The First Shift (4), Frost Clan

The Frost Clan were not natives of Blue Star, but rather, they immigrated to the planet about a thousand years ago.

When they arrived on the planet, they didn't cause much of a stir and to acted quietly in the shadows, rarely interfering with Blue Star's matters.

But it changed over the years, they emerged from the shadows and began calling themselves Dragon Guardians in public.

At first, people thought they were just being arrogant.

However, when it was revealed that members of the Frost Clan had a draconic bloodline, everyone was convinced.

The draconic bloodline allowed members of the Frost Clan to control ice from birth, making all of them Transcendents from the start.

Moreover, the draconic bloodline was separate from a member's natural awakened ability, usually giving members of the Frost Clan two abilities.

These facts raised the Frost Clan's status to the level of the Ryker's, as well as the other top-clans. If it was a discussion of strength, they were at the top.

Maximilian Frost was a prodigy of the Frost Clan, possessing the ability [Dragon Heart] as well as a pure draconic bloodline that gave him exceptional control of ice.

[Dragon Heart] was extremely powerful. It made the user invulnerable to most attacks, increasing the user's resistance to any kind of attacks.

Surrounded by two strong opponents, Maximilian laughed loudly. He spread his arms arrogantly, summoning a blizzard.

"Come, both of you!"

Natasha vanished, appearing like a dark blur. She left black feathers in her wake, appearing almost instantly behind Maximilian.

Her beauty was nothing short of breathtaking, but even more than her angelic appearance was her unparalleled speed.

Woosh(

At the same time, Mikhail swiftly ran across the field. Whether by coincidence or design, his thick grey fur protected him from the blizzard.

While his speed didn't touch a tenth of Natasha's speed, it was still fast. He was going to reach the center in half a minute.

'Hm? Danger!'

Maximilian's pupils dilated. He suddenly waved his hands, summoning a thin, light sword that seemed harmless.

One of the special artifacts Team 9 chose was the [Flurry Sword] – a weightless sword that had the blessing of the wind.

With the Flurry Sword, one can let out attacks in the speed of the wind. It was not impossible to strike a thousand times under five seconds

Grabbing its hilt, he turned around and blocked the attack just in time with the Flurry Sword. It clashed against Natasha's Black Scythe.

Thud!

But to his surprise and stupidity, the Flurry Sword was blown away by the sheer force of Natasha's Black Scythe!

'What?!'

Maximilian flinched, taking a step back from the sheer force of Natasha's scythe. He was about to reach out to the sword, but immediately stopped himself.

He suddenly remembered something.

Natasha had the special Support-type artifact [Gem of Blessing], which increased her overall output twofold.

In a sense, with her supernatural speed, great technique, and lethal attacks, she was almost invincible.

If he reached out to take the sword now, his arm would get cut off, or worse, he would die!

Maximilian's expression turned ugly. The special artifact was wasted like that! How useless! This was that gem's fault!

If he could find that gem and destroy it...

Seeing her attack blocked, Natasha remained calm. She smiled as gently as the spring wind, tilting her head as she vanished once more.

Then, she materialized again, this time on Maximilian's left side.

Thang!

Unable to dodge, Maximilian was forced to create an ice sword and block her attack, otherwise he'd be severely injured.

He could control the shape, quality, and quantity of the ice, but there were a variety of limits. He can only control a limited amount of ice.

'Damn it! I can't defend against her with this! I have to take away the blizzard and make an ice shield that can defend her attacks!'

He did not dare underestimate Natasha, who was supported by the power of [Gem of Blessing]; most students would die after one strike from her.

Maximilian clenched his jaw and waved his hands, causing the blizzard to vanish. His eyes suddenly furrowed as a smile graced his lips.

At this moment, a large werewolf appeared behind him with raised claws. Unknowingly, Mikhail had reached him without being noticed.

'The two of them... How great. But this is just right!'

Maximilian's smiled even more widely. He ignored the beast, focusing solely on Natasha. Even if the man was strong...

Thak!

... That was not enough. Mikhail's pupils dilated, feeling disbelief. His claws couldn't put a dent on Maximilian's skin at all.

'What?! How strong is he?!'

Without hesitation, he threw his body backwards.

However, his body wouldn't move at all.

He was stuck.

Mikhail gazed at Maximilian's back, noticing ice had already erupted and trapped his entire arm without him realizing it.

"What the... since when...?"

Maximilian glanced at the man from behind, giving a small confident smile. Even if Mikhail was strong, the difference of strength between them...

... It was insurmountable!

Mikhail promptly realized this when he tried to move his body with everything he can. But his claws couldn't even dent the ice.

At this moment, countless ice swords floated above him. His instincts warned him of intense danger, but he couldn't do anything.

Mikhail closed his eyes and sighed quietly.

'I'm still not at that level yet.'

Woosh!

But before the ice swords could land on him, an invisible force shot at them, exploding them into tiny fragments!

Bam!

Mikhail snapped open his eyes in surprise.

Maximilian was also surprised, turning his attention to where the force came from.

From the top of a tree, Bruce had his fingers lazily pointed at where Mikhail was standing. His eyes were only half-open.

Regarding the attack, he figured a new way to use his aura while he was taking a nap. He can gather it and force it outwards, turning it into a projectile.

The sturdy ice was nothing but fragile glass in front of him.

After saving the man, Bruce closed his eyes and went back to sleep. He was truly... in every sense of the word, unbelievable.

But Mikhail wanted to shout and wake Bruce up for a little longer. The man had forgotten to at least destroy the ice trapping his entire arm!

Even if those ice swords were destroyed, what was the point when he couldn't move?! He'll just get into the same situation again!

He wanted to cry.

However, he was surprised to realize that Maximilian made no further attempts to kill him after his first attempt.

"Hiss!"

Mikhail turned at his front, feeling shocked. The ice trapping his entire arm was gone. He was free. But that was not what shocked him.

Maximilian was cornered like a weak rat, pitiful and hopeless. He looked at his neck with a gruesome expression.

Natasha's Black Scythe was midway through his neck, close to decapitating his entire head. There was a thick layer of ice that stopped the scythe from moving.

Maximilian couldn't help but feel chills upon remembering what happened.

If he didn't stop the scythe with his ice in time, he would've died.

"Unbelievable..."

Maximilian clenched his jaw, glaring at Bruce from the tree. That slight disruption—that small move had decided the battle immediately.

His plan was to trap Mikhail and kill him in under a second, but Bruce had suddenly foiled his plan and everything backfired on him.

Because he trapped Mikhail with his ice, he was also rooted on the spot. When he was distracted, Natasha took advantage of that opportunity.

In one swift motion, Natasha targeted his neck with her Black Scythe. She was like the God of Death, swift and deadly.

"But don't you dare think this is over yet!"

Maximilian suddenly roared loudly. He took out a frozen large red potion from his pockets, sealed by ice.

Team 9 had chosen [Flurry Sword] and [Large Full Recovery Potion] as their special artifacts, he sealed the latter in ice to preserve it.

As soon as he unsealed it, he put it in his mouth.

Boom!

But before he could take a sip, an invisible force shot at the thick ice in his neck that was stopping Natasha's Black Scythe.

With nothing obstructing it, the Black Scythe gracefully cut through his neck, beheading him in one swift motion.

Natasha smiled, swinging the Black Scythe gracefully. She turned it back into a black stick.

Team 9—Defeated!!