Giselle had arrived as well—yet she remained off the stage, her eyes fixed on Alfred with an expression that was anything but relieved.

Giselle stared at the figure hovering in midair and couldn't help muttering under her breath, "Idiots. They're really asking for it now. Don't they understand? The calmer a man becomes, the more terrifying his fury truly is."

At that moment, Alfred lifted his head. His gaze slid over the Skyfrost Sword in his hand as two words fell softly from his lips.

"Sky Ice."

Giselle's body trembled. Her pupils contracted sharply, yet within those evergreen eyes, a flicker of excitement burned to life. It had been far too long since she last saw Alfred… and even longer since she had seen Sky Ice.

A blinding radiance erupted around Alfred. The Skyfrost Sword flashed brilliantly, then melted into his body as if it had never existed. The surrounding mecha pilots cried out in alarm when their target vanished from sight.

"He's up there!" someone shouted.

All eyes snapped skyward.

Alfred had risen even higher. His familiar white robes were gone, replaced by points of dazzling white light blooming across his forehead, shoulders, chest, elbows, wrists, hands, hips, knees, and feet. Silver threads linked these points together, forming an intricate pattern that drew power inward until it overflowed from him in waves.

At his forehead, a sky-blue crystalline droplet condensed, held in place by a white circlet that wrapped around his head. Five snowflake-shaped prongs rose from the circlet, forming a crown. Elegant silver lines extended from either side, cradling his cheeks like streams of frozen air.

Armor manifested piece by piece, starting from his neck. In the blink of an eye, Alfred was clad in a full suit of gleaming battle armor, brilliant white accented with silver filigree.

His entire body radiated light. His eyes shone like flawless sapphires. The six soul rings vanished, absorbed into the armor itself. In his grasp appeared a sword nearly one and a half meters long.

The Sky Ice Skyfrost Sword.

Its hilt and blade were pure white. The pommel bloomed like a snowflake, while the blade's edge shimmered with crystalline blue frost.

Alfred had always been striking, but now, wrapped in radiant armor that accentuated every sharp line of his figure, he resembled a flawless white knight descended from legend.

Giselle's gaze glittered as she watched him.

"This… this is the real him. Sky Ice Alfred has returned."

"Battle armor!" Conrad and Oswin cried out simultaneously.

The moment the realization struck, the mechas froze mid-action. Several of the white mechas even began lowering their soul cannons.

A battle armor master.

He was actually a battle armor master!

If Ray had been conscious, he would have been the most excited person present. Seeing battle armor in action was something he had dreamed of countless times.

Alfred pointed his sword downward, and his aura surged even higher.

It had been far too long since he had spoken the words "Sky Ice."

Bitterness and pain flared deep within his sapphire eyes.

Battle armor, like mechas, had its own hierarchy—though its system was far more unforgiving.

At its core, battle armor was akin to a super mecha: personally forged, perfectly synchronized, and an extension of one's very being. A battle armor master was effectively twenty soul ranks stronger than a soul master of the same level.

A five-ringed soul master wearing a Tier-1 battle armor could rival a seven-ringed expert.

Tier-2 battle armor matched an eight-ringed soul master.

And it only escalated from there.

Battle armor was divided into four tiers.

Tier-1 battle armor: forged entirely from thousand-refined metal, requiring a minimum of five rings.

Tier-2 battle armor: made of spirit-refined metal, requiring six rings.

Tier-3 battle armor: constructed from soul-refined metal, requiring seven rings.

Tier-4 battle armor: forged from divine-refined metal, requiring nine rings.

When Alfred first became a battle armor master, his armor bore a single word—Ice. From that day onward, he was known as Ice Alfred.

Later, after years of effort, he upgraded his armor to Tier-2. He added the word Sky, taken from his Skyfrost Sword, renaming his armor Sky Ice.

Sky came from his sword.

Ice came from the name of the woman he loved.

He rarely used this armor. Every time he did, the longing became unbearable. He wished to follow her into the next life—but he couldn't. Not until he fulfilled the promise they had made.

Battle armor masters stood at the pinnacle of the continent.

Even governments avoided direct conflict with them. When disputes arose, only another battle armor master could be called upon to resolve the matter.

Only a battle armor master could face another battle armor master.

On the Xynnar Continent, they were the most exalted of existences.

This was why Central Academy retained such overwhelming authority—it possessed the strongest battle armor masters.

Mecha pilots couldn't compare.

Even the rare black mechas would treat Alfred with utmost respect. With Sky Ice equipped, Alfred's strength now rivaled that of an eight-ringed expert.

"You have injured my disciple," Alfred said softly.

His voice was calm, yet every word cut like ice.

"If he suffers any lasting harm… You will pay with your life."

His gaze locked onto Oswin.

Not the sisters—they were children. The fault lay with the one who taught without restraint. When Oswin had spoken so dismissively earlier, he had lit the fuse to Alfred's fury.

Oswin's face drained of color.

A Tier-2 battle armor master.

No one in Sealand City—no one—would dare offend such an existence.

Battle armor masters were not only powerful but unyielding. Crafting battle armor was ten times harder than constructing mechas of the same tier.

Alfred was still so young… and yet already a Tier-2 battle armor master.

His future was limitless.

Alfred's body suddenly shuddered. His sword hummed as silvery light erupted from his armor, dazzling even beneath the midday sun.

Every mecha immediately shifted into defensive formation. Conrad and Oswin stared in disbelief.

Is he actually attacking?

In a flash of green light, Giselle shot into the air. Viridian currents spiraled around her, her white hair flowing freely behind. Emerald symbols branded themselves across her body before solidifying into glowing points—green counterparts to the lights on Alfred's armor.

A halo of emerald light coiled around her like a living vine.

In the next breath, she too was clad in battle armor.

It was unmistakably different from Alfred's. Where his was sleek and austere, hers bloomed with leaf-like patterns that spun gently outward. His armor was sharp and restrained; hers was fluid, vibrant, and alive.

Her armored skirt flowed past her thighs, elegant and feminine. In her hand rested a moss-green whip, its tip embedded with an emerald bead brimming with vitality.

Life radiated from her armor, instantly dispelling the stadium's frigid air.

"Alfred, stop!" Giselle commanded.

Even battle armor masters were not above restraint. The greater the power one wielded, the heavier the shackles that bound it.

Giselle was about to step in and restrain Alfred when something struck her. She froze midair.

In the next heartbeat, she thrust both arms outward. A tyrannical aura surged forth, pressing down like an invisible mountain. Every mecha pilot and soul master present found themselves locked in place, unable to move a single muscle.

At the same time, the silver radiance surrounding Alfred flowed back into his body. Beneath his feet, a black soul ring emerged.

It expanded, then fused seamlessly into his battle armor.

Giselle stared at him, stunned. A helpless smile tugged at her lips. "Unbelievable… this guy. He actually broke through right here."

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