Charlotte would never consider this a gift from Mother Nature.
On the contrary, he knew very well—it was a dangerous warning. Last time, it was Bella who had come to assassinate him.
He found it even more disturbing that he wasn’t at home right now.
If the other party was searching for Charlotte Wuyue, their target should logically have been his residence.
Why, then, could they so precisely lock onto his position here in the wild countryside?
Especially when he’d already activated the [Veil of Mist Concealment]—that meant the other party had, at the very least, the ability to pierce divine magic.
Still, that also let Charlotte breathe a sigh of relief. At least, the visitor wasn’t coming for Charlotte Wuyue.
Aifel, of course, also understood what this implied. “Should we retreat, Charlotte? They’re not approaching very quickly.”
“Run…”
Charlotte’s fingertips rubbed against the [Dream of the Dark Moon].
Should he take a gamble?
How could the other party have detected him? That should be impossible.
Even someone as powerful as Movira couldn’t pierce through the Mist God’s magic [Veil of Mist Concealment] and lock onto his presence from such a distance.
“Wait a little longer.” His voice dropped low. “Maybe we can figure out the origin of the artifact they’re using.”
Even if the person who came was Movira, he was confident he could escape—though it would cost him a great deal of artifact power.
This was a high-stakes gamble… If he won, he’d leave with the artifact; if he lost, he might spend all the divine power he’d just obtained.
Vivian Arlene’s figure appeared by the lakeshore.
She held a silver-white staff, surrounded by a faint golden aura of wind element, slowly descending at the edge of the damp grass.
Olive-green eyes churned with golden mist, shining astonishingly bright in the night.
She instantly spotted the figure shrouded in thick mist at the center of the lake—she could make out the general outline, but could not see through the heavy haze.
Her olive eyes flickered with golden mist, unusually bright beneath the night.
She discovered the figure standing in the center of the lake, enveloped in dense mist—she could only see the form, not through the veil.
It was her first time encountering such a situation. It looked like the opponent’s strength was above her own…
“Follower of an evil god! Why are you here!”
Her crisp voice pierced the night fog, aiming directly at the silhouette in the lake’s center.
Charlotte saw the visitor and was stunned. Wasn’t this the noble young lady he’d met at the opera house and the roast chicken stall earlier today?
How could she detect him? Yet, although she’d found him, she still couldn’t see through the [Veil of Mist Concealment], which meant their strength wasn’t too far apart.
“Who are you?” Charlotte’s voice was distorted by the dense mist, its tone and direction impossible to discern, as if separated by thick frosted glass.
“No comment! All you need to remember is that I’m a passing Temple Knight, here to protect the citizens of the Kalishi Empire. Whatever you’re planning, I won’t allow you to take another step toward Kalishi Imperial Capital.” Vivian’s tone was resolute.
“Heh, a Temple Knight?”
No wonder. No wonder at all. He really did have some twisted fate with the Aetherlan Divine Church.
Anyone able to wield an Aetherlan artifact would naturally hold a distinguished position, never mind the kind of artifact that could locate him—such an artifact had to be an Aetherlan legacy.
Plus, with what Princess Kresia had told him recently—that the Holy Maiden had returned to the Kalishi Empire to attend the Emperor’s banquet—he’d basically pieced it together.
The person before him was the Holy Maiden of the Aetherland Theocracy.
Killing intent slowly rose in Charlotte’s heart. He remembered his mother’s grief-stricken face, recalled Wuyue’s ten thousand years of disgrace and survival.
Now, his greatest nemesis stood before him. He clenched his fists and took a deep breath to steady himself.
To kill her, he must calm down completely and make thorough preparations, prioritizing his own safety above all.
Aifel sensed Charlotte’s mood shift as well. “Charlotte, you have to stay calm now. Objectively, killing her brings no benefit.”
“I can forgive her, but I cannot forgive on behalf of the Mist God, nor on behalf of Wuyue. I know. I’m just testing her. If it gets dangerous, I’ll escape.” Charlotte replied.
Aifel did not try to persuade him further. “Charlotte, you must put your own safety first.”
“I understand.”
Charlotte nodded, then looked again at the girl.
“You’re the Holy Maiden of the Aetherlan Divine Church?”
Charlotte knew the answer, but still asked. As expected, Vivian reacted.
“You… you know me…”
Vivian’s fear deepened. The person before her seemed to know everything about her, while she knew nothing about him.
But her body reacted before her mind could—
“Saint Spear—!”
The staff in her hand swept through the air, and several brilliant golden magic circles suddenly lit up in the night sky.
Countless gilded spears shot out with a piercing sound, straight for the mist-shrouded figure in the lake’s center!
Charlotte just waved a hand. “Water Wall.”
A cerulean magic array rose beneath his feet. The icy lake water surged up, bursting through the surface, and formed a wall several meters high, standing like a fortress before him.
“Ice Purity…”
Charlotte intoned gravely.
At his command, a thin, sparkling layer of ice rapidly coated the Water Wall.
