Yulisis Murphy’s National Exchange Tournament created for socializing and harmony.
But cases of keeping in touch after the event were quite rare.
I suppose the biggest reason is that there is no focal point to gather all the wizards in one place.
‘It would be a shame to let this opportunity slip away.’
So, before the sun set, I sent out invitations to all the opponents I had met for a late gathering.
“Were we really just here to have fun today?”
“As expected, our clan member. Sister Emika arrived the earliest.”
Emika squeezed my shoulder, making an exasperated expression.
She casually unpacked her things and came out to the yard in comfy sweatpants.
“Emika-chan! Long time no see! Do you remember me?”
Saetbyeol jumped around and clasped her hands with Emika.
With a somewhat hesitant expression,
“Did you really… come into existence through Human Transmutation?”
Said Emika as she began to feel around Saetbyeol’s body with her hands.
Squeeze-
“Wub wub?”
Saetbyeol’s cheeks were squished in both hands, her lips protruding like an ugly fish.
“How fascinating. I can feel your mana and aura all underneath the skin. It feels denser than before too.”
“Emika-chan is quite bold, huh? Are you trying to kiss me?”
“Eek? Ah, no!”
“Hey, come here!”
“Eek!”
Saetbyeol charged at Emika with her head forward.
Unable to withstand the assault, Emika was trapped in Saetbyeol’s embrace.
“Come on, Hyung! We’ve got a lot of work today, so let’s get to it!”
“Yikes! What the heck is this, Unni?”
Emika froze after seeing the snow wall Saetbyeol piled up all morning.
Cheon Saetbyeol proudly rubbed her nose against the wall.
“We’re going to divide into teams and have a snowball fight once more people arrive. I built all of this, so now let’s head to the other side—”
Thud-
The labor of love crumbled like a lie.
Buried in the snow, Saetbyeol flailed her legs.
“Puhah… No, my Ice Solid Ultra Metal Wall!”
“Puhup, guess we have to start over.”
“Aww, I worked hard on this since morning…”
“First we mold the bricks and then stack them up, right?”
Emika provided a sharp suggestion and demonstrated.
She cut a hard-packed snowball with her sharp aura blade.
In less than ten seconds, a perfect cube of ice was born.
Even I couldn’t help but admire her skill.
“From now on, I appoint Emika as the new construction team leader. I’ll go to the mansion and bring Monica, so you two keep working hard.”
“What about me?”
“You just do what Emika tells you.”
“Build a wall? How long should I make it?”
“Hmm, something like from here to over there should be enough.”
“Umm…”
“Really…?”
The faces of the two girls suddenly turned dark.
Excited for the snowball fight, I left the site with light steps.
‘Construction is not fun anyway.’
*
Knock, knock, knock-
I knocked three times on Monica’s door.
“When will you be done?”
“In a minute!”
“Either way, your makeup and hair will get ruined while playing.”
“Fine, fine. Na-me has been waiting a long time. By the way, I’m really curious about the guests coming today.”
Even nobles who prioritized saving face still…
Monica Ricci came out dressed in an outfit that looked like riding gear.
The tight white pants clung to her legs, especially catching my eye.
After a long time, I turned on the live stream to greet the annoyed viewers due to my sparse uploads.
[NoName]
[Just Chatting – Snowball Fight]
[Broadcasting Time – 0:05:39]
[Number of Viewers – 85,194]
“Monica has officially been declared fully recovered after five weeks. Everyone, please congratulate her! Clap clap. Maybe she should have taken more precautions to avoid injury.”
“Haha… why did I get hurt anyway?”
-🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
-The room leader is pure evil, haha
-(Catching on quick)
-↑ The culprit is 126cm…
-(Comment deleted)
-Perfect crime is NoName, lol
-Have you finally lost your mind?
“It’s snowing heavily outside. Just thought I’d fire up the broadcast to show you all my friends while we have a snowball fight. It’ll be fun if we all join in.”
-They must be the perfect age to enjoy snow
-Didn’t Na-me make an awesome snowman before?
