“I swear on the name Weiss Welka, if any of you can defeat Froker here in a fair duel, I’ll leave without another word.”

Back when she and Soest were arguing about who would enter the Frozen Expanse, those were Weiss’s exact words.

When Weiss recalled this, she froze up for a few seconds. Everyone watched as she visibly calmed down and withdrew her weapons. A calculating look crossed her face when she saw Marin’s confident expression.

“Alright. I swore on my name and I won’t go back on it. If one of you village hicks can defeat Froker, we’ll leave empty-handed. However, if you lose, I want everything that puny bastard has stolen from us and some payment from the village for handing me a thief.”

Soest grit his teeth at the last part of that deal, but Marin nodded her head. “Sure.”

‘I don’t get a say in this?’ Jayce grumbled inwardly. Then again, he was completely relying on the village to fix this dispute. He didn’t have a right to choose the terms of their bet.

Still, he was curious why Weiss seemed so confident in Froker. Jayce had seen Froker fight many times and even clashed against the jotun himself. Froker certainly wasn’t weak, but Jayce never thought of the man as a prodigy.

Jayce glanced at Marin to assess her chances, but his breath suddenly caught in his throat. When he saw Marin’s calm gaze, he realized why he had once felt that she was similar to Mize. Marin wasn’t always confident or aloof, but under the right circumstances, she gave off the same kind of aura that Mize did. It was an aura that said to others, ‘Anyone at my level is beneath me.’

Just looking at the two, it was clear who the prodigy was. Jayce couldn’t tell what Weiss was thinking at all.

An elderly blue-furred man stepped out of the crowd and turned towards Weiss. He had busy eyebrows and a thin face that was topped with two fuzzy lemur ears. Tall and shriveled, his wiry frame was bound tightly in a thick coat while his head was covered by a Cossack with two openings cut at the top. His ringed tail curled and uncurled in a slow, almost hypnotic rhythm while he nodded.

“The village will accept the outcome of this duel,” the village head’s wizened voice drifted through the area like clouds on a lazy wind. “Both participants will separate by 15 meters, then I’ll make a signal.”

Weiss didn’t say anything, and so Froker took several large steps back without turning around. All the while, he kept up a derisive smile. His red veins were glowing a bit brighter than usual and there was a faint glint of bloodlust in his eyes.

“Since you asked for this, don’t expect me to hold back,” he said, sounding more like he was preparing an excuse than making a warning.

Marin didn’t say anything else as she pulled a head-sized orb out of thin air. There was a diamond-shaped opening in the orb’s outer shell that revealed a sphere made from starry-blue metal. Its design strongly resembled an eye. Froker looked at the orb warily before bringing out his war hammer.

They both watched as the village head raised his hand and flung it down.

With a light toss, Marin sent the orb high into the air. Runes flashed across one of her palms as she pointed at Froker who was charging forward. The air around the jotun grew heavy and tried to push him down but Froker grinned and leveraged his incredible strength to barrel through the obstruction. He raised his war hammer and Marin threw up a barrier in response.

“Brainless mutt.”

When he saw the barrier, Froker actually became excited. As his weapon clashed against it, bright red veins erupted on the bronze hammer’s surface and the barrier was shattered instantly. Surprised, Marin leapt back while drawing a rune in the air with her hand. Froker didn’t let up and swung again, but that was when the rune burst into a second barrier. This one was noticeably stronger than the first, and when the veins on the hammer lit up, it took half a second for Froker to smash through. This was more than enough time for Marin to dodge away.

“Aspects of destruction are hard to work with. That weapon is a nice piece of work,” Marin commented nonchalantly.

Several meters above the fight, Marin’s artifact hung in the air. The blue ‘pupil’ started to glow and everyone in the crowd felt the ambient mana around them begin to move. Like water rushing into a whale’s open maw, that mana surged towards the area where the eye was looking, saturating the air around Marin and Froker with invisible energy.

White light flashed in Marin’s eyes as she activated an ability and Froker grunted while a trail of blood flowed down his nose. While his movement stalled, Marin used another ability and the mana rich air trembled as though it had been grasped by her will. She then drew another rune and flicked it onto Froker’s forehead. Once the rune landed, it glowed brightly as it devoured the energy in the air. Froker toppled to his knees and his body shuddered as an unbearable weight pressed down on him.

Weiss narrowed her eyes as she watched this. She knew that Flow Controllers fought by using their bodies like artifacts. Every controller carefully maintained a certain mental image or emotional state while they fought and that, along with runes drawn under their skin, allowed them to manipulate their surroundings using mana. The issue was that she had never seen anyone draw runes during combat. Weiss couldn’t tell if it was the result of a special class, a promoted class or just monstrous talent, but it certainly wasn’t a Flow Controller’s ability.

The villagers watched Marin take a commanding lead, but no one cheered. Jayce noticed that everyone looked very nervous, as if they wanted to run away but didn’t want to be the first one to do so. This was the first time he’d seen Marin in front of people outside her family and he was shocked by their fearful gazes. Jayce couldn’t comprehend what was so scary about this talented young woman.

