Volume 1: Chapter 05: "Battle of gate 10"
Part 1
Gate 10 – The Obsidian Knight
The tenth gate opened slowly.
The room inside was big and round, with a shiny black floor made of obsidian. Snow was falling softly, even though there was no sky above.
In the middle stood a tall, armored figure. His body looked like it was made from black stone, with glowing lines all over. He held a long sword in one hand and a shield in the other.
The knight didn't move. He just stood there, waiting.
CLANG!
He slammed his sword on the ground.
Suddenly, a magic wall appeared between Masashi and the girls.
Clara: "What!? I can't move forward!"
Elra: "He wants Masashi to fight alone… it's a test."
Masashi (quietly): "Fine. I'll fight."
The knight nodded... then charged at full speed.
---
Masashi vs. Obsidian Knight
The knight moved fast—strong, but also smart.
Masashi dodged the first few swings, barely keeping up. He used his Fire Arc Slash to attack, but the knight blocked it easily.
CLANG!
Masashi flew backward, crashing into the floor.
Masashi: "He's reading my moves..."
He stood up, and his hands lit up.
Masashi: "Mana Burst... Flashfire Mode!"
With a burst of fire, he rushed forward and landed a hit on the knight's shoulder.
But the knight turned quickly and bashed him with the shield.
BAM!
Masashi hit the wall and coughed blood.
---
Clara Joins In
Clara forced her magic to break through the wall.
Clara: "Masashi! I'm coming!"
She dashed in with her ice blades. Now both of them were fighting together—fire and ice.
They managed to push the knight back.
But then...
The knight spoke in a strange language:
> "VaBeh SerNe... Tryga."
("To our will... do not retreat.")
The knight powered up—black ice covered the ground.
CRACK! BOOM!
Ice spikes shot out from the floor.
Clara and Masashi were hit and thrown across the room.
They passed out.
---
Elra's Last Stand
Only Elra was still standing.
She was tired and injured, but she walked forward.
Her glowing green eye lit up.
Elra: "I won't let you hurt them!"
She faced the knight alone.
They clashed—her magic against his sword.
Elra fought hard, using flames and tricks, dodging fast.
But she was too tired.
She dropped to one knee.
The knight raised his sword for the final strike—
---
Commander Vellia Arrives
WHOOSH!!!
A giant purple flame came from above and hit the knight's sword.
Commander Vellia dropped through the ceiling and landed in front of Elra.
Vellia:
"You've done enough. Let me handle this."
The knight stopped and stared at her.
Then he raised his sword again.
Vellia summoned her sword.
Vellia dashed shaking the floor as she does.
The obsidian knight released a powerful earth magic that's like a spikes growing out on his body, the spikes rushedtowards vellia.
She immediately jumped.
Vellia Dodged it all by jumping on each one of the spikes.
Once vellia reached enough distance, she fast jumped in the air and charge her sword points it to the knight under her.
Vellia:
"You're strong... but I've faced worse."
As she fell from above, her sword charged with bright purple fire. The heat cracked the icy air.
Vellia:
"—Piercing Flame!"
She slammed down toward the Obsidian Knight like a comet.
BOOOOM!!
The whole ground shook. A massive wave of fire exploded across the room.
Smoke filled the air.
Elra opened her eyes slightly.
Elra:
"Did she... finish it?"
The smoke cleared.
The knight was still standing.
His armor was cracked.
But his sword glowed black.
He raised it high—
CRACK!
A bolt of lightning hit the ground between them.
Masashi was back on his feet.
Masashi:
"Vellia… let's end this together."
Clara followed, holding her ice daggers.
Clara:
"You didn't think we'd sleep through the whole fight, did you?"
Vellia smirked, still catching her breath.
Vellia:
"Glad you're back. Then let's finish this... together."
Masashi gripped his sword tightly. His flames flickered weakly, but his eyes were full of focus.
Masashi:
"Elra, Clara, Vellia... we do this together."
The Obsidian Knight raised his blade, black energy swirling around him like a storm.
Clara:
"I'll freeze his legs—buy us time!"
She slammed her daggers into the ground.
A blast of frost surged forward, covering the floor in ice. The knight's feet froze, slowing him down.
Elra:
"My turn—Flare Ray!"
She pointed her hand and fired a beam of green fire that hit the knight's chest. He staggered back, his armor glowing red-hot from the heat.
Masashi:
"Now!"
He leapt forward.
Vellia:
"Right behind you!"
Vellia jumped beside him, both swords glowing. Masashi's blade burned orange, Vellia's pulsed purple.
Masashi & Vellia (together):
"—Twin Slash!!"
They spun mid-air—one from the right, one from the left.
SHHHRRRRRRAAAKK!!
The obsidian armor shattered.
The knight let out a silent roar—then dropped to one knee.
Cracks covered his body like lightning.
He looked up… and nodded.
Then—
BOOOOM!
He exploded into shards of glowing obsidian, vanishing like dust in the wind.
