Become their wicked yet gentle lord.

Faced with Ryūka's question, Hetia pondered deeply. Although she desperately wanted to capture Melanie, her mortal enemy, and wished she could also become Ryūka's slave so she could experience what it was like to be her slave.

But the lesson from last time is still there; Melanie is now a great mage, and this is her home turf.

In the freezing cold of a snowy environment, no one wants to go head-to-head with an ice mage.

But... the other party suddenly appearing behind my territory definitely isn't here for vacation. If I just leave them like this...

"I think the safest way is for you, who can replicate Kania's mind control and stealth skills, to sneak up and find out what happened, while I return to Linhu Town to inform Kania..."

Kira is here too; her dark magic still has some combat power. Anjaberg and the others don't have any magic crystals yet... Besides them, we only have some ordinary soldiers and knights, and for the time being, we can't let them see your combat abilities and methods..."

Hetia pondered, offering her suggestions and concerns step by step using a combat command mindset:

"However, our round trip will take a long time, so if something happens to you..."

"It's alright," Ryuka replied, heeding Hetia's words.

“But last time, even with the two of us teaming up and Anya’s magic gun, we only managed a draw against her. You just said you felt she was even stronger…”

Hetia frowned, her tone becoming somewhat anxious.

"What? Are you worried about me?" Liu Xia couldn't help but laugh when she saw her like this.

"No way! I'd love for you to die... hiss... then I'd be free!"

Hetia cried out, clutching her throbbing head, but her eyes remained fixed on Ryūka, her lips pursed in displeasure…

“But… I don’t want you to get killed by that ice-cold woman Melanie. Instead, I’d like you to capture her and humiliate her properly.”

"Wow~ Hatred between women is so scary~" Ryuka's lips twitched as she looked at her completely genuine expression.

"Although I've gotten a bit stronger lately, capturing her alive is a bit unrealistic, but I'm confident I can get away undetected and unharmed."

Upon hearing what Ryukyu said, Hetia took off the supplies she carried at her waist and tossed them to Ryukyu, then turned and ran towards where the horse was tied.

After running a few meters, she suddenly turned around, took off the long sword from her waist, and threw it to Liuxia.

The heavy longsword settled into his hand. Ryuga knew it was Hetia's family heirloom sword, highly compatible with Crimson Aura. Even disregarding that, the quality of this sword far surpassed the standard longsword in Ryuga's possession.

"I'll leave you a horse, but you're not allowed to break my sword! Otherwise, I'll fight you to the death, even if it means my soul is consumed by its own power!"

Chapter 15 Reunion with Melanie

Arrogant? No way? Ryuka shook her head as she watched Hetia's retreating figure.

I need to focus my energy on the issues at hand.

With powerful strides, Ryuka darted quickly across the thick snow, thinking how great it was that she hadn't exhausted all her energy last night.

Soon, Ryuka arrived at the scene of the fight and lay in the snow at a distance, observing.

Sure enough, it was Melanie…

She maintained her aloof and calm demeanor, her beautiful body surrounded by snow floating in mid-air. Even in the freezing cold, she wore a thin, form-fitting mage robe, exposing her graceful curves to the cold wind.

But her magic was stronger than before. It was unclear whether it was due to her rapid progress over the past month or the snowy mountain environment that enhanced her magic.

Before her lay a colossal, snow-white creature coiled on the ground, its thick fur covered with bloody wounds frozen solid by ice crystals.

A bear...? But its shape doesn't quite resemble one. And its size... if it stood up, it would be at least five or six meters tall and weigh at least a ton, which is beyond Ryuka's understanding of ordinary animals.

The strange creature, resembling a bear, a tiger, and a wolf, stared at Melanie with eyes full of hatred, its gaping mouth panting heavily, and blood trickling from its sharp teeth, which were as large as an adult's arm.

It wasn't Melanie's blood, but its own.

"Could it be the legendary White God? No, it shouldn't be this weak, right?"

Ryuka kept her breathing very shallow as she pondered.

The White God, who is said to be able to stir up snow all the way to Sochi and repel an entire expeditionary force, shouldn't be at a disadvantage against a great mage.

Based on Liu Xia's limited understanding of the power levels in this world, that person must at least be a powerful being at the legendary 'Heavenly Rank' or even higher.

The Melanie in front of them clearly couldn't possibly have that kind of strength.

"What's wrong? You're not as calm as before. It must be because you heard that story, right?"

A haughty, mocking voice, like a glacial spring, rang out. Accompanied by the fluttering of a staff in his hand, two enormous frost golems rose from the snowfield, their forms somewhat resembling those of the wild beast.

Two smaller 'imposters' approached the white beast from the left and right, while behind Melanie, a larger magic circle was slowly forming.

