This sudden turn of events left everyone stunned!
Fortunately, there weren't many soldiers in the garrison at this time. Most of them were engaged in exercises hundreds of miles away.
Sir Span was the first to snap out of it. His face turned pale, and he grabbed the sword from the ground, shouting, "Who dares to attack the garrison camp?!"
Sir Span was truly alarmed. Attacking the camp was an open act of rebellion! Burning down the camp's flags happened right under his nose. If he couldn't catch the perpetrators, the charge of negligence would be pinned on him!
The other officers in the hall also became agitated, grabbing their weapons and rushing out with Sir Span. Shortly afterward, thunderous noises and red flashes were heard outside, accompanied by the groans of people in pain.
The guards of the Roland family in the hall quickly shielded Duwei. Robert's face was grim as he stepped forward to block the entrance of the hall. However, he was astonished to see outside. Sir Span and the others who had rushed out were all lying on the ground, their clothes and hair singed. Although they groaned in pain, they couldn't get up.
In front of them, a silver figure swiftly darted down the steps in front of the hall!
The figure moved at an incredible speed, so fast that even Robert couldn't make out their appearance. He bellowed, "Stand back!"
Robert activated his aura and the sword in his hand emitted a faint glow. He swung it down, conjuring a barrier that stretched across the steps.
However, the silver shadow showed no intention of stopping and charged straight toward Robert's sword aura!
Instantly, Robert felt a chilling sensation emanating from his sword. It sent shivers down his spine, making every finger feel icy and stiff, almost unable to grip the sword handle! Then, a powerful force collided with the sword, overwhelming Robert. With a grunt, he felt as if he had been struck by lightning, his entire body paralyzed!
Clang!
The sword fell to the ground, and Robert passed out. His clothes and hair seemed scorched, and he lay motionless on the ground, clearly injured!
With just one blow, the intruder had swiftly taken down a fourth-level knight. Amid the astonished exclamations of the Roland family's guards, the silver figure finally came to a halt, standing in the center of the hall!
This person was undoubtedly a woman! She was tall and remarkably beautiful. Her face could rival any man's dream lover, though her lips were slightly pale, lacking some color. Despite her bright eyes, they held a chilling gaze.
Her face seemed as cold as ice, with a hint of malevolence in her expression, eyebrows raised in a mocking manner.
She wore a peculiar white light armor with intricate hollow patterns engraved on it. It was hard to believe that such elaborate engravings could adorn the already thin armor, questioning its protective capabilities.
However, Duwei and Solzkyar noticed that these patterns were magical inscriptions, possibly imbued with magical effects!
She also wore a long white cloak that trailed down to the ground behind her!
Clad in white armor and a white cloak, this woman with a delicate and beautiful face appeared as if she had emerged from the ice and snow.
Yet, none of these details were what surprised Duwei!
At this moment, our young noble, usually calm and composed, widened his eyes and stared intently at the woman before him!
This woman had long silver hair as white as snow!
Her silver hair, along with her eyes, lips, and slender nose...
Duwei's eyes widened in shock!
Because the appearance of this woman, Duwei actually recognized!
Just a few days ago, in the secret chamber beneath the study of the Roland family's castle! In that secret room below, where he discovered the secrets of astrology! That... great astrologer, magician, the creator of star magic... Saimel!
The woman in front of him... if Duwei didn't know that Saimel had died hundreds of years ago, he would have thought that the great female astrologer was standing alive before him!
From her appearance, this stranger bore an astonishing resemblance to the phantom of Saimel that Duwei had seen in the secret room!
Duwei's stunned expression might have seemed like mere shock to the others. They merely surrounded Duwei, and the foremost guards of the Roland family pointed their swords at the woman, shouting, "Audacious rebel! Dare to attack the Imperial garrison camp!"
"Hahaha..." The woman let out a cold laugh, her eyes seemingly filled with the frost of the northern lands. "I've done what I needed to. But all you know how to do is bluster and intimidate?"
With a slight lift of her finger, an ice arrow shot forth from her fingertip with a swish. Before anyone could react, the guard who had spoken moments ago was already frozen stiff, collapsing to the ground.
