[9] Kidnapper

An azure light erupted from Claire's body, filling the area with radiating mana. It seemed as if an explosion had gone off without the boom or the debris.

The Frozen Knight shook, its hands quivered as it struggled to pull itself from the girl who had suddenly turned into a ticking time bomb. The two orbs of light in its sockets crazily shuddered and danced around, sometimes shrinking and sometimes expanding. For the first time since it had been created, it felt an unending fear wash over it as Claire's mana latched onto it.

"What?. . .what are you doing?" Two fearful voices mixed into one, one of the shuddering ball of snow and the other of Coldren.

It tried to escape, but it was too late...

A single blink and its head disappeared.

Its legs erased in the next instance.

Its chest and hips vanished into nothingness.

Finally, the two blades embedded within Claire's stomach struggled and fell down upon the floor.

Claire's figure shook once as she sucked in a cold breath, her head felt light and her body weightless. She staggered to stand.

A ball of snow floated around her, warily watching her movements. Yet, its very rotation fizzled her eyes.

She had been a normal seventeen-year-old, this would be the first time she had ever had two blades plunged into her skin. Although she could no longer feel cold, her body seemed to remember the chill of the blades.

She sighed, forcing her heartbeat to steady, and forcing her body to listen to her.

Finally, she stood upright, examining her body.

There were two punctured, jagged, holes in her black uniform pointing at her thin and clear stomach. However, there was not a single trace of a tear on her skin itself. No blood, no wound left.

'I feel...full...' She wondered in amazement for the first time since she entered this world.

For the first time since she came into this world, she had realized just how suicidal it was for a being made of ice or water to fight against her. That Frozen Knight had only spelled its doom, not only was its attack meaningless in the end as she simply healed, it had also become food for her.

Sighing to herself, she decided to retain this form for the time being, her azure eyes examined the area.

It didn't take long for her to see it as it was right below her, at the spot the knight would have been.

It was the size of a hand and looked much like a stone tablet. However, it was a crystal blue that made one wonder if it was made of ice or stone. There were small runes that continuously squirmed within its square figure--it looked like the dance of a thousand caterpillars.

Picking it up, Claire couldn't help but jump slightly at its cold touch. An icy air seeped into the palm of her hand, and she was certain, for it to have such an effect on her, anyone else that dared to touch it would have likely frozen to death.

"Asta." She called out.

A ball of snow floated down from the sky, having regained a bit of size, it was now the size of her head. There was a consistent shudder and squirm to it, small flakes of snow fell with its every movement.

She smiled, asking, "How do I use this thing?"

"Well...miss..." Asta's voice was quite unsure.

"Well?" Claire raised a brow.

"It's hard to actually explain, you have to see it...just place the tablet onto the crystal pillar."

Although she was skeptical, she decided not to doubt the boy's words.

The tower was at the other side of the crater, however, a simple chuck of her hand and she was there.

Just standing before the massive behemoth of the crystal pillar, and looking up, her legs quivered slightly.

'Even this too can make me feel cold...are they made of the same thing?' She stared at the tower and stared at the Crystal Tablet in her hand.

Finally, she reached out her hand and smacked the tablet onto the pillar.

A shining white light engulfed both her and the pillar, and before she knew it, a drop of blood from her finger had already floated out on its own and splashed onto the tablet.

The whole island rumbled below her feet and the pillar before her shook.

Finally, with a last shudder, it shrunk in size and fell into her hand.

Claire stared at the now 5-inch crystal pillar, cold to the touch, and held between her fingers.

She raised a brow, "Is that it?"

However, a ball of snow quickly floated down as its voice resounded, "Miss! QUickly, inject your mana into it!"

Claire really disliked not knowing whether what she was doing was suicidal or not, but she had no choice but to inject her mana into it, she didn't think there would be any other thing to do in this situation she had found herself.

Frowning, she did as she was told.

A blink and her figure disappeared.

A blink and she found herself in an interesting space...

All sides of her rose and fell in crystal ice, everything from the floor to the room was made of that material. The room was cuboidal in nature and as wide as what appeared to be the size of a football field, there was a single item at its center--directly in front of her.

It was a single thin blade, silver, with a white bandaged top for a handle. It was impaled into a single stone-like white block, and the very air around it seemed chilling.

As Claire carefully examined the item, a voice resounded into her head.

[The heck, you made it here faster than I thought...]

"What was I supposed to do? Die?" She raised a brow, continuing to examine the blade. 'Stuck in stone? Does this sword want to be Excalibur so badly...?'

There was a cough and the voice returned.

[Aside from the problem of your nature...there is something to be explained.]

Claire frowned, she had an inkling that she had just been insulted but that ancient voice continued on without worry.

[There are ten trials to this Crystal Pillar, each one holds a test and a reward. Currently, you have access to this first floor and if you wish to obtain my full inheritance, you must climb all ten trials—defeating each floor's tests before access is granted. You can complicate them whenever you wish.]

"I don't have to climb them now?" Claire asked.

[Not at all, simply keep this pillar with you and carry it on your journey. When you wish to climb, simply hold onto the tower and think it and your battle shall begin.]

"I see but...what's this door below my feet for?" Claire suddenly asked.

[...]

[Don't enter there...]

Claire unhurriedly opened the small hatch of a trap door and fell down a level. The fall was higher than she expected, but it was nothing a single throw of ice couldn't fix.

She disappeared from her fall and landed splendidly onto a ground, a few seconds later and a chunk of ice crashed against that very same ground as she sidestepped its path.

She looked around and realized that she had entered into a room that seemed to have lost the pillar's initial design.

The place seemed to be made of black marble, there was faintly any light but it wasn't to the point where there was no visibility. In fact, she could see well. And there was something there worth seeing.

"The heck, are you a kidnapper?" Looking forward, Claire furrowed her brows and raised her voice in displeasure.

[No...listen here, I had been given this by God herself for safekeeping. She had specifically stated that its release could destroy the world.]

Claire scoffed, raising a brow, "So not only did God kick me to this world, but you two also colluded and kidnapped another girl?"

She was completely speechless.

Before her, bound and entrapped in blackened chains, was a girl.