The white beast roared even more fiercely, its massive body surging forward amidst the swirling snow, engaging the two frost golems in a fierce battle. In just a few exchanges, its broad, enormous claws crushed the two imposters to pieces.

However, Melanie's magic circle was already formed. With her movements as graceful as a spear dance, the ice-blue circular magic circle covered a small patch of sky, like a spider web covering a moth, enveloping the white beast beneath it.

"If you had handed that thing over sooner, you wouldn't have ended up like this. You must be the last bloodline of your race in the Central Continent. What a pity."

Melanie gave a helpless smile, waved her staff at the white beast, and countless ice spikes as large as stone pillars came down like a rainstorm, saturating the entire snowfield.

"If I could tame them as pets or mounts, they would perfectly suit my status and taste. What a pity~"

The icicles continued to fall, and even where Liuxia stood, the earth trembled violently. The roar was like firecrackers going off at dawn, leaving one wondering how long it would last, yet secretly hoping it would end soon.

It took almost two full minutes for the deafening roar to finally subside. Melanie seemed somewhat exhausted, and for the first time, a flush of fatigue appeared on her usually cool face.

So strong! If Melanie had had this kind of strength back then... Ryuka would already be calculating the chances of escaping unscathed.

Even though he had become stronger, Ryuka still didn't dare shake off the ice shards and snow covering his body, only clearing his vision. He stared intently at the scene before him, one hand gripping Hetia's sword, slowly circulating and warming up his crimson battle aura within.

If it is necessary to take action, then it must be done at the best time, with the fastest and most forceful momentum.

"Haha, this should finally be over, after nearly half a month of fighting."

Melanie leaned on her staff, seemingly catching her breath, then waved a gust of cold wind, dispersing the snow mist in front of her.

"What?!!!"

Before her was a blue and white ice forest, but the white beast's corpse was not among the ice pillars.

Suddenly, a barely perceptible tremor came from beneath my feet.

boom!!!!

The white beast emerged from the ground, its body covered in wounds and blood on its two front paws. It seemed that digging through the hard frozen soil in such a short time was not an easy task for it.

Its back was also mostly badly injured, but the horrifying bloody wounds were frozen by ice crystals, preventing them from bleeding profusely.

Its back was also mostly badly injured, but the horrifying bloody wounds were frozen by ice crystals, preventing them from bleeding profusely.

Boom! The white beast pounced on Melanie, who didn't have time to fly. She could only condense a huge ice shield to wrap herself into a large ice ball and resist the white beast's attack.

With chaotic and violent slapping, the white beast's claws gradually removed ice shards from the surface of the ice puck, its movements like a cat wrestling with a ball of yarn, its mouth and claws filled with murderous intent.

"Tsk~ Don't be so angry~ It was just a joke..."

Melanie inside the hockey puck was also struggling, a hint of fear even showing on her face, as she spoke with a bitter smile to the crazed white beast.

She had no doubt that if her magic weakened even slightly, the white beast would tear her apart like a dried fish...

Meanwhile, Ryuka remained silent, observing and considering whether to make a move.

If I were to make a move, which side should I attack...?

"Huff... Huff..." The white beast seemed to be running out of steam. After the berserk state ended, its movements became increasingly painful and sluggish, but it still slowly crawled around Melanie inside the ice ball, seemingly determined to fight to the death.

"How about this? It's all my fault. I'll return these to you first, and we'll call it a day, okay?"

Seemingly out of apprehension, Melanie took out a deep blue shard of ice crystal from her sleeve, its surface radiating a mesmerizing glow. (The remaining text appears to be gibberish and unrelated to the preceding sentence.)

"I'm so sorry I stole your things. Look, I'll return some to you first, okay?"

Melanie created an opening in the ice shield, then hurled her arm, sending blue ice crystal shards arcing as they hurtled into the distance.

The white beast's gaze froze the moment she pulled out the ice crystal shard, moving back and forth with the movement of her hand, and now it turned its head to chase after that blue arc...

"So..."

A barely audible whisper arose.

Melanie spread her legs wide, her long, slender, white legs stepping out from the high slits on either side of her mage robes, the sharp, towering heels forming a frozen surface. Her staff was held horizontally at her side, as if gathering strength to press her body backward.

As Melanie drew her staff back like a bow, gathering power, the crystals forming the ice shield shattered and were quickly drawn back together by the staff, forming a giant ice spear.

"A beast is still a beast after all..."

Melanie spotted the white beast's staggering retreating figure, then unleashed a powerful kick with her long, magically charged legs, transforming her body into a long line as her ice spear pierced fiercely towards the white beast.

How could I easily give up such a treasure that greatly enhances ice and snow magic?

