" Well, which one of you should I kill first? "
The appearance of an enemy figure among them alerted Thomas and Ichirou. Moreover, with the huge mana wave similar to the monster's mana they fell from this unknown enemy.
Even so, Ichirou and Thomas knew that the enemy in front of them was strong, but they still maintained calm when analyzing the enemy. Moreover, the calm atmosphere around them made them even more alert.
When the tension rose they immediately raised their mana and prepared to fight. Enormous mana immediately swirled around them filling the room with a huge wave of mana.
There was one strange thing that they felt, namely that no Hunters came despite the large waves of mana they released, and the fact that they were near the Central Tower made the two even more confused. Both Ichirou and Thomas immediately realized that fact and felt the strangeness of their situation. No one came and the situation around them was too quiet, as if they were in separate spaces. Seeing their reaction, the enemy just smiled.
" That's right, this place has been isolated from the outside world. "
" Who are you? "
Not answering Ichirou's question, the figure then raised his hand, and ice shards quickly formed around him. Instantly the ice shards immediately attacked them. The speed of the ice was very fast but they were still able to avoid it.
The environment around them was immediately damaged by falling pieces of ice and the room temperature quickly dropped drastically. Ice shards scattered everywhere and a light mist formed around them.
Seeing his target escape so easily, the old man once again snorted. He thought they would get away with it and it still didn't change anything.
The first attack was meant to be a test, but the next attack was the real deal. As the room temperature dropped further, tens to hundreds of ice needles the size of spears immediately formed in the air and aimed at the two of them. Without giving them any time to breathe, the needles immediately rained down on them at a terrifying speed.
While Ichirou was busy dodging, Thomas was still able to stay where he was well. He didn't dodge, in his hands golden armor formed and he repelled all the attacks that came towards him. Even so, in this fight, Ichirou was quite at a disadvantage because he didn't carry a weapon, while Thomas looked fine because his weapon was his own body.
The attacks continued until Ichirou was cornered. Having nowhere else to dodge, Ichirou then focused his mana into his hands and formed a mana blade. He then slashed all the ice needles that came attacking him.
But even so, some of the needles finally escaped and managed to leave wounds on him. Without giving a pause, the enemy suddenly appeared in front of Ichirou and attacked him using Ice Breath Attack which made Ichirou trapped in a block of ice. Realizing one of his opponents was missing, he turned his attention to his main prey.
The old man walked towards Thomas, in his hand a spear was formed which he pointed at him. Thomas could feel a strong killing aura radiating from the old man. Even though he flinched a little, he still tried to maintain his composure. He looked at the enemy in front of him who still had a calm face.
" Who are you? "
" I hoped you would recognize me without me telling you, but it seems you are still a mere human after all. "
" So are you saying you're not human? Then, are you the perpetrator who killed Cristopher? "
Instead of answering, the old man immediately launched an attack on Thomas. Thomas immediately parried the attack which caused him to be pushed back. Thomas immediately counterattacked by throwing his fist at his enemy. However, his attack was immediately blocked by a chunk of ice that suddenly formed between them. As the distance was regained, three ice spears struck him again with terrifying speed.
Thomas managed to repel the attack, but he was too late to notice the appearance of his opponent who was already swinging a scythe made of ice behind him, aiming for his head.
Thomas managed to survive thanks to the golden armor that protected him in time. The old man looked at Thomas' body covered in golden armor and his only response was brief interest.
" I see, so even a mere human can use Spiritual Body Manifestation "
" You better shut up if you don't want to answer my question. "
With a threatening tone, Thomas raised his hand and aimed it at the old man. Soon the old man could feel his body being pulled towards Thomas. And when he reached Thomas a fist finally hit him in the face followed by a barrage of fists that trapped him in the rubble.
Even though he seemed superior, Thomas somehow got the feeling that he would lose. And sure enough, his performance immediately stopped due to the cold feeling prickling at his neck. He noticed the attack coming from behind him and immediately dodged.
As the dust slowly faded, how surprised he was to see his opponent standing behind him holding a large scythe unharmed. Realizing this, Thomas immediately turned to where he was before and he could see pieces of crushed ice there.
" To think that a mere vessel of brilliant light shards could be this strong. "
Thomas' surprise didn't stop there when behind the old man several golems made of ice appeared. Thomas could feel a wave of cold, powerful mana penetrating his armor and felt like it was piercing his skin. The mana that spread around him was even able to freeze the air around him to the point that ice shards even formed on his arms.
" I've seen all your tricks "
At the same time as he said that, the golems immediately attacked Thomas, the attacks didn't just stop there. The ice needle attacks rained down on him once again. The continuous attacks on him managed to corner Thomas. Some of the attacks even managed to peel off his armor and leave several quite serious wounds on his body.
Ichirou, who was trapped in a block of ice, couldn't help but watch Thomas' entire fight with this unknown enemy figure. He had tried to escape from the ice prison, but all his efforts were in vain. He felt helpless by just being trapped in a block of ice without being able to help.
However, when he witnessed Thomas being cornered, Ichirou could feel a foreign force immediately enter him and even take over his consciousness. Despite losing control of his body, Ichirou still knows what happened and he can also see him breaking the ice prison that confined him and even attacking the unknown enemy right before he could take Thomas' life.
