Thrown down to the ground by the impact, Tenraku found himself besieged by a barrage of ice birds from above.
Chirp, Chirp, Chirp!
Boom, Boom, Boom!
As the cold air churned, the deafening sound of massive ice explosions made everyone’s eardrums ache. The entire training ground shook violently, and the approaching cold sent a shiver down the spines of the observing Rias and her girls, prompting them to quickly erect a barrier for protection.
After a long while, the icy bombardment finally ceased. In the center of the training ground, a gigantic ice mountain emerged, with Tenraku’s entire body suppressed beneath it, only his head remaining visible.
With Grendel’s strongest scales, the ice explosions and ice spikes triggered by the ice birds didn’t inflict much damage on Tenraku. However, the relentless cold was gradually eroding his body through the tough scales.
Initially, Tenraku felt an intense sting, but after a while, the sensation began to fade. Yet, this wasn’t a good sign because the bone-chilling cold was numbing Tenraku’s senses!
Once again, the figure of the ice princess emerged in the air, reuniting with Lavinia before slowly descending from above.
“Red Dragon Emperor, do you know? In fact, I am Vali’s elder sister,” Lavinia spoke, shocking everyone with her revelation.
“Vali’s elder sister? Lavinia, I’ve never heard of Vali having an elder sister, and you two don’t look anything alike,” Tenraku expressed his surprise, shaking his head in disbelief.
“I’m not referring to a blood relation; it’s more like an adoptive sister,” Lavinia clarified. “Back in our school days, Vali, Tobio, and I were all classmates. Vali was our junior brother.”
As Lavinia spoke, she took out a photo showing several boys and girls. Among them was a girl dressed as a magic user who bore a striking resemblance to Lavinia, likely her from their school days. And beside her was a silver-haired, short-statured, and somewhat arrogant-looking guy whom Tenraku recognized as Vali from their school days.
“I never thought Lavinia and Vali had such a relationship,” Tenraku remarked with a hint of surprise. “So, why are you suddenly telling me this, Lavinia San?”
Also somewhat surprised, Tenraku still asked this question.
With a gentle smile, Lavinia gently brushed her somewhat disheveled hair:
“Although that kid has a strong personality and can’t get along with other classmates, he’s actually a gentle person. I’ve always treated him as my true younger brother.”
“I was very angry when I heard that Vali had his Sacred Gear taken away by you and was imprisoned by Grigori. I even planned to defeat you and help Vali reclaim his Sacred Gear. But later, when that kid escaped from prison, I met him once.”
“Even though his important Sacred Gear was taken away, when I offered to help him get it back, Vali flatly refused, saying he would never want back something he lost.”
“Since Vali said so, I naturally didn’t want to do anything unnecessary. But seeing my younger brother being bullied, as an elder sister, I couldn’t help but feel a little upset.”
As she spoke, Lavinia unleashed a Thunder and Lightning magic, causing Tenraku to grimace with a jolt of electricity.
“So, is this just a woman’s grudge? Because your adoptive bro was bullied, so you want to avenge him?” Tenraku inquired.
“More or less,” Lavinia replied.
“So, why didn’t you tell me all this earlier, Lavinia San?” Tenraku asked.
“If I had told you earlier, you wouldn’t have given me the chance I have now, would you?” Lavinia patiently explained. “To be honest, your strength is truly terrifying. I already used my full power in the previous battle, but I doubt you even used half of yours. Even I don’t have the confidence to defeat the legendary Red Dragon Emperor.”
“However, it’s because of your unfettered friendliness and humility towards me that you gave me the opportunity to win against you.”
As Lavinia patiently explained, Tenraku couldn’t help but smile bitterly. He had indeed been outplayed by her from the very beginning.
“So, what do you intend to do with me now, Lavinia San?” Tenraku sighed.
“Well, let’s give you a little punishment,” Lavinia replied.
“Both princesses and your companions are watching, so I certainly can’t go too overboard,” Tenraku remarked.
“Don’t worry, it’ll be over soon,” Lavinia reassured him with a light laugh before preparing to cast a few more spells to deal with Tenraku. However—
“Though it’s alright for you to punish me a bit, I’m sorry, I’m not the kind of guy who enjoys being tortured,” Tenraku interrupted.
“Although I understand your position and feelings, and even feel a bit jealous that Vali has someone like you as an adoptive sister, if I were to be bullied and punished by you in front of Rias and her girls, I would feel quite embarrassed,” he added.
Lavinia couldn’t help but chuckle. “Red Dragon Emperor, are you suggesting rebellion?”
“The ice mountain that’s trapping you isn’t an ordinary one. It’s tougher than real steel. Not only can it freeze the enemy’s body, but it can also absorb their magic power and spirit power. You must be feeling a bit weak by now, right?”
“In addition, the body becomes extremely fragile under extreme cold conditions. If you move recklessly now, you might cause irreparable damage to yourself.”
“Don’t resist; let me punish you obediently. I’ll let you out once the punishment is over,” Lavinia kindly advised, while Tenraku could only smile wryly.
Their battle was indeed taking a strange turn.
“I do feel like my spirit power has been drained quite a bit, but this isn’t enough to keep me trapped,” Tenraku replied.
“Alright, Lavinia San, can you step aside a bit? I’m about to break free,” he continued, before unleashing the Chief Mourner’s Crucified Stand of Purple Flame – Incinerate Anthem.
With a resounding boom, a purple pillar of flame burst through the ice layer and soared into the sky, then slowly transformed into a gigantic flame cross in midair.
“What is this…?” Lavinia’s eyes widened in astonishment.
But then, several more purple pillars of flame erupted into the sky. The entire ice mountain suppressing Tenraku was violently crushed, and Tenraku regained his freedom. Bathed in flames, he stood up and stretched his limbs.
“You see, Lavinia San, breaking your abilities is actually quite simple,” he remarked with a smile. “First, let’s deal with your beautiful ice princess.”
With a snap of his fingers, a pillar of flame shot out from the ground towards the ice princess.
“Ahhh…” The ice princess let out a painful scream as she slowly melted away in the flames.
While the ice princess could withstand all physical attacks, the fire happened to be her Achilles’ heel. Normal flames might be ineffective against her and could even be frozen by her cold, but the Chief Mourner’s Crucified Stand of Purple Flame – Incinerate Anthem released flames of purification that could dissolve anything powerful.
With the ice princess dealt with, Tenraku turned his gaze towards Lavinia.
With a sudden change in expression, Lavinia quickly used her jump magic to distance herself from Tenraku. However, with the training ground being limited in size, there was nowhere for her to escape where Tenraku couldn’t reach her.
With a flick of his fingers, dozens of small crosses made of flames shot out from Tenraku’s fingertips, whistling as they chased after Lavinia, who had already taken to the air.
Despite her constant evasion, as more and more flames approached, Lavinia found herself with nowhere to hide. She had no choice but to activate her magic power to deploy a defensive spell.
Several cross-shaped flames crashed against the magic barrier, and then—
Boom!!!
To be continued…
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