Chapter 109
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Translator: True Detective
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: 107. Ice Empress
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After giving Ha Jung-seok a thorough beating, I returned to the penthouse.
Having pummeled the head of state like that, the Blue House would be on the back foot for a while now.
And the country would start revolving around the Association again.
"The place they've moved to is the battlefield for now."
Yeonsu-dong. The spot where I'd once run into Yoo Jin-seok. Kate was pretty sharp, so I gave her head a pat.
Tang tang—drdrdrdrdr!
—Squawk!
—Gaaah!
No wonder I'd kept hearing signs of activity from afar.
People's screams. Mechanical whirs. Gunshots.
It was probably the monsters armed with golems and magic guns clashing with the Guild Alliance. And guarding this place was Rosemary.
"Rosemary?"
"""Yoo Eun-ha?"""
Multiple Rosemarys called out to me in unison, like they'd been copy-pasted.
Oh, this was pretty hot. Five of them calling my name at once.
Imagining five pairs of legs spread wide... ah, insanely hot.
Five pussies, no less! My lower belly was heating up again.
But anyway, not the time for that. Right now, we needed to shove back the Guild Alliance fast.
"The Guild Alliance is invading?"
"Looks like Lee Yoo-jeong's handling that. The golems over there are fighting them off."
The main Rosemary pointed off toward the distant sounds.
"Hmm."
Then there was no need for Rosemary to step up just yet. But the Guild Alliance wasn't going all-out either.
If they were serious, the Ice Empress would've led the charge, backed by Noah of the Flowers, Shin Ji-woon, and the rest. They were probably just probing Songdo's monster squad with their guild hunters to gauge our level.
"You're just watching the situation from here?"
Reina asked Rosemary.
The two had already been introduced. Since her body changed, her emotions had dulled a bit, but her eyes had gone wide with shock upon learning that all the famous cadets from the academy were villains or monsters.
"Yeah."
"How's the battle going? Are we getting pushed back?"
Han Su-ji, who'd gotten friendly with me around the same time as Reina, asked. Rosemary sent her No. 1—wearing the smiley mask—forward and spoke up.
"The golems and magic cannons are holding strong. No need for me or Mom to jump in."
"Hmm. Still, eventually the Ice Empress or some guild member will show. How many troops do they have?"
"The Guild Alliance has about five hundred total."
"Hm, not bad."
At this rate, holding Songdo would be even easier.
With the national forces pulled back, dealing with their numbers was simpler.
They probably hadn't committed everyone anyway, so we'd be fine.
For a regular army, five hundred might be few, but for hunters, that force equaled tens of thousands of soldiers.
Factor in those guild masters' abilities, and they could cover even more manpower.
We had similar numbers, but our experience, command, and troop quality made a huge difference.
A mixed force of villains who'd become such by chance in the demonic qi without turning monstrous, plus regular monsters—only the Hundred Flowers Cult followers held any real strength.
In an all-out war, we'd have been wiped out.
"Got any magic gear to view them from here?"
"Yeah."
Rosemary No. 2 fetched a magic gear linked to the CCTV magic gear.
Peering through it at Yeonsu-dong, I saw the Guild Alliance pushing forward while battling villains.
The path from Yeonsu-dong to Songdo split three ways. After the great cataclysm turned the city to ruins, it was rebuilt—only to crumble again in the flood, leaving monster-, villain-, and beast-carved paths through the rubble heaps.
They'd pushed through pretty hard; credit where due.
"The vanguard's the Ice Empress, huh. If that woman's leading, she's a tough matchup."
"That strong?"
"She lays down ice nothing can pierce, no matter the advantage. Only raw physical power breaks it."
That ice had even blocked the great flood's demonic qi.
But that was also her weakness.
Ice that resists nearly all attributes meant most physical attacks were her Achilles' heel—and anyone with raw power surpassing hers could handle her fine.
Like me, for instance. Her ice attacks would just be basic attribute damage.
Tricky, but doable.
"Alright, time to boost morale. Ahem. Mic check."
I channeled mana into my throat and shouted for all to hear.
"Hundred Flowers Cult's idol, Baek Hwa here! I yanked every hair off Ha Jung-seok's head and came back! Everyone, keep fighting! I'm right here with you!"
Waaaaah!
Cheers erupted from the distance.
Good, that should do it. I trusted them to handle the rest.
But the enemy didn't want to just take it—a man's voice rang out.
"Fallen Nun Baek Hwa, hear me!"
"Hm?"
"We don't want more casualties either! Come out and let's duel fair and square!"
Oh, I'd seen this in a historical drama. Me as the lead? Wild.
"Leader to leader?"
"Exactly! I'll step up!"
"Send a pretty big sis instead of that bald guy. Then maybe."
The Guild Alliance side went silent for about three minutes after my words.