-Wow! Trash falling from the sky!
-Help! Na-me wants to have a snowball fight!
“Na-me, quick whisper.”
“Yeah?”
Whisper whisper-
Monica asked with a slightly serious expression.
“What? The tournament is right around the corner, and if we show too much playfulness, people might look down on us? You’re telling me you’ll be absent for the snowball fight? I had no idea you cared so much about public opinion!”
“No, no, no!”
-HAHAHAHAHA
-Are they in a deadly feud or what?
-At this point, it’s obvious Monica committed a sin against Na-me
[‘ReverseMiranoName’ donated 50,000 won!]
-Monica, I won’t say anything about this. Please grant our Na-me’s wish,ㅠㅠ Na-me had no friends when she was a child, so every experience is precious to her…
“Yeah, it would be disappointing if Monica wasn’t around… I prepared for you, I might really cry…”
“Alright, I’ll join for just one hour, then I’ll go train.”
“One hour is enough. Any longer and I won’t be able to move a bone.”
Then calmly pressed the ban button after seeing the donor’s nickname.
Whoosh-
Amidst the cold snow and wind, we reached the front yard of the mansion.
“Wow!”
Emika and Saetbyeol finally completed an ice wall at my shoulder height.
“I flew 9800km, and is this all we’re doing? Na-me, is this right?”
The chat went quiet with the arrival of Japan’s best swordsman.
“Hmm, isn’t this going to be fun?”
“Of course. This is way more fun than boring annual events. Let’s get started, shall we?”
“Katsuhata Emika has joined our snowball fight party. Although she may have no experience in snowball fights, since only experienced people are picked, where on earth would a newcomer like Emika gain any experience? Let’s be understanding.”
-Crazy, lol
-Once the snowball flies over, isn’t she just going to slice it in half with her sword?
-What do you mean no experience…?
-The glowing monster newbie (8th place at the National Exchange Tournament, winner, and runner-up)
-No one will ever employ Emika as a bricklayer besides NoName, lol
Bang-!
“…!”
With a loud explosion, a pale object sliced through the air and grazed my hair.
Emika released a strange aura and spun around.
The snow war had just begun.
“Hide, Monica!”
“Eek! Don’t pull me!”
Whoosh-!
A snowball skimmed above Monica’s head.
“Ow, that was close! I’m not used to this yet.”
Saetbyeol’s annoying voice came from beyond the ice wall.
[Casting: Demon King’s Horn]
I packed a snowball tightly with my aura.
I etched dimples into the surface to minimize air resistance.
“Ha-ah!”
The snowball launched with a perfect spin.
It grazed the ice wall and—
Thud-!
“Eek!”
Saetbyeol let out a faint scream.
“Monica, did you see that? Did you all just see that trajectory? That was kinda cool, right?”
-Is this a snowball fight? What kind of snowball fight is this…
-Why does it sound like a cannon?
-If I got hit, I’d die, lol
-NoName makes even a snowball fight an art form
I released a drone to spy on the enemy’s formation.
“Wait, what are they doing?”
[Em, Emika… don’t reveal my death. Cuckoo.]
[… Even though the Lord has departed, the will and legacy rest in our hands. Continuing on your path is our duty.]
Whoosh-
She stood atop the thin ice wall, legs spread shoulder-width apart.
“Now’s your chance, Na-me! Throw it!”
Excited, Monica shaped a snowball and hurled it with lethal speed.
Swishhh-
Katsuhata Emika unsheathed the black wooden sword at her waist.
‘Inherited Sword! So you really did steal it from another clan…!’
Then came a circus-like scene.
Instead of fluffy snow, this snowball was likely closer to ice.
Surprisingly, it didn’t break and glided smoothly atop the sword.
She spun around in place and threw the snowball resting on her blade toward us.
The snowball, now flying back at a 180-degree angle, caught Monica off guard as her aura flared but she couldn’t control the recoil, sending her stumbling back several meters.
Cold snow crept inside her clothes, making her shudder.
I didn’t even bother to ask if she was alright.
[Casting: Glacies Os]
She magically generated snow particles rolling around the snowfield, creating a whole bunch of snowballs for a counterattack.
The life-and-death snow battle was about to begin.
*
With her thirtieth birthday approaching, Long Yangyang no longer felt joy in the falling snow.
The debris raining from the sky worried her about icy roads and the mud ruining her shoes.
The car carrying the Narita siblings and Ruohan entered the city of Milan.
She stared blankly at the snow outside the window and said,
“We really are going to see NoName.”
“Why’s that, Unni?”
“Just… I can’t quite believe this. Is someone like me allowed to meet someone like that?”
“What are you talking about? You used to be so cool. I still remember it!”
“Is associating with punks the same? I feel so nervous I could die.”
Last week, Long Yangyang suddenly skyrocketed to stardom, but reality felt unreal.
With loan sharks chasing her to the ends of the earth, living in a cramped single room, barely scraping by in a hamster wheel of existence.
For eight years, a major corporation paid off her bonds, and entertainment agencies began to extend their offers.
‘What talents do I have? I just have more determination than others.’
She was always especially harsh on herself.
Yangyang was sure that the good fortune she was enjoying was nothing more than a fleeting dream.
‘Still, I’m curious about what kind of person they are.’
Even the formidable demon faction wizard was defenseless before the top-ranked middle kingdom.
To think they could defeat someone like Ruohan at just ten years old…
What kind of inhuman being might the best brain in human history be…
Just the thought gave Yangyang shivers.
And then they arrived at the Ricci mansion in Milan.
Bang!- Crash! Ka-boom-!
Sudden cannon fire emanated from beyond the walls.
Startled, the gathered crowd was quickly reassured by manor staff.
“Miss has been having a snowball fight with friends.”
“A snowball fight? It’s not a terrorist attack?”
“… Just come and see for yourself.”
It was a bizarre sight.
Snowballs were flying at 150km/h, and ten snowballs were simultaneously raining down like missiles.
I wonder how much aura they packed into one small chunk.
With every snowball explosion, colorful auras spread like smoke.
“Why are there guests here? Ah! Na-me, Unni is dead!”
“Come this way, Narita family!”
“W-What? Where should we go?”
“Over here! Let’s split up!”
Unfamiliar with the situation, the crowd joined in the snowball fight.
The Narita siblings made their way to Saetbyeol and Emika, naturally forming teams.
“Huff huff huff… What is going on?”
Fearing for her life from the snowballs, Long Yangyang crawled to safety.
The ceasefire had ended, and the war resumed.
“Gah!”
“Ruohan, you can’t just rush like that! Wrap your aura around yourself thicker!”
Ruohan got hit by a snowball in the face and fell over.
Huddled behind the wall, Yangyang heard a small girl with a curious expression approach her.
“I haven’t seen you before, are you Long Yangyang?”
In her cosmic-like eyes, a golden sun flickered.
With black hair and long twin tails, the infamous NoName stood right next to her.
“Oh, um, yeah…”
“Would you like to try a snowball fight too? I’ll wrap your body in aura, so don’t be afraid. Trust me, it won’t hurt.”
Na-me handed her a hard snowball.
As the two stood up simultaneously, a barrage of snowballs flew their way.
Burburubuck-!
“I-I’m scared! I don’t think I can do it!”
“Open your eyes, Yangyang! On the count of three, we throw together!”
Na-me’s small hand guided Yangyang’s wrist.
“One.”
“Two…”
“Three! Throw it!”
Swishhh-
The snowball flew several meters and hit Hiroyuki right on the cheek.
“Phew, that was close…”
With the tension released, Yangyang crumpled to the ground.
“Waaaah! Nice shot!”
Na-me jumped around cheering.
“Do you want to do it again?”
“No, I’m good.”
“Then it’s my turn. Ruohan, wake up! This is war!”
She shook the dazed Ruohan awake and began piling more snow into her arms, ready to enjoy the snowball fight, her innocent excitement making Yangyang smile softly.
‘She’s just a complete kid. How adorable.’
