Chapter 615: Absolute Zero Territory.

“About one month and two weeks have passed since I announced this trial to you. Almost a month has passed since we earnestly followed Empress Melloxtressa’s training schedule for you. They say it is easier to catch up to an explored horizon than to pioneer a new one… and I dare say, it is correct. To envision our goal in your mother and to learn her arcane knowledge, we grew stronger under her watch,” Tasianna stated as she cast [Aifli eir Vintral], letting two ice wings form on her back, pairing them with her own crystalline fairy wings now that she was an [Ice Fairy].

Yet, despite being a fairy, Tasianna wouldn’t fight in her original form since her [Glacial Witch’s Wardress] couldn’t shrink. To say that Tasianna relied on the dress for her build to function sounded like I was giving her too little credit, but I couldn’t argue against how overpowered she was while wearing this one lucky dungeon drop.

It was all ‘cause of one of the enchantments it received after she managed to unlock the dress’s true powers.

<Master of Glacial Wasteland: While inside an area where ice-aligned mana is in abundance, increases mana regeneration by 100% and increases all ice-aligned attacks by 15%>

Tasianna had finally mastered exerting her Territory, which meant that everywhere she went, she would always have access to a freezing shelter to regenerate her mana. Since she was a fae, arcane corruption was non-existent for her, so all the restrictions a normal mage would have didn’t affect her. She could cast spells endlessly, freeze people with true ice that couldn’t melt, and remain an immortal since a fae’s “health” was their mana.

As mentioned before, Tasianna was starting to really become, ahem, overpowered as heck… and I was, technically, already super overpowered from my skills, custom spells, and blessing combinations. From one overpowered mage to another, respect had to be given, even if I believed the core of her OP-ness revolved around her wardress. After all, items and equipment were powers as well.

Speaking of items, Tasianna pulled out a sheet of thin ice.

“A small tale, yes, but it still revolves around the end of three elemental emperors and the birth of a new Ice Elemental King. A worthy ‘fairytale’ for [Chronicler of Fae Tales],” Tasianna said as she recited the first of many stories she would write on the history of the faefolk. The first, of course, was her origin story as the Ice Elemental King, and with it, the deaths of the Wind, Earth, and Water Elemental Emperors.

If my bardic songs were my spell songs, then Tasianna’s were her [Chronicled Tales]. I didn’t want to take all the credit since she was Zephira’s Champion, but I did believe that her unique skill was mildly influenced by [Hestia’s Imperial Retainer]. After all, I was an idol who sang songs, while Tasianna recited tales like a true bard. Once Saori obtained [Hestia’s Imperial Retainer], I should make her into our dancer, hiehie.

However, all of that didn’t matter right now. After all, this OP mage I just described was flying above me. Her eyes were soft, but the glare she gave me was nothing like that. She couldn’t disappoint her second mentor—Mom—on her birthday.

Neither could I.

Her dress, two unique skills, Zephira’s blessing, and her catalyst were the big problems in facing Tasianna. Although she had a unique Job, she had mainly focused on Job skills that improved her damage and mana efficiency when casting wind, water, or ice spells, turning her into an extremely oppressive mage, even if she didn’t have a variety of “special” Job skills as I did.

However, to Tasianna, a smaller tool kit was plenty enough. She hadn’t obtained a unique skill until she became the Ice Elemental King, so why would she need them now to fight me?

You nervous? I spoke to Hikari, as she was the one controlling our body. She had to fight our overpowered ice witch here. She had to give Mom a suitable present for her birthday, and that was to see her daughters face down the second strongest true ice master on Frozen Nest.

“Hikari, you can do it!” Mom cheered from the side, clapping happily with Shay and Beth standing next to her. Elk and two greater elementals had also joined us, raising their heads out of loyalty to their king.

[“Tasianna, the elemental village, stand by your side! Show High Highness that she still has years to go before surpassing you!”]

‘The pressure…’ Hikari pouted in our head. Although she wasn’t showing it physically, Hikari was trying to calm herself. ‘We can’t just get ejected out of the lair another time, right? Not on Mom’s birthday, right?’

Stop saying ‘right’ all the time, and just do it! I’ve got your back. Just show everybody that this month hasn’t been a complete waste. Use everything we’ve learned.

Without waiting for anybody, Mom suddenly raised her arm. “Prepare!” The match was about to start.

Casting buffs. Let’s start with The Will to Fight and Survive and Strength and Wisdom. Choosing Strength.

[Sacred Veil], [Terra Protection], [Swift Winds], [Sylphid’s Cloak], and [Haste]. Those were my current buffing spells, which improved my wisdom, vitality, agility, wind-based and wind-composite elemental damage, and then a minor physical and mental acceleration as if somebody had placed me in a time chamber that fast-forwarded me by 10%.

I also had [Overload] ready to increase my intelligence and agility at the cost of health if I needed it in a pinch, but I would mostly rely on my spell buffs for most of my buffs. That was simply my battle style. However, stacking every possible multiplier and buff was the essence of it, so it was also time for me to relearn two buffing spells I had lost due to my various skill fusions.

