Abyssal Awakening

Grinning madly like a wild beast, Alice kicked off the ring of ice and sent the dagger flying towards Chloe's face without hesitation.

The thick killing intent that permeated through the arena caused her movements to become sluggish. Nevertheless, she was able to protect herself with the ring of ice.

Feeling her hands shake, Chloe furrowed her brows and took a deep breath. Activating her second Sigil, the ring of ice released a wave of mist that covered the arena.

Before Alice could attack, countless spikes shot out of the ground, threatening to pierce her.

Trusting her instincts, Alice dodged the spikes before extending the thread connected with her dagger. Twisting her body, she swung the thread, causing the dagger to fly out before hooking around one of the spikes and slashing towards Chloe's head.

"Tsk!"

Raising up an ice wall to protect herself, Chloe was forced to take her eyes away from Alice for a single moment.

But that was enough.

Crouching down, Alice used the spikes as cover and dashed towards Chloe while her first Sigil activated, boosting her physical attributes further.

With Alice out of sight, Chloe was unable to respond to her sudden attack from below.

While close quarters combat was not Alice's forte, she was still adept in using her body to dodge attacks and counter. Not only that, she had seen how Ria fought in close quarters. Using that as a basis for her attacks, she launched a flurry of blows towards Chloe.

She led a jab to the stomach followed by a knee against Chloe's face. Then, twisting her body, Alice kicked Chloe on the head using the back of her heel before following up with a right hook.

Tugging her string, the dagger swung around the ice spikes before returning to Alice's hand. Adjusting her grip, Alice prepared to slash down, but Chloe recovered from the surprise attack.

Allura twitched a little, before relaxing.

Gritting her teeth, Chloe released a torrent of cold air, forcing Alice away from her.

Ice manifested around her body, transforming into a set of crystalline robes. Chloe's skin had turned a cold blue while anger and panic filled her gaze.

Narrowing her gaze, Alice could see the three Sigils lighting up above her.

'Three Sigils… Most of her markings are covered, but she seems to have an Anti Monster resonance.' Alice thought to herself as she transformed her dagger into a long sword.

Reaching into her pouch, she grabbed a vial of blood and poured it onto the blade before rushing forward once more.

Unlike before, Chloe did not give Alice a single chance to approach as a wall appeared in front of her, blocking the frenzied girl's advances before a wave of spikes shot out, threatening to pierce her.

Having sensed the danger, Alice had already thrown her blade to the side, hooking it around a spike and using it to pull her away from danger.

With her Sigil now boosting her strength to its limit, Alice jumped off the ice spikes and landed against the top of the ice wall. An idea appeared in her mind as she jumped up before Chloe could use the wall as a weapon against her.

Twisting in mid-air, Alice lifted the sword above her before transforming it into a greatsword. Using gravity to her advantage, she swung the greatsword down towards Chloe using the threads, increasing its velocity.

Unable to move out of the way, Chloe took a deep breath and opened her mouth.

"Don't underestimate me so much," She growled.

Two pillars of ice shot out from around her, catching the greatsword from the sides and stopping it from gathering more force.

Following up with a single ice spear, Chloe launched it towards Alice, who responded by tugging her thread to pull herself away from danger.

Just as she passed the spear, Chloe snapped her finger and the spear shattered into countless tiny shards that collided with Alice's body. A layer of ice instantly formed across the surface of her body as Alice felt the cold assault her through the clothes.

Furrowing her brows, Alice let go of the thread and let herself swing down towards Chloe, who had surrounded herself in a wall of impenetrable ice.

Landing a kick against the wall, Alice could only smile helplessly as all her methods were exhausted. Her weapon was caught inside ice, her movements were slowing down and she lacked the ability to shatter Chloe's defenses.

As it stood, she had no way of defeating Chloe.

Raising her hands, Alice sighed and opened her mouth.

"It's my loss."

Bitterness welled up inside her chest as she wasn't able to defeat her opponent like Ria.

With Alice surrendering, Chloe sighed in relief as she felt the killing intent disappear. As the ice slowly melted, Chloe gave Alice a slight bow before walking back, not wanting to stay longer if she could help it.

Despite having won that fight, she could still feel the chill of Alice's gaze.

