Relentless Assault

Yuui and Winter lock eyes, the intensity between them palpable. Neither moves for a second, but both know it is time. The moment of reckoning is here.

Yuui’s hands tense, the orbs of pure energy pulsing with raw power. Without another thought, she thrusts her arms forward, releasing both orbs simultaneously. They shoot forward at incredible speed, blazing through the air like twin comets aimed directly at Winter.

The light from the energy orbs illuminates the battlefield, casting long shadows as they surge toward Winter with terrifying force.

Winter’s eyes follow their trajectory, his lips curling into a sneer of disdain.

“Noob,” he mutters coldly under his breath.

Without a moment’s hesitation, Winter leans forward, his body tense as if he is about to charge.

“Flash Step.”

But just as the orbs close in, he disappears in a blur. The air around him warps as he activates Flash Step—a technique that allows him to teleport across short distances within his sight, depending on the amount of mana he uses.

One moment, he is directly in front of Yuui’s incoming attack.

The next, he vanishes.

The energy orbs tear through the space where Winter had been standing, hurtling past without hitting their target. The blazing lights surge forward like comets, racing through the battlefield, their force unstoppable.

But Winter is already gone.

In the blink of an eye, he reappears—right behind the path of the energy orbs, far from their destructive reach. The air shimmers for a brief second where he has reemerged, as if reality itself struggles to catch up with his speed.

Before Yuui can even comprehend what has just happened, Winter flashes again, appearing right in front of her.

His presence is sudden and overwhelming, his cold, blood-red eyes gleaming through the dim battlefield like beacons of menace. The sheer shock of his speed sends a chill down her spine, her body involuntarily jolting.

A jump scare—her breath hitches as her mind races to catch up with reality.

She has no time to think.

Winter’s fist is already on its way, heading straight for her with deadly precision. There is no hesitation in his attack, no room for Yuui to gather herself. His speed is relentless. The force of his punch cuts through the air, aimed directly at her.

Fear surges through her as his red eyes burn into hers. He is too fast. The blow is coming, and her mind scrambles for a way to defend, to escape.

But something is wrong.

As Winter’s fist approaches, something unexpected happens. The blood coating his arm, the blood armor that has made him a near-invincible force, begins to evaporate—slowly at first, and then more rapidly. The crimson hue of his body starts to dissolve into the air as his hand nears her.

And then, she sees it.

Growing from Winter’s fist, just as it is about to make contact, are shimmering white crystals. At first, they are small, barely noticeable. But as his fist draws closer, the crystals expand, creeping over his skin like ice slowly forming over a frozen lake. The more they grow, the more they absorb.

The white crystals continue to grow, expanding across his arm like a ravenous parasite. But something else is happening—something far more disturbing.

The color of the crystals begins to shift.

What was once pure white, almost like ice, now slowly morphs. At first, it is subtle—a faint blush of red tinges the edges. But as the crystals grow, the colors deepen, swirling together into a mix of red, blue, and black. The transformation is unnerving, like watching raw energy twist and corrupt into something unnatural.

Yuui's heart pounds in her chest.

“What is this?”

The red glistens like fresh blood, as if Winter's control over his blood magic has seeped into the very structure of the crystals.

The blue, however, is different—pulsing with a cold, eerie glow. It radiates with a different kind of energy, something more ethereal, almost as if it is siphoning her mana, not just her life force.

And the black... the black is something darker, a void that swallows the light around it, a representation of the abyss.

The crystals are no longer just draining her power—they are becoming something far more insidious.

Winter’s crystal-coated fist connects with Yuui’s defense, and the force of the blow is overwhelming. The chaotic energy coursing through the crystals surges upon impact, sending shockwaves of power rippling through her.

Yuui has no time to react—no time to regain control. The sheer intensity of the hit sends her flying backward like a ragdoll caught in a storm.

She is launched through the air, her body spinning uncontrollably as she hurtles across the battlefield. Her mind is a blur, every nerve in her body screaming in pain.

The world around her seems to twist and warp as she flies, the wind whipping violently against her as the glow of her energy suit flickers and dims.

Finally, after what feels like an eternity, Yuui slams into the ground.

The impact is devastating.

The area where she lands erupts in a violent explosion of pure energy, the force disintegrating the ground beneath her. The earth cracks and crumbles, dissolving into nothingness as if vaporized by a high-powered laser beam. Dust and debris shoot into the air, and a massive crater forms where she has crashed, its edges glowing faintly with residual energy.

For a moment, everything is silent. The battlefield stills as the dust slowly settles, revealing the destruction left in her wake. Yuui lies in the center of the crater, her body battered and her energy suit flickering weakly.

The brilliant glow that once surrounded her like a shield of pure light has dimmed considerably, the edges of the suit fraying as she struggles to hold onto control over her mana.

Yuui’s body trembles as she slowly pushes herself up from the ground, her muscles screaming in protest. Every breath she takes is labored, her chest aching with the effort.

It feels like her lungs are on fire, and the pain radiates through her ribs, making it nearly impossible to catch her breath. But despite the agony, she forces herself to stand, her legs unsteady beneath her.

“I can’t stop now... I have to fight.”

Her vision swims, but she can make out Winter’s looming figure, still standing tall, watching her with cold, calculating eyes. His blood-crystal gauntlet shimmers ominously, the chaotic red, blue, and black swirls glinting in the dim light. He doesn’t move at first, just waiting, as if savoring her struggle.

Yuui’s hands clench into fists, but before she can even begin to summon more energy, Winter vanishes.

“Flash step!”

In an instant, he reappears right in front of her—too fast for her to react. There is no warning, no time to defend herself. He materializes out of nowhere, just like a ghost from her nightmares, his presence overwhelming.

Yuui’s heart skips a beat, her body frozen for a split second as the shock hits her.

Then comes the fist.

With brutal speed, Winter swings his other arm, his blood-crystal-covered hand aimed directly at her. The punch hits her with the force of a sledgehammer, the impact knocking the wind out of her lungs. Yuui’s body is launched through the air, once again sent flying from the sheer force of the blow.

She barely registers what has happened as she spirals uncontrollably, her limbs flailing, the world around her a blur of motion.

The pain in her chest intensifies, every nerve in her body screaming in agony as she crashes to the ground, skidding across the battlefield. Her back hits the earth with a sickening thud, and she tumbles a few more meters before finally coming to a stop, sprawled out in the dirt.

The ground beneath her is scorched, disintegrated by the aftershocks of her energy suit—what little is left of it. Her body aches from the inside out, and her once-bright glow is now almost gone, flickering faintly like a dying ember.