The vast majority of warriors showed their submission and allegiance to the king.
There was only one unruly swordsman, the most famous ice demon swordsman on the continent, who refused to pledge allegiance.
The first grand banquet was specially organized by the king for this disobedient man, with the aim of persuading him to surrender with kind words or even by force to make him submit to the throne.
"Why is the king so concerned about him? There is no shortage of masters who can control ice on the continent."
"We can hardly fathom the King's true intentions, but if that guy were here today, he certainly wouldn't be inferior to any of us. Furthermore, the King previously revealed that 'he possesses a mysterious power, which is indispensable.'"
The man attended the banquet with his female companion, but still refused to submit to the king. He was unmoved by the king's generous offers of titles and rewards, and even attempted to challenge the king.
After a bloody duel—which was certainly very bloody for that man—the king spared his life, murdered his companion, and sealed his companion's soul into an emerald gem as leverage.
Even at that moment, on the verge of death, he refused to yield. In the end, the man, clutching his sword, fell off the cliff, his fate unknown.
That person might still be alive, or he might be dead. Seven years later, whether he will reappear tonight is the biggest mystery of this banquet, and also the most anticipated event.
If he hadn't perished in his duel with the king back then, he would surely have come here today because of something, and would have even gone to great lengths to obtain it.
"Who...who is that person? What is he trying to take?"
"He was once considered a hero, famous throughout the continent for slaying the Demon Lord."
"Hey buddy, you're being so long-winded! Just tell me his name."
"It's called 'Felsa the Extreme Ice'."
The night owl fell into deep thought again.
"My beauty, let me give you another piece of information. The thing that guy possesses, the one that could attract the king's attention, is called 'Extreme Ice Magic Runes.'"
After speaking, the swordsman took a sip of wine to warm himself up. "It seems a bit chilly tonight, and a thin mist is starting to gather. Fortunately, it won't affect the banquet."
3
"Be careful. The road ahead isn't very smooth."
Jellal Snow—the blonde, sword-wielding girl—walked ahead, whispering these words of advice as she led her companion through the dark forest.
The color of the night blended seamlessly with the girl's attire.
"I understand. To be honest, I'm used to it. You don't need to worry about me."
The young man's companion pointed to the blindfold covering his face and smiled wryly.
He didn't wear it to look cool or for any other reason.
Rather than saying the eye patch was to cover the eyes, it was more accurate to say it was to cover the unsightly wounds on the eyes.
The girl involuntarily stopped and grabbed her companion's hand. Both of them were wearing gloves, and even with two layers of cotton between them, they could still feel some warmth.
Seven years ago, Philsa escaped from the Feast of Heroes with serious injuries and was unfortunately injured in both eyes by a poisoned sword, losing his sight.
Although he had grown accustomed to days without light and had honed his swordsmanship to an even higher level, he still could not see the faces of his companions, nor the colors of the world.
His fate, which took a turn for the worse halfway through his life, destined him to be forever surrounded by darkness.
After a short while, the girl regained her composure and continued on her way.
"There's a very tall mountain ahead. The summit glows with the light of magic crystal lamps, and there's a magical aura about it, as if someone is there. This must be the top, right?"
Philsa nodded silently, released her hand, and walked to stand beside the girl.
"How are you going to get up there? There must be a lot of soldiers guarding the road to the top, right? And the people attending the banquet are all well-known experts from across the continent. If a standoff breaks out..."
The girl confided her worries to him.
It was impossible to persuade him to give up, so I could only tell him to be more vigilant.
In fact, she had instructed her companion, who was five or six years older than her, that such a situation was somewhat delicate, but since there was no one around and the situation was urgent, it didn't matter too much. Philsa merely moved the corners of her mouth, forcing a faint smile.
"It's okay. I'll try my best to stay alive until I get that thing."
"So...how do you plan to escape?"
He did not answer.
The girl panicked slightly. "Could it be that you only planned to grab that thing, but never thought about how to escape?"
"If that's really the case, then I'll have to leave it to you."
He then felt a little more at ease, cracking jokes to ease the tension between himself and his companion. He placed his palm against her cheek, the warm touch penetrating through his white cotton gloves and reaching his hand.
Although the two were very close, there was always a slight distance between them.
"Fifteen minutes. If you haven't returned by then, I'll rush to your rescue. I'll do whatever it takes."
If he could see her, he would be able to better appreciate the girl's determination. He vaguely remembered that her pupils were the color of rubies, a color not commonly seen on the continent.
Faced with this somewhat rash yet resolute decision, Philsa pondered for a moment, then nodded in agreement. "That's enough. No more."
Seeing his confidence, the girl felt reassured on one hand, and regretful on the other hand that she couldn't help him much.
Do you have a winning strategy?
“Yes, actually, I’ve wanted to show this to you for a while now that my injury has healed.” Philsa pulled off his left glove, revealing a magic mark on the back of his hand that glowed with phosphorescence.
"This is my family's magic rune, capable of unleashing the element of 'ice' to its fullest potential. Ah, just saying that doesn't seem particularly remarkable."
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