"Cha Ji-eun will step up! That work?"
"Okey-dokey."
"Then pull back your Hundred Flowers Cult monsters and golems! We'll withdraw too! How about both sides fall back three hundred meters?"
"Sure thing."
Haah. Ice pussy. Haah.
Thank goodness I got to be the one facing her.
Not because I'm a battle junkie itching for a fight.
Nah, this was basically a blind date. They might come out swinging, but for me, it was a date with Cha Ji-eun.
I mean, getting up close with a woman that ridiculously hot? Of course I'd be thrilled.
Top-name Emperor Guild master, no less. The world's greatest ice mage.
"You gonna be okay?"
Han Su-ji asked, sounding worried.
"Totally doable. Don't worry."
Leaving the concerned heroines behind, I headed out.
I met Ice Empress Cha Ji-eun at the midpoint where the Hundred Flowers Cult and Guild Alliance had pulled back.
"Cha Ji-eun of Emperor Guild. Known to the world as the Ice Empress."
"Yeah! I'm Baek Hwa from the Hundred Flowers Cult, sis!"
I naturally clung to Cha Ji-eun.
Using my girl status to act friendly, I groped here and there. Breasts. Butt. And so on.
Cha Ji-eun had a bit of a cold personality.
Ruthless toward enemies? The blank way she treated me confirmed she saw me as one.
Ah, that blue hair flowing like frost, this cool body. Slender build. Breasts, hips. Love it.
Wonder what she's like in bed? Is her pussy cold too?
Wanna wag my tail inside it. Haah. Wanna heat up that pussy.
Sure enough, my sexual harassment caught her off guard. She frowned.
"Quite the lively one. We're about to fight."
"Do we really have to? Hehe."
I twisted my body flirtatiously as I closed in.
"Then will you give up and join us in Seoul?"
"Nah, no way."
"Then we have to fight."
"Not to be rude, but if I hold out here, won't that be trouble for the Guild Alliance?"
Our home base was Songdo right now, and Yeonsu-dong was close. Monsters didn't even need food.
The longer the fight dragged, the worse it got for the human-centric Guild Alliance struggling with supply lines here.
Plus, them suggesting this duel meant they weren't gunning hard for Songdo—just aiming for "we tried our best" bragging rights.
If I bailed, Cha Ji-eun had no real counter.
"...You think we'd lose?"
Yeah. Honestly, if we fought for real, Songdo might get trashed—we heroines and I would barely survive.
Our identities could leak too. Both sides might wipe each other out. But we were the villains.
Cast aside by the nation, who cared if the Guild Alliance got massacred?
Cha Ji-eun knew that too.
"Even if you win, you'll take massive losses, right? Ha Jung-seok already lost all his hunters—Guild Alliance losing theirs too? China's warlords would love that news."
China was eyeing Korea. Without current guild power here, they'd probably push from the North already.
"What're your terms?"
"Spend one night with me."
Service me! Offer up that ice pussy!
Just imagining it had me fired up.
Seeing heroines from the previous work? Insanely hot.
"Heard you even kissed Kim Ji-hye and stirred controversy. So it was you."
"So you'll accept? Otherwise, I'll order the Hundred Flowers Cult to fight to the death."
She grimaced at my words and let out a cold breath.
Even her sigh's cold. Wanna kiss her.
"Fine. Deal."
"Promise? No regrets? Okay, then on three, we fight? One, two... three?"
Shhh...
Ice crystals began gathering around Cha Ji-eun.
"Why do you think I'd accept that deal?"
"Huh?"
"Because I won't lose."
A chill killing intent washed over me in an instant.
I swiftly leaped back.
Temperatures plunged below freezing in a flash, icing everything around.
Centered on her body, the street, nearby buildings—everything froze.
It happened in a blink. If I hadn't ignited white flame inside me, at least my feet would've been encased.
Crackle crackle crack!
What made her ice terrifying wasn't just freezing targets—it turned them straight into ice.
The moment a person froze, they became a human-shaped ice sculpture.
Of course, abilities could resist freezing. It wasn't unstoppable. But even without that, her ice attacks were monstrous.
"Pretty quick."
"Looks can be deceiving—I've got plenty of scars."
Probably more than you.
Add my Azidahaka days and century in the library, and the Ice Empress was just a maggot strutting before me.
I could crush her with white flame's overwhelming power, but right now, I needed to play it low-key.
"But you can't use your specialty, can you?"
"Really?"
"Mental attacks shine more in group fights than one-on-one. And against the strong, they weaken."
Troublesome. Really. What to do? Wanna smash her with raw power.
But I held back. I'd toy with her slowly, cleverly—then show my true strength later.
Truth be told, her overconfidence made sense at her level.
Mental powers were top-tier anyway; she wouldn't have others stacked on.
"Melee's my specialty from the start."
I drew the axe from my waist.