An ice crystal butterfly landed on the girl's fingertip. The transparent wings on its back trembled slightly, refracting hazy colors beneath the sunlight. The girl closed her eyes, seeming to sense some kind of information.
From her special "perspective," the entire world seemed bizarre and fantastical. Light twisted, the sky was a jumble of colors, while the snowfield remained an endless expanse of pure white.
Suddenly, the snowfield began to tremble. Cracks split open one after another, tens of millions of tons of snow collapsed, and countless ice-blue vines, as though carved from frozen ice, stretched forth from within with terrifying momentum.
Even though she had seen it many times already, she still felt an immense shock to her mind. This was merely the Ice Butterfly's memory projection.
She let out a soft breath, calmed herself, and continued looking toward the very center of the vines as an observer. She could vaguely make out a tiny figure there, instantly enveloped by a prison of ice.
She waited quietly.
Bulges kept appearing over the surface of the ice prison, as though it were suffering terrifying attacks from within. Vines continuously reinforced the prison, but they seemed to have no effect whatsoever.
The change came suddenly.
A point of golden light appeared on the prison's surface. The Demon Seed seemingly sensed the crisis that could threaten it as well. Countless vines gathered above its main body, forming an integrated mass of blue ice.
Space rippled with unnatural distortions. Beyond the physical barrier, warped laws and a special force field had even formed. The layered defenses affected the stability of space itself.
The gathering of immense energy even changed the weather in the region. All colors suddenly faded away, revealing a clear, crystalline sky.
The next instant, golden light burst forth, swallowing the