18. Assault (3)
For those who fight, maintaining balance is an extremely crucial factor—especially for someone like Karla, who belongs to the Martial Arts School.
Karla was feeling this acutely, to the bone, right now.
There was no way she could get up.
Even when she tried pressing her still relatively functional right arm against the ground, she couldn’t muster enough strength. Her body tilted to the left, and she almost tumbled forward onto the floor. With great difficulty, she managed to kneel without collapsing.
Through her blurred vision, she saw Venere being tossed around like a ragdoll by the powerful gusts.
The sigh that escaped her lungs became a hollow laugh, diffusing aimlessly into the air.
“…How…how can he be this strong?”
Was it because he could discharge magic power externally?
Even Venere, who had managed to counterattack several times and had once put Karla on the defensive, was now being flung about like a toy by the gusts.
“Karla, are you alright!? Goodness me, you…”
Karla slightly turned her head towards the voice of Albina coming from the side.
Staring at Karla’s shoulder, Albina’s pale face reflected her shock as she seemed at a loss for what to do.
“…The wound…is severe…”
“That’s not the problem right now…! Your arm…”
Another gust swept Venere up into the air.
Ivan, standing there, kicked Venere off like a toy.
Venere crashed into the ground, creating a large cloud of dust.
Venere, staggering and cursing, managed to get back up but her back was still turned to Karla.
As Ivan slowly approached Venere, Karla’s face froze when she caught sight of Ivan’s expression.
That face…that expression…it was imprinted in Karla’s memory.
Ten years ago, it was this same look that brought a miserable defeat to Carla, who was then named Carlo.
It wasn’t a sinister expression contorted in rage or one filled with fury like an evil spirit’s.
It simply lacked any emotion at all. That emotionless face bore down on her with a sinister oppressive aura that she couldn’t shake off—
“Dammmit, already…!”
Venere spread her palm out to the side.
A magical wind began to gather, distorting the empty space, and a large elliptical dimensional portal yawned open.
“There’s no escape.”
As Venere spoke, Ivan also extended his hand.
A far more intense surge of magic power erupted from him, pressing down on the dimensional portal. The overwhelming magical pressure suppressed the space.
“What…breaking a dimensional portal is impossible…!”
As Venere panicked and cried out, with a sound like shattering glass, the dimensional portal exploded.
“…It’s broken…?”
“Did you really think you could escape after doing this to Karla?”
Ivan slowly approached Venere.
Standing face-to-face with her, Ivan extended his index finger and casually waved it in front of Venere’s face.
“That won’t do. You broke Karla’s arm; now you must give your life.”
“Wha, wha, what…?”
Venere’s complexion drained of blood.
She wasn’t just pale—she looked like a corpse.
Even Karla was pale.
That voice, that tone…everything was exactly the same as Ivan’s from ten years ago.
“Karla’s arm is worth more than your life.”
Ivan’s voice was otherworldly.
Karla was watching Ivan’s face closely from behind Venere.
Her sole remaining right hand was trembling, and cold sweat poured down her face.
Yes, that face…
That voice…
It was exactly the same as ten years ago. Not only had it not changed, but it now carried a superior terror that weighed down on her.
It weighed down on her.
It weighed down on her—literally as Ivan pressed his palm down onto Venere’s head.
“So now, die.”
“M-mu, mu, mu…ah, aaaaah?!”
Flames erupted from Venere’s body.
The flames consumed her clothes instantly, and the fierce winds spiraling upwards only intensified the fire.
“Karla suffered more pain than you did. You should learn to endure.”
Ivan stood nonchalantly, pronouncing Venere’s death sentence.
With that sentence, the gale beneath Venere surged even stronger, fueling the flames blazing from her body.
Against the backdrop of crackling fire, Venere’s horrifying screams wove together in a chilling melody.
“Pathetic, truly pathetic.”
Ivan muttered, releasing his hand from Venere’s head.
Though Venere was already a blackened corpse, as Ivan removed his hand, it rose into the air.
“Guys who have tricks up their sleeves.”
Ivan then pointed at the corpse.
As he extended his index and middle fingers, clear droplets of water began to form at their tips.
“Let’s finish this properly.”
The hundreds of droplets converged, and eerie sounds of rapid rotation filled the air.
The droplets aligned, aiming their heads at Venere’s corpse. And in one swift motion, Ivan swiped his hand.
The droplets shot forward like arrows, heading straight for the corpse.
Flying en masse like a barrage of thousands of magical bullets, the droplets tore Venere’s corpse into pieces.
