The sudden catastrophe left everyone dumbfounded!
Fortunately, the local garrison camp was nearly deserted at the time. Most soldiers were hundreds of miles away, participating in the empire's spring military drills.
Knight Spann was the first to snap out of the shock. His face twisted with fury as he snatched his sword from the ground and roared, charging out, "Who dares attack an imperial garrison?!"
Spann was truly frantic. Assaulting an imperial camp was outright rebellion, a crime of high treason! To make matters worse, the enemy had burned the flag in front of the camp—such an outrage happening right under his nose. As the officer in charge, if he failed to apprehend the culprit, he'd be branded with dereliction of duty!
The other officers in the hall, eyes blazing with rage, grabbed their weapons and followed Spann's lead. Moments later, thunderous booms echoed outside, accompanied by flashes of crimson light and faint groans of pain.
Inside, the Rowling family guards swiftly formed a protective circle around Du Wei. Robert's face darkened as he strode to the hall's entrance, only to freeze in shock. Spann and the others who had just rushed out now lay sprawled on the ground, their clothes and hair singed as if scorched. Writhing in agony, they were unable to stand.
Then, a silver streak darted up the steps toward the hall with blinding speed!
The figure moved so fast that even Robert couldn't make out its form. He bellowed, "Stand back!"
Channeling his battle aura, Robert's sword glowed faintly. Gripping the blade with both hands, he swung downward, unleashing a shimmering curtain of energy across the steps!
But the silver shadow showed no intent of slowing. It barreled straight into Robert's sword aura!
In an instant, a bone-chilling cold surged through Robert's blade. The knight shivered, his fingers numbing as if frozen, barely able to hold the hilt. A tremendous force followed, crashing against him. With a muffled groan, Robert felt as if he'd been struck by lightning, his body paralyzed!
Clang!
His sword clattered to the ground. Robert collapsed, his clothes and hair scorched, lips tightly pursed, clearly gravely injured!
In a single exchange, the intruder had felled a level-four knight. Amid the stunned cries of the Rowling guards, the silver figure finally halted in the center of the hall.
It was, of course, a woman—the same one who had spoken outside moments ago.
This woman, who had called Vivian "sister," was strikingly tall, her beauty almost otherworldly. Her face could rival any man's dream, though her lips were pale, lacking warmth, and her bright eyes gleamed with an icy chill.
Her features seemed carved from ice, carrying a hint of menace, her brows arched with a trace of mockery.
She wore a peculiar white light armor, adorned with intricate openwork patterns. Such ornate designs, thinning an already delicate suit, seemed more decorative than protective. Could it truly shield her?
Yet Du Wei and Solskjaer noticed something else—the patterns were magical runes, likely imbued with enchantments!
A long white cloak trailed behind her, its hem brushing the floor.
Clad in white armor and a flowing cloak, this woman with her exquisite, radiant face seemed to have stepped out of a snowstorm.
But none of this was what shocked Du Wei.
For once, the young noble's usual calm shattered. His eyes widened, fixed on the woman before him!
She had hair as silver as snow!
Her silver locks, her eyes, her lips, her delicate, straight nose…
Du Wei stood thunderstruck!
He knew this face!
Not long ago, in the hidden chamber beneath the Rowling family castle's study, he had seen it. In the secret room, within the magical array left by the great astrologer, magician, and creator of stellar magic… Semel!
This woman—if Du Wei didn't know Semel had died centuries ago, he'd swear the legendary female astrologer stood before him!
Her face was nearly identical to the phantom of Semel he'd seen, sharing at least nine-tenths of her likeness!
To others, Du Wei's stunned expression might seem like fear gripping their young master. The Rowling guards surrounded him tightly, some stepping forward, swords raised, shouting, "Audacious rebel! You dare assault an imperial garrison?"
"Ha ha ha ha!" The woman's cold laughter rang out, her eyes glinting like frost in the northern wilds. "I've already done it. All you can do is bark threats?"
With a casual flick of her finger, an ice arrow shot from her fingertip. Before anyone could react, the guard who'd spoken was struck, frozen stiff, and toppled like a statue.
The attack was so sudden, without warning! Du Wei snapped back to reality, exchanging a glance with Solskjaer. Their eyes mirrored the same shocked realization:
Instant cast?!
"Rowling men! Protect the master! Fight to the death!" a guard bellowed, lunging forward with his sword. A dozen others roared and followed, their blades thrusting from all directions!
The woman let out a sharp laugh. Her body spun lightly in place, and a white halo erupted from her. The radiant circle flashed and vanished, but every warrior who touched it was flung back!
In an instant, a dozen men were hurled outward, crashing into walls, tables, or flying out of the hall entirely.
