Brenna stepped forward without hesitation, her posture shifting from caretaker to elite knight in a breath. Jude glimpsed the motion of her hands—swift, practiced, deadly.
From behind her legs she unsheathed two short blades, the steel glinting faintly beneath layers of frost-bitten moonlight.
Not just anyone could serve as a personal maid to a child of House Avernus.
To even qualify, one had to be a 6-star knight, a level most soldiers would never reach in their lifetime. Brenna wasn't simply loyal—she was lethal.
Her eyes locked onto the towering ice bear.
Magical beasts were classified with the same system as knights and mages:
1–3 Star Magical Beasts — Early Knight Level
Driven by instinct, dangerous in packs, manageable by trained knights.
4–6 Star Magical Beasts — Mid Knight Level
Intelligent, territorial, capable of commanding lesser beasts.
7–9 Star Magical Beasts — Peak Knight Level
Sentient, powerful, often possessing bloodline abilities and ruling entire regions.
10 Star Magical Beast — Calamity Class
Creatures close to godhood. Living natural disasters.
And the creature blocking their path—large enough to crush a horse, breath freezing the air, eyes glowing cold blue—was a 6-star Ice Bear, intelligent, territorial, capable of firing ice spears with frightening accuracy.
It padded forward slowly, snow breaking under its weight, nostrils flaring as it sized its prey.
Brenna moved before it even finished its growl.
She thrust Jude behind her with one arm and sprinted straight toward the monster, boots kicking up sprays of snow. The bear responded instantly—its maw widened, magic gathering in the freezing air.
A harsh rumble vibrated through the clearing as jagged spears of ice formed around it, sharp enough to pierce stone.
With a furious roar the bear launched them.
The spears shot through the air with the speed of arrows.
Brenna's reaction was pure instinct, pure training.
She twisted sideways, boots sliding across the snow with perfect control, her coat snapping like a whip in the wind.
One spear sliced past her ear, cold enough to make her cheek sting. Another tore through the hem of her coat. A third she ducked beneath, feeling the air split above her head.
She kept running.
Her breath came out in thin clouds, but her eyes never left the target. In the moonlight, her silhouette cut through the falling snow—short blades gleaming, feet gliding lightly over the ground despite the cold.
She closed the distance.
With a sharp leap she sprang upward, twisting her body mid-air. Her blades flashed downward in a perfect arc—
Steel met frozen fur.
She struck the ice bear's side, sparks flying as the blades scraped through layers of thick, magically-reinforced hide. A shallow cut appeared—barely enough to bleed—but it was enough to make the beast roar in fury, its massive body rearing back.
The bear slammed its paw into the ground.
The impact sent a tremor through the snow.
From beneath the surface, jagged ice spikes erupted in rapid succession—deadly, crystalline lances shooting straight toward Brenna's legs.
Her reflexes were razor sharp.
She kicked off the ground, flipping backwards as the ice tore through the space she'd been standing in, frost scattering into the air. She landed lightly, sliding back several meters, boots skidding across hardened snow until she steadied herself.
Her expression tightened.
It's smart, she realized.
It understood the danger of letting her stay close.
It was forcing distance—using terrain, magic, and reach to its advantage.
Far behind them, Jude stood just at the edge of the tree line, watching the fight unfold with clenched fists.
Brenna was strong.
A true 6-star knight.
But the ice bear wasn't an average beast—it was built for cold environments, magic surged naturally around it, and its endurance far exceeded most human fighters.
From Jude's shadow, Abaddon's voice whispered sharply.
"That thing is too much for her to handle alone. Want me to help, kid?"
Jude didn't take his eyes off Brenna. "No. If you show yourself… it'll cause complications. The fact that I'm Morthos' contractor must stay hidden."
"Kid…" Abaddon growled, "you're not thinking what I think you're thinking."
But Jude was.
And he had already made up his mind.
He stepped toward the nearest tree, boots sinking into soft snow. The moon cast a long shadow at its base.
Jude walked into it.
The darkness rippled beneath him like living ink as he sank silently into the shadow's depth—vanishing from the world.
The ice bear never even noticed.
The next move would decide everything.