Her attack was sudden, with no warning at all! Finally awakening from his shock, Duwei instinctively glanced at Solzkyar beside him, and they both seemed to simultaneously realize the same thing!
Instant casting magic?!
"Roland family! Protect the master!! Charge!" One guard shouted loudly, rushing forward with his sword. Immediately, a dozen or so Roland family guards echoed his call, charging toward the woman. In an instant, they surrounded her, their swords striking from all directions!
The woman burst into laughter, and suddenly her body seemed to pivot lightly in place, creating a white halo around her! This halo emerged from her body and quickly dissipated. However, any warriors who had rushed toward her and touched the halo were immediately sent flying!
Suddenly, a dozen people were sent hurtling in all directions, crashing into walls, tables, and chairs, some even flying out of the hall!
On the ground lay numerous individuals sprawled in all directions, unconscious from whatever magic the woman had cast. Among the few left standing were Duwei and Solzkyar.
"Oh, I didn't expect there to be another mage here," the woman remarked upon seeing Solzkyar's robes, her eyes gleaming. She then sneered, "Mage! Where is your emblem? As a mage, why aren't you wearing the insignia of the Mage Guild?! What level mage are you?"
Solzkyar's face immediately reddened. His emblem had been burned by Duwei when he was initially captured. He opened his mouth to respond but found himself unable to form words.
The woman shook her head. "I didn't expect to find a mage among this small garrison. Since you're here, we can duel according to mage etiquette."
As she spoke, her silver hair gently swayed, reminiscent of the ice and snow of the northern lands. She lightly raised a finger, which immediately conjured a small mage emblem at its tip. Placing the emblem on her cloak, she impatiently said, "Alright, mage, it's your move! I prefer not to wear this emblem, so let's make this quick!"
Solzkyar almost fainted!
Make a move??
He had clearly seen it! The emblem she had just conjured was a gold three-leafed herb! It was exactly the same as Vivian's emblem! A symbol of a top-tier mage, at least of the rank of a Grand Mage!
Him, a low-level, mere first-level mage, challenging a mage of eight levels or more?
Have you ever seen a small mongrel challenging a divine dragon?
Thus, Solzkyar's response was quite direct! His throat croaked a couple of times, and then, quite simply, he tilted his head, closed his eyes, and promptly fainted on the spot!
"...," the icy beauty, witnessing the mage faint just as the battle was about to begin, paused for a moment, then sneered disdainfully, "Coward."
She then turned her gaze to the only person still standing in the hall... Duwei.
"And you? A little noble? Ah, just heard your lackeys mention you're from the Roland family, right? Are you a member of the Roland family?"
"Yes," Duwei replied with an unchanged expression. "My name is Duwei Roland. Currently serving as Vice President of the Imperial Command, Count of Raymond, and my father is the President."
The woman scrutinized Duwei carefully from head to toe. "You're just a child. How did you end up here?"
She seemed to quickly lose interest in Duwei. Raising her voice, she shouted, "Vivian! If you don't come out now, I'll raze this place to the ground! My dear sister, don't provoke my anger! Quickly hand over your little trinket!"
With a hint of impatience on her face, she suddenly spread her arms wide. Her eyes quickly turned vacant, and then, with her body as the center, a whirlwind suddenly materialized! Straight toward the ceiling!
With a deafening roar, the whirlwind effortlessly tore the roof of the hall to pieces, sending countless fragments flying in all directions. And yet, the whirlwind continued to spread slowly...
"Vivian! Do you think I won't dare? You should know, there's nothing I wouldn't dare to do in this world!"
She laughed aloud, making a peculiar gesture with her hands... and then the whirlwind intensified even further! Snowflakes even began to drift down from the surrounding air!
Snowflakes?
Hell! This is the south!
Duwei had already collapsed to the ground when the whirlwind tore through the roof.
Today, he finally experienced firsthand the powerful might of a mage! Such a mage easily dispatched numerous warriors in an instant. In the presence of a mage, these people had no chance of resistance.
Moreover... wasn't it said that mages were weak in close combat?
Could it be... looking at her armor, he had never seen a mage wear armor... unless she was proficient in both magic and combat?!