If Alice had another Sigil or two, Chloe wasn't sure if she could've brute-forced the fight in the same manner.

Walking back to the group, Alice sat down without saying anything. She kept her thoughts to herself and remained quiet.

Giving Alice a pat on the head, Allura stood up and walked over to Wess, passing the vial to him.

"Thanks for the sparring session, kid. Here's the vial as promised," Allura smiled as Wess received the vial and bowed in respect.

Anyone who could get their hands on that kind of blood and even give it away was not someone he should trifle with.

"Right then, shall we go get some food to eat and reflect on what we've learned?" Allura called out to Alice and Ria. She was rather satisfied with the results of the fight.

She had to admit, Ria was a surprise as she managed to innovate and grasp victory despite not having a resonance to match against Freida. However, Alice's loss was within her expectations.

After learning that the two defeated the four Sigil Cultist, there were two things Allura needed to do to ensure their future growth.

First was to see what they learned and used during that fight, including how resourceful they were and how they planned a fight out.

The second was the most important; it was to let them understand that not every Sigil user could be treated the same. Just because they defeated someone above their level didn't mean it was a feat that could be repeated. It was the kind of thought that killed Hunters who provoked one another thinking they could win with ease.

Her original plan was to defeat both Alice and Ria while only using the power of two Sigils at most, showing them the gap in strength. However, having students who were of similar age and power was a better comparison.

After all, her body had been honed by having more Sigils. Moreover, her experience was far superior to the two of them.

'I don't need to worry too much, thankfully. Ria doesn't seem to underestimate her opponents and neither does Alice. Though she does have what I assume to be a bad habit of running in head first before finding out about their strengths. Unlike before, she didn't test out her opponents' capabilities,' Allura thought to herself.

There were two ways Alice could've won that fight and she missed both.

The celebration went by quickly, as it was simply a meal. Ria talked to Gin about whatever popped into her mind at the moment while Alice seemed distracted. She snapped out of it when the food arrived, but once she finished, she was back to being distracted.

Asking Gin to take Ria back first, Allura gestured for Alice to follow her for a little walk.

It was better to resolve her worries first.

'I understand Ria, but my understanding of Alice is still shallow. I don't know her deeply yet. It also didn't help that I had to disappear for a little while. I'll be looking after her for quite some time, so it's better to understand how she thinks as early as possible to avoid future problems.'

"Are you afraid of heights?" Allura asked.

Alice shook her head.

"Then let me take you somewhere fun." She grinned.

Grabbing Alice by the waist, Allura held the young girl under her arm like a sack of potatoes and started to jump towards the tallest building within the city.

With the speed she was travelling at, none of the Hunters were on guard duty noticed Allura landing at the top of a tower.

"The air is freshest when you're at this height. Take a seat. Want to talk about what's on your mind?" Allura asked, patting the seat beside her.

They were currently on the slanted roof of the tower with a spire in the middle. The moon hung above them, unobscured by the clouds while the city laid below. The people walking around at that time seemed like ants, barely visible to the naked eye.

"I'm just thinking about the fight. I was too hasty and forgot about the lessons on how to be a Hunter." Alice sighed while sitting down. She hugged her knees while looking at her boots.

"Do you know the moment you lost?" Allura asked cryptically as Alice tilted her head for a moment before nodding.

"Half way through when she used her third Sigil and resonance?"

"Almost correct. You're not wrong in that you could've ended it there had you gone for the kill after setting up the opportunity with your blood. But you didn't and she was able to fight in a space where she was most comfortable and had plenty of protection around her.

"The reality is that you lost the moment you let yourself go and released your killing intent. You put her on guard. In a fight between Hunters, especially for an Anti Hunter fighter like you, the fight is lost the moment you reveal your full hand. Your best chances to win a fight are at the start and the moment you set up your traps.

How your weapon worked, what your Sigil is and the limits of your physical are all weapons at your disposal.

"Information and the lack there of are powerful tools in a fight. But overall, you didn't do too bad. I'm proud of you Alice." Allura smiled earnestly while giving Alice a pat on the head.

Feeling a warm feeling in her heart, Alice nodded her head and smiled for the first time outside of a fight.

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