"What? How…?"
Yvonne's jaw dropped from shock when she saw the gigantic azure dragon that materialized behind me. Bigger than a house and stretching to over forty meters in length, the massive monster let out a low growl. His breath immediately condensed into a cold mist that shrouded the forest.
All around us, the grass and trees immediately began to freeze over as the temperature plummeted. Crystal ice entombed green leaves and brown bark, sparkling under the sun.
Similarly, the dragon's sapphire scales gleamed under the sunlight and wisps of frigid azure mana wreathed him, constantly causing icicles to form in the otherwise sweltering tropical forest. This was probably the first time the southern provinces experienced a phenomenon similar to winter.
"Ugh!"
Even standing before the dragon was nearly impossible for Yvonne. She shivered from the tremendous cold, almost unable to withstand the ice that was slowly expanding across her mature, well-rounded figure. Taking a deep breath, Yvonne condensed her vitality into a shimmering aura of fierce fighting spirit that manifested in a crimson flame. The ice immediately crumbled away and she was somehow able to preserve her body temperature.
"What the hell is that?! You were never able to cast such a spell before! You're not even supposed to know summoning magic!"
Yvonne had a point. I was an ice mage, not a summoning mage. If I could summon monsters, I would have learned such magic and done so long ago, back when I was still traveling with the Hero's party.
"This isn't any ordinary summoning magic," I told her and left it at that. There was no need to tell her that it was dragon magic.
After passing the Dragon trial, I was awarded the ability to summon a dragon. Under the tutelage of the tiny dragon spirit, I was able to materialize an aspect of my soul in reality, which took the form of a titanic ice dragon.
I hadn't spent the last few weeks idling, after all. The more skills and magic I learned, the better. It was also the reason why I deliberately lured Yvonne all the way out here, where she was isolated. If I had unleashed this back in Gallagher Town, she and her hunter tribe would have fled within the walls of their fortress. No matter how strong my dragon was, it couldn't possibly raze an entire fortress by himself. Not to mention, the hunters would conceal themselves or flee along the network of tunnels that they had constructed underneath the fortress. That would suck.
If they did that, then this would turn into a long, protracted, drawn-out war that I couldn't afford. I didn't want to waste months or even years trying to hunt down each and every one of the hunters in Yvonne's tribe. I planned to annihilate them once and for all in a single swift, brutal strike.
And what better method to get them to lower their guard then to lure them into a forest they believed themselves familiar with?
"The strongest ice mage in all of Havan Kingdom, huh? I probably underestimated you. You are definitely a worthy opponent."
She drew another couple of arrows and fired off consecutive projectiles at my ice dragon, infusing each one of them with her ferocious battle aura. Crimson flames wreathed the arrows as they streaked toward my ice dragon, but they shattered harmlessly against his gleaming sapphire scales.
"NANI!?"
Yvonne did a double take when she saw that her attacks were completely useless. As for the gigantic azure dragon, he merely gazed at her with scorn and contempt before his maw yawned wide open.
A bluish-white gust of breath was expelled from his jaws, engulfing the stunned Yvonne before she could evade. She reacted almost not in time, cladding her entire body in that valiant battle aura of hers. Even if it wasn't exactly magic in the same sense that mages could cast it, the battle aura could still augment her physical abilities and increase her endurance greatly.
Even so, the battle aura was still no match for my ice dragon's raw power.
Frost exploded and shattered all around Yvonne's body, rapidly chipping away at her arcane protection. In a few seconds, her battle aura had completely vanished and the poor huntress was blown away by the dragon's frosty breath.
"Ugh!"
Letting out a shriek, Yvonne crashed onto the ground, ice swiftly and ravenously entombing her body. She lay on the ground, coughing and groaning. Another flare of crimson battle aura allowed her to break some of the ice, but it was clear that her fighting strength had been severely diminished.
"To be able to overwhelm my battle aura…ugh…"
"Ho…not bad. To think that you would be able to survive my ice dragon's spell…as expected of a member of the Hero party."
I nodded thoughtfully, impressed. However, this was still within my calculations. It would be no fun if Yvonne died so easily. All the pain and suffering she had caused me and others…I was determined to pay it back several fold.
