The City of Cold Ice

The lake water seemed to gain substance as it surged skyward from the surface. Illuminated by the streetlights, the translucent river water reflected a gentle, warm glow, a faint icy blue with silver edges along its contours. Immediately after, the flowing water, just like the lake's surface, was rapidly covered by a thin layer of ice armor. Like a meticulously constructed ice sculpture toy, an unseen giant hand quickly used the river water and ice shards as materials to erect its magnificent structure.

It was an ice castle, a fortress-like, boxy structure about thirty meters high and covering roughly two thousand square meters horizontally. It possessed the architectural style of a medieval castle, yet every piece of ice armor faintly shimmered with moisture. Its semi-transparent structure allowed one to vaguely discern the actions of the people inside. Following this, a nauseatingly dense magical energy spread from within the castle…

Even the archer, who wasn't well-versed in magic, understood that this must be the mage's workshop!

It was just that she hadn't expected there to be this kind of magic workshop!

Generally speaking, even if a mage's workshop could alter its internal structure, it couldn't alter its external structure. A magic workshop like Abner's, which concealed itself within the water flow during the day and only revealed its majestic form at night under the guidance of magical energy, was simply unheard of!

In fact, this was not an easy feat.

However, Abner was a genius.

If he weren't, he wouldn't have succeeded his position as the head of the Winifred Family at such a young age. Even at the age of twenty, he had demonstrated more outstanding magical talent than the previous head, who had diligently studied magic and inherited the family crest. For the better development of the family, the previous patriarch had chosen to step down, hoping that a talented mage would further unlock the family crest's potential.

Furthermore, Abner excelled in water-attribute magic, particularly in [Precision Manipulation]. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he was like a construction worker who specialized in building things with water. Especially since he had also delved into fluid dynamics to aid his manipulation skills. While many at the Clock Tower disdained Abner for studying science, when it came to the manipulation of water attributes, even the older mages at the Clock Tower would sigh, exclaiming how the waves behind push the waves before, and new people replace the old.

Abner's control over water was so precise that he could even direct every water molecule in an entire river. A master of modern science, he could use the characteristics of flowing water to construct his magic workshop anywhere along this river with minimal effort. Combined with reinforcement using Runic magical script, he could quickly assemble a powerful magic workshop.

Therefore, Abner's workshop, though it appeared to be a [Disposable Workshop], was fundamentally different.

The profits gained from a magic workshop of this caliber were not worth the expenditure of so much magical energy.

A workshop is a place where mages lay out their magical preparations; in simple terms, it's like a modern research institute, where test tubes, reagents, and the like can be quickly prepared for any research. However, if all the funds were spent just to purchase the research institute, it would be a loss.

Therefore, what Abner was doing… was truly astonishing.

Before coming to Qianxi, he had already investigated all the water conservancy here. Coupled with its proximity to China's capital, Beijing, an ancient capital situated upon a Dragon Vein, Abner used water as a medium to transform this entire river into his magic workshop! In other words, as long as he was anywhere along this river, he could effortlessly draw the magical energy of the Dragon Vein flowing through the water and channel it to his workshop.

This way, he could bypass the significant drawback of disposable workshops, which consume vast amounts of energy.

This was why Abner didn't mind his workshop being discovered. Because it was a disposable item, like a disposable paper cup. Besides drinking water, people often use them to hold things or extinguish cigarette butts, simply because they are inexpensive.

Abner didn't mind his workshop being discovered at all.

Because any corner of this river could become his workshop.

A workshop of this level offered no defensive advantage. Located in an open palace, magical energy would easily dissipate, making it impossible to condense mana to set up traps or defensive structures.

But… if it were merely used as a [Mana Reactor], then the flowing water throughout the entire artificial river would provide Abner with a magical energy supply through this fortress…

A formidable magical energy supply.

I see… Loxia suppressed the astonishment within her heart, allowing the taste of lemon on her lips to spread. She turned her head, wanting to see the reactions of the people in the shop. But the men and women here were all focusing their gazes on her…

Could it be?!

The archer Loxia immediately understood…

This was probably some kind of [Invisibility Spell].

Making the surrounding pedestrians ignore all actions on this river… or perhaps a large-scale illusion, making them believe this was still the river they knew…

Loxia quickly averted her gaze, no longer staring at the castle, and instead pretended to be waiting for someone, looking around with an anxious expression.

Perhaps Abner's intention was to see who paid attention to this castle, thereby identifying those unaffected by the magic and thus discerning who possessed magical power.

In that case, she could only try her best to maintain an innocent facade.

The archer had no intention of sniping him.

The archer's Noble Phantasm was only C-rank; it was merely an ordinary weapon that could affect Servants, lacking even the ability to unleash its True Name. It was impossible to snipe Abner inside the castle.

Besides, he was being so ostentatious that someone would surely notice him and issue a challenge. The archer didn't need to act. As the saying goes, those involved are blind, but observers see clearly. From an outsider's perspective, many things become clear. Waiting for the enemy while conserving one's strength was the job of a spy.

