"Are you thinking of fighting me, brother?" River asked as he tilted his head. His tone was cold and emotionless.
Julius still didn't say anything and considered how he would get himself out of this situation.
His arm hadn't fully healed and was held in place by a piece of fabric, while his white robe was worn over his bloodied clothes.
"You already have one. I can't give you this," Julius said to River, as the red-haired prince walked closer.
The blue snowflake symbol on River's head suddenly glowed brightly, and the rain, which fell on them, froze before it hit the ground.
The entire temperature in the environment decreased rapidly, and the robe Julius wore made water not touch him at all.
Julius didn't have a sword anymore. He pulled out a broken blade, and a golden aura surrounded him as he let out a breath.
Slowly, the broken blade glowed before it extended to form a long sword again.
"Hm... So you've surpassed the seventh echelon. That's very impressive, even for you. Don't die quickly," River said with a smile, then ran towards Julius at full speed.
Ice seemed to rise up around them, and Julius prepared to take the attack.
He shot a beam of light towards a part of the ice, and a rope shot out, binding River's leg and pulling him up a tree.
River blinked—it had taken only a second for him to fall into the trap.
He could see Julius running away in that moment with considerable speed. River twirled his body, pulling himself up and slicing the vine holding his legs.
River came for Julius at high speed, and a few spikes were shot towards him. He looked back and dodged most of them, though a few grazed his face and arm.
River skidded on an ice road, which formed as he moved at great speed, and Julius turned again and saw this.
He came to a dead end, which led up to a tall wall. He turned to see River coming towards him.
Julius pulled out his sword and activated a full one with light essence, then went towards River.
The red-haired prince vanished from his location, striking at Julius from various angles.
Julius looked around, trying to pinpoint where River was.
'He's too fast,' he thought to himself before raising his hand to deflect an incoming attack. He fell to his knees under the strength of the blow.
He formed a ball of light and threw it towards the ground beneath him. Ice spikes grew from the ground around him.
Bang!
River was saved by the ice blocking him, and he walked towards Julius, forming a wall of ice behind him to block his path.
"I decided not to play with you at all. Hand it over," River said as he walked towards Julius. Julius sighed and opened his second eye, which had been tied shut.
His special eye activated, and he leapt over the wall of ice, running in a straight line.
"This boy... It's futile," River muttered. He sped towards Julius at great speed, turning into a blur of blue, and reached Julius' back in seconds, striking towards his neck.
Julius dodged the attack in a split second and smiled as he looked at River.
River stopped and clashed swords with Julius again. Julius felt the shock travel through his entire arm and was sent flying in a direction.
BANG!
Julius crashed against a large tree, coughing out blood as he struggled to breathe.
He glanced forward to see River coming towards him in the form of a blue light, and he sped away from there.
He reached a small pond, and with his vision, he was able to see a pathway underneath that would lead back to a river from before.
Taking a deep breath, he dived into the water, heading towards the hole as he swam.
It was his first time ever swimming in both worlds, but he demonstrated what he had seen others do and moved into the hole.
He didn't panic, even though he could already feel himself losing air.
River reached the location of the tree and saw the bloodied bark. He looked around for Julius, and his eyes went to the water, where traces of blood were spreading. He smiled.
"So, you want to hide from me..." River said in a cold, emotionless tone. He froze the water's surface, creating a thick wall of ice to block the entrance.
He then walked off...
Around the area, there were still the assassins who had been watching all this time. Once they saw Julius' fate, the leader, who had an injured knee, glanced at the other members.
"It's done. We should return," he said and walked off.
He really wanted revenge on the prince, but with the way things played out, his mission here was complete either way. ...
Sasha stood up from her seat, her purple eyes glaring at the projection in front of her as she looked at the other royals there.
"Now that's just brutal..." Berlin mumbled as he saw River's actions.
Margaret stared hard at the water and then stood up from her seat, leaping over the platform.
She flew at great speed towards the location where Julius was trapped. Her speed was far faster than the bird from before.
She arrived in less than three seconds and punched the surface of the ice, breaking through the half-meter-thick layer with ease.
She swam inside, though she couldn't see well because of all the blood, which slightly changed the color of the water.
She boosted towards the bottom, searching for any signs of her son.
After more than three minutes, she emerged from the water, her expression grim. She was filled with rage as she realized what River had done.
She flew back to the floating platform and sat down again. The entire place went silent as Julius wasn't found.
This was the last day of the first round, so it was supposed to be an easy win for him. Who would've guessed he would encounter a monster like River? ...
River, on the other hand, sat within the cave Julius used to live in, seeing the bones of creatures Julius had probably eaten.
River sighed as he looked out of the cave.
"It's really sad that you died this way. I was rooting for you too..." River said, picking up a bone and tracing a pattern on the ground.
"Because you're just like me. We were... all alone when we were powerless." He thought with a sad smile as he relaxed on the walls.