Elra fell to her knees, breathing heavily.
Elra:
"We… we did it…"
Masashi stood still, watching the dust float through the air.
Masashi:
"…That was only one of them. There could be more."
Vellia nodded.
Vellia:
"This was just a warm-up. Let's keep moving. The real witch is waiting."
Clara (weakly smiling):
"Let's just… rest for five minutes… please?"
They all laughed, tired but still standing.
Ahead of them stood the ninth gate—and behind it, the last guardian before Crystella herself.
The ninth gate creaked open, cold mist spilling out like breath from a sleeping dragon.
The air froze.
Not just cold—frozen.
Even Elra's flame flickered and dimmed.
They stepped into the heart of the Frozenfire stronghold—a grand chamber made of crystal ice, with glowing sigils across the walls. And at the center of it…
She stood.
Her long messy blue hair danced in the windless room. Her face pale, sharp, beautiful—yet cold as death.
A pointed witch hat sat crooked on her head. She wore a deep sapphire mage cloak layered with snowflakes and frost runes. Her staff, taller than her, was carved from glacier bone and topped with a glowing shard of eternal ice.
Her eyes met Elra's.
That stare. That same ancient gaze. The kind only immortals held. Time itself seemed to stop.
The two witches—Elra and Crystella—stood like mirrors from different worlds.
Then—she spoke.
Crystella (coldly):
"So... the time witch has chosen to fuse again. You look stable...
Not that it matters. You'll freeze just like the others."
She took one step forward. The floor cracked beneath her boot.
Crystella:
"Your little journey ends here. You came for the Ember Relic, didn't you?"
Masashi (stepping forward):
"We came to stop you. To end this war before more lives are lost."
Crystella's lips curled into a bitter smile.
Crystella:
"Peace? You seek peace... after what Duskland did to my people?"
She raised her staff.
The air screamed.
The room dropped in temperature instantly.
A blizzard howled inside the chamber.
Clara (gritting her teeth):
"She's serious…!"
Elra:
"Masashi, Clara… stay close. We've only got one shot at this."
Crystella (chanting):
"Let the frost that remembers…
Freeze the hearts that forget."
She slammed her staff on the floor.
SHINGGGG!!!
Walls of ice shot up, creating a battle dome.
A duel of fate was about to begin.
Part 2
The ice dome sealed shut.
Crystella raised her staff, and a spiral of frost magic swirled around her. Snowflakes formed runes in the air — ancient, forbidden spells from the Witch Age.
Elra stepped forward, her eyes glowing bright green. Her magic flared in response, like flames refusing to be snuffed out.
Elra:
"I won't let you destroy the world again, Crystella!"
Crystella:
"You're no longer one of us, Elra. You chose weakness. Mortals. Emotion."
She pointed her staff.
Crystella:
"Then die with them."
BOOOOM—!!
A wave of ice spears launched from Crystella's staff, faster than arrows.
Masashi:
"Elra—!"
He reacted fast — fire magic sparked from his palm, forming a wall of flames.
Clara:
"I'll cover the right flank!"
She leaped to the side, throwing magic knives of light that clashed against the falling ice.
SHHHHK—!!
Ice clashed with fire and light in a huge explosion of steam.
Crystella floated into the air, her magic freezing the very air around them.
Crystella:
"Let's raise the stakes."
She summoned creatures — frozen wolves with glowing blue eyes — that growled and rushed at them.
Elra:
"I'll take the wolves! Masashi, Clara, get ready for her next spell!"
Masashi (focused):
"Understood."
Meanwhile...
Elra spun with grace, fire wings exploding from her back. She clashed with the wolves, kicking and blasting each with bursts of flame.
Masashi ran forward, his sword ignited in fire, clashing against icy spikes that burst from the floor.
Clara backflipped, dodging a shard of ice, then countered with a beam of white light.
Crystella narrowed her eyes.
She raised her staff again and chanted:
"Eli'thas… Vernah… Crya NOSTRA!"
Suddenly, the entire dome began freezing inward, spikes forming from the ceiling, aiming to impale all of them.
Masashi:
"She's freezing the battlefield…!"
Clara:
"We'll be crushed in here!"
Elra's fire exploded outward.
Elra:
"I won't let your winter win…!!"
Her green luminous eye shined brighter --- time slowed down slightly. She dashed forward and blasted through the frost, meeting Crystella mid-air.
Their staves clashed --- fire and ice collided — a massive explosion of light tore through the center.
Ice and fire scattered in the air like falling stars.
Elra and Crystella landed on opposite sides. Both were breathing hard, both covered in cuts and frost burns.
Masashi looked up.
The sky above the ice dome turned dark blue, and the air grew colder.
Crystella raised her staff again, her hair floating unnaturally, her body glowing with freezing mist.
Crystella:
"You've forced me to awaken... my true power."
She stabbed the staff into the ground.
The entire battlefield froze solid.
Clara stepped back.
"This aura...! She's transforming!"
