Ana's expression was rather unpleasant. The imnse gravitational pressure was forcing her to her knees. Gritting her teeth to support her body, rely bending her knees slightly was already her limit.
(This is bad. His authority is stronger than mine. If this continues, I'll be crushed to death before I can freeze him.)
As the Herrscher of Ice who could freely manipulate temperature, she could turn the battlefield into a frozen hell. Even against a Herrscher of the sa level, she could freeze their blood, organs, cells—everything within half an hour, turning them into an eternal ice sculpture.
In truth, a thick layer of frost had already ford over the Herrscher of Stars' body. So areas had begun to freeze solid.
But...
His authority over gravity surpassed Ana's. The Herrscher of Stars, going all out, could unleash gravity thousands of tis stronger than normal—more than enough to crush a Herrscher of Ice of the sa rank into pulp.
Although Ana was reinforcing herself with a massive amount of Honkai energy, a Herrscher's body was nowhere near as sturdy as that of a MANTIS. She could clearly feel herself reaching her limit.
(No, I can't! I can't lose like this. Lord Elias is still watching . I can't disappoint him!)
"Ana! Why?! Why can't it be ?!"
The Herrscher of Stars let out an unwilling roar.
At the sa ti, the gravitational pressure intensified several degrees.
To question the person you secretly loved while simultaneously trying to kill her—such behavior was bizarre to the point of being repulsive.
"What do you an why? Why would I like you?!"
Ana clenched her teeth, her eyes already filled with disgust.
She had absolutely no reason to like this person. She could understand that he had developed feelings for her because she had saved him. After all, back then, she herself had fallen for Elias in the sa way.
But this sensible girl knew very clearly that love at first sight—such secret admiration—was a completely spontaneous emotion. The other party had neither responsibility nor obligation because of it.
Maybe you are an excellent person, but whether I accept your feelings is entirely my freedom.
Ana felt not the slightest flutter toward Chen Tianwu. In the end, he was rely one of the thousands she had saved during her Valkyrie career.
If she were soone like Elias, greedy when it ca to love, perhaps there might have been a sliver of possibility she would respond to Chen Tianwu.
But unfortunately, Ana was the young lady of the Schariac family—a family famous for devotion and wholehearted giving. They would almost only ever love one person in their entire lives.
Ana Schariac had fallen in love with Elias. From the mont she realized her feelings, she had sealed her heart, never allowing a second person to step inside.
Perhaps nowadays many would call that being a simp.
But in the past, there was a much more beautiful word for it—devotion.
The feelings of the girl nad Ana Schariac.
Just like the ice and snow she condensed with her authority at this very mont—crystal clear, breathtakingly beautiful, fragile, and pure.
And the Herrscher of Stars—Chen Tianwu—who kept pressing her relentlessly had already made her dislike him in every sense.
Moreover, although she knew this had nothing to do with the real Chen Tianwu, in the future she might still subjectively co to dislike him because of it.
Ana: "Right now... I hate you the most!"
Chen Tianwu: "Kgh—!"
Herrscher of Stars: "Gah—!"
Along with the girl's blunt declaration of disgust, both the human and the Herrscher versions of Chen Tianwu suffered a devastating blow.
That single sentence was a critical hit. The Herrscher of Stars' control over gravity even faltered for several seconds.
With the Herrscher of Ice's abilities, a few seconds was not enough for Ana to counter-kill the Herrscher of Stars—she was more suited for a battle of attrition—but at this mont, she had already found a way to overco the gravitational pressure.
"Glacial Descent Upon Myself!"
"What?!"
Ice enveloped Ana's entire body.
She used the coldest, hardest ice to protect herself. The hardness of this block of ice far surpassed that of diamond—like the legendary Antarctic stone said to grow stronger the lower its temperature.
And with the authority of the Herrscher of Ice, even as a newly born Herrscher, Ana could touch the realm of absolute zero.
At this mont, she was like a sleeping ice princess sealed within a blue gemstone—so beautiful it stole one's breath, rejecting all interference from the outside world.
Even the Herrscher of Stars' maximum gravity could not crush this jewel of ice, and thus could not harm the Ana within.
"Tsk... What a reckless girl."
Elias let out a helpless sigh.
The Herrscher of Finality tilted her head in confusion.
"What's wrong with that? I didn't even think of using such a thod to counter gravity. Isn't it quite effective?"
"Effective, yes. But the risk is too great."
Elias shook his head and continued.