Sharp ice spikes formed along its surface, aiming like fangs at the incoming Saint Spears.
“Clang—Clang—Clang!”
The sound of metal striking ice rang out in quick succession.
The gilded spears embedded themselves in the ice, unable to fully pierce through, their tips locked into the frozen surface.
Light and ice elements corroded each other, raising clouds of white steam.
Vivian’s brow furrowed tight. She swept her staff again, the magic circles in the sky flaring brighter.
More Saint Spears surged forth, while the wind element around her grew wild, sweeping up gravel and hurling it fiercely toward Charlotte.
Charlotte retreated quickly, dodging the flying rocks and Saint Spears that crashed through the lake’s ice, sending up great splashes.
In his hand, mist and water element coalesced into a short blade. Charlotte shot forth, propelled by wind magic, attacking Vivian from different angles.
Vivian’s reaction was just as swift. With her staff, she drew a golden blade of light before her, sweeping at the approaching Charlotte.
At the same time, a Divine Light Halo formed at her feet, its pale golden glow enveloping her in a defensive shield.
Charlotte had no illusions about wounding Vivian with such attacks. His true goal was to restrict her movement, gradually wearing her down.
Assisting his assault, sharp ice pillars erupted from the lake’s surface—this was a technique he’d learned from Duke Ryan, suiting Charlotte’s methods perfectly and fitting the current strategy: he could devote enough energy to harass his opponent and precisely control the placement of each ice spike, continuously disrupting her spellcasting rhythm.
Vivian had clearly never faced such a troublesome opponent before. Her once-smooth casting flow became chaotic.
Dodging an ice pillar on her left, she’d be forced to defend from Charlotte closing in on her right.
Seeing this, Charlotte tossed aside his water-element blade and flicked his finger—a sharp snap rang out.
Dozens of dark-purple magic arrays suddenly flared, spread across the sky like a starry web.
Vivian’s body shuddered. The Divine Light Halo at her feet instantly dimmed.
My god… What is this…
Could even a Transcendent cast spells this fast?
Vivian’s fingers trembled around her staff. Her voice turned sharp with fear: “Light, answer me!”
She closed her eyes, focusing all her mind on defense. The golden shield’s light surged, just barely enduring the dense barrage of Dark Element Missiles.
Doubts surged within her: Who was this monster? How could he command water, ice, and dark elements at once? And how could he cast at such terrifying speed?
He had to be a Transcendent…
But then, she suddenly sensed a biting chill behind her—Charlotte had thrust his hand into the lake and, with a thought, drawn forth an ice crystal longsword.
Focused on defending against the dark element, Vivian had lost track of him. Now, the frigid blade was aimed right at her back!
“No!”
Vivian’s alarm bells screamed. She twisted aside, but the ice blade still grazed her shoulder, the cold sending a shiver through her.
At that instant, Charlotte’s fingertips brushed the sword-shaped pendant hanging at her chest.
“So that’s it. Holy Sword Ophelia… You really are the Holy Maiden.” A glint of understanding flashed in Charlotte’s eyes.
Vivian retreated in haste, clutching the pendant at her chest and urgently called, “Holy Sword! Answer me!”
The pendant burst forth in blinding holy light. A longsword formed from pure divine power appeared in midair, golden veins flowing along its blade.
Though intangible, it radiated a power that threatened to cut down all before it.
She swept the sword in a broad arc, golden sword energy forcing Charlotte back, who hastily conjured an ice wall to block.
Vivian, rattled, pressed a hand to her shoulder where frostbite set in—the wound didn’t bleed, but was sealed with a thin layer of ice. The stabbing pain made her grit her teeth.
Her olive eyes burned with rage and shock. She’d never imagined this “follower of an evil god” would use such vicious tricks.
It wasn’t fatal, but the pain was unbearable, and even healing magic couldn’t bring immediate relief.
“Who are you!” she shouted angrily at Charlotte’s elusive figure, Holy Sword flashing as beams of Light Element Magic rained like meteors on the lake, trying to shatter every ice wall and pillar.
But Charlotte’s mana seemed inexhaustible. Water and ice element spells alternated, always forming new barriers the moment she breached the last.
She pursued and he fled. A tense game of cat and mouse played out across the lake.
Vivian repeatedly closed in, only for Charlotte to keep her at bay with exquisite elemental magic, never letting her come within striking distance.
The chase lasted several minutes before Charlotte suddenly stopped dodging.
Because he was sure of victory.
The shattered ice and flying spray, scorched by the high heat of Light Element Magic, filled the air with thick mist, rapidly raising the humidity.
And this mist was his greatest ally—this was why he’d chosen to practice magic beside the lake.
Because here, there was fog…
Vivian watched as thick mist began to rise over the lake, her expression growing darker.
She was already close to losing her sense of direction in the white haze.
In another moment, the entire battlefield would be swallowed up.
Charlotte’s figure had long since vanished in the fog.
His illusory, distorted voice echoed from all around, laced with a hint of mockery:
“Your Holiness, don’t be impatient. Our battle… has only just begun…”