Even if no one challenged him, she could still analyze the character and habits of other participating individuals.

With that in mind, the archer Loxia continued to feign being a girl anxiously waiting for her boyfriend who stood her up, enjoying her milk tea amidst the indignant murmurs of "How can that guy not be here yet! Keeping a girl waiting is a capital offense!"

The night gradually deepened, and the artificial lights replaced daylight as the primary color tone of the vision. No one expressed surprise at the underwater castle; it seemed Abner's preventative measures were exceptionally thorough.

Truly worthy of a first-rate mage.

As the night grew darker, fewer pedestrians were on the streets. After ten o'clock, there was almost no one strolling outside. The reason was simple: people chose Qianxi for its "slow pace" and the ability to "enjoy life." Those who enjoyed life certainly wouldn't be out wandering so late.

Even those who enjoyed nightlife would have already settled into their preferred bars by this hour or taken their preferred girls to their preferred hotels… Wandering? That was impossible.

However, the archer's patient wait finally yielded a reward.

At some point, a dark silhouette silently entered Loxia's field of vision.

Needless to say, it was the ASSASSIN-class Servant, Hattori Hanzo.

Both Servants possessed the "Presence Concealment" ability, making it difficult for enemies to perceive them, allowing them to easily hide among crowds. However, this ability was meaningless to themselves. Although they couldn't track each other by magical energy, they could see and notice each other with their own eyes.

Perhaps due to overconfidence in his Presence Concealment ability, the assassin strolled leisurely towards Abner's ice castle on the water.

Inside the milk tea shop, the archer skillfully maintained her disguise as an anxious girl, successfully deceiving the assassin… or rather, the assassin was solely focused on the ice castle and paid no attention to his surroundings.

Even if he had scanned his surroundings, it would have been useless, because the archer also possessed the [Stealth] ability, which allowed her to conceal her magical energy. In the assassin's eyes, Loxia was just an ordinary girl.

And Loxia had indeed confirmed the assassin's posture during their battle, but at that time, Loxia was wearing that green robe…

(Let me see, how does an ASSASSIN-class Servant fight?)

Keeping this in mind, the archer subtly used the corner of his vision to observe the assassin's actions.

The man, clad in night-blooming clothes, moved swiftly through the crowd. Then, he stepped onto the frozen river, his dark figure starkly contrasting with the pale white ice wall. He approached the gate silently, and then...

He formed a hand seal, and a puff of green smoke billowed. As the smoke cleared, the assassin's figure had blurred, reappearing inside the ice wall!

Ninjutsu!

If they hadn't been on opposing sides, the archer would have genuinely applauded. Truly worthy of the title "ninja," a profession still mythologized today through anime and film. It was quite a spectacular display.

Meanwhile, the assassin had infiltrated the Ice Castle. Without triggering a single trap, he silently approached the center of the castle, Abner's room.

Generally, a magician's workshop would be equipped with a rigorous security system. Unfortunately, in this particular terrain, the mana diffusion from defensive magic was too severe, essentially signaling the presence of a trap to any intruder. Once the trap's location is known, it's easy to avoid. Furthermore, Abner hadn't intended to use this as a long-term base from the start, so he was quite content to keep things simple. He hadn't bothered with any defensive security systems, merely setting up a few rudimentary traps as a symbolic gesture to convey the concept of "this is a workshop."

The assassin unleashed his A-rank Agility to its fullest, skillfully stepping through the gaps between traps, like a circus performer. He passed through effortlessly and unharmed, silently approaching Abner's resting place.

On the bed of ice shards, the white-skinned magician with golden hair lay peacefully, as if in deep slumber. He was completely unaware of the assassin's approach. He was still wearing the same gray suit from earlier, his arms crossed over his chest, eyes closed, resembling a corpse awaiting burial.

(What a foolish decision.)

(To sleep so soundly before eliminating the assassin?)

The assassin scoffed inwardly at the magician's naivete. While courage was admirable, this was excessively reckless. He then glanced at the powerful hero, who was squatting in a corner of the wall, leaning against it. His attire had been changed to golden armor and a crimson cape. His rock-solid muscles stretched out as he hugged his knees, his spear piercing through the gaps in his body and resting on his shoulder. He appeared to be resting with his eyes closed.

(You trust your Servant too much.)

The assassin thought this as he quietly pulled a short dagger from his bosom. While throwing projectiles offered convenience, considering the hero's massive shield, the assassin decided against gambling. He had already made one mistake for his master and absolutely could not afford another.

After all, the assassin-class skill, Presence Concealment, was an ability that made one's presence faint as long as killing intent wasn't revealed. Yes, "as long as killing intent isn't revealed" was the prerequisite. Even at A-rank, the assassin still couldn't manage to be unnoticeable while radiating killing intent.

Therefore, he had to close the distance to a point where being discovered would be inconsequential.

He silently closed in on Abner's body, straddling him. Raising his hands high, the dagger gleamed. With B-rank Strength surging, veins bulged on the back of his hand. The sharp dagger plunged towards the magician's serene sleeping face!!