Aestrea Moon.

He was one of the most mysterious people Yara had ever met.

Their paths crossed not long ago, but he’d already made quite the impression.

Not only had he stolen a weapon from one of her research labs—a bold move in itself—but there was something about him that set him apart from everyone else.

Something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.

When they met face-to-face, she expected fear.

Most people were at least intimidated by her presence.

But not him.

He wasn’t scared—just extremely cautious.

He stood his ground, and when he demanded the High Elf in return for what he’d taken, it only intrigued her further.

Yara decided to test him.

She had one of her servants challenge him, forbidding him from using mana.

She wanted to see what he was capable of, to see if he could live up to the nerve he showed her.

Surprisingly, he held his ground quite well against.

But suddenly, he directly overpowered her, to the point of even using her own moves against her, to inflict the same amount of pain he had received.

As if to prove a point.

Yara’s curiosity deepened.

After the fight, he repeated his demand for the High Elf. This time, she gave in, something she’d never done before.

He had earned it.

But Yara wasn’t the kind to let things go. She had to know more about him—what made him so fearless, so cold, so… different.

And the more she uncovered about him, the more fascinated she became.

He had defeated multiple high-ranking demon beasts—and one of them was even a named demon beast, something that multiple S-rank awakeners would have trouble dealing with.

Then, his sweet personality to his friends from his old academy, and finally…

His dark past.

His village had been destroyed by a horde of demon beasts.

He had witnessed it all—his friends, his home, everything he knew turned to ash.

But the worst of it was losing her.

His childhood love.

She had been strong, stronger than most her age, but when the beasts attacked, she gave her life to buy him time to escape.

He had watched it happen.

He had been powerless to stop it.

From that day on, Aestrea was different.

He became unshakably driven, throwing himself into harder training. Even when the most prestigious academy rejected him, he didn’t falter back.

He pushed himself harder, training alone, and somehow became stronger than anyone could have expected.

And now, here he was, standing before her.

Yara couldn’t help but compare herself to him. She too had survived a demon beast attack, but her story wasn’t like his.

She hadn’t lost anyone she loved.

She had escaped without such scars, without such pain.

Perhaps that was why she wanted to challenge him again. To push him, to remind him that he wasn’t invincible.

To break down whatever pride or ego he had built around himself—and to see if he could come back stronger.

But strangely… it seemed like she had miscalculated.

“What did you just fucking say?”

His bitter cold tone reached out to ears, enough to make a whole forest freeze by just the sound of his voice

.His mana surged uncontrollably, violet energy spilling from his body and mixing with his usual silver mana.

The colors swirled together, creating a strange, beautiful lavender energy.

But that wasn’t enough for her, even though he was furious, she couldn’t help but smirk, raising an eyebrow in mock curiosity.

“Oh? Did I strike a nerve?” Yara said, clearly not expecting such a response from him since she was hitting his deepest points.

“Aww…” she clicked her tongue, “such a pity…”

Aestrea didn’t respond, but the rage in his eyes told her everything she needed to know.

Clink…

His sword fell to the ground.

And then…

Fwoop!

He dashed forward at an abnormal speed.

Yara barely had time to react before Aestrea lunged at her, his lavender-colored energy swirling violently around him.

His fist shot forward, aimed directly at her chest. She sidestepped at the last moment, the force of the blow whipping the air beside her.

“Not bad,” she muttered, bringing her leg up in a high kick aimed at his ribs.

Thud!

Aestrea didn’t dodge, instead, he took the full force of the kick, his body jerking slightly from the impact.

But instead of staggering back, he used the moment to grab her ankle with a lightning-fast motion.

His grip tightened like a vice.

“Got you,” he said coldly.

With a sudden twist, he swung her by the leg, throwing her toward a nearby pillar.

Yara managed to flip mid-air, her feet slamming into the pillar to soften the blow before she launched herself back at him.

“Don’t get cocky!”

She came at him with a powerful right hook, her mana flaring around her fist.

Crack!

Aestrea raised his arm to block, the collision of their energies sending out a sharp sound that echoed like thunder.

But he wasn’t done. He retaliated immediately, stepping in close and driving his knee toward her stomach.

Bam!

Yara twisted her body just in time, deflecting the knee with her forearm. The force still sent a shock through her arm, making it sting.

She clicked her tongue in frustration, realizing that he was adapting to her fighting style faster than she expected.

Then he did something that caught her off guard.

Instead of keeping his distance, Aestrea took a wide swing at her—an entirely reckless move. She saw it coming and didn’t hesitate to counter, aiming a palm strike at his exposed side.

But he didn’t dodge.

Thud!

Her strike landed squarely on his ribs, the sound of impact reverberating through the air.

Aestrea winced but used the moment to close the gap between them, his lavender energy flaring as he swung his other fist toward her shoulder.

Crack!

The punch connected, sending a shockwave through her body. Yara stumbled back, her clothes tearing from the sheer force of the blow.

Her once-pristine outfit was now in tatters, exposing parts of her skin where his strikes had landed.

“Pff…”

Yara spat out a glob of blood, wiping her lips with the back of her hand. Her eyes gleamed with excitement, despite the wear on her body.

