"Stop right there! Where do you think you’re running off to?!"
"Why should I?! I’m going to run as fast as I damn well can!"
"You—!"
Whoosh—!!
The spirit didn’t even finish her sentence before she hurled another icy spear at .
Thwack—!!
Boom—!!
The spear slamd into the wall beside and exploded in a burst of cold energy.
I barely dodged in ti. The shockwave sent stumbling forward, and a sharp sting ran down my side from the blast. But I was still breathing.
That’s good enough.
I gritted my teeth and kept running without wasting a single second.
Behind , I could hear her again. The spirit’s sharp, frost-laced voice rang out, furious and impatient. Her icy blue eyes narrowed as she took up the chase once more.
This had been going on for nearly two minutes now.
I knew from the start—I couldn’t beat a Snow Guardian Spirit in a head-on fight. That was suicide.
So I didn’t even try.
My strategy was simple: run.
But this wasn’t mindless running. I wasn’t just fleeing in circles like a rat in a maze.
I had a destination in mind.
I just needed to get there before I either collapsed... or got impaled.
The underground halls of the Valstein estate echoed with the sound of our chase—my boots slamming against the stone floor, her elegant glide barely making a sound, yet sohow always close behind.
"You can’t run forever, human!" she called out, gliding effortlessly. "Your kind always tires first!"
She wasn’t wrong.
Even after weeks of sparring with Alice to build my stamina, I couldn’t keep up with a high-grade spirit drawing energy straight from nature.
Still, I smirked through my labored breaths.
"Then let’s see who tires first."
I wasn’t running without a plan.
I knew spirits like her could use nearly limitless magic, but only as long as they were in sync with natural mana sources—forests, mountains, lakes. That’s their lifeblood.
But this was underground. Deep beneath the Valstein estate. No nature. No wind. No trees. No glaciers.
So how was she still fighting like this?
That could only an one thing—there’s an external power source.
A magic device. A relic. Sothing in this chamber was acting as her artificial mana battery.
If I could find it and destroy it, she’d be cut off—and then I might actually stand a chance.
"Pant... pant..."
Each breath burned. My legs were starting to feel like lead. My lungs scread for air.
But I couldn’t stop.
This wasn’t just a chase.
It was a race.
A race between my stamina and her magic.
A race between death and a breakthrough.
And I had no intention of losing.
The corridor narrowed as I pressed on, ducking past pillars and weaving between display stands.
I wasn’t sure how much farther the vault extended, but I could feel sothing—an instinct pulling toward a hidden chamber.
I just needed to stay alive long enough to reach it.
Whoosh!
Another spear whistled past my ear, grazing my cheek.
Thwack! Boom!
The shockwave from the blast knocked over a nearby statue, scattering frost and debris in my path. I winced as a shard of ice scraped my arm, warm blood trickling down my sleeve. My fingers trembled.
Still, I didn’t stop.
Not yet. Not until I find it.
Then, at last, I spotted it.
A faint glow, pulsing from a slit between two thick columns at the far end of the hallway. The color was off—too unnatural to be part of the vault’s standard enchantnts. It shimred blue-white, humming with raw mana.
There you are...
I had reached Chamber 0.
The deepest part of the vault, where a similar energy to the Snow Spirit emanated.
But just as I took a step toward it—
"Enough."
The voice ca from behind, sharp as breaking ice. The temperature plumted instantly.
Before I could turn, frost curled around my legs, locking in place. My breath hitched. My body wouldn’t respond.
The Snow Spirit floated forward slowly, her hands outstretched.
"I gave you enough chances," she said, her expression calm—but her voice crackled with killing intent. "And still, you keep running."
I clenched my jaw.
Damn it. So close...Still I know, I have a chance to turn this situation around.
---
[Snow Spirit’s POV]
What a strange little human.
For the past two minutes, he’s done nothing but run—stumbling, dodging, narrowly avoiding the spears I throw. A lesser creature would’ve frozen or begged for rcy. But not him.
He runs with purpose. Like he’s chasing sothing.
Not just escaping.
I narrow my eyes as I float forward, watching him breathe, watching his chest rise and fall like a drum losing rhythm.
He’s nearly spent. And yet his eyes are still focused.
Still searching.
That’s when I understand.
He’s not just running to survive. He’s hunting for my core. My source of power.
How clever.
But still so foolish. This is the end for him.
----
Julies Evans POV
"You’re tough," the Snow Spirit said, coldly raising her hand, forming another deadly spear of ice. "But this is the end. Let’s finish this."
But I only smirked, despite the blood on my lip and the cold biting at my bones.
"That’s my line."
She blinked. "What?"
I took a step back, just enough for the dim light behind to catch her eye.
"I found it. Just in ti."
Behind , nestled in a reinforced case within the vault wall, a faint blue glow pulsed steadily—unnatural, too rhythmic to be anything but artificial.
In this place, sealed away from the outside world, there were no glaciers, no rivers, no wind, no natural mana to feed a spirit of ice.
And yet she was thriving.
Because of that gem.
----
Author Note.
Thank you for reading the Chapter. I hope you continue to do read more in future.
It’s my second novel so if there’s any kind of mistakes you find in the novel related to grammar please tell and I’ll edit it as soon as possible.
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