Alice Subjugation (15)

Hwaaaaa!

Isaac exhaled an icy chill.

Following a low-pitched chant, a large number of pale blue magic circles began to form behind him, stacking up like cogs.

The magic circles continued to build up, higher and higher.

Finally, a single gigantic magic circle encompassed all the others, forming a trajectory in the air.

"Ack!"

Alice let out a short scream. The invisible floor couldn't withstand Isaac's mana and it collapsed.

Isaac and Alice began to fall.

At that moment, Isaac extended his left hand to Alice.

Seeing this, Alice flinched. Isaac's words echoed in her mind.

– Still, don't die.

Alice grabbed his hand, and Isaac pulled her into his embrace. The [Frost Barrier] enveloped them both.

A massive magic circle followed Isaac.

Crackleeee!

Isaac spread out three pairs of wings with the chill of [Ice Sovereign] and hovered, glaring at the pitch-black giant.

Whooooo!!!!

Over Isaac's outstretched right hand, pale blue cold air swirled and gathered, forming a gigantic ice sun. It was an overwhelming show of magic that even trivialized the caster, appearing as a mere insect in its majesty.

Alice's eyes widened at the wondrous sight.

– And! Live beside me and atone. No matter how dangerous it gets, I'll fend it off.

The 9-star ice spell, [Cocytus], formed in Isaac's right hand.

Alice witnessed the world-ending magic she had only heard about in stories for the first time in her life.

Meanwhile, the numerous human heads gathered purplish mana in their mouths. The mana gradually condensed into a high-density sphere.

Simultaneously, the pitch-black giant deployed six massive dark magic circles around him. Each magic circle produced fierce, jagged spheres of darkness.

The power of the void, capable of annihilating even souls.

Each sphere was larger than the continent encompassing the Zelver Empire. The size alone was a result of repeatedly compressed mana, making them dangerous calamities.

In response, the blazing ice sun in Isaac's right hand emitted a strong radiance.

The world, shrouded in pitch-black darkness, gradually began to brighten.

Screech!

A massive iron gate opened in the distance, releasing a cold that embodied the absolute zero covering the abyss.

Inside the gate was a transcendental ice beast, unbound by life or natural law.

When first summoned, it was suppressed by the laws of the Nether, but here, there was no such restriction. This place was merely the independent space of the Abyss, an eternal prison.

In other words, it could exert its full power.

From within the gate, a black monster with several red glowing eyes grasped open the gate and revealed its humongous body.

[Kaaaaaaaa!!!]

Isaac's minion, the Primordial Beast of Ice, Daikan, let out a roar that echoed through the Abyss.

Alice's eyes trembled.

What kind of being did Isaac have as a minion?

Alice could hardly believe the existence of such a creature, even as she witnessed it firsthand.

The sheer mana emanating from Isaac and Daikan began to warp the very space around them.

The pitch-black giant laughed eerily and shouted joyfully at the sight.

[Excellent! Not even during my wanderings through the distant skies did I encounter an adversary like you!]

Inside the Abyss, the life that had passed in what seemed like an eternity was meaningless to look back on. It was all just emptiness.

He was too strong. Thus, he decided to seal himself until the day the Evil God, Nephid, resurrected and entrusted everything to Mephisto.

And upon awakening, he met this human.

Since a very distant past, now forgotten, the Abyss had longed to face an opponent so strong that even his immortal life felt threatened.

Now that wish had come true.

How exhilarating to feel such excitement after countless years. How could he contain this boiling fighting spirit?

[My name is Om!]

The Abyss wanted to know the name of the one who brought him this feeling.

[What is thy name?]

Isaac answered in a calm voice.

"Isaac."

[Ice King, Isaac. At the end of this battle, such a name will forever be immortalized in my memory.]

Isaac and the 9-star ice spell [Cocytus], along with the transcendental ice beast Daikan, filled the nothingness of the Abyss with their chill.

Though the Abyss was made of an eternal prison, even that demon had limits as a living being.

No one had ever surpassed the Abyss's limits, which was why he had remained "Eternal".

To defeat the Abyss, it was necessary to unleash a force that could surpass his power and distort the very laws of nature.

Kwaaaang!!!

The pitch-black giant and the columns of human heads simultaneously fired beams of purplish mana with the power of the void.

"Me too… I'll remember you."

Isaac murmured as he watched the Abyss's attack fill his view with no escape, then swung his right hand to unleash the ice sun [Cocytus].

At the same time, the Primordial Beast of Ice, Daikan, fired the extremely cold mana from its mouth.

At the moment of collision.

Isaac's coldness swallowed even sound, drowning everything else out, and the pitch-black giant was enveloped in an immense light in the midst of stillness.

Feeling the extreme cold and the sensation of dying, a satisfied smile spread across the pitch-black giant's lips.

Having thought he would never die, he poured all his strength into battling the Ice King and achieved a glorious defeat.

[What a wonderful death…!]

The Abyss vanished.

The countless souls he had imprisoned regained their freedom.

Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaang!!!!!!

The body of the Abyss, riddled with holes, allowed cold sunlight to pour through the gaps.

A thunderous roar echoed across the sky, accompanied by a grand icy explosion that enveloped the starry sky.

The chilling cold spread gently.

And then.

Against the backdrop of the dazzling explosion in the sky, a young man descended, holding a woman with light gold hair in his arms.

Everyone witnessed this scene.

Emperor Carlos, who had been observing Märchen Academy from somewhere nearby with the help of an Imperial wizard.

The students and staff who had evacuated, as well as Snow White and her escort knights.

The Subjugation Force traversing Märchen Academy.

Saintess Bianca and her loyal follower, Sylon.