“You’re finally using your full power, huh?” She reached out, her hand extending toward empty air.

In an instant, her sword materialized in her grip with a faint hum. Grey mana surged down the sword, coating it in a mesmerizing, crackling glow.

Then, with a snap of her fingers—

Fwoop!

Crack…!

A sudden distortion in the air appeared where Aestrea stood. A rift opened, like reality itself had been sliced apart, and the air around it vibrated violently.

Aestrea’s instincts kicked in as he threw himself to the ground in a tight roll, narrowly avoiding the rift as it closed with a sharp snap.

Dust scattered in the air as he came to a stop, his hand darting out to grab his sword lying nearby.

But before his fingers could close around the hilt—

—Clang!

Yara was already in front of him, her sword arced down in a deadly swing aimed straight at his head.

Aestrea’s hand shot up, his sword catching hers just in time with a loud metallic screech.

Sparks flew, illuminating their faces for a brief moment as their gazes locked.

Aestrea gritted his teeth and pushed her sword back with just one hand, then leaped backward, putting distance between them.

Yara smirked, twirling her sword effortlessly in her hand.

“Don’t tell me you’re already slowing down,” she taunted.

But deep down, she was extremely excited. Aestrea was making her use more than fifty percent of her whole power.

That enough made her… delighted.

“Haaa…”

Aestrea didn’t respond as he let out a cold breath.

His lavender energy pulsed around him, faint traces of frost forming in the air. His breaths were heavy, but his grip on his sword tightened.

He raised it, holding it steady in front of him as the ice began to crawl along the sword, turning its steel into a jagged, frost-covered weapon.

Yara’s smile widened.

Without warning, she stepped forward, vanishing from sight in an instant.

“Fuck…!”

Fwoop!

Aestrea’s eyes darted to the side, his instincts screaming at him to move. He spun around, just in time to block another swing from Yara’s sword.

Clang!

The impact sent a jarring vibration through his arms, and he stumbled back slightly.

Yara didn’t let up, stepping through a shimmering portal that opened behind her and reappearing right next to him.

Her sword came down in a brutal diagonal slash aimed at his chest. Aestrea raised his sword, the force of the collision sending sparks flying again.

He pushed her back with a burst of strength, his lavender energy mixing with frost as a sharp chill filled the air around them.

“You’re using your ice magic quite well, but it won’t save you,” Yara said with a smirk, stepping through another portal that opened beside her.

She reappeared behind him, her sword aimed for his spine in a precise thrust.

Aestrea barely turned in time, twisting his body and deflecting the attack with the flat of his sword.

Clang!

The sharp sound of the swords meeting each other echoed again, and he swung his sword horizontally, forcing her to retreat.

But Yara wasn’t done, she snapped her fingers once more, and multiple distortions appeared around him, like ripples in a still pond.

Crack! Crack! Crack!

One opened to his left, another to his right, and a third directly above him. Yara stepped out of the portal above, her sword raised high as she came down toward him.

Thud!

Aestrea raised his sword above his head, blocking her overhead swing, but the force drove him to one knee.

“Agh…!” He grimaced, feeling the pressure of her strength bearing down on him.

Without warning, a second portal opened behind her, and Yara twisted her body, stepping backward into it.

She reappeared at his side, her sword slashing at his ribs in a wide arc.

Shhhk!

Aestrea couldn’t fully block in time.

The edge of her sword cut through his side, drawing blood and slicing through his coat. He hissed in pain but didn’t falter, thrusting his sword forward to force her back.

“Huff… haaah…gah,” he let out deep breaths.

Aestrea’s breathing was heavy, his body trembling slightly from the strain.

Blood dripped from multiple cuts on his arms and torso, staining his tattered clothes. But his lavender energy continued to pulse, flickering like a flame that refused to go out.

He licked his dry lips as the hue in his eyes increased slightly.

Swoosh!

Both of them, as if thinking about the same thing, rushed at each other.

Clang! Clang! Shhhk!

Her sword cut across his shoulder, then his thigh, leaving deep gashes and making him grunt in pain but he didn’t back down.

He retaliated with a swing aimed at her neck, which she ducked under, countering with a thrust toward his chest.

He sidestepped, his frost-covered sword slashing toward her side. She twisted her body, the sword grazing her arm and tearing through her sleeve.

Both of them were battered and bruised, their breathing labored.

The ground around them was scarred from their battle—craters, frost, and the lingering traces of mana filled the battlefield.

Yara raised her sword again, preparing to strike. But before she could move, Aestrea shifted his stance slightly.

His lavender energy pulsed once more, stronger than before.

Yara paused, her eyes narrowing.

“What are you—”

Then, Aestrea muttered slightly…

“Moonlit Ice Lotus Sword Art…”

『 Third Move! (✦ Moonlight’s One Flash ✦)』

For a moment, everything went silent.

Even Yara felt a chill run down her spine as his energy surged, sharper and more focused than ever before.

The glow in his eyes intensified even more, leaving a small scarlet smoke trail.

Then, he moved.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep