The Wandering Witch VOL. 1 - The Prelude Arc (COMPLETED)

6.5| A Public Execution II

    "Don't forget about me!" The other hunter suddenly charged at her in a burst of quick speed. Chell willed the other two icicles towards him, gesturing with her fingers in a quick flick. However, just inches from being stabbed, the hunter quickly dodged. He slid down on the ground, evading the attack. Chell blinked in surprise as he stood up and quickly closed their distance. She had not expected him to dodge.

    "The money's mine!" he said in glee, noticing her surprised expression. He grinned in triumph as he brought his sword down at her. She knew he was most likely thinking that he had won the fight after breaking through her defenses. But his happiness only lasted for a moment, though, when he realized what happened a second later. Chell had stopped the edge of his blade by simply touching it with her finger.

    He gasped, clearly not expecting the witch to stop his attack so effortlessly. Then, his eyes widened as lines appeared on his sword from where she had touched it. A crack. It webbed and expanded, spreading over the entire metal before it broke into discarded pieces at his shoes.

    Ah... It's still there, Chell thought.

   She took a few tentative steps back to distance herself away from him. Then, she flicked her hand again. At his feet, a layer of ice rose quickly from the ground and consumed his legs, restraining him in place. Ildan gasped loudly, letting go of his sword hilt as he felt the cold and frost creep up, immobilizing him. He squirmed and tried to get away as the ice spread upwards his entire body, deliberately freezing his legs, his chest, his arms, his shoulders, until Chell commanded it to stop just as it reached his chin.

    Behind Ildan, the tattooed hunter suddenly stood up, wheezing heavily. He took hold of his unbroken scimitar and raised it with a shaky hand. The icicle was still protruding from his shoulder like an awkward horn, where trickles of blood pooled quietly from the wound.

    "I... will... kill..., " he heaved, his eyes unfocused.

    With an unchanged expression, Chell clasped her hand into a tight fist and willed the icicle on his shoulder to spread over his body. It obliged, losing its solidity and extending its cold grip over to his arms and neck, moving like a quick plague that threatened to overtake his body. The tattooed hunter screamed in panic and agony as the ice crept over his face and his wound. Just a little before it reached his knees, Chell willed it to stop. The tattooed hunter swayed in his feet, the weight of the ice causing him to topple over on the hard ground. He ceased to move after that, unconscious either from the pain or the frost.

   It happened so quick. Too quick. They were weaker than she thought. Or maybe, rather, it was because Chell was simply too powerful. The difference of their level in skill was obvious. It had not even taken Chell a fourth of her power to defeat them. To her, it was not even considered a fair fight. At first, Chell had initially thought that they were on par or even greater in skill than Worick, but she could see clearly now that their brazen words were merely just bluffs. They had underestimated her. In the end, they were just simply lacking in skill. Chell had faced and triumphed over many hunters who were far stronger than them.

    "... -ow Witch," Ildan murmured quietly under his breath, snapping Chell from her thoughts. She turned to him. More loudly, he said, "You're... The Snow Witch."

    It was not a question. Chell looked at him, her silver eyes shining bright in the alley's semidarkness. She did not deny nor confirm it. Finally realizing this fact, his eyes widened as Ildan began to fumble with his next words, teeth chattering in the cold and his tone faint and full of fear. "Please... F-Forgive me. I didn't know it was you... Please. Please don't kill me. I promise, I won't harm you again, I'll never show myself in front of you again! Please, mercy! Mercy!"