RE: Player again

370

[Chapter 109]

[The Monster Was Someone Else (3)]

Cheers could already be heard.

Eunha who was advancing towards the stage where the comprehensive division competition is held every year stopped his steps at the sound coming from far away.

How many people came to see this match.

Eunha thought they were people with nothing to do.

What's so fun about other people's fights.

The graduation ceremony match was just a simple competition commemorating graduation. It wasn't a place industry officials should pay much attention to.

Even if they came to see Ryu Yeonhwa's match.

Moreover, Ryu Yeonhwa's clan recruitment had already ended with Regulus Clan.

But looking at the chat friends sent earlier, reputable players were taking seats in the audience.

Did they come to see Yeonhwa noona?

The curiosity was brief.

Eunha didn't care either way.

He stepped towards the exit where dazzling light was leaking in, as if contrasting with the dark hallway.

"......"

More than the lighting shining down from the ceiling.

The presence of people filling the audience seats caught Eunha's attention.

But that was only for a moment.

Soon Eunha who lowered his gaze directed his eyes to the person waiting for him after arriving at the arena first.

Her aura is no joke.

Blue hair tied in a single braid reminiscent of a blue hydrangea.

Snow-white skin like an ice crystal without any impurities.

She who looked slender, however, had the muscle strength to freely wield a spear as tall as herself, not a woman who seemed like she would break too easily.

Nevertheless, setting those aside, she, Ryu Yeonhwa was emitting an aura that would naturally make one feel intimidated just by standing there.

"Did you wait long?"

"No. I just arrived."

But Eunha wasn't intimidated.

Even if her aura was different from usual.

He climbed the stairs without showing any reaction.

When he finally stood in front of her, people in the audience cheered loudly.

Nevertheless, the two ignored it.

They just focused on each other.

"I've been waiting for this day."

"Really?"

"Yeah."

Since the day Yeonhwa proposed the match, the two gave up morning training and avoided matches as much as possible.

Only for this day.

She wanted to have a match with him giving her all during that time.

Eunha clearly felt her mindset.

"One round?"

"One round."

Nevertheless, the two exchanged signals as they always did.

That was the start.

Ignoring the sound signaling the start, the two drew their weapons immediately.

Hanmae-ryu

Silver Wind

She was relentless from the start.

The mana wrapped around the spear she instantly brought from behind her back to the front tore apart as if scattering.

The blue mana turned into ice particles and instantly became a fierce storm.

And the spear that moved secretly within the storm drew a silver line and─

─Mana Crasher

However, just as she was relentless from the start.

Eunha also instantly exploded the mana contained in Black Thorn.

At that moment, the storm gradually subsided.

""......"

But what comes after the storm subsides is another storm.

It was calm before the storm.

Hanmae-ryu (Cold Plum Style)

Ice Rink

Thousand Steps

The two who didn't take their eyes off each other immediately moved their feet.

Eunha quickly retreated backwards, and Yeonhwa soared high into the sky on an ice path created with mana.

Hanmae-ryu

Monsoon Rain

Ryu Yeonhwa with her back to the lighting swung her spear with all her might.

It was then that countless icicles that seemed like they would pierce the heart fell.

A wide-area magic where each one had heavy mass.

He threw his body towards the outskirts of the arena before they fell.

But there was nowhere to avoid.

Because the entire arena was within her attack range.

"...Kuk...!!"

The first icicle that fell shattered and scattered cold air.

Starting with that, white rippling cold air filled the arena.

Along with that, he whose view was blocked clicked his tongue softly and swung his sword.

Relying on instinct and anywhere.

Gwangmu

As if becoming one with the sword.

Eunha swung his sword like crazy.

The icicles shattered by the sword broke and tried to grab him while exhaling cold air around.

But the more Eunha swung his sword, the more nimble and sharper his movements became.

Before he knew it, the mana he emitted outside his body was forged like a sharp blade and broke the heavily pouring ice rain.

Burst Counter

When the rain stream finally weakened.

The floor was covered in ice.

