Kwahahahaha!
With a thunderous crash, a deep blue flash bursts forth.
“Uwaaaaah!”
Rin tears up as she lets out a battle cry.
The magical wind created by her swinging katana lunges at Ivan.
Amidst the sinking smoke.
Ivan’s figure emerges.
“Well, this is a bit unexpected…”
Ivan’s lips twist into a grin.
A faint wound on his shoulder is revealed.
“I must commend you, Samurai. To injure me like this is quite impressive. But…”
“You won’t have time to enjoy it.”
Rin says coldly.
In that instant.
The wound on Ivan’s shoulder rapidly freezes and worsens.
The true release of the Totsuka no Tsurugi.
The cold blade that manipulates the biting wind reveals one of its effects: the deepening of the wound through frost.
“…Looks like I’ve been unexpectedly hit hard.”
Ivan’s face stiffens.
Pain radiates from his shoulder.
“But this much won’t be enough to defeat me, Samurai of the Far East.”
Wuuuuuuuummm.
The knuckles on Ivan’s hands resonate ominously.
“You and I are both cryomancers, which means we can interfere and negate each other’s powers. You thought that, didn’t you?”
Rumbling!
Thunder roars from the sky.
Dark clouds gather ominously.
Hwiiooooooo!
A snowstorm swirls so powerfully that it’s blinding.
“Kuuh…”
Rin bites her lip.
The gale of the biting wind wings that blooms behind Rin supports her amid the violent whirlwind.
“But that thought is merely an illusion. The game is over, Shinozaki Samurai. I shall personally show you the hierarchy of EX and S-ranks!”
Crash!
The golden chains that restrained the EX-ranked monster shatter like sand.
Pusshhh!
As the bonds are forcibly severed, Beatrice collapses.
“Gyaaaaah!”
Blood tears stream from her eyes, staining the snowy ground.
Seeing this, Rin bites her lip.
Both the Saintess and Evangelin.
To Rin, they had both already become precious friends.
Because they were the first to ever praise her cooking.
“Tsar Knuckle, true release.”
Vwwwwiiiinnng!
The knuckles fitted to both of Ivan’s fists vibrate powerfully.
“──Snow White Tiger Fist.”
“It’s the Tiger Fist!”
Ssssss.
Ivan’s body swells terrifyingly.
In an instant, this giant towering over a meter transforms into Ivan, with his fists spinning, filled with knuckles.
Kuwakuwakuwakuwakuwakuwakuwak!
A white aura erupts all over Ivan’s body.
Gooooo──
Horrific magical power gathers in his arms.
Ivan hurls his fist straight towards Rin.
“──Blizzard Strike!!”
Tukwakuwakuwakuwakuwak!
A resounding explosion.
Ice blades scatter, and blizzards whirl around.
A pure white gust of magical power rushes towards Rin.
Rin bites her lip.
She brandishes her Totsukano Tsuru.
Rin knew it too.
That this attack from the enemy was, unlike before, a serious full-power strike.
‘I can do this.’
But Rin didn’t give up.
She maximizes her freezing gift.
Chzz-zz-zz-zz.
She controls the biting winds and chill around her.
Her wings flutter.
The moment the indigo gusts gather to form a gigantic wind shield,
Kwaaakakakakak!
The Blizzard Strike collides directly with the shield Rin created.
A deafening roar erupts, obscuring her view with swirling snow.
Ivan watches with a cold smile.
“Is this enough to take care of it? I’ve wasted too much time on these kids. I need to secure my target.”
Though the Saintess had already fainted, her life was not in danger.
If he just secured her like this and returned to his homeland, everything would be fine.
Crack.
As he turned his head to move towards the target, the Saintess,
“Who do you think you are?”
Through the settling smoke, a cold voice pierced through.
Ivan’s brow twitched.
“Your Blizzard Strike was nothing special.”
The owner of the voice, Rin, smiled.
Tap tap.
She brushed off the snow piling on her gauntlet.
“How…?”
Ivan’s face hardened.
This was different from when he was only toying with her.
He had combined the powers of Symbiotic Unleashing and real intent for this strike.
A blow that no mere amateur who had just stepped into Symbiotic Unleashing could possibly defend against.
But the girl before him had blocked it.
That was simply impossible.
Rin smiled.
‘Ugh.’
Inside, she groaned softly.
She secretly swallowed the blood that had risen to her throat.
Enduring the sharp pain that tore through her insides, feeling like she was being ripped apart.
Having defended against an EX rank powerhouse’s attack, Rin was already in a considerably injured state.
Simply standing her ground without collapsing was a feat of valor.
Naturally, she couldn’t defend against Ivan’s attack without experiencing any damage.
The reason she could block his attack was that, being a fellow wielder of the freezing gift, she could somewhat interfere and offset it by pulling her gift to its limit, and she possessed overwhelming talent.
‘There won’t be a second time.’
Rin knew herself.
That she wouldn’t be able to block a second attack.
But even so, Rin couldn’t retreat.
To protect her two friends, Evangelin and Trixie.
To protect the one she loved.
She had to hold this ground.
Even if it meant dying.
“Come at me again.”
Rin swallows her blood and raises the Totsuka Sword.
