How to survive in the Romance Fantasy Game Chapter 706: Frozen Trials 13 Interlude

[High Grade Ice Magic]

[Frost Nova]

SWOOOSHHH!!

BOOOOMMM!!!

The incantation plunged down like a frosty comet straight from the skies, smashing into the earth.

A surge of icy blue power exploded in all directions, swallowing whatever stood in its way.

The atmosphere turned solid in an instant, the soil split under heavy sheets of ice, and the ambient mana appeared to harden from its power.

In one instant—

Every spot inside its reach got locked in profound ice.

Not destroyed.

Not scattered.

Merely... encased.

Totally.

Absolutely.

All the way to the depths.

It lacked the highest speed.

Nor did it boast the flashiest destruction.

Yet its real peril hid in another place.

It bypassed all protections.

Armor, shields, resistances—nothing counted.

Caught inside its zone, the chill would inevitably find you.

Inevitable.

Unescapable.

"...So this is my current limit..."

Celestine eased her hand down a bit, breathing out a light vapor while eyeing the iced-over terrain ahead.

"I hoped to shrink the damage zone further..."

Her brows knit together faintly.

"...but I suppose I can’t demand more from my body."

Despite restraining it, the magic spanned a broad expanse. Such precise command proved tough—particularly given the ongoing toll on her physique.

"You’re truly odd for a human."

Anica stood next to her with arms folded, gazing at the icy ruins with a mildly disinterested expression.

"I find your magic incredible already..."

She shot a look at Celestine.

"...imagine if you stopped holding it back."

"Well," Celestine answered offhandedly, flicking some frost from her sleeve, "trouble brews if I unleash it fully."

"Hmm..."

Anica seemed far from persuaded.

Her eyes narrowed a touch as she cocked her head.

"Then why conceal it from Aunty to begin with?"

She gestured toward the village.

"You enjoy her drilling you on beginner basics? Well... super basic for you."

Celestine halted briefly.

"...No, not at all."

She averted her gaze a smidge before adding.

"It’s simply that... Mother seems to want me lacking great skill in ice magic."

Anica blinked in surprise.

"I doubt that’s true..."

"Well," Celestine responded with a light shrug, "you haven’t stayed with us long enough."

She gave a subtle smile her way.

"I understand Mother best."

"What!?"

Anica puffed out her cheeks right away.

"I know Aunty best!"

Celestine couldn’t resist.

Any poke about her mother rattled Anica instantly.

For a dragon, she stayed far too youthful... too straightforward... too pure.

And somehow—

That rendered her all the cuter to Celestine.

Years flowed by since they started covert high-tier magic training, away from Elea’s gaze.

Modest tests evolved into daily habit.

Initial wonder grew into expertise.

And today—

Childhood lay behind them.

At minimum, for Celestine.

Her form had matured, traits sharpened, aura steadied. A subtle grace clung to her, pulling eyes effortlessly.

Anica had developed too, but differently.

She remained... Anica.

Animated.

Direct.

Quick to irk.

Emotions worn bare.

And over those years...

Little shifted.

Beyond Anica’s abrupt arrival that day Celestine rescued her, the trial stayed nearly unchanged.

Invisible barriers persisted.

She couldn’t stray past the village.

Couldn’t venture into the forest’s depths.

No matter her rising strength...

Those bounds never eased.

As though the world blocked her advance.

Thus day by day—

Year upon year—

Celestine passed her hours identically.

Honing magic.

Hunting leads.

And devoting spare moments... to Anica.

In truth, it eased burdens.

The isolation.

The doubt.

The trial’s creeping chokehold.

Anica lightened it.

Made it endurable.

Yet simultaneously...

A new restlessness stirred inside.

Another form of worry.

For despite endless time—

Stagnation ruled.

The trial offered no end signals.

No clues.

No guidance.

No evident goal.

What unlocked its completion?

She remained clueless.

Even today.

And with days dragging on...

Celestine spotted a faint shift.

Something undeniable.

She transformed.

Or better—

She morphed into another self.

Into... Celestine.

Surpassing her Snow identity.

It stayed subtle.

Imperceptible to others.

But she sensed it.

In her pauses.

In her deliberate thoughts over rash acts.

In her freer emotions.

Experiences alien to Snow—

Doubt.

Prudence.

Raw sentiments.

Instants where heart led mind.

It seemed odd.

Strange.

Nearly disturbing.

As if an entity nibbled gradually at her former self.

Not sudden.

Not brutal.

But steadily.

Silently.

Bit by bit.

And as time advanced...

Distinguishing Snow’s end—

From Celestine’s start grew tougher.

Once she even pondered her true self....

And merely glancing in the mirror—

The same one for affirming her real name—

She detected it.

That minor... unease.

A subtle detachment.

Hearing Snow rang unnatural now.

Remote.

As if it fit another person.

Her past self.

But what worsened it—

Was Riley.

Just his name in thought...

Voiced inwardly...

Emptiness reigned.

No affection.

No draw.

No boundless emotion once so certain.

Just void.

A empty gap once filled with treasure.

That fact alone—

Sent chills through her.

Her grip tightened faintly as she gazed at her image.

This is dangerous...

No—

Far graver than dangerous.

If unchecked...

Transformation wouldn’t suffice.

The trial would consume her wholly.

Obliterate.

Supplant.

To avert that—

A shift must occur.

One she dodged throughout.

One postponed... due to Celestine.

Her feelings.

Her bonds.

Her reluctance.

