Chapter 300 -: 299 Duel.[1]
"Begin!"
The referee leaped backward immediately after issuing the command, his aged figure retreating to the very edge of the arena without another word.
The moment he left the space between them, an almost suffocating silence settled across the battlefield. Tens of thousands of spectators watched without blinking, waiting for one of the two to make the first move.
Kavin didn’t.
He remained exactly where he stood, his black eyes fixed upon the beautiful woman standing opposite him.
It wasn’t because of her breathtaking appearance, nor was it because he had been captivated by her beauty.
Rather, every instinct within his body warned him that the very instant he allowed his attention to wander, even for the briefest moment, the battle would already be over.
The cold dread radiating from Lyra seeped into every corner of the arena like an invisible blizzard. It wasn’t an aura she deliberately released.
It was simply her presence. Standing before her felt like standing at the edge of an endless frozen sea, where one careless step meant disappearing beneath the ice forever.
A faint smile slowly curved across Lyra’s lips as she noticed his unwavering gaze.
"Oh my... are you enchanted by my beauty?"
Her voice carried a teasing warmth entirely opposite to the terrifying pressure she radiated.
A soft chuckle escaped her lips, yet Kavin offered no reply whatsoever.
Under ordinary circumstances, he would have already thrown back several sarcastic remarks simply to irritate his opponent, but today he couldn’t even summon the strength for that.
He knew exactly who stood before him. He knew the woman called the Goddess of Ice wasn’t merely another ranked spell caster.
She was someone who had remained seated upon the second rank of Sun Clan City for over a few decades, someone whose countless victories had long since become legends.
More importantly...
He knew what she was capable of. Slowly drawing in a deep breath, Kavin extended one hand.
Mana gathered around his palm before condensing into solid form.
An aged sword gradually appeared within his grasp.
Although it closely resembled a katana, its blade was noticeably shorter, while countless scratches covered its weathered surface as though it had survived hundreds of battles.
The instant his fingers wrapped around its hilt, his posture shifted completely.
Every unnecessary movement disappeared as he lowered his center of gravity before launching forward like an arrow released from its bow.
"My, what an impatient man you are."
Lyra gave him a playful wink.
Yet before the words had fully faded into the air, the warmth vanished from her expression.
Her ice-blue eyes returned to their natural coldness, becoming emotionless once more.
Taking a single graceful step backward, her blue tunic fluttered gently behind her despite the almost nonexistent breeze.
At the same time, she casually lifted one hand.
Mana shimmered.
Before the naked eye, crystalline ice rapidly condensed into the shape of a double-edged sword.
Unlike ordinary conjured weapons that appeared instantly, the formation of the blade was clearly visible, layer upon layer of translucent ice weaving together into an elegant weapon that gleamed beneath the sunlight.
Kavin had no intention of allowing her additional time.
His sword descended in a powerful downward slash.
Clang!
The deafening metallic collision echoed across the arena as Lyra effortlessly raised her newly formed sword to intercept the strike.
Sparks erupted upon impact despite one weapon being forged entirely from ice. The tremendous force generated powerful shockwaves that spread beneath their feet, causing loose fragments of frost to scatter across the arena floor.
Yet before Kavin could even recover from the collision, Lyra’s free hand moved once more.
Another sword.
Exactly identical to the first.
Its blade rapidly formed from swirling frost, and before the weapon had even completely materialized, she thrust it directly toward his abdomen with astonishing precision.
Kavin met the strike but the force pushed him against the ground, recovering almost instantly he flipped backward in a swift somersault.
The icy blade narrowly missed his body by mere centimeters before he landed several meters away, sliding backward while maintaining perfect balance.
He barely paused.
The instant both feet touched the ground again, mana surged beneath the arena.
’Widow’s Embrace...’
The stone floor shattered.
Long, thick chains burst violently from beneath the earth, each forged from gleaming silver metal.
Their razor-sharp spearheads shot toward Lyra from every direction, twisting and weaving through the air like countless enormous serpents attempting to wrap themselves around their prey.
Lyra remained perfectly calm.
Rather than retreating, she stepped directly into the storm of chains.
Her twin swords began moving.
Each swing flowed seamlessly into the next, resembling a mesmerizing dance more than a battle.
Her blue tunic fluttered softly with every turn of her body, as though even the wind itself wished to accompany her performance.