"To avoid bearing the gravitational pressure, Ana has essentially frozen herself completely. She didn't carve out a hollow space inside the ice and hide within it—she froze herself entirely."
"Right now, although she has gained trendous defensive power, she has also beco indistinguishable from that block of ice. If the ice is shattered in this state, there will only be one outco."
"The mont the ice breaks, Ana's body will shatter into countless ice crystals as well—like she never existed at all. Not even a corpse would remain."
In terms of death, it would be exquisitely beautiful.
The Judgnt of Shamash had already appeared in Elias' hand. He was fully prepared for rescue.
If there were even the slightest sign of the ice cracking, he would imdiately unleash Shamash Assault and kill the Herrscher of Stars.
"As expected of a girl who likes you. Just like you—both of you love doing reckless things," the Herrscher of Finality teased.
"Uh..." Elias scratched his head awkwardly.
On the other side, the Herrscher of Stars was already losing his mind. Looking at Ana, who had completely frozen herself, it was as though she were declaring that no matter what thods he used, he would never obtain her.
Moreover, because the ice had been created by her own authority, Ana could still launch attacks even while in a frozen state. And since she was temporarily unaffected by gravity, she could now fight with her full strength.
Thus, the temperature within this Imaginary Space continued to drop.
Minus eighty degrees. Minus one hundred fifty degrees. Minus two hundred fifty degrees...
The Herrscher of Stars trembled violently. By now, most of his body had already been frozen. Facing temperatures approaching absolute zero, even a Herrscher's body found it difficult to endure.
But the most critical threat was the killing intent hidden within the extre cold. Every snowflake had beco a razor-sharp blade, ceaselessly eroding the Herrscher of Stars' body, as if even his thoughts were being frozen.
Elias: "You're shivering. Is it because of the cold... or fear?"
Finality: "???"
Elias: "Ana can't speak right now, so I'm just dubbing her lines. Ahem—fall into the abyss of frost, insolent one! This will forged of ice and snow shall never end!"
Finality: "...Whatever makes you happy."
There was, in truth, no further need to watch this battle.
Unable to break the ice protecting Ana, the Herrscher of Stars could only slowly beco an ice sculpture within the extre cold. This battlefield had already beco the stage of the Herrscher of Ice.
Countless ice blossoms, ice arrows, and ice spears attacked the Herrscher of Stars from every direction, three hundred and sixty degrees without pause.
He was forced entirely onto the defensive, no longer using gravity to suppress Ana, instead concentrating all his power on resisting the encroaching frost.
It was fortunate for him that he was the Herrscher of Stars. Facing a Herrscher of Ice whose primary attack thod was condensing ice and hurling it forward, he could set up a gravitational barrier centered on himself and deflect all physical assaults.
Although the Herrscher of Ice wielded the elent of frost, forming ice and launching it was, in essence, closer to physical attacks.
However...
Physical icicles could be repelled by gravity, but the Herrscher of Stars had no ans of defending against the ultra-low temperature itself.
Before long...
"Not good... I can't move anymore..."
"Looks like it's over," Finality said with a yawn, watching as only the Herrscher of Stars' head remained unfrozen.
Yet Elias did not lower the Judgnt of Shamash in his hand. Perhaps because the Herrscher of Earth of the Previous Era had left too deep an impression on him, he had the persistent feeling that this one would self-destruct.
"If that's the case... Ana... then let's go together... Core—detonate!"
"Heh. So he really is going to self-destruct."
Elias rolled his eyes. Watching the Herrscher of Stars compress the last of his Honkai energy into his Herrscher Core in preparation for detonation, he... had no intention of intervening.
He even put away the Judgnt of Shamash.
At this point, he had countless ways to deal with a self-destructing Herrscher. But now there was no need for him to act. The Herrscher of Stars' attempted explosion was nothing more than a daydream.
Ana: "Unfortunately, St. Freya Academy already taught us how to deal with Herrschers who try to self-destruct."
Elias: "Incidentally, I was the one who taught that lesson."
Herrscher of Stars: "What?"
Elias: "If you want to learn how to fight Honkai properly, head to St. Freya in the Far East. That trick was already used to death by the Herrscher of Earth in the Previous Era. And... when it cos to stopping a Herrscher from self-destructing, the authority of the Herrscher of Ice is actually quite convenient."
Ana, having already lted the protective ice around herself by controlling the temperature, flew over. Through the remaining ice, she pressed one hand against the Herrscher of Stars' body and activated her authority at point-blank range.