A reality she evaded.

Her mother’s reality.

And a choice—

A step—

Never boldly taken.

To deliberately fail the trial.

A soft breath slipped free.

Her resolve... solidified.

This day—

She’d embrace it.

Clutching her white staff tight, she faced Anica.

No trace of doubt in her face.

It shone firm.

Solemn.

Determined.

"Hm? What?" Anica cocked her head, sensing the shift.

"Anica..." Celestine spoke evenly. "Could I request a favor?"

"Favor?" Anica creased her brow slightly. "Do we need formalities like that between us?"

"I value your faith," Celestine murmured gently. "But this request... you won’t approve."

Anica’s forehead wrinkled.

"I wouldn’t approve?"

"Yes."

A brief lull.

Then—

"What do you need me to do?"

Celestine held her stare.

"I want you to kill me."

"...."

Silence descended.

The woods appeared to ice over.

Breeze halted.

Foliage stilled.

Remote life sounds vanished, as reality held back.

Anica stayed mute.

Immobile.

Breathless.

For an instant—

Time froze solid.

....

Long ago—

A frost beast roamed.

A ancient horror spawned from abyss’s chillest voids.

It exceeded mere power.

It defied nature.

An entity never meant to be.

Its essence warped terrain, iced vast lands, and loomed to engulf the continent in perpetual freeze.

Yet—

It fell.

Not to one.

But four.

The Hero, Galahan.

The Saintess, Minerva.

The Warrior, Cedric.

And the Frost Witch... Elea.

United, they battled.

United, they persisted.

And ultimately—

Victory came.

But at steep cost.

The Hero perished.

The Saintess endured... shattered, form mangled and spirit scarred by an incurable hex.

The Warrior lived... yet sanity fled, leaving him a vacant wanderer.

And Elea—

She forfeited all.

Her allies.

Her drive.

Her former existence.

...

When Elea first cradled Celestine—

Joy evaded her first.

Not solace.

Not dread.

Pity struck.

And remorse.

Why...

Why did I pick this path?

Even now—

No answer surfaced.

That instant back then...

Mind emptied.

All visible—

The infant clutched close.

"Uwaahh...!!"

Wailing.

Frail.

Defenseless.

Nestled to her bosom, bloodied still, delivered amid howling blizzard.

That tiny, delicate being...

Wasn’t monstrous.

No disaster.

No apocalypse.

Just—

A newborn.

Despite the ancient frost beast’s malediction etched in her essence.

Despite Elea’s foreknowledge of her destiny.

Despite grasping—

More than any—

This girl might doom all.

She wavered.

For in her grasp—

No "fiend."

No "menace."

Only a fresh soul thrust into harsh reality.

...

She recognized the proper path.

Terminate.

Then and there.

Ere it stirred.

Ere the malediction roused.

Ere the realm suffered.

Ere Eternal Winter recurred.

Swift demise.

Without pain.

That equaled compassion.

That meant duty.

That demanded action.

...

Yet she refrained.

Hands stayed limp.

Fingers loose.

Instead—

She drew the babe nearer.

Sheltered from gale.

Guarded from freeze.

...

Why?

Even today—

Elea lacks clarity.

She shunned recollection.

Shunned excuses.

For inwardly—

She comprehended.

No rationale drove that choice.

No cause.

No virtue.

Merely one egotistical impulse—

She was just a baby.

Reflecting now

All she remembered from then—

Was a vow.

A frantic one.

"Please... look after Celestine... please, I implore you, Elea..."

Minerva’s tone.

Fading.

Cracking.

Gripping a threadbare lifeline.

...

Why heed it?

Even now—

It baffled.

Elea knew.

More than all.

Minerva’s borne child defied normalcy.

From birth, truth dawned—

The infant housed the slain beast’s soul.

Calamity.

Reincarnated.

Even as dearest friend’s offspring—

The Hero.

Even as Saintess’s heir—

Minerva.

Nothing altered.

Elea held power.

She might’ve halted it.

Right then.

Before onset.

So why hold back?

Optimism?

That perhaps—

Perchance—

The girl evaded monstrosity?

That destiny bent?

...

No.

Such weak faith faded quick.

The instant Elea sensed it—

The instant she witnessed it—

That aberrant frost surge within the babe...

That immense ice bond...

She knew.

Reality endured.

Doom lingered.

Awaiting.

Thus—

Once more....

Why?

Why spare her life?

...

"Ah, mother, we’re back... uhm, you didn’t wait too long, right?"

"Aunty! Let me tell you this—Celestine just asked me to—"

"Now now... hush," Celestine bent close, murmuring into Anica’s ear.

The young dragon froze up.

Then fell silent.

"...."

Elea let out a gentle laugh at the familiar scene.

"I didn’t wait long," she replied kindly. "I bet you two enjoyed... private moments in town. Girls require that now and then, don’t they?"

A playful grin curved her mouth.

"Anyway, supper’s set. Come, sit down."

"Really!? Let’s go, Celestine!"

Anica bolted off eagerly, her vigor lighting the space as she headed to the kitchen.

Celestine trailed calmly, more poised.

And while passing—

She grinned.

A slight, genuine grin.

...

Witnessing it—

Elea sensed peace fill her heart.

A serene glow.

A reassurance unquestioned.

...

Yes.

Perhaps that explained it.

Perhaps—

It stemmed from that.

That plain, self-centered motive.

That grin.

That glow.

That existence she vowed to guard.

Her daughter’s life.