One after another, the spear-tipped chains were knocked aside with flawless precision.
Some were redirected, others deflected completely, yet not a single one managed to touch her clothing.
Frost spread beneath every step she took, slowly consuming the arena floor while crystalline patterns bloomed beneath her feet.
Then...she advanced.
The distance separating them vanished with astonishing speed.
Kavin immediately stepped sideways, raising his sword just in time to intercept a horizontal slash aimed toward his neck.
Clang!
The impact sent vibrations racing through both of his arms.
Before he could even stabilize himself, the second sword shot forward like a venomous serpent, aiming directly at his throat.
His expression changed.
Abandoning any thoughts of counterattacking, he hastily retreated, the icy blade passing so close that he could feel its freezing chill brushing against his skin.
And then...
The Ice Queen truly began her dance.
Her twin swords moved with impossible coordination, alternating between offense and defense so flawlessly that every opening Kavin thought he discovered disappeared before he could exploit it.
One blade forced him into defense while the other immediately followed through with a deadly thrust.
Every step she took naturally positioned her for the next strike, never wasting even the slightest movement.
Kavin found himself completely overwhelmed.
He barely managed to exchange a handful of attacks before being forced back once again.
Every attempt to regain the initiative ended with another elegant slash pushing him further onto the defensive.
He gritted his teeth as sparks exploded from repeated collisions, desperately searching for even the smallest weakness within her relentless assault.
Yet none appeared.
"...What the hell... is this woman?"
He inwardly cursed while narrowly blocking another slash aimed toward his shoulder.
Her attacks weren’t simply fast.
They were perfectly calculated.
Every strike dictated where he had to move next, controlling the rhythm of the battle itself. Without realizing it, he was gradually being led exactly where she wanted him to go.
No..this wouldn’t do.
A cold realization settled within his mind.
She hadn’t even cast a single spell.
Meanwhile, he had already revealed two.
The difference between them became painfully obvious. Despite relying upon both his weapon and his spells, he was still being steadily pushed backward purely through her swordsmanship alone.
His expression gradually turned pale.
Another slash swept toward his neck.
Kavin stepped sideways just in time before immediately responding with a powerful downward strike of his own.
Lyra calmly raised one sword to intercept.
But at the very last moment...
Kavin released his grip.
His sword vanished from his hand as he reached toward empty air. Twisting his waist forward as though thrusting an invisible spear, he clenched his fingers.
Mana exploded.
A long spear instantly materialized within both of his hands.
Without losing even a fraction of momentum, he drove the weapon forward with terrifying force.
For the first time...
Lyra’s expression shifted ever so slightly.
It was an almost imperceptible change, gone as quickly as it had appeared. A faint tightening around her eyes. The smallest pause in her otherwise flawless rhythm.
To anyone else, it would have gone completely unnoticed. But on a battlefield where every movement carried meaning, even the slightest reaction could not escape notice.
Yet her response remained flawless. Her second sword descended diagonally with overwhelming force.
The blade sliced through the frigid air with absolute precision, carrying enough momentum to split apart anything standing before it.
There was no hesitation, no wasted movement, only a perfectly executed strike born from countless battles.
Crack!
The spear’s shaft shattered cleanly in half before its tip could reach her body, fragments of wood scattering across the frozen arena.
Broken splinters spun wildly through the air before clattering across the ice, their sharp edges skidding away in every direction.
The impact echoed across the silent battlefield, lingering for a brief moment before fading into the cold air.
Still...
That single movement had achieved exactly what Kavin wanted.
Distance.
The instant the spear broke apart, he was already moving. His feet slid backward with practiced precision, widening the gap between them before Lyra could fully recover from the force of her own swing.
Every step was measured, calm, and deliberate, never once disrupting the rhythm of his breathing.
His right hand extended... mana gathered once again.
The surrounding energy flowed toward his palm, condensing layer by layer before taking on a familiar shape.
Wisps of mana wrapped around one another like threads, weaving together with remarkable speed until solid steel emerged from the glowing light.
The aged sword rapidly reconstructed itself within his grasp, the familiar weight returning to his hand.
The moment his fingers wrapped firmly around the hilt, the grip felt as natural as breathing itself.
The rough leather settled comfortably against his palm, and the balance of the worn blade became an extension of his own body.
His eyes changed... until now, he had merely been surviving.
Now... though...
It was finally his turn to dance.