“To think you could block my heartfelt Blizzard Strike. Is your talent at this level? The Shinozaki Samurai. You’re not a kitten, you’re a tiger cub. I have to nip this in the bud before it grows any larger.”
Ivan’s eyes turn cold.
Japan is a core nation of the First World.
To Ivan, a member of the Second World, it’s an enemy.
For Ivan, the girl before him, Shinozaki Rin, Japan’s finest fighter and the heir of the Shinozaki family, was a target that must be eliminated.
“If only I had a little more time, maybe you could have risen to my level. But consider it your misfortune to have met me, Samurai.”
Wheeeeee!
Ivan’s knuckles spin again.
Gooooooo!
A chilling wind swirls around Ivan’s legs.
“I will break you, the future of Japan, right here!”
Kuwung!
Ivan leaps into the air, kicking the ground.
Magic swirls around his right foot, glowing white.
“Vortex—Kick!!”
A whirling wind strikes toward Rin.
Rin bites her lip.
Fortune only smiles once.
She can’t block this attack.
She will die.
In the end, she couldn’t protect anyone.
She couldn’t express her gratitude to Evangelin and Trixie, her two friends, for saying her cooking was delicious.
And, to the one she loves, Kim Deok-Sung.
She couldn’t convey her feelings properly.
As Rin bit her lip and tears rolled down her face.
Flash.
A brilliant beam of white light flies in from the sea, hitting Ivan squarely.
“W-What?!”
Just then, Ivan’s eyes blur at the unexpected interruption.
Kwahhhh!
A flash explodes, shaking the ground.
Ivan, suspended in the air, is shot down.
Rin’s eyes widen at the sight.
“How dare you lay a hand on a precious student of mine…”
A familiar voice whispers in her ear.
Rin turns her head toward the sound.
Step by step.
On the white snowfield, a white-haired, beautiful girl in a white Lolita dress walks gracefully with a parasol.
Her blood-red eyes shine ominously.
“Principal!”
A voice thick with tears escapes Rin’s lips.
The Principal, Yoshizaki Seira.
She finally made it to the battlefield with Han Seo-Jin’s help.
Seira approaches Rin, waving her parasol and says, “Lady Shinozaki. You’ve done well. Now that I’m here, you can rest easy. And the kid… what happened to him?”
“H-He…”
Tears flow from Rin’s eyes at Seira’s question.
Feelings she’s held back flood out all at once.
“U-Um…”
Seira’s gaze moves to where Rin points.
There, he lies, covered in blood.
Thud.
The parasol slips from Seira’s hand.
The color drains from her face.
“…The kid.”
Memories of that day ten years ago flood Seira’s mind.
The day she was betrayed by the student she cherished like a child and lost all her Five Crowns comrades and the man she loved.
No one was saved.
So, I pledged to protect this time.
That was the plan.
“Hey, kid!”
Seira rushes to where Kim Deok-Sung has collapsed.
Tears well up in her eyes.
Thunk.
She stops.
Seira’s brain goes blank.
His bloodied figure overlaps with that of her deceased comrade.
The man she couldn’t protect, the one she loved, the swordsman.
Seira can’t think at all.
She quietly holds the fallen Kim Deok-Sung in her arms.
“Kid, it’s… it’s my fault for being late… late…”
Seira’s head droops.
Her small hands wipe the blood from Kim Deok-Sung’s face.
He’s still not dead.
Not yet.
Fortunately, there’s still a chance.
Unlike her fallen comrades, friends, and the one she loved.
She has a chance to save him.
“…It’s not too late, is it? But… it’s very late… my fault…”
Drip, drip.
Hot tears flow down Seira’s face.
But she ended up hurting him.
“I promised… this time, I would protect you. I vowed to never lose again… but… but…”
Seira clutches her chest.
She bites her lip.
“I will punish those who made you this way…”
Her hands tremble.
“Just hang in there… just a little longer… I’m sorry. Truly… I’m sorry…”
Seira gently lays Kim Deok-Sung back down.
“Shinozaki, Han Seo-Jin. I leave the kid in your care.”
Having entrusted Kim Deok-Sung to Shinozaki Rin and Han Seo-Jin, Seira extends her hand.
The umbrella, which had fallen in the snowy field, flies into her right hand with the power of Amaterasu.
“Ivan Antonov!!”
Seira lets out a heart-wrenching scream.
“I will never forgive you!!”
Tears stream down Seira’s face.
Ivan, witnessing the scene, coldly laughs.
“White Empress…”
Click.
Metal sounds from his knuckles.
“You, a relic of the past and a has-been, dare to stand in my way? You have quite the ambition.”
Ivan mocks Seira.
If his opponent were Ichiro and not Seira.
He was confident he could win.
“Five Crowns… surely a grand name, but that’s all it is. An old-timer who can barely move because of wounds from a disciple’s betrayal cannot be my opponent.”
In front of him, Yoshizaki Seira was a half-baked EX rank.
“Perhaps this is for the best. In a way, it’s an opportunity to cripple Japan’s strength.”
At Ivan’s words, Seira laughs.
Flash.
Her entire body is enveloped in a white light.
Her 15-year-old figure instantly expands.
Her flat chest becomes voluptuous, her youthful face matures, and her small stature grows tall and slender.