The people gathered in Märchen Academy square.

Screech!

Boom!

The iron gate, which was almost already closed, shut firmly with a resounding noise.

Beyond the icy explosion was a huge iron gate that seemed to have no end.

The Emperor and the Elemental Kings recognized the Primordial Magic Beast residing beyond that gate.

The rest were filled with questions about what it was, along with feelings of awe and fear.

The only certainty was that the massive iron gate was the result of the power of the young man with silver-blue hair falling from the sky.

As the gate faded into the sky like a mirage, the true night sky revealed itself.

The ice beasts guarding the island roared in a triumphant chorus.

The Düpfendorf army kneeled on one knee in reverence.

[Behold.]

The commander of Düpfendorf's knights extended his frosted silver sword towards the sky, addressing his knights.

[The great one who has driven away the demon of the night sky and brought forth light.]

Through the moniker of the Black Monster, he was called the Nameless Hero.

He was reborn as the Ice Sovereign and the Ice Elemental King.

[He is our new King.]

The Ice Sovereign, Isaac.

This was the moment he reappeared after defeating the Abyss.

"Isaac…?"

"Sir Isaac!!"

Luce's astonished cry and Kaya's joyous shout echoed.

Isaac noticed the many people gathered in the Academy Square.

He wanted to adjust his descent using the momentum of [Frostfire], but he couldn't. His mana was completely exhausted after defeating the Abyss.

"Alice, help us land in the square."

"Okay…"

Alice, still in Isaac's arms, couldn't believe what had just happened, but she nodded with a relieved expression.

What an extraordinary man.

She thought, feeling a deep sense of admiration.

Alice's telekinesis gently guided them to a safe landing in the middle of the Academy Square.

Thus, Isaac and Alice landed next to Dorothy, Luce, and Kaya.

The Abyss disintegrated into gray dust, and the remnants of pale blue mana fell like gentle snowflakes. The mana was so dense that even its remnants didn't disappear easily.

The people gathered in the square had never seen such a beautiful sight of mana remnants falling like snow.

Luce was at a loss for words, her throat tight, as she saw Isaac, who had defeated the demon in the starry sky, return.

Kaya gazed at Isaac with sparkling eyes, tears welling up at the corners. She was relieved that Isaac had returned safely.

Dorothy's eyes widened as Isaac came into view. A profound sense of relief washed over her, and her starlight mana gradually regained stability.

"Huh…?"

The hallucination of someone pulling her hand vanished as if the grip had been released.

Dorothy used the power of [All in the World] to identify the multiple-eyed unknown entity lurking within Isaac's essence, and she realized it was growling.

Chararang…

The rampaging starlight mana calmed down as if it had been a lie. Dorothy concluded that the unknown entity within Isaac had resolved it.

How? More importantly, why?

She couldn't fathom the reason.

The four Paladins who had been floating around Dorothy collapsed to the ground, gasping for air and clutching their throats.

"What on earth happened…?"

The four Elemental Kings, the Imperial Knights, Thunderbird Galia, Headmistress Elena, the faculty, the Tower Master of Hegel, Aria, and… the strongest subjugation force in the Empire, who had arrived at the Academy Square briefly and witnessed the rampaging starlight mana, all showed shocked expressions.

The appearance of Isaac had caused the starlight mana that was distorting the surrounding terrain to subside.

Those who witnessed this scene could only conclude that Isaac had somehow resolved Dorothy's mana outburst with an unknown power.

"…"

Despite the large crowd gathered in the square, a heavy silence hung in the air.

Isaac saw Dorothy, Luce, and Kaya's faces and swallowed a gasp.

They looked terrible. Isaac felt a tightening pain in his chest.

He gently set Alice down and surveyed the surroundings with chilling, cold eyes.

Many structures were warped by starlight mana. Multiple craters marked the area.

The four Elemental Kings and the Imperial Knights were facing off against Dorothy, Luce, and Kaya.

Although he couldn't fully grasp what had happened, he could grasp the general picture.

There must have been a justified reason for this situation. Isaac understood that much.

But, no matter how much he tried… he couldn't suppress his rising anger.

The forces of this world were trying to harm those he cared for?

"What… do you think you're all doing?"

Isaac asked, trying to restrain his emotions.

Yet his icy tone seemed to freeze the Academy Square.

On the outskirts of the island, the disaster-level ice beasts sensed their master's reaction and displayed hostility towards those gathered in the square.

By now, a part of Düpfendorf's army had surrounded the square, and the top-ranked soldiers formed up behind Isaac, exuding a chilling aura.

Although the movements of the Düpfendorf soldiers were unexpected, Isaac didn't mind. He needed to demonstrate his authority from now on.

The Subjugation Force and the Imperial Knights swallowed hard.

Isaac's displayed emotions seemed like hostility. It felt like a warning not to cross the line any further, or there would be consequences.

The silver-blue-haired boy who had returned after defeating the mighty demon that had surrounded the sky, the Ice Sovereign… they realized they couldn't recklessly oppose him. Even a flick of his finger could turn the area into ruins.

Such was the vast disparity in power between the Ice Sovereign and themselves, the Subjugation Force and the Imperial Knights concluded with cold rationality.

As the silence continued, Isaac walked forward alone.

The Lightning King, the Lightning Sovereign, Jaul Dragoniac, watched Isaac with sharp eyes.

The Fire King, the Fire Sovereign, Andersen Versando, regarded Isaac solemnly.

The Water King, the Water Sovereign, Siren Silivian, smirked at Isaac.

The Wind King, the Wind Sovereign, Erin Campbell, blankly gazed at Isaac.

With Isaac at the center of it all, a thick tension enveloped the Academy Square.