In an instant, blood, organs, Honkai energy—even the Herrscher of Stars' very soul—were frozen by the extre cold.
Even the Core entered a dormant state. Before the surrounding ice could lt, he would be incapable of doing anything at all.
"KO~ Now it's my turn to step in."
Elias walked up to the ice sculpture. The authority of the Herrscher of the Void gathered in his right hand. He reached straight through the ice and the Herrscher's body into the imaginary space within him.
In only a few seconds, he pulled out a golden core sealed in ice.
"Whew~ It's been a long ti since I dug out a Herrscher Core. Good thing my skills haven't gotten rusty."
"Indeed. That move of yours is quite unforgettable. Back then, you dug out my heart as well."
"Ahem! That's in the past, Finality."
Elias coughed awkwardly. Unconsciously recalling how it had felt when he reached into the Goddess of Honkai's body back then, he could not help but sigh. His past self probably could never have imagined that now he could enjoy that sensation whenever he wished.
"I succeeded, Lord Elias!"
"Mm. You did very well, Ana. Even with your authority being countered, you still suppressed your opponent. As expected of my personal Valkyrie guard. This ti, I'll give you a perfect score."
"Th-Thank you for the praise, Lord Elias! Actually, it's just that this Herrscher didn't know how to use his authority. He only knew how to release gravity to crush . If not for that, I might not have won."
Ana shook her head as she looked at the frozen sculpture of the Herrscher of Stars.
His use of gravity had been far too crude. Such a powerful ability, yet Ana could think of dozens of applications in an instant. The Core had truly been wasted on him.
Elias raised his hand and gently patted the girl's head.
"No need to be so modest. A win is a win. What are your plans for the future? Now that you've beco a Herrscher, according to regulations, you can independently serve as the captain of a Valkyrie squad."
"I don't want that. Please allow to remain by your side, Lord Elias. I want to continue being your personal guard!"
Ana shook her head decisively. She wanted to go nowhere. She only wished to stay at Elias' side. She removed her black veil, and her ice-blue eyes returned to their original pink.
The affection contained within the girl's gaze was obvious to anyone who was not blind. Elias felt both helpless and pleased. Once again... another girl who had fallen for him.
Considering her surna—Schariac—if he rejected her, Ana would likely remain single for the rest of her life.
And with her pure, inexperienced personality, if Elias did not take the initiative, she might be like a certain flat immortal and fail to confess for fifty thousand years.
However, she was different from Fu Hua. At least Ana was not that "rational." Just recently, in a mont of impulse, she had offered Elias her first kiss.
"Ah~ I really can't do anything about you."
"Lord... Elias?"
"This is your reward for victory."
"!!!"
Ana's eyes widened in shock. Elias wrapped an arm around her waist and kissed her cool, soft pink lips.
Looking at the white-haired youth so close before her—the handso face that Miss Pink Elf and Cecilia had once praised as more beautiful than any natural scenery—the girl's mind went completely blank.
Ana hurriedly used the authority of the Herrscher of Ice to cool her overheated brain before she could recover. At the sa ti, she was overwheld with joy, fireworks exploding endlessly in her heart.
"As for the rest... shall we continue tonight in my dorm?"
"Ah... y-yes... Lord Elias..."
Ana nestled against the white-haired youth like a small bird, her cheeks flushed crimson, her heart pounding even faster than it had during the battle.
"Oh, right! This—please accept it!"
As if suddenly rembering sothing, Ana took a necklace from inside her collar and handed it to Elias.
With the aesthetic sense he had cultivated under Eden's influence, Elias recognized at a glance that it was sothing precious. A blue-and-white hollow heart-shaped necklace, exquisitely designed, adorned with four ice-blue sapphires forming a four-leaf clover pattern.
"This is the most important thing to ."
Ana stared at Elias with shining eyes. It was a treasure her mother had given her, saying that if she ever t soone she truly loved in the future, she should give it to that person.
In simple terms, it was a token of love.
"Alright. I'll accept it."
Without hesitation, Elias took the necklace and put it around his own neck. The number of things hanging there was increasing—Kiana's cross, Pardofelis' lucky coin, and now Ana's heart-shaped necklace.
(Ah... this is wonderful.)
Ana revealed a radiant smile. Elias accepting the necklace did not rely signify that he had accepted her feelings. According to Schariac tradition, this ant the two of them could already go to a church and exchange vows!
Ana: (How many children should we have...?)
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