Chapter 37: The Unchained

###Chapter 37: The Unchained 


The echoes of clashing blades rang through the ruins of the fallen kingdom. Sparks flew with every strike, illuminating the shattered remains of what was once a grand city. Amidst the chaos, one battle stood out—the fierce duel between Icelyn and her former teacher.
Icelyn lunged forward, her blade slicing through the air, but her opponent met her strike effortlessly. Their swords locked, a brief moment of stillness before they pushed off each other, leaping back.
"Is this the extent of a Hero's power?" The teacher's voice dripped with mockery. "How disappointing."
Icelyn's grip on her sword tightened. Her breath was steady, but her eyes burned with frustration.
"Hmph! You'll regret mocking the power of a Celestial Hero!" she spat, her voice like sharpened steel.
In a flash, she vanished from sight—only to reappear in front of her opponent, blade swinging with inhuman speed.
The teacher barely managed to parry, the impact sending a shockwave through the ground beneath them. A smirk played on his lips. 
"Oh? Did I hit a nerve?" he sneered, countering with a precise strike aimed at her side.
Icelyn gritted her teeth, frustration simmering beneath her cold glare. With a swift, powerful motion, she swung her sword in a wide arc, the sheer force ripping through the ground. Cracks splintered outward as chunks of debris exploded into the air, a cloud of dust rising from the destruction.
They leaped back once more, the tension between them thick and unyielding.
Then, Icelyn planted her feet firmly, holding her light-blue sword in front of her. A glow pulsed from the blade, faint at first, then blazing into an intense blue radiance that illuminated the battlefield. The air crackled as energy surged around her, making the very ground beneath her tremble.
With a single, decisive swing, she unleashed a shockwave, a wave of raw power tearing through the ruins. It carved through the battlefield like a raging storm, lifting shattered stone and sending a chilling wind howling through the air.
But as the dust settled… the teacher remained still.
Unshaken. Untouched.
And then—he smiled.
Icelyn swung her sword upward, a surge of frost rippling through the air as jagged ice spikes erupted toward the teacher. The ground beneath them cracked under the force of her magic, the frigid energy spreading like veins of ice through the broken ruins.
But the teacher moved effortlessly.
With a slight shift of his body, he dodged the spikes without breaking a sweat, weaving between them like he was strolling through a gentle snowfall.
Not a single shard touched him.
Icelyn gritted her teeth, frustration mounting. 
"Tch… Why don't you try actually fighting?"
The teacher tilted his head, smirking. 
"Is that what you call fighting?"
His mockery was the last straw.
With a burst of speed, Icelyn rushed forward, her sword glowing with an icy-blue aura. She struck with lightning-fast precision, her blade carving arcs through the air, each swing carrying enough force to split the ground apart.
But the teacher parried each strike with ease, his movements smooth, effortless, like he had memorized her every attack before she even made them.
Steel met steel in a flurry of relentless blows. 
Clang. Clang. Clang.
Their weapons clashed, ringing through the battlefield like a relentless drumbeat of war.
Icelyn's frustration grew with each missed strike.
She spun, slashed, stabbed—yet nothing landed. The teacher sidestepped, dodged, deflected—never once looking strained, as if this was nothing more than a casual exercise for him.
Then, he struck.
In a single swift motion, the teacher thrust his palm forward, aiming for her chest. Icelyn barely managed to block, but the sheer force sent her skidding backward, her boots digging into the dirt as she fought to stay upright.
"Hmph! You'll regret underestimating me!" Icelyn growled, slamming her sword into the ground.
A wave of frost exploded outward, ice creeping rapidly toward the teacher in jagged, sharp spikes. The temperature plummeted as the air itself seemed to freeze.
But before the ice could reach him—
He vanished.
Icelyn's eyes widened. What?!
A sudden force hit her side. Hard.
She barely had time to react before she was hurled across the battlefield, slamming into the rubble of a fallen building. Dust and debris rained down around her.
Coughing, she pushed herself up, only to see the teacher standing exactly where she had been a second ago, shaking his head.
"Pathetic."
Icelyn's grip on her sword tightened. She wasn't done yet.
With a fierce cry, she launched herself back into the fight, her body a blur as she aimed a powerful diagonal slash at his chest.
This time, he blocked—but staggered back.
Icelyn's eyes flickered with triumph. Finally, a reaction.
The teacher glanced down at his blade, now coated with a thin layer of frost from their clash. His smirk faded slightly as he flicked the ice away.
"Hmm. Maybe you're not completely hopeless after all."
Icelyn wasted no time. She pressed forward, attacking ruthlessly, her sword a blur of frost-covered arcs as she tried to overwhelm him with sheer speed. The battlefield turned into a whirlwind of clashing steel and frozen energy, her attacks growing stronger, sharper, faster.
Then, amidst the chaos, she spoke.
"I don't even know your name."
That moment of distraction was all she needed. With a sharp pivot, she drove her blade into his side, slicing across his belly. Blood splattered onto the shattered ground.
The teacher staggered, his breathing sharp. Finally.
But then…
He chuckled.
A slow, deep laugh that sent chills down her spine—colder than any ice she could summon.
His expression twisted into something unsettling. His grin stretched wider.
"So… you want to know my name?" His voice dropped into something darker. More sinister.
Then... 
He began to chant... 
"The stars are silent, the heavens weep,Bound no longer, I rise from the deep.Chains now shattered, fate undone,In shadow's grasp, my will is one.Let all who hear now cower and wane—For I am Alven, unbound by chain!"
The air shuddered. A pulse of energy exploded from his body, warping the space around him. The ground trembled. Dust and debris whirled into a storm, hiding him from sight.
Icelyn instinctively took a step back, gripping her sword tighter.
Then—silence.
The dust began to settle.
Icelyn's eyes darted around, searching.
Then—a whisper of movement.
A flicker of realization.
In an instant... he was behind her.
By the time she turned—she was already on the ground.
She hadn't even seen what he had become.