Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Lin Li frowned. If he had remembered correctly, Kaman told him that the castellan of Roland City had a son and a daughter, called Cyndor and Yvonne, respectively. Yvonne… Indeed, Lin Li remembered clearly that the middle-aged Adventurer called her Yvonne when he ran out…
Hell, what kind of a father is he…
Lin Li could not believe this. Why did this castellan allow his daughter to venture into Dragon Mountains after his son had been kidnapped? What kind of a joke was this? This was the hiding spot of the Syer Bandits! How could this unarmed lady come here with a bunch of Adventurers who were barely level-14? Did she think Vanskore needed another hostage?
“I can’t help you with this…” Lin Li pursed his lips as he rejected her right away. Seriously, she was the daughter of Roland City’s castellan! Wouldn’t he be asking for trouble if something happened to her while they were in Syer Town?
“Why?”
“It’s too dangerous.”
“You coward!”
“You’re welcome…” Lin Li smiled humbly, and ignored the sulking girl as he cupped his hands next to the fire for warmth.
Norfeller’s fight with the Ice Howler was reaching a climax at this point. The Ice Howler’s roars filled the air as endless ice magical element flew by, almost as if the air was becoming frozen. Walls of ice sprouted up and cones of ice wheezed past; no matter how much confidence the Adventurers had in Norfeller’s abilities, they could not help breaking out in a cold sweat for him now.
Anyone who paid a bit of attention would notice that even though Norfeller still moved and attacked at the speed of lightning, he was slowly cornered. The seemingly clumsy ice walls and blind ice cones were occupying more and more space around him; coupled with the Eternal Frost, it was like a large whirlpool, slowly dragging Norfeller into the abyss of death in the center…
The scariest part was the dropping temperature. A suffocating chill was spreading like a plague as the Ice Howler’s eyes grew redder and its low, angry cries grew louder. Almost everyone knew that the next Frost Shock was near…
Lin Li looked at the battlefield from afar and smiled unexpectedly. That’s right, the next Frost Shock shouldn’t be too far away…
“You know, Yvonne, Dragon Mountains are not a fun place. You should hurry back to Roland City, or else your dad might punish you for being out so late…” After the annoying fight ended, Lin Li’s spirit was lifted, which put him in a mood for teasing.
“Worry about yourself…” the girl retorted. Almost simultaneously, a deafening sound rang out like thunder out of the blue, scaring the girl. As pale as a sheet, she flew behind Lin Li and held the corner of his shirt in a death grip, only peeking out from behind him after a while. “What… what happened?”
“Something bad!”
Something bad did happen on the distant battlefield.
While Norfeller was as quick as lightning, he succumbed to the ice magical element eventually. The Ice Howler roared suddenly and released all its ice magical element at once, even at the expense of injuring itself. All at once, the ice walls shattered and the ice cones pierced through the air, covering the world in a layer of snow…
Then, a deathly silence followed.
All the Adventurers, including Jason, held their breath as their eyes fell upon the same ice sculpture; a pale face and a familiar black cloak could be seen embedded in the crystal-clear ice…
“This is it…” Jason’s heart sank. This is it, we’re really done for this time…
The Ice Howler was a magical beast with ancient blood indeed; its last explosion of magic was truly horrifying. It was not talent or technique, but purely an explosion of strength leading to this depressing scene…
Indeed, it was utterly depressing.
Even Jason had to admit at this point that everyone was doomed. Neither the unlucky group of Adventurers nor his group, which was unknowingly dragged into this, were a match for the Ice Howler. The only one who could go against the Ice Howler, Norfeller, had already been frozen in ice. Right now, a Frost Shock was what awaited them…
Everything was as Jason predicted. The Ice Howler did not hesitate to continue after freezing that annoying enemy, and continued roaring lowly. The ice magical element around them tightened, and the Adventurers could clearly see the ice walls melting as the ice cones withered to the floor. The snow covering the ground was as piercing as a glare while it turned into water in a flash…
On the other hand, a suffocating wave of ice magical element was brewing next to the Ice Howler.
Everyone’s expressions slowly turned to ones of great devastation, and even Miss Yvonne who stood far away from the battlefield continued to hold Lin Li shirt in a death grip.
Only Lin Li remained unaffected as he slowly dusted off his long robe amidst the suffocating situation before reaching over for the Aether Staff that lay next to the fire.