Strengthening Flames and Sturdy Earth. Attack and even more defense. Not very effective against Tasianna, but more buffs wouldn’t hurt. But, most importantly—

“Ruthal mirsk gafuug’tal!”

“Start!” Mom yelled as Hikari roared, causing her scales to start glowing like white neon signs. Her silver scales reflected the bright lights against our black rhytilic armor, brightening it up just for a moment before I started molting multiple individual scales.

Using [Scale Manipulation], I had them gather along my body before releasing both my silver powder and solar gas, copying Shay’s and Beth’s technique of flash freezing the air around me to create a suit of ice armor. Covering my entire body with it, it resembled my [Panzer] design, but instead of the bulkier version, I removed any spiky, intimidating features, prioritizing a sleek, streamlined form for aerodynamics. The sheen made my armor look like glossy, silver metal.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

‘Flash Fire!’ Hikari activated, designating the ice pillar right behind Tasianna. Spreading our wings to reveal the sharp ice blades grown on them, the [Battle Frenzy]-only skill activated, sending our body forward at a breakneck speed.

With our vision melting together, we slammed right against the ice pillar without having hit anything, as Tasianna had avoided our charge with [Wind Blast]. Snapping to her, we saw eleven magic circles floating before her, all ready to cast. With a smirk, she snapped, casting her spells.

[Abyssal Hydrostrike] shot out first, sending a whale-sized water blast, forcing Hikari to dodge to the side with our rocket blasters. The massive water ball exploded against the wall, sending down not a water shower, but an icicle rain as the water froze the moment Tasianna cast [World-Freezing Winter].

Shit! She’s going all out! I clamored as the [Ice Magic Lv. 10] spell activated from a large magic circle on Tasianna’s back.

As if a blizzard from the northern glaciers had suddenly seeped into Mom’s lair, hail the size of soccer balls started to buffet my body while the air temperature started to drop to the point that my lungs were being frozen with every breath. As the final System spell of [Ice Magic], [World-Freezing Winter] did exactly as its name suggested, creating an unending winter in a small area similar to a Territory. Coupled with her true ice, this blizzard could end this spar at any moment now.

Reminded of Mom’s training, Hikari shot out our silver powder protect scales and layered them in a checkerboard formation around our body before releasing some solar gas to create an icicle bubble around us. Casting [Air Shield] to add another layer of protection and [Panzer] to protect our body from the ice, Hikari stayed on her toes as she watched the air in the lair freeze, turning the chamber into one giant glacier.

She can still break through, Hikari. [Iceborne Breaker] can drill right through.

‘So can we,’ she said as she stared at the hailstone still moving inside this glacier. Although everything was frozen, the blizzard was still raging, blocking our sight beyond our icicle bubble.

Just as I turned on [Detection Sensor] to find Tasianna’s location, [Foresight] rang in my head, warning me of the very spell I had warned Hikari—three [Iceborne Breaker] came shooting at us like cannonballs.

‘Better now or never! Ruby Shredder!’

A floating sapphire lightball flew out of our solar core as a throat-choking cold seeped through our mouth, as Hikari released an ice breath that pierced right through the ice and storm. Solar energy started to energize my cold body, causing the ice beam to glow like a melting iron rod as it destroyed two of the [Iceborne Breaker].

The spell crashed right against my barrier, sending multiple of my scales flying away like metal shards, although only the outer layer had broken. With the majority of my molted scales still usable, I didn’t have to molt anymore, as I quickly rebuilt my ice barrier, only keeping it open in front of my head.

As [Ruby Shredder] drilled a hole for me, I quickly located Tasianna as she sent three more [Iceborne Breaker]s. Seeing this, Hikari exhaled an icy mist as she sent more molted scales around our right arm, forming it into a halberd before we froze it with ice.

Standing up on our hind legs, Hikari stabilized our body by pinning our tail into the ground. Seeing how the hole we drilled was slowly closing from the raging blizzard, she retreated the molted scales forming our barrier back to our body before using [Flash Fire], teleporting right behind Tasianna to avoid the [Iceborne Breaker] before re-expanding the ice bubble at our new location.

Seeing this, Tasianna cast two [Kraken’s Destruction], but the watery tentacles were sliced apart before they could do anything as Hikari charged forward with our rocket boosters. Due to the form of our dragon hands, holding a weapon was difficult and unwieldy, unlike my dragonewt form, but that could be easily resolved by freezing our hands on the halberd’s pole and using the centrifugal force and acceleration of our rocket boosters to perform swings usually hard to perform with our draconic body.

Although ungraceful, Hikari imitated her dragoon training this past month as well as she could, cleaving through Tasianna’s spells and the glacial sheet due to [Drakonian Sunlight Edge]. With [Solar Overdrive] overcharging my body with my reserve solar energy, wherever I sent it would cause that body part to glow like a miniature sun, and that also included the impromptu “Nordor blades” I made with my silver scales. That energy couldn’t completely melt Tasianna’s true ice, but it made it possible for me to break through.