The cold wind whipped through Melanie's icy blue short hair, strands flying behind her forehead and sideburns. With astonishing speed, she reached the white beast in the blink of an eye, the tip of her spear, imbued with incredible speed and magic, aimed precisely at the beast's heart...

Melanie's eyes were already filled with the joy of victory, but out of the corner of her eye, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a dark red shadow...

Chapter 16 Verbal Probing

Familiar fighting spirit, familiar people, yet an unexpected combination.

Ryusha appeared before Melanie like a crimson meteor, crashing into her ice spear with a deafening roar.

The violent explosion did not affect the white beast at all. It seemed to have only eyes for the blue ice crystals. It quickly caught up, carefully pinched them with its sharp claws, and guarded them in its arms like precious treasures.

Melanie braced her slender body with her legs and left hand, like a female leopard gathering strength. Her body, which had been knocked back, glided nimbly and gracefully across the snow for a distance before shaking off the shards of ice from her staff.

"That's unexpected, even faster than when I last saw you."

Although somewhat surprised, Melanie maintained her smile and assertiveness, quickly assuming a pose with her back to her hand holding a gun, turning her body sideways to face Ryuka.

In Ryusha's eyes, Melanie stood straight on one leg, which was clad in an ice-blue high-heeled boot, while the other foot touched the ground with its toes, and the leg was slightly bent.

She leaned back slightly, highlighting her modest chest and showcasing the suppleness of her slender waist. Her other hand rested on her large, ornate mage hat, her chin slightly tucked in, and her icy blue eyes narrowed as she looked at Ryuka.

"If it turns red, the speed will be three times faster; that's a legend from my hometown!"

Liu Xia straightened up, her red battle aura shattering the frost on her body, and responded defiantly.

Even after spending a day and a night on the icy plains, her body had never felt so cold and piercing. Ryuka stretched her shoulders and transformed the battle aura within her body into Hetia's [Sunset Dancer], a crimson battle aura that was more resistant to ice.

Last time, it was thanks to [Witch's Corruption] that Ryuka could have lasted more than a few rounds against Melanie in her normal state. This time, however, she has Hetia's sword. Ryuka can sense that the sword's affinity with Hetia's fighting spirit is excellent, allowing it to unleash its power even more effectively.

Nevertheless, Ryuka, who considered herself to have become much stronger, was still surprised by Melanie's rapid progress in magic during this encounter.

Melanie has become much stronger; her increase in strength is even comparable to that of herself.

Was it thanks to that blue ice crystal? Liu Xia glanced out of the corner of her eye at the white beast guarding the ice crystal in the distance.

Judging from Melanie's previous words, she seems to have stolen the blue ice crystals from the white beast, and is now only returning a portion of them.

Moreover, judging from the fact that Melanie was still entangled with the white beast, it seems that there are even more blue ice crystals on the white beast.

Is it a magic crystal... or some other treasure? Could this white beast be related to the legend of the White God?

But the white beast seemed wary of Liuxia's appearance, and despite being at its last gasp, it still let out a menacing roar.

"Oh dear, it seems they don't appreciate your kindness," Melanie mocked.

Melanie wasn't surprised by Ryusha's appearance, after all, she had discovered his and Hetia's whereabouts the night before.

But for her, the white beast before her was the most important thing. She just hadn't expected that instead of using the large-scale spells she had previously used to subdue the white beast, she had attracted Ryūka instead.

"Where is Hetia? The sword is in your hand, yet you've hidden it away. Are you that cowardly? Are you secretly hiding somewhere, preparing to ambush me?"

As Melanie spoke casually, she slowly adjusted her triangular formation with Ryusha and the white beast, her eyes still scanning back and forth across the snowfield out of the corner of her eye.

"Who knows?"

Ryusha was pleased with Melanie's caution, and naturally wouldn't mention that Hetia had gone to seek help. A lurking enemy often creates more obstacles, so it was better to let Melanie fight with her hands tied back.

"But what are you doing in the backyard of our Linhu Town, Miss Melanie?"

"Little brother, women have many secrets, you can't just ask them."

Melanie showed no intention of answering Ryukyu's question.

She had already exhausted herself with the white beast, yet she still seemed to be in complete control. Was it just bluffing... or was she truly unafraid of the person she had almost fought to a draw with last time?

Ryūka didn't know her chances of winning at the moment, but if that white beast were added to the mix...

"Roar~~~" After carefully observing the two people in front of him, the white beast made a decision.

Huffing and puffing...

run……

It had no intention of interfering in human conflicts; it was already at its limit and had retrieved some important items. It should return to recover first, ideally after the two had fought to a standstill.

In any case, that icy blue-haired woman wouldn't leave the snowfield easily; it believed...