“What… what are you doing?” Yvonne carefully peeked over Lin Li’s back as her gaze fleeted around curiously. This scaredy-cat in a long robe was a strange character indeed; she couldn’t decide if he was brave or cowardly, for even though he stayed far away from Norfeller’s fight with the Ice Howler, he did not run away, either. Even now, while the Ice Howler was charging towards them, Lin Li was still mumbling nonsense she did not understand…
Yvonne could not see Lin Li’s face from her angle; otherwise, she would have seen this eccentric guy looking unusually serious.
As Lin Li chanted, an almost indiscernible wave of magic slowly started to spread, creeping stealthily like a snake without anybody taking notice, until it reached its target and bared its venomous fangs…
The chanting was low and raspy like the sound of rustling leaves, so barely anyone in the stifling battlefield heard it. The only one who heard it was Yvonne, but she did not know what he was doing, even wondering if Lin Li had been scared out of his mind, mumbling nonsense at such a critical time…
Time seemed to slow down dramatically in the tense atmosphere; seconds crept by as the ice magical element gathered next to the Ice Howler expanded. Norfeller remained motionless as he was trapped in the ice, just as though he had fallen into a deep slumber.
Lin Li continued chanting as he willed his mind to concentrate on a single wave of magic and ignored everything else. He knew that this wave of magic was getting close to the Ice Howler, much, much closer…
“BOOM!”
A tremendously loud noise tore through the silence just as the wave of magic landed on the Ice Howler. The ice magical element erupted endlessly, blanketing the surroundings in a layer of snow all of a sudden. Fragments of ice flew across the air as everything was covered in ice in a flash…
Then…
Everything disappeared without a trace.
Everyone had the same expression on their face, their mouths agape as though they were screaming but could not make a sound. Their eyes bulged as they stared at the place where the explosion had taken place. Norfeller was slowly picking the ice off of himself as his pale face remained void of emotion—it carried not a trace of relief or shock, as though none of it had affected him, as though it was normal for him to suddenly be trapped in ice and for the Ice Howler to die a sudden death.
Nobody knew how much time had passed as time seemed to come to a standstill.
Only when Norfeller walked out of the snow did the crowd break into a cheer. Almost everyone looked at him with heartfelt gratitude and utter respect; he was like a hero in the eyes of these Adventurers who had escaped death, and they naturally cheered as he returned in victory.
As they were lost in their happiness, nobody noticed that the guy who sat by the fire had returned to his tent.
Everyone rejoiced in the Ice Howler’s sudden death as they had all survived a near-death experience tonight. Seeing the world again after escaping death made everything seem that much better, and even the night breeze in the Dragon Mountains seemed to carry a fragrance with it.
All the people crowded around Norfeller and repeatedly thanked him for saving them from the wrath of the Ice Howler. No words seemed too cheesy at this point, as nothing could express the gratitude they had for this hero who had saved their lives. Finally, the leader of the unlucky group of Adventurers suggested a campfire celebration in honor of the hero and their successful escape from the Ice Howler.
His suggestion was quickly met with the support of everyone, including Jason and his companions. The celebration lasted until midnight, leaving everyone apart from Norfeller drunk and dead to the world. Hence, nobody questioned how Norfeller escaped the ice and managed to kill the Ice Howler at the end…
Lin Li’s tent seemed especially quiet compared to the celebration outside as nobody told him about it nor had anyone bothered to invite him. Some of the Adventurers even looked on in disgust when they passed by his tent.
It was dangerous to be an Adventurer as they had to fight all kinds of magical beasts and might lose their lives anytime. Hence, they had very, very high expectations of their partners. What they could not stand at all was betrayal and desertion.
Everyone had clearly seen what happened during the battle earlier.
Even though this fellow was Norfeller’s partner, he hid by the fire and did nothing as Norfeller fought the Ice Howler in a battle of life and death. Thankfully, Norfeller managed to defeat it in the end, or else this guy wouldn’t be able to face the world if Norfeller died…
Of course, Lin Li did not know any of this.
Honestly, even if he did, he could not be bothered, as he was busy recalling the events of the fight. While it was a life and death experience for the Adventurers, it meant something more to Lin Li—it meant something about his own Magic System…
Every mage went through the same journey—from not knowing anything to vaguely knowing something, from imitating others awkwardly to having their own unique style. The mark of maturity for a mage was to create their own Magic System, which was a journey full of unknowns. While some mages only needed a couple of decades to finish this journey, it might take some a lifetime. Still, no matter how long it took, any mage who completed the journey would no doubt be top of their class, and—without exception—their names would leave a mark of glory in the history of magic.