The ground cracked. The frost began to glow, forming a massive sigil under Crystella's feet.
Crystella:
"Come forth... Eternal Frost Form."
Her body shifted—
Her arms turned into crystal-like armor of sharp ice.
Her staff extended into a giant scythe made of frozen mana.
Wings of snow erupted behind her, flapping like a blizzard.
Masashi (shocked):
"She's not human anymore…"
Crystella raised her scythe.
A single slash — and a shockwave of ice split the battlefield in half!
Masashi:
"Elra!! Clara!! Move!!"
He grabbed Clara's hand and rolled out of the way.
Elra flew into the air, spinning with her flame staff, deflecting the frozen wave with fire — but barely.
Elra (panting):
"She's... too strong like this...!"
Clara:
"We need to break her focus! Her scythe is the source of her new magic!"
Masashi charges
Masashi grits his teeth.
Masashi:
"Then I'll destroy it."
He leapt forward, fire surrounding his body, his sword glowing with flame runes.
He clashed with Crystella.
CLANG!
Ice scythe vs. fire blade.
Shockwaves blasted across the room.
Crystella smirked.
"You think your weak human flames can stop me?"
Masashi (gritting):
"I don't need to stop you... just hold you still!"
Clara's Strike
From behind, Clara appeared with a glowing sigil of light.
Clara:
"Piercing Light — Astra Ray!"
A beam of light struck Crystella's wing — shattering part of her magic and sending her crashing.
Crystella fell — hard — but landed on her feet.
She wiped her lip.
Crystella:
"You insects… still fight."
She raised both hands.
The entire dome began to collapse.
Ice pillars fell from the ceiling like meteors.
The air screamed with magic.
Elra:
"This is it! She's going to destroy the whole place!!"
Elra's Final Stand
Elra stepped forward, her fire igniting in full force.
Her eyes glowed green and gold — the Luminous Flame awakened.
Elra:
"Masashi... Clara... get back. I'll stop her."
Masashi (shouting):
"No! You'll burn yourself out!"
Elra (soft smile):
"If I don't, we all die."
She flew forward — faster than ever — and clashed with Crystella in mid-air.
Fire and ice exploded.
The dome cracked.
Everything turned white from the light.
Part 3
The sky screamed.
Ice and fire clashed in midair.
Crystella, the Witch of Ice, hovered above with frost swirling from her wings.
Below, Elra, burning with golden flames, was locked in a brutal magic duel.
Masashi and Clara, battered and breathless, looked up from the frozen ground.
Crystella spun her scythe, summoning a ring of frozen spears.
Crystella (calmly):
"I am winter's soul. The storm never ends. You three... will sleep beneath the snow."
She sent hundreds of ice spears raining down.
Elra blocked them with fire shields, but her flame was dimming.
Masashi and Clara dodged, barely avoiding the lethal barrage.
Clara (panting):
"Elra can't hold much longer!"
Masashi:
"Then we end this. Together."
Masashi charged forward, fire bursting from his sword.
"Elra—fall back! We'll strike together!"
Elra nodded weakly and dropped back.
Masashi dashed under the storm of frost, slashing upward toward Crystella's legs.
CLANG!
Crystella blocked with her scythe but staggered.
Clara leapt from behind, casting a light spell —
"Luminous Bind!"
Chains of light wrapped around Crystella's arm, slowing her movement.
Masashi yelled:
"Now, Elra!"
Elra rose into the sky, eyes blazing.
"Final Seal: Phoenix Spiral!"
She spun midair, creating a fire tornado wrapped in gold and green light.
She launched it downward — it smashed into Crystella's core.
The sky exploded in red and white.
Crystella dropped her scythe.
Her ice wings shattered.
She fell, crashing into the ice-covered floor — unmoving, breathless.
Masashi ran to Elra—
But she was falling too, flames flickering.
Elra (whispering):
"I'm out of mana… don't let her die… make her understand..."
She collapsed in Masashi's arms.
Clara:
"Masashi, she's alive. But barely."
Masashi stood, carrying Elra on his back, and walked toward Crystella's unconscious body.
He stared down at the Witch of Ice.
Masashi (quietly):
"This war is over. If we can end the curses... then maybe, we can stop the next one before it begins."
Hours later, the battle team secured the area.
The obsidian walls of Frozenfire Base cracked and shattered.
Their mission was complete.
The Ember Relic was secured.
The Witch of Ice was captured — not killed.
The frozen weapons and cursed tools were destroyed.
Clara planted Duskland's flag at the center of the ruined fortress.
Back at the icy hills, the group stood, watching smoke rise from the destroyed Frozenfire base.
Commander Vellia:
"Well done, all of you. Duskland is safe."
Masashi looked up at the sky, holding Elra in his arms, unconscious but breathing.
He made a promise.
Masashi (to himself):
"When you wake up… we'll make peace, not war."
[MISSION COMPLETE!!]
The Witch of Ice has fallen.
The Ember Relic is secured.
But new shadows rise beyond the blizzards...