Frozen Throne and the Emperor's Decree
CHING-! Crunch. CRASH!
The sound of clashing blades and fists echoed across this battlefield that had become a complete wasteland. Every time Wolhyang's spear collided with Modeus's fist, thunderous booms rolled out, sending shockwaves rippling through the air.
Watching from the sidelines, Feltics and Natalie had rushed over to shield themselves from the spreading aftershocks. That was why they had chosen this remote spot for the match in the first place.
Wolhyang froze the entire surroundings with her ability, and Modeus ruthlessly shattered the ice. The already barren land grew even more desolate from the destruction.
“Khh… ugh! Huff!”
CHAAANG-!
Modeus smashed apart the upper-body ice with a roar, but before he could even catch his breath, Wolhyang unleashed her relentless barrage of strikes.
Crow's Duck, watching their duel without much concern, let out a sigh of admiration.
“Impressive as always. At this level, the Grand Dukes wouldn't even come close. Truly, a talent worthy of being called part of the continent's greatest beauty.”
Natalie chimed in right after, clapping her hands.
“Indeed, it's amazing. I never imagined that little girl who used to trail after us in the heels of the Seven Pillars would grow into this. Who could have guessed?”
“The reason she reached this point so quickly is because of her love for Lan.”
KUWUUUUNG-! Creak. Whoosh.
Up above, the spectators chatted casually while the battle raged below. But down on the front lines, a merciless fight continued, with weapons clashing and debris flying everywhere.
Thud. Shlurp.
Modeus's right arm, ravaged by Wolhyang's blade, hung in tatters—skin and flesh dangling, muscles twitching uselessly. Blood dripped steadily from the exposed bone.
Fortunately, his ability allowed him to regenerate, but the process was agonizing. As the new muscle knit back together, he couldn't help but let out a pained whimper.
“Kuh…”
The sensation of flesh and tendons regrowing over bone—sensation returning after total numbness—still felt alien to Modeus, even as its owner.
Wolhyang herself was no better. Her slender frame bore numerous wounds, each one blooming into a crimson flower.
Breathing heavily, she drove her blood-slicked spear into the frozen ground and managed to spit out a few words.
“That right arm… the very one that once hurt Lan's precious body. I've torn and crushed it countless times. Even your precious ability couldn't recover from that.”
“So you only focused on the right arm because of that?! …!”
Modeus clicked his tongue in irritation, quickly checking his condition.
‘If I don't fight seriously now… I might be the one who ends up beaten. The general physical reinforcement is stronger on this side because I kept focusing attacks on the right arm. At least that's one small mercy—until now, the opponent hasn't realized my true state.’
‘Her ability grows stronger the more blood I spill. The longer this drags on, the more disadvantageous it gets for me. I have to speed up.’
Wolhyang, after making her own calculations, charged forward.
SWICK-! Crash!
From the very beginning, Wolhyang had held a clear advantage over Modeus.
In the early stages, Modeus had only managed to dodge and stall for time, repeatedly freezing and being sliced by her spear.
But as the fight intensified, his stance shifted. Red steam began pouring from his body, growing thicker and thicker. Wolhyang's attacks became easier to block, and before long, he even counterattacked.
Because Wolhyang had been too impatient—unlike her usual composed self—Modeus took full advantage and ramped up his reinforcement to absurd levels.
“You seem to have missed something important.”
ZZZOOOM-!
Modeus's powerful strike flew straight for Wolhyang.
She tried to block it with her spear and ice wall, but his overwhelming power shattered both in an instant, driving deep into her body.
Unprepared for the sudden shift, Wolhyang crumpled her face and flew backward, tumbling across the ground with shards of ice.
The insane strike that had pierced her vital point reversed the balance of the fight. In fact, since Modeus had only taken damage, his power had actually increased while hers had decreased—so the advantage had swung fully to him.
“Kuh… kup!”
“Why do they call me the Berserker? Let me tell you what my ability truly is.”
“Huf… haa… tchk!”
Dusty and covered in grime, Wolhyang staggered to her feet using her spear. Blood and sand filled her mouth as she spat them out.
Her furrowed brows and trembling legs looked pitiful, but her cold eyes showed no fear whatsoever.
Did she have something she still believed in?
Modeus, still struggling to steady himself, closed in on the battered Wolhyang and warned her in a low voice.
“This is the last one. Step aside and surrender your seat to me.”
Wolhyang, after spitting out more blood, let out a light, mocking laugh.
“Good. If it's come to this, I'll carve something into you clearly. What happens when you dare touch my Lan.”
CLUNK-CLUNK!
“Uht…?”
“Release.”
The moment she opened her gate, the world seemed to freeze. Time itself stopped.
No—upon closer look, it wasn't time that stopped. Everything had frozen solid.
As if winter had arrived overnight, every living thing turned stiff and brittle, the terrifying chill radiating from Wolhyang swallowing the entire battlefield in an instant.
The overwhelming pressure tried to crush the spectators above as well. Feltics and Natalie prepared to block it, but Crow's Duck stopped them.
“This time, I'll handle it.”