Using our tail and wings as additional weapons, Hikari finally managed to push Tasianna back, giving me the time to cast [Prayer], [Symphonie des Feuergottes], and [Sanctified Blaze: Halo of Consecretion]. As the bright light descended from above, a rain of holy light and blue freezing flames baptized me in their magical power.

My stats soared with all these buffs, effectively giving me over 50% more of my base and doubling my agility. Tasianna, although fast herself, did not have a deluge of agility buffs as I did. With Hikari swinging her halberd and body around like a razor-sharp twister, we pushed Tasianna to melt some of the glacier to allow her to dodge.

However, just as she was about to cast another spell, Hikari activated [Flash Fire] to jump right in front of Tasianna as I cast [Room] behind her!

“Tsk!” Tasianna clicked her tongue as she stumbled into the subspace, before Hikari forced her to enter it.

As we both landed in the blank, sterile-white cubed world, I cast [Fimbulvetr Wall] to block the exit since I didn’t want to prevent Mom from watching the match. Closing it was safer to stop Tasianna from escaping, but ladies’ rules, right? As if she acknowledged it, she nodded, and we continued our bout.

Charging into melee range to stop Tasianna from casting [World-Freezing Winter] again, Hikari slammed our impromptu halberd at Tasianna, only for her to raise her true ice rapier to block it. She groaned as the weight of my attack forced her onto her knees, activating her wardress’s [Glacial Witch’s Protection] enchantment.

As the air around her flashed, forming an armor of ice around her, the cold also captured the halberd, breaking the ice apart and freezing any silver scales it caught before Hikari could retrieve them. Instead of letting Tasianna take control of the momentum, though, Hikari slammed the blunt side of our tail on the former, sending her flying against the wall at the cost of a few scales to protect my body from the true ice.

Unfortunately, it did give Tasianna the space to cast both [Winter’s Golem] and [Slithering Frost Serpent], now both made from true ice. Still, Hikari responded by materializing [Hydra] as an ice golem ablaze with white flames. As it hardened to look like quartz, I also cast [Heaven’s Army] to clad my spell golem in an armor made from holy light, hopefully giving it enough protection to hold off Tasianna’s two companions long enough for Hikari to defeat her.

The distance is just right to have a mage fight, but you can bridge the distance easily, Hikari. Tasianna is good defensively, and with all the ice mana coming from the portal’s exit, she’ll heal up the damage. Though an attrition battle is no problem as well, since [Hydra] is now here. Slowly, the air and ice will start to become poisonous.

‘I still think it’s a draw. We’ve set our ideal situation up with all our buffs, but Allegro is about to switch to Adagio.’

We’ll be slower, sure, but we still have plenty of energy inside the solar core. We can finish the battle once we release overdrive’s energy. [Sun, Consume All] will give us our second batch of solar energy if we somehow can’t beat Tasianna with the first explosion. As such, I’ll—

“Territory Release.”

Hikari and I froze in place as Tasianna’s aura, [Dirge of Eternal Ice], started to spread inside my subspace just as her [World-Freezing Winter] did. However, unlike the spell, only the temperature shot down as a blizzard wasn’t created. Instead, words started to form around me, writing down the verses of the fairytale Tasianna had just read to activate her [Chronicled Tale] buff.

… Dammit! She stole—took inspiration from my own skills.

From the wording, it seemed Tasianna’s fairytales would apply even if another Territory were to clash with it, breaking one of the rules of a Territory Dispute, since activating a Territory was supposed to protect you from the harmful effects of an opposing Territory. Yet, my stats got debuffed by 5% and my ice resistance by 10%?

“Only one [Chronicled Tale] may be active at any time, and I have to apply the fairytale before the Territory is active. I cannot change it midway through, my lady,” Tasianna explained. “Otherwise, my Territory is a simple ice field where [Funeral Blade of Frozen Memories] allows me to properly rain [Fae Frost] snow inside the Territory. If you cannot protect yourself in time, true ice will surely take over. Therefore, my lady, I suggest you release your aura any moment now.”

Hikari looked to the side, noticing her ice bubble was starting to crack and break, overwhelmed by an icy mist even colder than my solar gas. Seeing this, Hikari growled as it seemed the situation would soon return to how it was outside, only this time, the true ice mana would be unavoidable.

Everybody needs to start somewhere, so it has to be the same for you. Don’t worry, you saw me do it often enough. You got the image, right? A blue sun stage all for yourself.

Hikari released solar energy into the sapphire star floating around us, letting it grow large enough to be around my size as my ice bubble broke from the cold. As this happened, Hikari slammed her wings onto the ground.

‘Let’s start!’

‘Did I say anything about [Maestro des Karmesinen Stern], System Voice? I’m not Hestia, right now. I am Hikari Schartner!’