I regressed and became the Sword Ice King

An utter silence and darkness encroached the tightly spaced hallway as steps could be heard eerily walking up a flight of stairs.

A figure in the darkness, with a red hoodie slowly looked up as the noise resided.

"....you arrived late…"

"..Well, it's not my fault we decided on an impromptu meeting".

"....what business do we have that we have to be summoned now?"

A feminine figure stepped into the hallway, exuding a fragrance too imperative to be ignored.

She cat-walked herself towards the masculine figure and rested her back on the wall next to him.

"Have the others shown up ?"

"..no..not at all. They don't show signs of showing up either".

"..it's only right. Two apostles are more than necessary for the ceremony".

" A ceremony ?". The masculine figure asked with a raised tone.

"..an higher demon should be more than enough to cause a certain level of catastrophe".

"...A higher demon ? Why are we summoning such a presence to the world of the Mortals ?" The male asked as he turned towards the feminine figure.

He raised his hand and slowly drew down her red hoodie. His nails slowly stretched out from his fingers, long slender, hard and sharp as he traced her sharp jawline. Enjoy new chapters from empire

The feminine figure, Lucy leisurely opened her eyes as she stared at him, deep into him.

It felt like she could see every fiber of his every being as her yellow cat eyes glowed sharply in contrast with the darkness.

Her lips curled up, revealing her dashing canine teeth.

"Are you not aware ? A royal devil saw a premonition".

"A prominsion ?" He asked.

"Yes…a premonition….he refused to tell us anymore than he already had".

She slowly pushed his hands away and took a few steps away from him. " All he instructed was to summon it at the ending of the tournament when the winner has been decided"

She winked at him, slowly turning her back as she headed for the door.

"Let us begin the ceremony.

We'll have to absorb a lot of life force…remember".

The man grunted as loud and excited cheers pierced through the quiet hallways.

His expression seemed to darken as he looked up.

"lowly humans….".

He muttered under his breath as he walked out of the small spaced room.

****

The brilliant rays of light shone down from the sky upon the stadium announcing the presence of a new day.

The bright cheers of the people illuminated the stadium with its warmth. The people seemed invigorated.

Another day came by and with it were the expectations of the battles of the day.

Outside the stadium, a bunch of people gathered in front of a notice board and on the notice board were the features of the day.

"Raffaelo Jun and Ciara Merlin ?!".

A member of the crowd cried out in excitement while others continued to study it.

"Jane Lucia and Darell Silvan ?!"

"wouldn't the elf lose ? It's the power of the gods" one said with a raised tone.

"loose ?! against the might of an elven prince ?! impossible !".

Little arguments brewed from different locations in and out of the stadium but what seemed to perk the interest of the audience was the last feature.

"Jang Kang Lin and Mariam Aquarius ?!"

"Isn't that a little….."

"The Mermaid Warrior and Martial Arts ?!".

Their tone seemed low and concerned with that particular lineup and it was entirely justified.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

After all, Martial arts seems like an impossible power meant for powerful individuals and setting him up against their goddess was entirely unwarranted but their complaints if any would only fall on deaf ears.

The participants in question had gotten to the comfort of their podium in the presence of the 12 patriarchs and the Imperial King and prince.

All other past participants seemed to be in attendance as well though most of them had at least a part of their body wrapped in bandages.

Amongst the participants, a young white haired boy with pale white eyes sat in comfort as he smiled from ear to ear. He hummed every now and then, gaining the attention of his loyal Maid that stood next to him.

She raised a brow and slowly glanced at the patriarch of the Jun household.

The white haired man with bright blue eyes chuckled as he shook his head.

"You seem to be in a good mood ?" He asked, curiosity brimming in his voice.

Raph, the white haired boy smiled as he stared at his father. "It's nothing, just wondering who set the battles for today". He said with a raised tone.

Michaelo coughed out, turning his attention away instantly. "there was nothing I could do about it. The female Partriatchs insisted you see".

Raph stared at him for a while then slowly sighed, turning his attention towards the far side of his right where a blue haired girl with vibrant aqua blue eyes sat, her gaze fixed on her grandfather and brother who seemed to be at odds with each other.

"Are you worried, young master ?" Gilda asked, noticing his gaze.

His attention remained fixed on the young lady and her family as a sigh exuded from his lips.

"yes. Kang isn't someone that shows mercy to women".

Gilda stared at him, a questionable look on her expression.

"then…do you intend on showing mercy to the Merlin girl ?"

"Huh ?! no ! when did I ?" Raph scoffed looking away as he glared at Gilda.

Michaelo simply chuckled beside him.

"focus on your task my son, I'm sure Miss Mariam would know what to do when the time comes".

He slowly stood up from his seat and placed his hand on the ceramic railing that surrounded the podiums.

"It is time and you are first, son….."

Michaelo stopped in his movement, noticing a piercing gaze. He slowly turned towards his right when his smile only grew wider.

"...show these haughty magicians what defeat means".

With that he disappeared, reappearing on the Arena in an instant.

"Good day People of Lumbrica !" He cried out gaining the attention of the people as they quickly scurried to their seats, taking last minute bets and snacks.

"It is time for the 2nd stage of the 3rd Round of the Rankings Battle !!"

They screamed in excitement, feeling the Arena with a euphoric glow. The sun showed its brilliance upon the multitude of people while Michaelo smiled as he waved at them.

"Alright. We shall begin in earnest.

Participants !".

His tone sounded chill as Raffaelo Jun and Ciara Merlin walked up to the Arena from the gate leading to their podiums.

The people chanted their names in excitement, trying in their own way to encourage the participants.

Of course, it was another self indulged way of hoping their bet wins.

After what seemed like a minute, Raph stood directly at Ciara. A plain smile on his face as his father carefully studied the two.

"are you ready participants ?!" He asked with a playful raised tone.

"Can we just get this over with? Unlike brutes with the sword, We mages actually have things to do". Ciara said with a raised tone as she stretched out her hand while her wand formed.

"...Of course". Michaelo chuckled as he raised his hand up in the air.

"Ready !!!!!" The crowd screamed out in perfect synchrony.

He suddenly swung his hand down and disappeared at the same time filling the Stadium with a single word "FIGHT !!!".