Marin walked closer to Froker and drew a different rune. This one burst into white lightning that arced across her fingertips. Just before she struck, light from Froker’s red veins surged into his mouth. He activated one of his innate abilities and blew out a crackling cloud of red smog. This hastily prepared smog only covered a small area, but when it collided with Marin’s lightning, the electricity suddenly started arcing in random directions and hit both of them.

Unfazed, Marin relied on her protective artifacts to block the lightning and prepared another attack. She only became flustered once Froker reached into his jacket pocket and tossed something out. Jayce recognized it as one of Theresa’s grenades. The Tool Specialist must have given them to her companions for emergencies. Lightning met lightning and Marin’s attack was swallowed up while the grenade detonated between them. This second mutual blow shattered both their barriers and allowed electricity to rampage through their bodies.

Strangely, Marin’s lightning didn’t shock or burn like the grenade’s did. This pure white energy stuck to both of their bodies and seemed to be weakening them. Marin removed her own effect without much trouble, but she was still reeling from being electrocuted. Meanwhile, the red light in Froker’s veins pushed the white energy out of him.

Ultimately, Froker recovered first. He activated multiple abilities and lunged forward, swinging his war hammer down. This time, Marin had no time to throw up a barrier or dodge.

Jayce winced, but there was no sound of an impact. Instead of Marin, everyone stared with wide eyes at Froker’s trembling arms. His hammer was right in front of Marin, and judging by the jotun’s bulging muscles, he was trying his hardest to hit her with it. Despite his herculean strength, his hammer didn’t budge as something unseen held it in place.

‘What the hell is that?’ Jayce thought, stunned.

Marin hadn’t made any obvious movements, so it was unclear how she had defended herself.

Froker’s confident expression vanished without a trace. He tugged at his hammer, trying and failing to pull it away from the invisible force. With a paling face, he dug in his heels and yanked hard. This caused Marin to slide forward a bit, even though she clearly wasn’t holding the hammer.

Light twisted around the space between them and Jayce could barely make out the silhouette of a rope-like object. Though, judging by its animated movement, it was more likely to be a living being than a tool.

“Y-You…” Froker stammered. “You’re actually a—”

Jayce saw Marin’s calm expression crumble as she hastily moved to stop Froker from speaking.

“Suppress through weight.”

A powerful voice that seemed to command reality left Marin’s lips. The system didn’t translate what she said, but anyone who heard her voice felt a strong impression that could only be summed up in those three words. This imprinting reminded Jayce of the runes that Marin had on her signboard.

Froker nearly bit his tongue off as a burst of pressure descended on him. He was once again forced to his knees while the ground around him sank into a circular pit. This suppression only lasted for a moment before the invisible object dragged Froker forward. He flew through the air, only stopping when Marin spun and hit him with a heavy roundhouse kick. The power of this kick went far beyond human limits and sent the jotun cannoning into the snow-covered hill beside the cave leading to the Frozen Expanse.

Snow exploded into ice mist and a loud bang caused some spectators to falter. When the debris cleared, everyone could see Froker embedded in the hillside’s frozen dirt. Gravity peeled him off and he collapsed on the ground.

Silence reigned.

When someone finally spoke, it was neither the village head declaring the winner, nor was it Weiss accepting her loss.

“Had enough…” A quiet voice that carried an unmistakable tinge of madness came from Froker’s crumpled body. “Losing to a mutt and then a worm…I’ve had enough. After I kill you, I’ll rip that mutt apart. Then I’ll kill our bitch of a leader. After her…I guess it doesn’t matter who I kill.”

Froker’s veins blazed bright red and his pupils vanished. His damaged body stood up while his face twisted into an expression of endless fury. It seemed like everything had been squeezed out of Froker’s head to make room for his erupting violent desires.

When Jayce looked at the villagers, he saw that they were shocked and afraid but not overly so. Theresa and her teammates had grim looks on their faces as they raised their weapons. The three elders and Weiss’s expressions were the most serious out of everyone, but he thought he saw a hint of excitement in Weiss’s gaze.

The Assassin moved before anyone else, appearing behind Froker’s hulking form and piercing his neck with a curved sword. His hands moved to retaliate, so she pierced them too. The blade’s poison froze Froker’s limbs and he died just like that. Despite his transformation, his life was snuffed out in an instant.

“This is unfortunate.” Weiss sounded disappointed but not particularly upset. “Having a teammate give in to their instincts brings me shame. The fact that he did so outside of our kingdom is lamentable. If he could have been stopped by our soldiers, he would have had a chance to regain his mind and survive as an exile.”

Weiss’s teammates had their heads lowered. The other male jotun looked furious, while the females’ expressions either held sadness or indifference.

“I won’t disgrace my words. We’re leaving.”