He could no longer move.

At that moment, Eunha struck the ground with his reddish rippling blade towards the residual mana permeating the arena.

"...!"

A sound tearing through the air burst out.

As ripples spread centered on Eunha, residual mana touched by the spreading ripples writhed dynamically.

Explosion called explosion.

Mana dissolving in the atmosphere squeezed out its remaining power again.

However, the direction of the explosion surged towards her descending the ice path leisurely, not him.

As if receiving back exactly what she had done so far.

No, as if receiving it back double.

Chain explosions struck her.

Hanmae-ryu (Cold Plum Style)

Vajra

The protective magic surrounding the outskirts of the arena shook violently.

An ear-deafening explosion burst out and dyed the view pure white.

When light finally cleared from the world.

There was a sphere on the shattered floor.

The ice sphere made of several layers was barely maintaining its form.

Tok

Tuduk

Really barely.

If the explosion had been even a little longer, the sphere would have completely shattered.

...Amazing.

Ice particles crumbling powerlessly.

Ryu Yeonhwa standing where the protective magic broke was still looking at Eunha while raising the corners of her mouth.

Just breathing heavily.

That was the same for Eunha too.

Hanmae-ryu─

Mana Crasher

Now it was the second round.

☆

As expected of Yeonhwa noona.

Worthy of being called .

Eunha thought while clashing sword and spear with her.

Because she was fine even after taking a direct hit from the magic he put his heart and soul into creating.

Burst Counter.

The magic composed in his own way using Artifact Arrogance's counterattack as a textbook forcibly reactivated residual mana to cause explosions.

Although it didn't reach Arrogance's counterattack, it should have dealt some damage.

However, she just panted after consuming internal mana.

Admiration and lamentation intersected.

If only I had more internal mana...

Until now, he had just thought of her as a product of talent and effort.

But actually having a match giving his all like this, he could realize how important talent was.

If he had just a little more internal mana.

Then he would have deployed wide-area magic without hesitation like her without considering front or back.

But for him with little internal mana, just deploying Burst Counter was enough to make him lose strength.

Again...!

Unfortunately, his internal mana showed no signs of increasing anymore.

Although his internal mana had increased somewhat compared to his previous life, it was still an unsatisfactory state for him.

Therefore, he clicked his tongue facing ice covering him like a tidal wave from left and right.

He couldn't escape.

In the end, he had no choice but to face it head-on.

Completely out of standard.

How on earth am I supposed to fight?

Honestly, Eunha was inwardly flustered.

Because she wasn't an opponent he could kill.

He couldn't use magic suitable for killing.

If this was a real battle, he would have stabbed the opponent with his sword before even such a sign appeared.

But because it was a fair match, he couldn't deviate from the right path.

It wasn't this hard even when fighting that Kang Hyunchul bastard before...

And Ryu Yeonhwa's was too annoying.

The Gift that turned into ice the moment it manifested had very diverse uses.

Because ice became a sharp weapon while also becoming a restraint that captured the opponent.

Even more so since cold air rippled around additionally every time it manifested.

Ryu Yeonhwa freely switched between offense and defense using her Gift while launching wide-area attacks.

Also, the moment Eunha barely broke through the magic and escaped hardship─

Cheng

─Ryu Yeonhwa hiding in the cold air appeared right up close.

Generally, people who focus on wide-area attacks tend to be weak to close-range attacks, but she had no such weakness.

As a result, it felt even more difficult in terms of difficulty than taking down Tredici Zenko Myron from Italy a few years ago.

Invisible Tracker

Revolver Thorn

The fortunate fact was that cowardice didn't exist for Ryu Yeonhwa.

She who purely trained in spear techniques revealed openings to Eunha's combat techniques learned to survive in his previous life.

Of course, Ryu Yeonhwa responded to grappling techniques at such a fast pace while growing during battle.

...She's gotten stronger.

Eunha who somehow survived from the collapsing ice tsunami evaluated Ryu Yeonhwa rushing at him.

Ryu Yeonhwa was gradually getting stronger through this match.