Bodies littered the floor, unconscious from whatever spell she'd unleashed. Only Du Wei and Solskjaer remained standing.
"Oh? A magician, here?" The woman's eyes lit up as she noticed Solskjaer's robe. Then she sneered, "Magician! Where's your badge? Why does a member of the Magic Union not wear the Society's emblem? What level are you?"
Solskjaer's face flushed. His badge had been destroyed when Du Wei captured him. Stammering under her gaze, he couldn't muster a reply. The woman shook her head. "I didn't expect a magician in a backwater garrison like this. Very well, I'll honor you with a duel, as per the Union's code."
Like a vision of ice and snow, her silver hair fluttered as she spoke. With a flick of her finger, a small magician's badge materialized at her fingertip. She pinned it to her cloak's clasp, waving impatiently. "Come, magician. Strike first! I loathe wearing these badges, so let's make this quick!"
Solskjaer nearly fainted.
Strike?!
He'd seen it clearly—the badge she conjured was gold, adorned with three clover leaves! Identical to Vivian's! She was a grand magician, level eight or higher!
Him, a mere level-one magician, challenging a grand master?
It'd be like a stray dog barking at a sacred dragon!
So, Solskjaer's response was simple. His throat gurgled twice, his eyes rolled back, and he promptly passed out!
"…" The icy beauty blinked at the magician's collapse, then curled her lip in disdain. "Coward."
Her gaze turned to the last person standing—Du Wei.
"And you? A young noble? I heard your men say you're from the Rowling family. Is that true?"
"Yes," Du Wei replied evenly. "My name is Du Wei Rowling. My father is Earl Raymond, Vice-President of the Imperial Command."
"Hmph. Think the Rowling name scares me?" She studied him briefly. "You're just a boy. What brings you here?"
Seeming to lose interest, she raised her voice and shouted, "Vivian! Come out now, or I'll raze this place to the ground! Dear sister, don't test my patience! Hand over that little creature!"
Her face darkened with impatience. Suddenly, she spread her arms, her eyes glazing with an eerie calm. A whirlwind materialized around her, surging toward the roof!
Boom!
The vortex tore the hall's ceiling apart, debris scattering wildly as the storm spread outward.
"Vivian! You think I won't do it? You know there's nothing in this world I wouldn't dare!" she declared with a mocking laugh, her hands tracing a strange gesture. The whirlwind intensified, and faint snowflakes began to drift in the air.
Snowflakes?
In the south, of all places!
Du Wei had already thrown himself to the ground when the roof shattered.
Today, he truly witnessed a magician's terrifying power! This woman had effortlessly dispatched countless warriors, leaving them powerless before her.
And… wasn't she too strong?
Weren't magicians supposed to be weak in close combat?
That armor she wore—he'd never seen a magician don such gear. Could she be… a dual cultivator of magic and martial arts?!
"S-s-s-sister! P-please, s-s-stop!" A trembling, stuttering voice finally broke through.
Vivian, clad in her magician's robe, floated out from the camp. Hovering in midair, she clutched a small cage etched with magical seals, strong enough to contain the tiny Terror Illusion Goblin inside.
Her face was pale with fear, barely able to meet her sister's gaze. "S-s-sister, I b-b-beg you…"
"Poor little Vivian," the icy beauty sneered. "When will you learn? You wield immense magic, yet your courage is smaller than a rabbit's!"
With a swift motion, she drew a strange, long… flute from her waist!
The flute gleamed emerald green, a rare splash of life against her silver-white ensemble. Pointing it at Vivian, she smirked. "Hand over the Terror Illusion Goblin! I need its horn, then I'll leave. Or, dear sister, you'll suffer."
With a flick of the flute, countless shimmering rings shot forth. Du Wei, still on the ground, heard a piercing, eerie sound—like a sonic spell!
Even from a distance, the noise grated on his ears, threatening to knock him out. He could only imagine what Vivian, so much closer, was enduring.
The timid girl seemed terrified of her sister, her small frame trembling. Raising a hand, she chanted a quick spell, summoning a prismatic shield to deflect the onslaught of rings. "S-s-sister! Ch-cheche is T-t-teacher's p-p-pet! If y-you k-k-kill it, T-t-teacher w-will—"
"Hmph! That old fool? The world fears him, but I don't!" the icy beauty scoffed. "I need that horn, Vivian. Without it, I can't craft my final magical defense artifact! Give it to me!"
Her words turned sharp, and she lunged forward like a silver comet, reaching for the cage in Vivian's hand!
"No!" For once, Vivian didn't stutter. In a flash, she vanished, reappearing ten meters away.