The crowd relaxed visibly when they heard that. Meanwhile, the three elders’ reactions were less overt, but they also lowered the tension in their bodies. Marin stood in place with a plain expression. It seemed like she wasn’t going to say anything else.

Jayce watched the jotun walk away and felt some relief. Even so, his eyes subconsciously tracked Weiss until she vanished from sight. He noted that she looked oddly calm in a way that she hadn’t prior to this duel. It looked like she had made a decision about something. Jayce ultimately never figured out if Weiss had a hidden objective aside from capturing the spirit. This couldn’t be helped, as Weiss kept her guard up even around her teammates. He had never seen her joking around with them or treating them like friends. At most, she trusted them to follow her orders. Jayce still felt uneasy about letting her leave like this, but there was nothing he could do.

“This was a victory for Snowdrift.”

The villagers listened as Soest spoke. He didn’t shout, but his words were obviously meant to be heard by everyone.

“Standing before all of us, that jotun had no choice but to accept an unwinnable duel. Even if she wanted to renege on her promise, she knew it would only get her killed. Our village might be a tiny speck compared to their kingdom, but that doesn’t mean youngsters like them can push us around. I’ll say it again, this is a victory for Snowdrift village.”

Only after he finished speaking did people clap and cheer for the end of the duel.

While they celebrated, the village head walked over to Marin with his ringed tail raised in a dignified posture. He nodded and thanked her for her efforts in a perfunctory tone. Marin replied by waving off his gratitude while she retrieved her floating artifact. The head’s fuzzy ears twitched, and he leaned in a bit closer.

“How are repairs on that slider vehicle going?”

“It won’t be long before I can assemble everything. I’d say less than two months,” Marin replied.

“Good, good.” The head smiled.

“But I’ll sell it right afterwards.”

His smile vanishing, the village head put on a look of concern. “It’ll be tough to sell something like that here. It’s too expensive.”

“I won’t be picky about the price.”

“Do what you want, then.” The head’s ears twitched in clear agitation, but he turned around and left without another word.

Once the cheering ended, the villagers quickly dispersed. Soon, there was only Marin standing in place and Jayce waiting off to the side. He knew that there was some weird tension between Marin and the rest of the village, but he was far too exhausted to feel curious.

“It looks like I owe you even more now,” he said.

“Some of the younger villagers were upset that they couldn’t challenge Froker, so they left a request asking me to do it. Frankly, the entire village wanted them gone. This has nothing to do with you.”

‘Damn, when you put it like that, I really do look like a side character.’

“Still, thank you. Alright, I’m going to drag myself to a hotel and pass out.”

Marin nodded and Jayce started walking. Possibly because this village had initially been built for travelers, most of the buildings had large, artful signboards that advertised their business. Even if he was just stumbling around, Jayce was confident that he wouldn’t miss a hotel if he passed one. After Marin shut him down like that, he felt awkward asking for directions. Jayce glanced back at Marin’s desolate figure and noted that she still hadn’t moved. Shrugging, he stumbled off.

Not long after he left, Jayce slowly came to a stop. Feet dragging against the snow, he turned around and walked back to the cave entrance. The area was deserted now, aside from Marin. Jayce’s eyes widened when he saw her standing there with a hand covering her face.

“Are you ok?” he asked, quickening his pace.

Marin lowered her hand to look at him, inadvertently revealing an embarrassed blush.

“I’m fine. Do you need directions?”

“I was just worried because I saw you weren’t moving.”

“…I, uh.” Marin hesitated for a moment. “I haven’t fought in a while and I lost my cool earlier, so I made a small mistake. My leg…”

When Marin trailed off, Jayce looked down and realized that Marin’s shin—on the leg she’d kicked Froker with—was bent at an odd angle. This injury would have been more noticeable if Marin had showed any kind of reaction. Instead, she was standing on her other leg as if she were fine.

“Should you really be blushing over something like this? How are you not screaming right now!?” Jayce would have normally kept such a comment in his head, but he couldn’t hold back this time.

Still, Jayce wasn’t as squeamish towards injuries as he used to be, so his shock didn’t devolve into panic.

“My body is a bit special, so I don’t feel much pain. Something like this will heal in less than a week,” Marin commented stiffly.

Jayce realized that some people in the crowd must have noticed this injury. At the very least, the three elders who had opened the third gate should have seen it. Yet, none of them said anything or tried to help her. As for Marin’s family, they hadn’t heard the commotion from their farm on the outskirts of the village.

“Here, use my shoulder.”

When he saw her hesitate, Jayce snorted in frustration. He stomped over and flung her arm over his shoulder.

“Where’s a hospital?”

“Just help me back to my shop. I can treat my own injuries.”

Jayce shot her a look, but Marin didn’t budge.

“I’m not lying.”

“Fine, let’s go.”

They walked for a while before Jayce felt Marin willingly shift her weight onto him.

“…Thanks.”

“You’re welcome,” Jayce replied, hoping she’d learn to use the phrase herself.