Karla watched all of it.
Until Venere’s corpse was shredded into pieces and left no trace, Karla couldn’t tear her gaze away.
That scene, Ivan…they were nothing but pure terror.
Someone who showed no respect for the dead, someone completely unrecognizable from the usual Ivan.
Faced with such cold and dispassionate Ivan, Karla felt sheer terror.
——
“How was it, Karla? I killed them for you. Would you like more?”
Ivan’s eyes now turned towards Karla.
Piercing her lungs with their sharp gaze, and even worse, with a smirk on his face, Ivan’s eyes left Karla unable to cling to the tenuous hold on consciousness she still retained. Ultimately, she surrendered.
*
—Hey, you commoner. What, you with your little talent, thought you could beat me, the mighty Cascata?!
Karlo shouted confidently while forming seals with both of his hands.
Though Lightning Magic is not exclusively the domain of the Cascata family, it is widely acknowledged that Cascata’s Lightning Magic is the strongest.
—Lightning can pierce through the wind itself!
With that shout, Karlo summoned two lightning spheres on the palms of his hands and called out again.
Right before him stood the young Ivan, who looked too damaged to continue the fight.
—Not yet…not over yet, Karlo!
Ivan also shouted, summoning a current of energy as he spoke.
In terms of mana, Karlo was clearly dominant—at least that was how it appeared now.
Ivan’s clothes were already tattered, his bare skin exposed in several places, whereas Karlo remained largely unscathed.
—Hmph, quite the persistence for a commoner! Very well, I, Lord Karlo, shall finish this!
The lightning sphere on his palm whirled with a powerful crackling sound.
Aiming the sphere at Ivan, Karlo yelled.
—This is the end, Ivan! I will remember you!
With a hiss, the lightning sphere flew towards Ivan’s feet, causing a tremendous explosion.
The dust and smoke engulfed Ivan’s figure, and soon yet another explosion occurred nearby.
—How does it taste, commoner?!
But there was no response from Ivan hidden within the dust.
—Can’t even speak due to the pain, huh? Speak up, commoner!
Karlo called out again, but still, no reply came.
—Commoner?
—Ivan…?
Suddenly filled with fear, Karlo approached the dust cautiously, his voice trembling.
As he extended his hand to sweep away the dust—
Sssplat!
—Agh!
A long cut ran across Karlo’s fingertips, and soon red blood began to drip down.
—This…this is wind?!
Only now did he realize.
This wasn’t ordinary dust. It was actually a dense mass of wind currents emanating from beneath.
—This, this…
Karlo stepped back quickly and gathered more mana. While he still had mana left, if Ivan could generate such a massive wind vortex—
Karlo understood he needed to be on high alert.
—Keke… keheh… kkkk…
Laughter erupted from within the wind.
The voice was undoubtedly Ivan’s, but an unsettling difference made it not sound like him.
—Your antics were too excessive, Karlo.
—What, what did you just say…?!
It was alien, flat, metallic, and monotonous.
Unquestionably Ivan’s voice, but not the Ivan he knew.
As dread slowly crept into Karlo’s heart, he called out once more.
—What nonsense is this, you commoner brat!
And then, Karlo saw.
In the midst of the storm where his figure was barely visible, that glaring redness.
Only the crimson irises, fiercely glowing, remained distinctly visible, staring down Karlo with malice.
At the exact moment their eyes met, Karlo felt his mana dispersing.
The overwhelming dread spread throughout his body—terror.
—Er, eh… eheh…
—It’s hard to keep playing your tricks, Karlo.
—I-Ivan…?!
—Now it’s time to end this.
At that very moment, a fierce wave of magic power engulfed Karlo. And in that instant—
—Huhk!
As Karla woke up, letting out a loud cough, the first thing she saw was the white ceiling.
“Ugh… ugh…”
Realizing it was a dream, Karla instinctively raised her left hand to wipe the sweat from her forehead.
She lifted it.
But she felt no weight.
Karla’s gaze turned to her left arm.
Underneath the white hospital gown she had changed into at some point, her left sleeve was completely empty from the shoulder.
“Ah, aah…aah.”
Her eyes twitched violently.
In her beautiful purple irises reflected the empty left sleeve.
“Aaah, aa…aa, aaa…aaa, aaaahh—aaaahh! Aaaaah—uuuuuuuuuu!!”
From Karla’s mouth flowed a guttural sound, almost a scream, endlessly dragging on.
