#35 The Witch of the Ice Castle (2)
I pushed open the door to the banquet hall and stepped inside. Sand had appeared out of nowhere to block the path behind me.
Boom!
The mass of ice hurtling toward me shattered without reaching its target.
"Thanks, Seohyun."
A moment of carelessness had nearly gotten me killed. I sucked in a breath and charged forward.
I couldn't catch the awakened witch here in the banquet hall, but it would buy me a little time to hold off the enemies. I slid across the slippery floor, propelling myself forward in an instant. Han Seohyun's sand particles orbited around me like satellites.
"I'm fine."
As Ray pointed out, blood had soaked through my clothes, making the inside sticky and wet. The sharp ice shards had pierced my armor like it was nothing, and dodging every single one of the hundreds, thousands of fragments had been impossible from the start.
Even the tiniest chip broken off from an ice spear was a lethal weapon.
"It's just a graze. Just a graze."
Still, no fatal wounds. My body could still function perfectly. Even as I said that, the mana around the banquet hall churned with murderous intent.
"Ngh!"
The banquet hall shook violently. I dropped to one knee to brace against the impact. What the hell...? An ice chandelier crashed right in front of me.
Kaboom!
"Crazy!"
Then the windows started shattering. I gaped at the enormous shadow visible outside, forgetting the situation entirely. What is that? Something the size of a building? That didn't make any sense.
Ray's voice snapped me out of it. I sprang up from the floor like a coiled spring. I had to get out of here now.
That's when chills ran down the back of my neck.
It's huge.
I hurriedly wrapped a shield around my body.
Kaboom!
The banquet hall was pierced. As it collapsed, debris rained down on me.
Peeking between my arms, I saw it—a massive fist.
Yes, a fist.
That fist, easily a hundred meters across, had punched straight through the banquet hall. And the despairing part? It wasn't just one ice hand. Through the torn roof, I could see three in total.
"Damn it."
I gripped the fist tightly and channeled mana into my legs. Spacing out here would get me killed—ripped apart or crushed. Time to focus. I kicked off the ground and ran, building speed. The once-empty banquet hall was now a chaotic mess of rubble.
The hands took turns ripping into the hall. The massive structure tore apart like paper.
Staying inside the building wasn't safe either.
I have to make it work somehow.
I dodged the ice shards flying from behind and spoke to Ray.
Guide me.
I kicked off as instructed and leaped straight to the staircase. The sound of the witch's ice hand smashing the banquet hall echoed behind me.
Kaaa—!
Finally, the banquet hall couldn't hold and collapsed completely. The tower, garden, and hall were now nothing but dust under the witch's grasp.
Of course, this corridor wasn't safe either.
Whoosh!
The entire wall was torn away, revealing the witch. At her gesture, the ice hands shattered into thousands of ice picks. I'd used mana relentlessly, and the bracelet's reserves were running critically low. I had mana stones in my pocket, but no time to recharge.
I shrank my shield to a minimal size.
Just enough to protect the vitals.
Whoosh, shhhh—!
The wind howled. The corridor filled with ice spears surging straight at me.
The shield, squeezed from my scant mana, barely covered my head and torso. Everywhere it didn't reach, ice shards embedded themselves without fail.
"Ngh!"
A spear grazed my thigh outside the shield, slicing off a chunk of flesh with its razor edge. Better than nothing. An unprotected calf was pierced clean through.
Pain threw off my stance.
"Kuh!"
Crack! Cracks spiderwebbed across the shield. Damn it, the room was just beyond this corridor.
Then Han Seohyun's black sand began blocking in front of me. At first, the ice spears punched through it easily. But the sand walls multiplied—one, two—and the spears started shattering against them.
Soon, a massive sand wall loomed before me.
"Thanks."
I'd lost count of how many times Han Seohyun had saved my life today. I had no words. I'd boasted I could lure her properly, and here I was like this. He'd chew me out big time later.
Almost there now. I limped forward, leaving a trail of red droplets in my wake.
"Hah, hah... "
Too much blood loss—my head felt fuzzy. Reaching the destination, I shoved open the door.
As I grabbed the vial I'd left on the table, a chill wind enveloped me from behind.
I channeled mana into my hand gripping the vial.