"Sis... Sis! Please, please, please stop!"
Finally, a timid and stuttering voice rang out as Vivian, wearing her mage robes, floated out from the camp. Her body hovered in midair, holding a small cage in her hand. The cage was specially made with magic runes, enough to contain the little fear phantom.
Vivian appeared frightened, as if she couldn't face her sister, only pleading, "Sis, please, please, please..."
"Poor little Vivian," the ice beauty sneered. "When will you understand that as a strong individual, you must have the courage of a strong one! You possess powerful magic, yet your courage is smaller than that of a rabbit!"
With that, she suddenly drew a peculiar long... flute from her waist!
The flute was translucent green, as if in the presence of the silver-white beauty, it finally had a hint of vibrant green. Pointing the flute at Vivian from afar, the ice beauty sneered, "Release the fear phantom! Once I obtain its horn, I'll leave. Otherwise, my dear sister, I'll make you suffer."
As she spoke, she flicked the flute, and numerous strange rings of light immediately shot out from the flute's tip. Duwei, lying on the ground, suddenly heard strange, sharp, piercing noises all around!
It was clearly a spell using soundwave attacks.
Even from his distance, the noise was unbearable, almost making him faint. One could only imagine how Vivian felt being so close.
The silly little girl seemed extremely afraid of her sister, her small body trembling as if with fear. She raised her hand and quickly chanted a spell, summoning a rhombus-shaped magical shield to block the incoming barrage of light rings. At the same time, she cried out loudly, "Sis... Sis! Jiujiu is... is... is Teacher's pet! If you... you... you kill it, Teacher will..."
"Hmph! That old man, everyone in the world is afraid of him, but not me!" The ice beauty sneered disdainfully. "I need the horn of that thing! You know it! Without it, I can't create the final magical defense weapon! Hurry up and give it to me!"
With her last word, the ice beauty's body suddenly shot forward like a silver meteor, instantly flying to Vivian's side! With one hand outstretched, she reached for the cage in Vivian's hand!
"No!" In desperation, Vivian's words were surprisingly fluent, with no hint of stuttering. Her body flashed and disappeared from where she stood, instantly reappearing ten meters away.
"Haha, my dear sister, your proficiency in the Azure Flame Movement Magic is quite impressive! But you, a cowardly person, can only use it to flee, isn't that so?" The ice mage sneered.
"Sis... Sis... Please don't force me!" Vivian's expression was on the verge of tears.
"I will force you! You poor little girl! I get angry every time I see you cry!" With a shout, the ice beauty raised her hand, and a string of mysterious and incomprehensible incantations slowly chanted from her mouth! A white mist began to appear on her palm, gradually thickening with a hint of frost spreading...
Vivian's face turned pale, and she cried out, "No, no, no, we can't use that kind of magic here!"
"Why not!" The ice beauty had finished chanting the spell. It seemed as if she was dragging a huge iceberg in her hand!
Inside the iceberg, there seemed to be some shadow desperately swirling around, ready to break out of the iceberg at any moment!
Suddenly, Vivian looked down and shouted loudly at Duwei on the ground, "You, you, you, you, you, run, run, run, quickly!!"
Duwei, lying on the ground, hesitated for a moment upon hearing Vivian's call. He could sense that the magic the ice mage was about to unleash would be extremely dangerous! But at this moment, he was just an ordinary person. How far could his legs carry him?
Before he could move, the ice mage suddenly laughed. "Oh, my poor little Vivian, why do you care so much about this young nobleman? Ah... could he be your little lover? Oh, young master of the Roland family, this fellow's status barely matches yours. He's handsome enough, but he doesn't have much talent..."
As she spoke, she suddenly beckoned to Duwei with her finger, and Duwei felt his body no longer obeying him. Suddenly, it was as if his body was bound by countless ropes, and he floated up, quickly floating to the ice mage's side.
"Vivian! Give me your little pet! Otherwise, I'll use your little lover to refine the soul essence!" A hint of malice flashed across the ice mage's face.
