Destroyer of Ice and Fire

For Carter, teaching Ayrin, who was destined for greatness, gave him a sense of pride.

"Fusion and compound skills?" Ayrin asked, light flickering in his eyes as he repeated Carter's words in his mind.

"Correct." Carter nodded as he explained, "In order to create fusion and compound skills, one must first learn and master a diverse array of arcane skills. For normal arcane masters who can only master a couple decent skills after several years of training, this is not possible. But for a genius like you whose greatest talent lies in your ability to learn and your affinity for arcane energy, you will be able to fuse and combine skills however you want. That is why you are a natural born Kaleidoscope Master."

"Even without our guidance, you have already learned how to use your many skills in a way which they complement each other through your battles, allowing you to restrict your opponent and launch attacks in quick succession. However, it is not enough."

Carter shook his head as he continued, "Your fusion skills and compound skills must become swift like the wind and overwhelming like the rain. They must allow you to quickly dispatch your opponent any room for counterattack and must also prevent any of your opponent's teammates from attacking you and stopping you. Only if you manage to accomplish this can you become able to defeat one or more arcane teams by yourself."

"Although the strongest assassins, those who have gained the title Shadow Dancers, also have the ability to defeat an arcane team by themselves, they accomplish this through individual assassinations amidst the darkness. If you wish to do what you have said and make it so that an arcane team is afraid to step out of its front door, you cannot go down this route. You can only train until your level of strength is enough to face the arcane team head on."

……

Ayrin thought for just a couple seconds before replying, "I understand."

He looked at Carter as his voice become louder and he continued, "Then you, Teacher Carter, and the others have already picked out several skills for me to learn and master? Ones which will allow me to continuously disrupt and assault several opponents at the same time without providing time or opportunity for other opponents to interrupt me if used properly?"

"You are correct."

Carter couldn't help but think of Ayrin's extraordinary comprehension and intuition as he looked back at Ayrin and replied, "But at the same time, you must realize that most of your opponents now are arcane masters with plentiful combat experience. It is possible that some of them will be familiar with one or more of your skills and will be able to devise a plan against them. Therefore even after you learn so many skills, you must also determine how to combine and fuse them. You must also be able to quickly change between skills. So while it seems like a simple plan on paper - just learn a lot of skills - it will actually be quite difficult to reach the level of strength which you desire. Not only will you need to study many skills, you will also have to undergo many battles."

"Teacher Carter, I am not afraid of hardships. Furthermore, as long as it is for Charlotte, even something like digesting the Poisonflame Emperor Egg is not so difficult anymore!" Ayrin loudly declared.

Off to the side, Charlotte's face abruptly flushed red like an apple in autumn.

"You… even if it is a profession of your love… there is no need to shout it out…"

Carter couldn't help but crinkle his nose and chuckle. Afterwards, his face turned serious once more as he said, "Since you understand, then let's begin!"

Whoosh!

Carter opened a bulging rucksack from beside him and turned it upside down.

Charlotte's breath caught in her throat as she watched countless scrolls and scriptures tumble out from within!

"Let us begin the first skill sequence!" Carter immediately cried out as he began picking out scrolls and placing them before Ayrin. "Winter's Shadow, plus Ice Witch's Throne, alongside your Crown of Ice and Snow, and then Winter's Pillar…"

……

"Speaking bluntly, goddess like girl, ever since Professor Plum taught you Dark Destruction Dragon, you have been destined to become an opportunist, an arcane master who delivers a cold dagger at the critical moment."

Liszt and Chris were currently seated atop the spire of one of the tallest huts in Witch Hat Town. Liszt lazily looked at Chris as he slowly said, "In all honesty, Dark Destruction Dragon is not much different from my Holy Gate of Life. Using our respective skill exhausts us of almost all our strength. This means we only have one opportunity, so we must make sure that this opportunity is used to defeat an arcane master who would otherwise be stronger than us. For arcane masters like us, we must be decisive. We either go when an opportunity arises, or we don't. Otherwise, not only will it get us killed, but our teammates as well."

Liszt continued, "As the effective radius of Dark Destruction Dragon is not very large, it will be very extremely difficult for you, at your current strength and ability, to land the critical hit on a truly powerful arcane master."