"Just…what the hell are you?!" Yvonne cried. Her leather armor was crumbling, revealing more of her brown skin and luscious figure. She scampered away, clearly having lost the will to fight.
It wasn't her fault. Her battle aura had been almost totally expended and she was facing a formidable foe. Instinctively, Yvonne realized that she had no way of defeating my ice dragon. To stand a chance against such a powerful behemoth, she would need the assistance of her fellow tribesmen. I could see her backing away to where they were waiting, outside the forest.
I slowly approached her, shaking my head in disbelief.
"Man, how anticlimactic…I didn't think you would be done in just one hit. Aren't you supposed to be a member of the strongest Hero party? The same party who defeated the previous Demonic Emperor? How are you so…weak?"
"I…I…!" Yvonne spluttered, trying to scramble away. I shook my head and nailed her to the ground with a few icicles, the deadly projectiles piecing through the flesh and bone of her arms and legs to pin her to the forest floor. She screamed and writhed in agony. "P…please!"
I watched her in disappointment. And here I was, prepared for the situation that she might be a lot stronger than I expected. Turned out that she was all talk. My lip curled in a sneer.
"And you were calling me weak. How laughable."
"That's…that's…!" Tears were running from Yvonne's eyes as she struggled, her diminished battle aura allowing her to slowly dislodge the icicles from her limbs. I allowed her that luxury, especially when I saw the recognition in her eyes. "You…you! This whole thing was a trap! You planned this! You pretended to be weak!"
"Huh…and you only just realized this now?" I laughed. "I told you earlier, didn't I? From the very beginning, I am the hunter and you are the hunted."
I stomped on her foot, causing her to cry in pain. Leaning forward, I grinned.
"So how does it feel to be on the receiving end of a hunt, for once? You enjoy hunting, don't you? Then I'm sure you don't mind experiencing what it is like to be hunted too, right?"
"P…please…" she begged, weeping. Wow. She was broken already. Just from one spell from my ice dragon. How pathetic could she be?
Seeing the disgust in my eyes, Yvonne tensed up. I could see thee fear in her eyes – she was most likely worrying that I would kill her right there and now.
"W…wait!" she pleaded. "Don't kill me! Please! I can still…!"
"Still what? Fight?" I raised my hand to signal my ice dragon forward, but she shook her head desperately.
"No! I…I will give myself to you!"
"…excuse me?"
Now that was something I didn't expect. I stared at Yvonne blankly for a moment, not sure if I had misheard her.
"H…how about it?" By now, Yvonne had freed herself from the icicles that had spiked her to the ground. She was trying to seductively slip off the remnants of her torn lather clothing, revealing more of her skin. She smiled mischievously as she ran a hand through her long, red hair, freeing it from the ponytail she usually wore and allowing the lustrous strands to cascade down her bare shoulders. "I remember you said you prefer redheads. Surely you wouldn't mind having me as your lover, right?"
"I also recall telling you that I don't like you and prefer someone who's more loyal and knightly." I crossed my arms and shook my head. "Sorry, but no."
"Come on…don't be so quick to reject me. I know you're a virgin boy. I can teach you pleasure that you've never dreamed of. Even Herman couldn't last more than a round with me."
Yvonne thought she could charm me with some sort of feminine wink, but she only succeeded in disgusting me further.
"I would prefer to keep my virginity intact for now, thank you very much. At the very least, I don't intend to lose it to a slut like you."
"What did you call me?" Yvonne flared up, only to remember that she was still at my mercy. She tried a placating smile. "I would prefer if you call me mature and experienced. It's thanks to my wealth of experience that I can serve you better, you know?"
Uh, no. I didn't need that sort of service. Also, just as with Irene, I was wary of catching some sort of disease from Yvonne. I could live without that sort of experience.
"I don't need that sort of service," I told her bluntly. Yvonne shrugged.
"Don't be so suspicious. My ulterior motives are not as sinister as you might think, you know? You know what kind of culture my tribe has. We respect the strong."
She rubbed her belly.
"I would love to receive your seed and be pregnant with your child. We hunters always desire strong offspring. I can't imagine what kind of potential our offspring will inherit…my strength and your magic. I wouldn't mind bearing your child."
