed up with a relentless series of similar attacks. Duchess Arlet showed no surprise at this.

"As expected, the attacks I unleashed failed to wound her, even with this technique. My previous strikes lacked sufficient destructive power; to defeat her, I need something far more devastating. 'That technique' seems appropriate—and if I combine it with my current one, the destructive force will be amplified. I just need to find the perfect moment to land a decisive hit," Duchess Arlet thought.

She contemplated this while keeping her eyes on the woman, who continued to advance toward her.

"That was a powerful barrage you unleashed. I didn't expect such a relentless assault. But then again, it had no effect on me because your attacks were based on ice magic. As the leader of the Ice Dragons, I possess a natural resistance to ice magic, so attacks made of ice do nothing to my body," the woman said.

"I see. I didn't expect you to reveal that to me," Duchess Arlet replied.

"I told you that to make it easier for you to defeat me. So, if you want to beat me, you should at least use magic other than ice magic. Though, even then, that other magic might not necessarily be enough to defeat me," the woman said.

"Unfortunately, I possess no other magic that is stronger than or even equal to the ice magic I wield," Duchess Arlet replied.

"I know that; the 'white-haired humans' I fought previously also relied solely on ice magic against me. That is why they couldn't defeat me, and the same goes for you right now," the woman stated.

"Is that so? In that case, perhaps I shall be the first and the last person to defeat you using ice magic," Duchess Arlet said.

"Give it a try, then. Let us continue," the woman said.

The woman then fired several arrows made of ice magic toward Duchess Arlet. Duchess Arlet immediately deflected some of the arrows with her rapier and rapidly dashed toward the woman. As she charged, she kept the tip of her rapier pointed downward, dragging it along the ground. Then, she swung the rapier toward the woman. A massive chunk of ice erupted from the ground where she had been dragging her blade, hurtling swiftly toward her opponent. Seeing the ice mass rushing toward her, the woman transformed the bow she was holding into a sword and used it to block the incoming ice.

While the woman was holding back the ice before her, Duchess Arlet once again pointed her rapier tip at the ground. She then swung the blade upward in a sweeping motion. Another chunk of ice burst forth from beneath the earth this time, emerging directly from the ground where the woman was standing. As she was currently holding back the block of ice in front of her, she was unable to do anything about the block of ice that suddenly emerged from beneath her; she was struck by it and sent hurtling upwards.

"Aside from boosting her ice magic prowess, it seems she can also manipulate the surrounding ice or snow much more easily than before," the woman thought.

She remained calm even as she was sent hurtling upwards. Her gaze remained fixed on Duchess Arlet, who appeared to be in the middle of casting a spell; Duchess Arlet was pointing her right hand toward the sky. Sensing something materializing above her, the woman shifted her gaze upward. Sure enough, a massive sword made of ice hung overhead, poised to strike her down.

~Ice Magic: Create Magic Weapon: Giant Ice Sword of Ymir~

The colossal sword instantly plummeted, aiming to impale the woman beneath it. She appeared unperturbed as the massive blade bore down on her. As she watched it approach, a plume of white mist escaped her lips. Then, just as the sword drew near, she opened her mouth and unleashed a massive torrent of ice.

~Ice Dragon's Roar~

The blast of ice she unleashed was immense—dwarfing the giant sword Duchess Arlet had created. It struck the massive blade head-on, shattering it completely without leaving a single fragment behind. After unleashing the blast, she closed her mouth, though white mist continued to drift from her lips.

"That was a close call; had that giant sword struck me, my body might have been pulverized. Well, not that it would have been a major issue," the woman remarked.

"Why do you say it wouldn't be a major issue if your body were destroyed?" asked Duchess Arlet, who had suddenly appeared right beside her.

The woman showed no sign of surprise at the Duchess's sudden appearance at her side. Duchess Arlet immediately lunged at the woman with her rapier. However, the woman swiftly blocked the strike with both hands. Although she successfully parried the blow, the force of the impact slammed her down against the ground.

*BOOM*

The sound of the impact echoed as she crashed into the earth, instantly shrouding the area in a cloud of dust. Duchess Arlet descended to the ground, preparing to launch her next attack.

"This technique is extremely dangerous if maintained for too long; the user's heart could freeze solid. I can already feel part of my heart freezing over. I need to end this quickly," Duchess Arlet thought.

The woman emerged from the cloud of dust and walked toward Duchess Arlet, gripping an ice sword in her right hand.

"You seem to be in quite a rush; it appears the technique you're using has a time limit—whether it's a limit on duration or a limit on safe usage, I can't say," the woman remarked.

She realized this because Duchess Arlet was visibly gasping for breath, and thick white mist billowed from her mouth with every exhale.

"That's right; this technique does have a time limit. That is precisely why I intend to finish this now," Duchess Arlet replied.

She then amplified her power. A dense aura of ice magic enveloped her rapier—far more concentrated than when she had first activated her "Armor of Ice Spirits" technique. With her power heightened, Duchess Arlet launched a swift attack. The woman nimbly moved to block the strike with her own sword. But the moment the woman's sword made contact with Duchess Arlet's rapier, it was instantly sliced ​​in two. Immediately following that, Duchess Arlet's rapier struck the woman's right hand, severing it. The entire sequence—from slicing through the sword to severing the hand—happened with lightning speed.

Having executed the strike, Duchess Arlet was now positioned behind the woman. The woman was shocked to see her sword and right hand lying severed on the ground; she was equally stunned to realize that Duchess Arlet had already bypassed her and was standing at her back.

"What kind of attack was that?! It was faster and more powerful than the last one," the woman thought.

The woman turned around. However, the moment she did, Duchess Arlet swiftly severed her left hand. The woman was shocked to see her hand go flying, freshly severed by Duchess Arlet.

"Both your hands may be gone, but that alone isn't enough to finish you off. I will defeat you with this final strike," Duchess Arlet declared.

Suddenly, six ice rapiers materialized, hovering in a circle around both Duchess Arlet and the woman.

"Since you are the leader of the Ice Dragons—a dragon yourself—this attack should deal a devastating blow," Duchess Arlet said.

~San Lucia Art Secret Technique : Ice Dragon Slayer's Seven Slashes~

Duchess Arlet lunged at the woman with her rapier, accompanied by the six circling ice rapiers. The woman took the full force of the assault, and parts of her body were instantly severed by Duchess Arlet's strikes.

-To be continued

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