The Unfettered Ice Princess [ EN ]

Chapter 17 [ Master and Student ]

"KAWAIII!!!!!!!!!"
Without preamble, Ophelia immediately hugged the adorable creature in front of her. Her hands were also busy rubbing and sometimes pinching its plump cheeks. The creature looked uncomfortable and tried to escape, but Ophelia's embrace was too strong.

Meanwhile, Naeva just watched it without changing her expression.
"What is that thing?"

"Ah! I'm forgot..." Ophelia snapped after coming to her senses.

After releasing her hug and turning back to Naeva,
"Naeva! Ruby! This is the Ruby!"

"!"
Naeva's eyes widened slightly. Naeva had no idea that the Ruby the examiner was referring to was a living being.

"It turns out that the reason why those Rubies moved when I detected them before was because they were alive. I thought someone had taken them," Ophelia said as she held and rubbed the creature.

Not immediately believing this, Naeva secretly checked for herself. And sure enough, the tiny creature appeared to be a Ruby in her detections. What's more, two Rubies at once. Enough for them to pass the test.

"......."
Unlike Ophelia, Naeva felt something was not right here.

"In that case, their movements are abnormal. Bringing a small child along would slightly hinder movement. But why are there some Conquerors moving so fast?"

"Unless..."
Glancing at the creature's jewel-red eyes.

".... You must prepare for the worst," Naeva said, turning away from Ophelia.

"Huh?"

The silver girl returned to their tent. She leaned against the ice wall she had quickly made. Ophelia wasn't stupid, she realized the true meaning of Naeva's words as soon as she thought about it for a moment. And when she realized it, Ophelia made an incredulous face.

"Did another Conqueror kill them?"

Naeva replied with her eyes closed, "That's the easiest way."

"Carrying them is quite troublesome. Killing them and taking only their eyes would be much easier."

"But that's.... Cruel..." Ophelia replied at a loss for words.

"Ophelia, this is Tower."

"I know... I know, okay! But..."

The navy-haired girl bit her lower lip as she clasped her hands tightly.
"That's no reason to lose your humanity."

"It doesn't feel right if they live just to be killed by a rookie Conqueror during a exam."

Naeva let out a small sigh. That little girl she was with was really a good kid. Too good in fact. Ophelia was not naive, she could distinguish when to do good and when to turn a blind eye for the sake of mutual safety. But that kind of kindness will only hurt her more deeply as time goes by. Just like her old self, long and far before her feelings were bottled up.

"Why is Ruby in the exam a living being?" Naeva asked suddenly.

"?"

"On second thought... Why? I understand that it's a powerful monster because it can be a challenge during the test. But this creature... Weak. Too weak. It's really like a toddler. Can't protect itself at all. It's as if it could die just because I hugged it too tightly," Ophelia replied.

"If it couldn't protect itself from the start. Why not just take the form of an ordinary stone that can be fought over?"

"!"

Ophelia immediately turned her head sharply towards Naeva. Again and again, Naeva's questions led Ophelia to something she hadn't realized.
"Don't tell me..."