SWICK.
With a casual wave of his hand, Crow's Duck halted the spreading cold that threatened to engulf everything around Wolhyang.
“Frozen, huh? How fitting. Well, this land won't be usable for a while.”
True to his word, Wolhyang, who had turned the battlefield into a barren wasteland, spoke with queenly dignity from the center of the fight.
“You seem to be the one who missed something. My ability—Extreme Ice—freezes even abilities themselves. In front of me, your power is meaningless.”
After her Release, the battle grew even fiercer.
“Come at me, Modeus Rebel.”
Even though her Extreme Ice rendered his ability useless, Modeus still charged wildly, trading blows with Wolhyang in a desperate struggle.
As time passed and his ability became ineffective, Modeus gradually fell back. He tried desperately to escape the situation, but it was all in vain.
“Damn it!”
CHONG! BAM!
Modeus shattered the avalanche of ice rushing toward him, but Wolhyang's simple gesture filled the entire battlefield with purple snowflakes.
The moment those snowflakes touched his skin, a chill unlike anything before seeped deep into his body.
“Kuh…”
Exhausted, Modeus's posture collapsed. Wolhyang, ready to end the fight, charged forward.
SWICK-! BAM! Crash!
“It looks like the match is over. Time to stop. Are you really going to kill me?”
Feltics shattered Wolhyang's spear and blocked Modeus's path.
Natalie gently wrapped her arms around Wolhyang and stopped her from advancing.
“Come on, Wolhyang. Your hands are too rough. This is more than enough.”
“…”
THUD.
Stuck by the pillars, Wolhyang tossed the ice shards she was holding to the ground and turned away, as if nothing more remained to do.
“Aigoo, are you okay, Wolhyang?”
Wobble.
Natalie, unsteady on her own feet, chased after the retreating Wolhyang. She pulled a luxurious handkerchief from her pocket and carefully wiped the blood from Wolhyang's face.
“I'm… I'm fine…”
“If even a single scar remained on such a beautiful face, what would I do? Come now, we have to go. You've worked hard. I'll take care of the Emperor since I have to leave first.”
“…”
“Thank you.”
Modeus, sprawled on the ground, shouted at the back of Wolhyang and Natalie as they left, carried by Feltics.
“Khh… ugh! No! Not yet! I haven't lost…!”
Crow's Duck looked down at such a pathetic Modeus with disdain.
“Tsk tsk. Stop it. The more you struggle, the more pitiful you become. Without your ability, you're nothing but a worthless fool.”
“I… I am…! I'm a descendant of the Seven Stars too…!”
“No, you're a fallen disgrace. I didn't expect you to be defeated so completely, even though you claim to be superior to me in ability. You don't deserve to call yourself a descendant of the Seven Stars. If I see that disgraceful behavior again, I'll personally kill you.”
“What a waste. In the future war, you'll have an important role to play. Well done. Third seat. Now, rest and recover.”
“So the match is over as well. I'll leave for now. Thank you for the hospitality, Your Majesty.”
“Understood. Your Highness. Take care.”
After the match ended, the participants exchanged greetings and departed one by one.
AAAAAAAAAHH!
In the now-empty, silent space, only Modeus remained. His roar echoed hollowly into the void.* * *
BOOM. BOOM.
“Blanser, you brat! My heavenly master has returned, and you're not even coming out to greet me?!”
Crow's Duck stormed back to the imperial palace after the match, his anger rising as he shouted at Blanser, who hadn't shown his face despite his return.
Of course, Blanser wasn't there to greet him. Crow's Duck had just left the palace not long ago, and so had Blanser.
Crow's Duck, who never dreamed Blanser had actually left, waited a moment longer. Then he realized something was wrong.
As he noticed, he spotted a stack of crumpled papers on the table—the likes of which he had never seen before.
“Hah… look at this messy handwriting. What on earth is this scribbled mess?”
Unfolding the wrinkled letter, Crow's Duck narrowed his eyes and read it aloud.
“Your unworthy son… will go with my brothers and Maru…? Eh? What?! This! Hey!”
The Grand Duke's imperial decree had been issued.
Upon confirming the contents, Crow's Duck flew into a rage and called for the palace servants. The ones waiting outside trembled in terror and prostrated themselves on the floor.
“Y-Your Majesty?!”
“My disciple has disappeared. What is the meaning of this?!”
“Your Majesty! I… I dare to speak, but since Your Majesty issued no order, please forgive us…”
‘Wait. Now that I think about it, they're right. Even if he had given an order, how could the palace servants have stopped a Grand Duke's disciple? My mistake. I never imagined he'd run off after the kids from the Arirang clan. He must have been quite taken with them.’
“Hmph. An unexpected situation made me angry. I apologize. I'm leaving the Imperial Capital now, so you all have your duties. Thank you for your service until now.”
After thinking for a moment, Crow's Duck helped the prostrated servants to their feet, then left the palace.
BOOOOOOM!
With a deafening roar, Crow's Duck soared into the sky and, without delay, headed toward the National Academy to follow Blanser's trail.