Do Chae-hee's talent. The one that guaranteed hits on anything fired.
I had its downgraded version.
Three-stroke Sharpshooter.
Roughly 90% hit chance on the target.
I hurled the vial with all my strength.
"Hah... "
I exhaled slowly. My eyes tracked its path. The vial arced lazily toward the witch. Unfortunately, though the trajectory was perfect, it shattered against an ice fragment orbiting her—never reaching her.
But the antidote inside was different.
The letter had said: Unlike the potion you drink, just sprinkling the antidote works.
The liquid from the broken vial splashed across the witch's face.
"Grah, graaaah!"
The witch's agonized scream ripped out, followed by a massive gust that shoved us back.
Kaboom!
The wind blasted my body backward in an instant. I slammed into the wall, gasping raggedly. My body was already a wreck—this wasn't helping.
Thankfully, the wind died down quickly. And everything fell silent.
"Hah, hah."
The only sound was my breathing. I slowly lifted my head, turning my gaze to the witch.
She stared back in confusion. Her blood-red eyes gradually faded back to blue.
"Ah, ah."
The woman from the tower looked at me. Her face was so different from the witch who'd tried to tear me apart moments ago—it was unbelievable they were the same person.
Seeing me, she mouthed words.
The new... of Serena's Ice Palace
Before I could finish reading the window floating before me, a massive bolt of lightning crashed down. A blinding flash seared my vision.
"Ugh!"
Ray cursed. Only one person could drop lightning like that.
"Yuseonje!"
I called his name. Rubbing my eyes, his voice stabbed down at me.
"If you don't want to get hurt, step aside."
Through my blurry vision, I saw Yuseonje—pupils glowing white—extend his hand.
A second bolt struck. Far larger and more powerful than the first.
If Han Seohyun hadn't yanked me back with his sand, I'd have been hit too.
"Stop, stop it!"
My eyes wouldn't focus. Even as I rubbed them, lightning kept pouring down without respite. The air grew scorching hot.
What the hell was he doing? I yelled at Yuseonje.
"The enemy’s gone! And a system window just popped up. We don’t have to fight... "
"That's a monster. And the only way to clear a gate is to kill the monsters. I'm not playing your childish games."
That's when it hit me.
Yuseonje had never intended to follow my plan from the start.
Even in this confined space, he unleashed lightning without hesitation. Not a single spark strayed—arrogant precision.
One Point.
It still scattered a few strands outward, but near perfection. And taking the full brunt of that bolt...
"Grah, graaaah!"
...would be excruciating. Each flick of Yuseonje's hand sent lightning surging. Skin charred black, hair crumbled to ash.
"Damn it."
Clenching my fists at the sight.
Mana depleted. Body covered in wounds. Fingers ice-cold from blood loss. And yet. I stubbornly forced myself upright.
As if reading my mind, Ray quickly continued.
I knew. I knew, but my stomach still churned.
I gritted my teeth, glaring at Yuseonje.
This guy, born with the world's favoritism and immense talent, was different. Vast mana from birth, wielding it as naturally as breathing, taming violent lightning effortlessly.
Even here, his mana-forged bolts were perfectly controlled, striking exactly as he willed.
I couldn't stop him.
Not then, not now.
Eventually, even the groans stopped.
All traces of a living person vanished. After the final bolt, nothing remained where the woman had stood.
The woman, imprisoned her whole life as a witch, used only as a tool until the end—reduced to black dust scattering away. Staring at the ashes, I squeezed my eyes shut, then opened them.
Congratulations on clearing Serena's Ice Palace!
I gnashed my teeth at the mocking window.
I hauled myself up. Seeing Yuseonje standing tall, looking down imperiously, I couldn't hold back the rage.
"You... "
You bastard!
As I took slow steps toward him.
A new window appeared before me.
You have discovered a new strategy for Serena's Ice Palace!
A special reward for discovering the hidden path.
Special reward? What reward?
As I muttered that, my vision went black.
Staring at Yuseonje's hated face, I thought.
I need to smash that smug mug right now.
But as if the timing wasn't right, my consciousness slipped away.
When I opened my eyes again, the woman—who'd just scattered into black dust—stood before me.
My breath caught.
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