The Water Magician

"Unbelievable... Fai getting frozen in ice..."

Lau muttered with his eyes wide open.

This was only natural.

The two of them were Azure Dragons.

The Dragon King.

You could even say they were the pinnacle of water attribute monsters.

And yet, being frozen in ice?

Certainly, it wasn't the dragon's true form.

However...

It should be impossible!

Yet the reality was that Fai was frozen in ice.

If it were the body of the dragon itself, it could easily break the ice and come out using brute force, without relying on magic.

But right now, it was impossible with the body being used as a vessel.

While it was sturdier than an ordinary human, it was still incomparable to a dragon's body...

"Can I consider this my victory?"

Ryo quietly asked.

The conditions for victory were not clearly defined.

Killing the opponent would mean victory.

Surrendering would also count as a win.

However, if the opponent was trapped in ice, it would be impossible to confirm.

In that case, he should ask his partner, who could be considered a witness.

"I acknowledge it; Ryo's victory."

Lau clearly stated.

Upon hearing those words, Ryo began to thaw the Coffin of Ice and simultaneously drank a potion.

His left shoulder and left arm were restored.

It seemed it was not judged as a limb severed.

Then, he cautiously looked at the thawed contents.

Because there was a possibility that Fai might be angry.

As Ryo had told Abel, Lau and Fai believed themselves to be the Dragon King.

Moreover, they were water attribute dragons.

They were the apex of water attribute monsters.

Naturally, they were different from humans in every way.

So, up until now, they probably had no experience of being frozen in ice.

And yet, Fai had been caught off guard and frozen.

He might be furious...

Fai emerged from the ice.

His expression was still wide-eyed in surprise.

Then, he looked around and found Ryo.

He ran towards Ryo!

Ryo tensed his body.

"That was amazing, Ryo!"

Fai exclaimed as he wrapped his arms around Ryo's waist and lifted him up high.

"What?"

Ryo was taken aback by the unexpected turn of events.

"I never thought you would get frozen in ice!"

Even during the battle, Fai hardly changed his expression, but now he was smiling and shouting.

Watching this, Lau shrugged.

"It's been a while since Fai was that happy."

"Even during the fight, he hardly shows any emotion," Abel pointed out.

"True. Still, he is happy in his own way. However, to see him break into a wide smile like this is quite rare," Lau also smiled.

"Ryo should join my personal guard and fight every day! Not just the blue bones, but I'll even make you a cape!"

"No, why would it turn out like that..."

"Don't you want to have this amazing battle every day?"

"I'll pass. I can't handle it mentally."

"If you become a skeleton, you wouldn't have to worry about mental strain, right?"

"That's not the issue..."

Fai enthusiastically encouraged Ryo to become a skeleton more than ever.

Of course, Ryo continued to decline.

"You mentioned before that the reason you don't want to become a skeleton is that you wouldn’t be able to eat cake."

"Ah... I do seem to remember saying that."

"Then let's try making a skeleton that can taste cake!"

"Huh?"

"If that's the case, you wouldn't have any resistance to becoming a skeleton!"

"Um, is that even possible?"

"I don't know."

A skeleton enjoying food... where would the food they ate go, considering they had no organs?

"Because I won, Ryo is now even more attached to me."

"Why are you looking at me with such pity?!"

"No, not at all..."

In response to Ryo's protest, Abel averted his gaze.

The positions had switched compared to usual.

"Why do Leonor and Fai insist on fighting me..."

"Being popular is tough."

"See, you're doing that look again!"

Ryo protested again.

The world doesn't always go as planned...

"Since it's a sword fight, Abel should definitely handle it."

"But in the end, that was alchemy, right? If the enemy comes in, it will automatically freeze them using a magic-based version of the steam mine."

"That's right, Dynamic Steam Mine II. I crafted that through alchemy and engraved it into the sheath."