The attack Ichirou gave was even able to send the old man flying until he hit the barrier he created. Even though he was thrown far away, the old man got up from the rubble while wearing a faint smile.
" You finally showed yourself, Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light "
The dust smoke slowly faded revealing Ichirou's new figure covered in a golden aura standing in front of the injured Thomas. With his consciousness almost lost, Thomas noticed Ichirou's figure which was very different from his previous figure. Both the aura and mana he felt from him were completely different as if he had become a different person.
" You isolated the surroundings from the outside world and trapped it in a dimensional gap, not bad. "
" I've been looking for you for a long time. To think that you're having a hard time just using your power in that weak vessel. We've found the location of all your 7 fragments, we've destroyed 2 of them and have added one more.
What I want to see is the shame on your face that proud before I killed you. Now that I've seen it, I can destroy you without regret. "
" Just try if you can, Frost Monarch! "
As he said that, the golden mana surrounding Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's body increased even more intensely, following his will to fight.
" So you chose to fight? How stupid. You who only borrowed a human body, against me, who has already mastered one. Do you really think you can land even one hit on me? "
Tensions rose between the two of them, and quickly both of them immediately attacked each other. The clash of gold and blue forces occurred again and the barrier was once again filled with a mana storm. Attack after attack continued to be launched targeting each other's vital points.
Even though the battle was so intense, the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's side was at a disadvantage. Not only was the body he was using already quite injured but if the fight dragged on for a long, the body containing his power would be destroyed. To avoid this, Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light immediately focused its strength on its fist, intending to end the fight.
A huge explosion occurred when the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's fist hit the Frost Monarch's ice shield. The explosion caused water vapor accompanied by ice fragments to scatter in the air. Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's attacks didn't stop there, and through the gap created, Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's free hand formed a mana blade and managed to injure the Frost Monarch.
Although this achievement was not a big thing, it managed to irritate the Frost Monarch. As a result, he then formed a trident in his hand and immediately charged towards the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light.
A clash of weapons broke out once again between the Forst Monarch's trident and the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's mana blade. Once again the two ended up tied in terms of both speed and strength. This again harmed the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light which had almost reached his limit, which Frost Monarch was also aware of.
Amid their intense battle, the Frost Monarch suddenly changed the direction of his attack and immediately threw his trident at Thomas who was still lying weak with blood flowing from his mouth. Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light immediately realized the Frost Monarch's intentions and immediately blocked the trident before it could reach Thomas. But unfortunately, he failed to realize the surprise attack hidden behind it which ended up leaving a gaping hole right in his heart.
The attack that Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light thought was intended for Thomas was just a diversion and the attack was actually intended for him. Without being able to respond, he let his vessel's heart be pierced by the Frost Monarch's hand.
While the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light spewed blood from his mouth, the Frost Monarch spoke again, hurling insults at his greatest enemy.
" How long do you think it will take to find a new vessel? one year? two years? unfortunately for you, our forces have already gathered. This world will be destroyed before you return. Your mistake was trying to protect this world. do you really think you can beat me without your guard? "
Despite the ridicule and pain he felt, Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light laughed. He gripped the Frost Monarch's arm tightly and didn't let go. The Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's actions made the Frost Monarch quite confused. But when he looked into the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's eyes, he could see that the enthusiasm had not yet died out in his eyes.
" You thought I fought against you for no reason? Just as we couldn't have predicted that you would follow in our footsteps, there's something important you're also missing. "
" Something I miss? "
With the last trace of power left in the body, the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light launched the final attack on the Frost Monarch. Even though he was almost hit by the attack, the final attack flew by and hit the barrier instead. Seeing this naturally made the Frost Monarch laugh.
" Damn, you almost hit me. Don't tell me this is something important you're talking about. "
While maintaining his smile, the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light answered.
" that's right "
Soon cracking sounds followed by sounds of objects breaking could be heard throughout the barrier. Frost Monarch noticed that Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light's last attack managed to break his barrier, but it didn't make a difference. That was before he noticed a strange movement in the shadow of the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light.
The moment the crack formed the shadow soldier hiding behind Ichirou's shadow immediately took the opportunity to escape from the barrier and immediately informed his king that the person assigned to him was in danger. Watching the shadow army rushing past them, Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light laughed. He glanced disdainfully at the Frost Monarch who looked shocked to realize the true danger one weak shadow soldier posed.
" kukuku... just so you know Frost Monarch, the owner of the death really cares about the owner of this body. I wonder if you can overcome his fury. "
As if to prove what the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light said, the barrier that was supposed to separate them from the outside world suddenly broke. From behind the remaining fragments, a black shadow immediately entered and charged towards the Frost Monarch at a terrifying speed.
The Frost Monarch who couldn't respond ended up being strangled in the hands of a black-haired young man. His blue eyes radiated a piercing coldness and a thick killing aura that made even the Monarch of Frost flinch.
Their eyes met and she could see the immense anger radiating from his abyss-like blue eyes. Seeing this, the Frost Monarch finally realized what he had missed that the Brightest Fragment of Brilliant Light said. Namely, about the existence of the Shadow Monarch who he had forgotten among the humans he was targeting.
" You, I'll kill you!... "
.