"No." I couldn't help but shudder from disgust. This lady had gone all deluded.
"Just give it a try." Yvonne reached out with a hand, acting all coy.
…only to lose it.
Stella swooped down from a tree and sliced off Yvonne's hand at the wrist, causing the huntress to scream and recoil, blood spurting from her stump. She pointed her crimson blade at Yvonne's throat, forcing her back.
"Don't you dare touch my lord with that filthy hand of yours."
"Y…you bitch!" Yvonne snarled, clutching at her bleeding stump. Then she blinked and began laughing, despite the fact that she had just lost a hand and was bleeding out. She had truly gone insane. Turning to me, she sneered derisively. "So this is your ideal girl? A female knight with red hair? She's just a virgin like you. No experience. What is she, compared to me? All she has is innocence. I bet she wouldn't even let you touch her on the bed!"
Evidently Yvonne had misunderstood my relationship with Stella, but whatever. She did have a point, though. Compared to Stella, Yvonne was a much more beautiful woman, with a much more gorgeous figure, an air of wild and untamed passion, and mature beauty. In contrast, Stella was simply pretty and innocent, but her innocence was pretty much the only advantage she had. In terms of physical attractiveness and feminine charm, Yvonne had an overwhelming advantage.
However…
"Who cares about outside appearances?" I tapped my chest. "It's the inside that counts."
Yvonne sighed scornfully. "This is why I hate virgins. You're so boring. Always wanting to be so romantic. It's the inside that counts? Really? Stop fooling yourself. You only say that because you'll never be able to get with a woman otherwise. It's not as if your inside is any better than mine."
"You…!" Stella snapped, but I restrained her with a raised hand. Instead, I smiled at Yvonne.
"You're right. My inside is pretty dark too. But Stella's inside is a lot more beautiful than yours." I pretended to think. "I mean, what have you done to me? You verbally abused me, you looked down on me, you were condescending to me, and finally you betrayed me and left me for dead. And I still haven't counted today where you and your tribesmen practically attempted to murder me, and then you punished me for the so-called 'crime' of self-defense. Plus this whole hunting bullshit for your own entertainment. And you think I'll just forget all about that if you try to seduce me? Don't make me laugh."
I then gestured toward Stella.
"In contrast, Stella has always been loyal to me. Without asking for anything in return, she has helped me along every step of my journey. Unlike you, who torment your subjects for your own sadistic pleasure, she is a chivalrous and noble person who fights for the vulnerable. Unlike you, she has never betrayed me and abandoned me. So think about it seriously. Your inside is hideous, while hers is beautiful."
"You praise me too much, my lord." Stella lowered her head. "And it's not like I never asked for anything in return. Ever since you saved my life and helped me take revenge on Bradley, I have vowed to pledge my fealty to you."
"What? Bradley? Could it be…that Bradley? Did you do something to him?" Yvonne looked shocked. She really didn't bother to listen to the news outside of her own southern province, did she? Wallowing only in her entertainment and ignoring the wider world…what a self-absorbed moron.
"Bradley is dead," Stella told her coldly. Yvonne flinched and then looked at me pleadingly.
"P…please…" she begged. "I'll do anything. I'll pledge my life to your service too! Don't kill me! Spare my life! I'll ensure you won't regret it!"
Stella regarded her with disgust before raising her sword. "Permission to execute her, my lord."
"No," I replied. "Not yet. I plan to deliver as a gift to someone, so I'll need her alive for that."
"T…thank you!" Yvonne practically threw herself at my feet, but I smirked.
"Cut off her other hand and legs, to make sure she can't escape. Then take her out of the forest."
"W…what?! No! Wait…!"
"Understood, my lord."
Stella's sword flashed and Yvonne's shrieks echoed throughout the forest. While Stella proceeded with her grisly work, I turned and sent a cross bat fluttering through the air. My familiar of sorts began flying.
"Spread the message," I told it with a smile. "Inform Eleanor and Larson that the plan will proceed to the next phase. I want everyone ready and in position for our guests."
As the message was transmitted by my cross bat, the vampire knights waiting on the opposite side of the forest began to enter and flock toward their panned positions.
Now all we had to do was wait for the rest of Yvonne's tribe to step into the forest.