Chris listened attentively to Liszt. As he stopped, she immediately and very bluntly asked, "So what should I do then, Teacher Liszt?"

"Through your training, you have already surpassed the normal limits of your pure human bloodline. It is no longer possible for you to make any major breakthroughs in your combat ability and arcane skills. To put it another way, your three years of bitter training has already squeezed out all your potential for the next several years. As a result, barring anything extraordinary, your progress over the next few years will be slower than any other celebrity fighter of the current national tournament."

Liszt's lazy demeanor abruptly disappeared as he paused for a moment and then slowly continued, "But it is also because of your pure human bloodline that you still have a chance to become immensely stronger."

Chris continued to listen attentively to Liszt. Even upon hearing him say that it was likely that her progress over the next few years would be slower than anyone else, she didn't feel a hint of anxiousness because she was certain that Liszt, for him to bring up such an issue, already had a plan in mind.

"Teacher Liszt, are you planning for me to try and integrate some kind of bloodline?" Chris asked.

"Now that your foundation and abilities are more or less firmly set, it is indeed time for you to integrate another bloodline." Liszt slightly smiled as he said, "After integrating another bloodline, many of your talents will greatly improve. The combat awareness and skills which you have bitterly tempered through the years will make you stand out amongst those with the same talent, and even those geniuses with higher talent. You will not fall behind, but instead become stronger than them."

Chris vigorously nodded as she refrained from asking any further questions.

"We have already discussed amongst ourselves and with Professor Plum. Because the first integration is the most successful for those with a pure human bloodline, and because future bloodlines may not be as successful, or not successful at all…" Liszt turned and looked Chris in the eye as he continued, "We have decided that you should integrate the bloodline of the Emperor Evil Eye."

"Emperor Evil Eye?" Chris curiously asked. She had never heard the name before.

"It is a monster which surpasses the level of Lord and King. It is about two meters tall and is quite similar to a human, except that it has a single purple eye and a pair of arcane energy resistant wings which look like arcane robes when folded behind it. It is an extremely cruel creature which likes to feast on the flesh of arcane masters, probably because of the arcane particles contained within." Liszt continued with his explanation, "It is one of the few monsters whose bloodlines can be integrated into an arcane master, and bestows a natural resistance to arcane skills and the skill of the evil eye. The former will increase the strength of your pure human bloodline body, whereas the latter will allow you to see others' movements more clearly, as if they are moving extremely slowly. By integrating this bloodline, your ability to survive atop the battlefield will be much greater. This, along with the strong foundation which you have already laid, will make it much easier for you to land Dark Destruction Dragon."

After a short pause, Liszt looked Chris in the eye and added, "However, you must remember that integrating this bloodline does not mean you can stop working hard. After all, it is not a dragon bloodline. That said, with the abilities of our entire academy, it should not be impossible for us to obtain an inheritance which would allow you to integrate a dragon bloodline…"

"It doesn't matter. After all, even if you expend so much energy and find a dragon bloodline, it may not be suitable for me," Chris interjected. A look of determination had arisen in her eyes. Regardless of what bloodline she integrated, she would still train just as hard as before.

"Well then. I hope you are ready for another dangerous adventure."

Liszt grinned as he continued, "In this next period of time, you will need to learn and master the skill which allows you to absorb blood from living creatures. Then, once Ayrin makes some progress in his training, you all will go to the Roland Forest. Because as far as we teachers know, the only Emperor Evil Eye in Doraster is the one which has been nurtured by House Roland."

"Roland Forest? The territory governed by Megan and her house?" Chris exclaimed.

"Correct. This is a plan which we have crafted after much consideration," Liszt replied. "Since Ayrin has become an ally of House Eclipse Moon, you all will definitely receive the assistance of House Eclipse Moon in entering the Roland Forest. After all, House Eclipse Moon is not in a great situation right now with House Roland receiving so much support from House Baratheon in the form of arcane teams. These teams happen to be ones under Rincero, who Ayrin very much wishes to destroy right now. I imagine that you will be willing to help Ayrin in his endeavors and fight alongside him?"

"Naturally," Chris nodded, then took a deep breath. She could feel her blood boiling within her slender and lithe body.

As friends and teammates, they naturally would do anything for each other, including sacrifice themselves if the time came.