Ryan was currently running from alley to alley, trying his best to avoid all of the Imperial Mages currently searching for him. Luckily, Empara City is just too large for them to have eyes everywhere.
He had decided to take a break in a random alleyway. He had been on the run for about 30 minutes now, they probably had called reinforcements by now.
Leaning against the wall, he began thinking about the white-haired guy from the Dark Legion. Maybe if he could find that guy and turn him in, he could maybe clear his name.
Although he lost their first battle, he planned to one-up him in their next encounter, somehow.
After resting for a few minutes, he continued running around the city, searching for a spot to hide or that white-haired guy.
As he ran into an alley, a shard of ice flew toward him. He had barely managed to maneuver out of the way. The source of the attack was a certain light-blue-haired girl.
"Who are you?" Ryan asked.
Freya doesn't respond, instead uses her magic to create a wall of ice behind Ryan, blocking off the alleyway.
Ryan decides to run towards the girl, attempting to kick her in the face. Freya once again creates a wall of ice, managing to block the kick, although barely. Cracks could be seen forming on the ice, surprising Freya.
Her ice was even stronger than steel, so how was this guy able to crack her ice with just raw strength?
Freya retaliates, spreading her ice throughout the environment, creating a domain of ice.
Ryan began shivering as the temperature dropped.
"What kind of power is this?"
Freya just smiled at the confused boy, "What use is there telling a dead person about my abilities?"
Ryan just frowned. Why couldn't people just tell him about their abilities like they did in those fantasy stories he used to read when he was young?
Freya slides around the alley, using the ice to enhance her mobility. Before she attacks the boy, she creates a sword of ice.
[Another person with a sword, why is it always me?]
Before Ryan could dodge, he was stabbed by the girl in the stomach. The girl smiled as she dug the ice sword deeper, but failed to notice the smirk forming on Ryan's face.
Ryan promptly kicked her away before pulling the sword out of his chest.
Freya could be seen on the ground gasping for air, she had never seen someone so physically strong before in her life. He defeated her without even using a single magic attack.
She, a genius who was praised for her battle prowess and skill who had also become a C-rank mage while still being a first-year student, lost to some guy younger than her who also wasn't using magic.
Ryan walks up to her slowly, Freya just covers her eyes in shame.
"Do what you want with me," she conceded.
Ryan frowned and tilted his head, "What?"
"Isn't a man's fantasy taking advantage of a beautiful woman?"
Ryan just rolled his eyes.
"Sure you are."
Freya quickly stood back up, angered, "Shut up! You just can't comprehend my beauty, filthy virgin!"
Before Ryan could bark back, a familiar voice echoed from above.
"Well, well, well, look who we've got here. It's the runaway and princess duo," Rowan calmly stated as he looked down from a rooftop.
Ryan just stared at the white-haired teen quietly, there's no way the guy he was looking for just appeared before him.
Rowan jumped down in front of them, smiling joyfully, "Man, I've been blessed. Not only do I get to assassinate the princess, but I also get to deal with the little spy too."
Freya slowly backed away, starting to hyperventilate.
"Y-you're that guy from that night 2 weeks ago."
Rowan just smiled sadistically, "Wow, so you do remember me. You were lucky that your daddy came to save you that time, I was so going to kill you~."
Ryan moved in between the two and Freya clinged onto Ryan's back in fear as Rowan slowly walked closer, both actions that amused Rowan even more.
"Why try to protect her? You're a wanted criminal and you know you can't defeat me, so why try?"
Ryan pointed his ice sword at Rowan, "You're the reason I'm in this scenario, bastard."
Rowan rolled his eyes, "I have a name you know, Rowan. Although you won't have use for that when you're dead."
Rowan immediately leaped forward, attempting to behead Ryan who promptly blocked the slash with his ice sword.
The two clash swords two more times before Rowan backs off a bit.
"You're not bad when you have a proper weapon," Rowan commented.
"Just shut up and fight," Ryan apathetically replied.
Rowan laughs before sending a wind slash at Ryan, who blocks it with his own. Rowan leaps towards Ryan, who swiftly slides out of the way, dragging Freya with him.
Freya just followed the boy quietly, normally she would be opposed to this kind of thing but doesn't have much of a choice.
Ryan turned back to her, "It would be great if you helped me, he's too strong for me to handle alone."
Freya frowned, "You seemed to be handling it quite fine."
Rowan just smiled as he let the two chat for a bit.
"That guy, he isn't even taking this fight seriously," Ryan pointed out
As soon as Ryan finished saying that, Rowan quickly leaped forward, slashing Ryan's chest before kicking both him and Freya away.
"*Cough* See what I mean now, princess?" Ryan asked while struggling to stand back up.
Freya, who had calmed down nodded.
Rowan, not letting up the attack leaped forward, but was promptly slammed into the wall by a pillar of ice made by Freya. This attack bought Ryan enough time to get back up on his feet.
Ryan throws another wind slash at Rowan, who can't avoid the attack due to being crushed by the pillar of ice. Smoke arose from the impact of the slash.
"Did we get him?" Freya asked.
"Probably not," Ryan answered.
Ryan attempts to use another wind slash to seal the deal, but before Ryan can use the attack, Rowan suddenly appears behind the two.
"This battle was fun and all but playtime's over now."
Ryan pushes Freya out of the way before Rowan can stab her, but gets stabbed as a result. Coughing up blood, Ryan grabs onto the blade of the sword.
Using all the strength his weakened body could muster up, he crushes Rowan's blade into pieces, leaving his hands a bloody mess.
Rowan was really amused now, he had never seen an Essence mage crush a sword with his bare hands.
Freya looked at Ryan worriedly, he was out of the fight now.
"Ryan, right? I've gotta say, you're the most amusing spy I've faced yet, although you're still quite weak."
Rowan just backhanded the boy away before approaching Freya, laughing maniacally
"You could scream as much as you want, little princess, nobody's going to come and save you now."
Shadow began forming behind Rowan, the silhouette of a beast. A feeling of overwhelming dread surrounds Freya. Then, wind began flowing throughout the area, eventually blowing the shadow away and surprising Rowan.
"I think you should let my apprentice and Ms. Freya go, don't you think?" Edward calmly stated.
"Emerald Knight," Freya said reassured.
"Apprentice?" Rowan questions while glancing at the bloody boy on the ground. "No wonder he's so interesting, you've trained him well."
Edward just scratched the back of his head joyfully, "Thanks, all of that was from just a month of training too."
Now Rowan was surprised, a single month of training was all it took for this kid to get to where he is now. Just how far could this guy grow if he was left alive?
Rowan tries to launch a spell at the boy, but Edward already moved both Ryan and Freya away while Rowan was lost in thought.
Edward just smiled casually at Rowan who was stunned. He was only lost in thought for a moment, and that was all it took for Edward to move the two away from him. Just like that, he had lost his leverage.
"You have two options, Dark Legion boy. Surrender or Die."