"N-no... it's not..." Vivian hastily argued. Suddenly, the ice mage lunged towards her again, but the little girl's instant movement magic was indeed powerful. It seemed that even the ice mage couldn't do anything about it, as fast as she was. Despite her speed, she missed her target a few times, finally raging, "If you don't listen to me again! I'll start killing people!!"
Vivian's body trembled, her face showing a pained expression, as if she had finally made a difficult decision.
She sighed inwardly: Teacher, I'm sorry, but poor little Vivian had no choice but to do this.
Finally, the silly little girl raised her head and looked at the massive iceberg being dragged by the ice mage. Her eyes showed a hint of determination. "Sis, do you... do you want to release the Ice Dragon? Then... then go ahead!"
At this moment, her determination solidified, and her stuttering problem seemed to have improved significantly.
The ice mage snorted. "Do you think I really dare not?"
She suddenly leaped into the sky, standing about twenty meters above Vivian...
A snow-like beauty, but dragging a gigantic iceberg that was many times larger than her body...
Then, the ice mage reached out and grabbed a small silver cone in the air!
She chuckled lightly, holding the cone and gently tapping it against the bottom of the iceberg...
Ding!!!
The crisp sound seemed to reverberate for miles in an instant! Even Duwei, who didn't know magic, could feel that the sound was somehow strange! This crisp impact, upon reaching the ears, seemed to extend all the way to the soul! Even the soul trembled slightly with this crisp sound!!
Eerie! Inexplicably eerie!!!
Soon after, a deafening roar emanated from within the iceberg!!
The roar was thunderous! Like a storm! Like a tsunami! It shook Duwei's body, making him feel as if he had gone limp! Although he didn't know what creature was producing the roar, an instinctual fear emanated from the depths of his being, enveloping his entire body!!
Countless tiny cracks began to spread across the surface of the iceberg!
Accompanying them were violent impacts! With each thunderous collision, it seemed as though something within the iceberg was about to break free!!
"Watch closely, little scion of the Rolin family," the ice mage sneered, tapping the iceberg with the silver cone in hand. With each tap, a crisp sound echoed through the air. Her face carried a chilling expression. "You're probably about to see a living dragon for the first time in your life!"
...A dragon??
Before there was time for astonishment, a tremendous roar resounded, and the surface of the iceberg shattered with a deafening crash! Then, a colossal head, adorned with strange horns, burst forth from the broken ice!
A resounding roar echoed throughout the heavens and earth!!
Below, poor little Vivian was already pale with fear. She tucked the small phantom creature into her robe and somehow produced a small wand from her body. Closing her eyes, her expression became solemn. Then, ancient and clear words flowed from her mouth...
In an instant, an unparalleled wall of flames surged behind her, like a tide of fire that covered the sky and earth! Within the flames, the roar of a dragon could also be heard!
Witnessing this scene, the ice mage's face suddenly paled as if struck by a heavy blow! She gritted her teeth and exclaimed, "Alright! Alright! I didn't expect that old man to pass the Crimson Flame Dragon to you!! Dear sister, let's see if today the Crimson Flame Dragon melts my Ice Dragon, or if my Ice Dragon freezes your Crimson Flame Dragon!!"
But Vivian remained silent. She raised her small wand and gently waved it a few times... Instantly, the surrounding space began to distort...
Duwei felt as if he were on a train from a previous life, as if the scenery around him were rapidly changing...
When he finally could see his surroundings clearly, he realized that he was no longer in the military camp!
Beneath his feet, he was standing on the Half Angle Mountain!!!
"Hahaha... My dear sister, you are indeed still that kind-hearted but somewhat foolish girl. Are you worried that our battle will harm innocent people? Haha... But by expending so much magic on this instant teleportation spell to bring us to this place, how much magic power will you have left to control your Crimson Flame Dragon in battle later?" Amidst the ice mage's mocking laughter, a low chant escaped her lips... And then, the iceberg shattered!!
The massive head had completely emerged, followed by a colossal creature covered in scales resembling ice and snow crystals!
Looking at the creature, which was as large as a small mountain, with strange horns on its forehead, a massive body enveloped in icy coldness, and claws the size of a carriage... Its entire body exuded an aura of frigid air, and behind it were two wings fluttering softly...
This, indeed, was the dragon of this world...