Eunha couldn't help but think that seeing ice not yet completely frozen rippling vividly like waves then soaring in a crown shape.

This technique was magic Ryu Yeonhwa who became used as a finishing move towards opponents cornered.

Hanmae-ryu (Cold Plum Style)

Undecided

Magic whose name hasn't been decided yet.

It was proof that she evolved in this place.

Eunha gritted his teeth in astonishment. He just wanted to know what Ryu Yeonhwa realized in this match.

Wait, that means...

Eunha checked his situation.

He didn't know since when.

Before he knew it, he was caught in the trap she laid.

He kept trying to lift his feet from the snow-covered floor, but his shoe soles were stuck to the floor unable to move.

Moreover, what about Black Thorn?

Snow and ice were thickly stuck all over the blade like snow piled on tree branches in severe cold.

The hand gripping the sword hilt was tightly stuck unable to let go.

This is why is scary.

If it was flames, he could just break through.

But ice was this annoying.

The reason she kept using wide-area magic since starting the match was probably to create a stage for herself.

Stygian Eye

Phantom Eye

But she wasn't the only one who grew.

Eunha looked at Yeonhwa swinging her spear above his head.

Her mind had no gaps but.

Fear that dug in for just a moment momentarily disrupted her mana control.

Magic not yet properly mastered weakened in control because of that.

As her eyes turned towards the spell formula, Eunha implanted his illusion.

The fear she saw for a moment soon provided a place for illusions to sprout in her.

Ryu Yeonhwa's movements became strange.

Become confused.

And right at that moment.

Eunha who broke the magic holding his ankles ran towards her.

She tried to quickly come to her senses, but he was faster injecting mana into the spell formula that escaped control.

His magic that hadn't yet formed a complete spell formula tangled her spell formula.

But with just that, she had to struggle to fully restore the spell formula.

Otherwise, she would take a big hit to her mana circuit due to backlash.

Mana Crasher

Fast.

It probably wasn't even a few seconds.

She who was spinning her spear like a windmill above her head stepped back extending both arms in front of her chest and thrusting forward.

She who quickly fixed her spell formula blocked his attack that came in close.

But Eunha who gained an opportunity showed no signs of retreating.

It became a situation where he kept pressing and she kept retreating.

Hanmae-ryu

Silver Wind

Ice Rink

But the reason she kept retreating was to create distance.

And to lure him.

Yeonhwa who turned crisis into opportunity soon created a blizzard blocking vision and disappeared into the storm.

Eunha who deployed detection nets tried to quickly chase after her, but Ryu Yeonhwa had already reached the ceiling through an uphill path made of ice.

And she standing at the highest place was looking down at him while preparing the magic that failed earlier.

Hanmae-ryu

...Cage

It wasn't much time.

She completed the undecided magic.

Ice stems that spread like a crown centered on Eunha were bending in curves and narrowing to capture him.

Breaking through the solid ice wall was nearly impossible.

Even in his previous life, targets captured by that magic ended there.

Although it's just a few branches now, Ryu Yeonhwa's cage magic attacked from all directions divided into dozens of branches.

Amazing, really.

I don't even need to lose on purpose.

Eunha had to acknowledge again.

The skills of Ryu Yeonhwa who will be called .

There was no need to deliberately lose to her to hide his skills.

This much and she would be satisfied giving her all too.

So losing like this would make a very pretty picture.

I can't lose like this.

But his thoughts changed.

He didn't like people talking about his defeat.

Above all, Eunha also wanted to confirm his skills like Ryu Yeonhwa.

How far he could go.

How far his power worked.

He wanted to check.

─Arrogance's Counterattack

Eunha blew mana into the artifact looking at ice stems flying towards him twisting branches like a pretzel.

The necklace reacted.

At that moment, a counter magic fiercer than Burst Counter activated.

All ice branches flying towards him returned to her.

Anyway─

─Let's fight a bit more, noona.

He had no intention of backing down easily.

Eunha raised the corners of his mouth towards her in the snowstorm.