The Last Paragon in the Apocalypse

Watching Anna leave, Klaus couldn’t help but recall his past life as Fruity, the renegade monk. He had only met the Ice Princess once, and it had been a fleeting encounter.

After that meeting, his life had turned upside down. So far, he couldn’t remember enough to know whether they ever crossed paths again or if that single moment was all they shared.

Although he wasn’t sure if Anna was her reincarnation, he knew one thing: if he couldn’t have her in his past life, at least he had someone who looked like her in this one.

That would be enough, especially if he ever saw her again in one of his memories. For now, though, he could only focus on the present and be content with what he had.

‘I really hope this is you, my Ice Princess,’ Klaus thought inwardly.

Anna entered the arena holding her magic staff. Her opponent, Ruby, also stepped in, gripping her staff tightly. Both radiated ice Qi, their eyes locked in a fierce stare.

The arena seemed to freeze over with the cold aura emanating from the two combatants.

“Who are they?” a veteran disciple asked.

“The one in green armor is Anna Ross. She’s from the Northern Union and the younger sister of the Wood Queen—Klaus’s girlfriend.”

“And the blue-haired beauty?”

“She’s Ruby, a genius from the Ice Union. Among the new disciples who use ice, she’s the only one who has awakened her Ice Element.

“That means she’s likely to win this match easily since Anna hasn’t awakened hers yet. Ruby even defeated Gideon, and he’s already awakened his Ice element.”

The two veterans continued their discussion while, in the arena, Ruby—known for her arrogance born from her exceptional talent—decided to open the match with some classic insults.

“I heard you are one of the sluts parading around with Klaus Hanson,” Ruby commented, expecting Anna to fire back. But Anna said nothing and continued to stare at her.

“Can’t talk, huh? I guess I’ll have to defeat you and push you down the chart. Maybe that will knock some sense into you and make you realize not everyone beside him is worthy of being noticed.”

“Oh, so you’re jealous Klaus isn’t paying attention to you. Now I remember—you’re one of those legacies who think they’re better than everyone else,” Anna replied calmly.

“Hmm. Don’t worry, Klaus doesn’t like bitches like you. But even if he did, after I drag your face through the mud, he’ll wipe that thought right out of his head.

“And just because you’ve awakened your ice element doesn’t mean you’re unbeatable. But don’t worry, I’ll go easy on you. Fragile creatures like you tend to break easily,” Anna added, deliberately holding back her more profane insults.

Her words seemed to strike a nerve in Ruby. But before Ruby could retort, Anna gestured for the instructor to begin.

“You can start now, Instructor. If we keep paying attention to this nonsense for too long, I’m afraid our brains might freeze for no reason.”

“Begin,”

The instructor gave the order, clearly uninterested in hearing more of their bickering.

“Ice Bullets!” Ruby waved her staff, sending shards of ice shooting down at Anna.

“Water Wall,” Anna countered, summoning a water barrier around her.

The icy projectiles melted upon contact, their force dissipating harmlessly. This was just the opening stage of their battle—a simple display of elemental manipulation.

Both fighters were merely testing the waters, manipulating their elements as they saw fit. Neither had unleashed their full power yet, preferring to gauge each other’s skills first.

However, this could only last so long. The longer they spent on minor attacks, the more energy they wasted.

“Call of the Morning Ice: Ice Shard!” Ruby invoked one of her ice mage spells. A massive shard of ice, nearly three meters long, materialized in midair.

“You claim you’ll drag my face through the mud; why don’t you defend against this?” Ruby taunted, sweeping her staff forward.

The ice shard shot toward Anna with deadly speed. But Anna didn’t stand idle. Instead, she tapped into her water element, ignoring ice entirely, and began to chant her own spell.

“Rising Tide: Water Serpent!” Anna chanted, her voice steady.

The water around her surged upward, forming into the shape of a massive serpent. The serpent coiled and roared, its liquid body glistening under the sunlight.

The Ice Shard raced toward her, but the serpent struck with precision. Its powerful jaws clamped down on the shard, shattering it into countless fragments that melted instantly within its watery form.

“From the ice I call, may thy call be heeded: Rise, Scorpio!” Ruby chanted, her voice cold.

A cold mist swirled around her as the air crackled with icy energy.

Slowly, a massive scorpion-like creature began to form from the ice, its claws sharp and gleaming, its tail curved menacingly with a frozen stinger.

Ruby’s expression hardened. She had underestimated Anna, but no more.

Seeing Anna effortlessly using her water element to nullify her attack felt like an insult. They are both Ice Mages, but Anna was using the water element instead.

That is a plain disrespect.

“You think you’re better just because you can wield water too?” Ruby hissed. “Let’s see how you handle this!”

Anna remained calm, her gaze fixed on the towering ice scorpion.

The scorpion screeched and lunged toward Anna, its massive claws crashing down. Anna stepped back. She channeled her water element once more, summoning streams of water to weave around her.

“Torrent Cage!” she shouted, raising her staff.

The water spiraled upward, forming a dome-like barrier. The scorpion’s claw struck the cage, causing a shockwave of icy mist and splashing water. The cage held, rippling but intact. Experience more tales on My Virtual Library Empire

Ruby smirked. “Let’s see how long you can keep that up.” She pointed her staff, and the scorpion lunged again, its stinger striking with deadly precision.

The cage held firm, but the scorpion continued its relentless strikes. Each blow was aimed at breaking through the dome and reaching its target.

Anna focused her water qi inside the dome, reinforcing the barrier. A small smirk played on her lips.

‘You think I’ll fall for your tricks,’ she thought, her confidence steady. She knew better than to get careless. Losing focus just to show off would be a mistake.

Anna had done her homework.

She had someone gather information about Ruby’s previous match. The report confirmed that Ruby hadn’t used any powerful spells to defeat her opponent. This could only mean one thing—Ruby was hiding her true strength.

Anna had a variety of spells at her disposal, but her spiritual qi was limited. She couldn’t afford to waste energy on flashy attacks. Instead, she stayed calm, countering Ruby’s efforts with minimal effort.

Fifteen minutes passed. Despite the scorpion’s persistent attacks, the water dome remained unbroken. Frustration flickered in Ruby’s eyes. She had had enough.

Raising her staff high, she channeled her energy. Her ice began to glow an ocean-blue hue, radiating a chilling aura. The temperature in the arena dropped sharply, and frost spread across the ground, freezing everything it touched.

The air crackled as Ruby spoke, her voice cold and sharp.

“Awakened Ice: Frost Sovereign.”

A wave of energy burst from her staff, and the arena was plunged into a frozen storm. Her awakened ice element was now fully unleashed.