"Ha! My dear sister, your Emerald Flame Shift is quite polished!" the icy woman taunted. "But a timid thing like you only uses it to flee, don't you?"
"S-s-sister, p-please d-don't f-force me!" Vivian's voice trembled, her eyes brimming with tears.
"Force you? Your pathetic tears just make me angry!" the woman snapped. Raising a hand, she began chanting a cryptic, ancient spell. A white mist formed in her palm, growing thicker, laced with frost that spread outward…
Vivian's face went white. "N-n-no! Y-you c-can't u-use t-that h-here!"
"Why not?" the woman finished her chant, her hand now cradling what looked like a massive iceberg!
Within it, a shadowy form thrashed, as if ready to burst free!
Vivian glanced down at Du Wei and shouted, "Y-y-you! R-r-run!"
Du Wei froze, hearing her desperate cry. He could sense the next spell would be catastrophic, but as an ordinary person, how far could he run?
Before he could move, the icy beauty laughed. "Oh, sweet Vivian, why so concerned for this noble boy? What's this… your little lover? A Rowling heir—his status might just suit you. He's handsome enough, though utterly powerless."
With a playful smirk, she beckoned at Du Wei. Invisible cords seemed to bind him, lifting him off the ground and pulling him to her side.
"Vivian! Give me that creature, or I'll use your darling boy to refine a soul essence!" Her eyes flashed with menace.
"N-n-no! H-he's n-not!" Vivian stammered in panic.
The woman darted toward her again, but Vivian's instant shift was too swift. Even with her speed, the icy beauty grasped only air. Furious, she roared, "Disobey me again, and I'll start killing!"
Vivian shuddered, her face twisting with indecision, as if wrestling with an impossible choice.
In her heart, she sighed: Teacher, forgive me. Poor Vivian has no choice.
Steeling herself, she looked up at the massive iceberg in her sister's grasp, her eyes resolute. "S-sister, y-you w-want to r-release the I-ice D-dragon? T-then d-do it!"
With her resolve firm, her stuttering eased.
The icy beauty snorted. "You think I won't?"
She soared upward, hovering twenty meters above Vivian, an ethereal figure cradling an iceberg vastly larger than herself.
Then, with a flourish, she conjured a silver mallet from thin air.
Smiling coldly, she tapped the iceberg lightly…
Ding!
The crisp sound reverberated, as if echoing across a thousand miles! Even Du Wei, no magician, felt its strangeness. The note pierced his ears, resonating deep within his soul, making it tremble!
Eerie—inexplicably eerie!
A thunderous roar followed from within the iceberg!
The sound was like a storm, a tidal wave, shaking Du Wei to his core. His body softened, overwhelmed by an instinctual dread that gripped his heart!
Crack, crack…
Fine fissures spread across the iceberg's surface.
Muffled booms rang out, like thunder trapped within, as something fought to break free!
"Watch, Rowling boy—my sister's little lover," the icy beauty said with a chilling smile, tapping the iceberg rhythmically with her mallet. Ding, ding, dong… Her voice dripped with frost. "This may be your first—and last—time seeing a living dragon!"
…Dragon?!
Before Du Wei could process it, a deafening roar shattered the air. The iceberg's surface exploded, and a massive head adorned with a bizarre horn burst forth!
A piercing cry shook the heavens!
Below, poor Vivian's face was ashen. She tucked the Terror Illusion Goblin into her robe. From somewhere, the timid girl produced a tiny wand. Closing her eyes, her expression turned solemn. Clear, ancient syllables flowed from her lips…
In an instant, a towering wall of flame erupted behind her! From within the inferno, a dragon's roar answered!
The icy beauty's face twisted, as if struck. Her voice hardened. "Well done! That old man passed the Crimson Flame Dragon to you! Dear sister, let's see if your dragon melts my Ice Dragon—or if mine freezes yours!"
Vivian said nothing. Raising her wand, she tapped the air lightly. Space itself seemed to warp…
Du Wei felt as if he were on a train from his past life, the world blurring and shifting around him.
When his vision cleared, the camp was gone.
They stood atop Half Horn Mountain!
"Ha ha ha ha! My dear sister, still so naively kind," the icy beauty mocked. "You burned so much magic to shift us here, all to spare innocents from our battle? But how much power do you have left to command your Crimson Flame Dragon?"
With a low chant, she unleashed her spell. The iceberg shattered!
The massive head emerged fully, followed by a colossal body clad in shimmering, icy scales. Towering like a mountain, it bore a jagged horn, exuded chilling frost, and had claws the size of carriages. Its wings beat with a thunderous gust…
This was a dragon of this world.