Chapter 94: Ilyin

Alena was filled to the brim with hesitation.

This particular puppet contained a huge danger that might pose a bigger threat to their current situation. She hadn't used it ever since she got it with the help of her subordinates. The power was hard to control, and she received an adverse effect when she made it into her puppet. Her advisors told her to store away the power and not use it until she got stronger, and she did keep it under the rags up until now.

However, if the usage was successful, then they would be able to overturn the situation. The puppet was powerful, much more than her Silver Slime. Even though she couldn't control it to move with her will, it should be enough to cause a change in the battle.

Alena debated. Her eyes trembled as her hands shook. It only took one more gesture to complete the spell she prepared, to activate it and call forth her most terrifying puppet.

Strangely enough, this particular puppet resonated with her quite well. As a result, even though the spirit was the strongest, she could still call forth the puppet without collapsing immediately. With some other weaker puppets, she would cave in right then and there.

Even so, it would still make her feel like she was being ripped apart from the insides.

If she was strong enough, then she could potentially be a tide turner and win this battle for them. Otherwise, it would be the same as jumping to their deaths. She wouldn't just be implicating herself, but also Aria who she made tag along with this plan.

"Big sister, do you trust me?" Alena asked with a shaky voice, her heart thumping against her chest madly.

Aria looked at the girl's facial expression once and understood that she was about to do something potentially fatal for their team. "...I trust that you are stronger than you think. You came to me to get stronger, right? That means.. your willpower is quite strong. You have the desire for it.. Surely, you don't want to die here? If so, then do your best.. Because I don't think I can handle this situation just using my powers," Aria chuckled in delight.

She was exhausted from inside out. It was all up to what Alena could bring to the table, what change she could cause.

Aria was also intrigued by the little girl. Perhaps, it was because she truly reminded her of her former disciple. The one she thought as her adoptive daughter. The undying willpower she had, Aria wondered if Alena possessed the same thing, or even something stronger than that.

Seeing the bees drawing nearer and nearer, Alena decided to forsake it all and risk it.

"Ahhh, I really don't know anymore! Damn it all!" Alena shouted, drawing the last bit of her spell and activating the magic.

"Come alive and lend me your hand... [Ilyin]!"

Icy blue magic circles started to revolve around Alena, and made her feel like icicles were being stabbed through her body. The puppet she called was trying to break free from its restraints, but the magic Alena cast for it made it impossible for it to escape. As a result, Alena could only bear the pain of the spirit's struggle, almost coughing blood in the process.

[Ilyin] was a rare Ice spirit that she managed to acquire through illegal means. When she first subdued her, it was only three months after her awakening. The spirit, albeit a high-ranked one compared to Dianthe, had been a child when she got caught. Thus, although Alena was not that skilled yet, Ilyin was made into her puppet.

However, there was a catch.

No matter how young Ilyin was, the difference between a low-rank and a high-rank was astronomical. Alena fell down into a coma and developed a freezing constitution after she hosted Ilyin. Ilyin's wrathful cries pierced her ears and made her almost fall into madness. The spirit knocked on her body every single second of the day, making her suffer under unfathomable amounts of pain.

Alena was temporarily put into slumber using scientific means, where her body would be taken care of by her subordinates while she was unconscious. As a spirit, Ilyin was supposed to borrow Alena's mana. Throughout the months, she used her own energy to riot against Alena. Thus, her mana ended up being depleted and she lost her only means to fight her captivity.

Even amidst all that, Alena was aware of something. A fact that she grew to fear whenever she thought about it.

Alena and Ilyin's status was now not of a puppeteer and her puppet. Ilyin lived inside Alena. Although she could be called out as a puppet, Ilyin wasn't dead yet. Her will still existed. This was because when she made the spirit into a puppet, Ilyin was not fully dead. She was just heavily injured. The spirit was a relatively high ranking one, and it used its spiritual essence to keep its entity alive.

The spirit bound herself to Alena, which caused to keep its will, but could never be separated from Alena anymore even if its puppeteer shackles were released. Every time Alena wanted to call it out, it will go berserk and struggle, even though it knew that it couldn't get out. It just wanted to cause as much pain as possible to Alena.

That was part of the reason why everybody discouraged her from releasing the spirit, fearing that the same thing that happened in the past would occur once again.

However, today, it was a do or die moment.

Besides, she had gotten stronger, whilst Ilyin's strength stayed constant.

She wanted a rematch. To see until when she could withstand it this time. There were so many occasions where calling this spirit out made her faint after a short period of time, but Alena learned through experience that there will always be a receding time after Ilyin was summoned.

The puppeteer spells that shackled the spirit would subdue its chaotic wishes and cease the harmful attacks towards Alena. If she withstood the pain all the way until it entered this period of time, then Ilyin will be calmed down and could be manipulated to a certain degree.

The catch was, she needed to use it right now. To stop the insects, and buy time for her and Aria to recover their conditions.

"Freeze my enemies!" Alena ordered.

Ilyin's spirit raged at the thought of being controlled. Alena's puppetry skills started to affect Ilyin and her will, but it only made her even angrier for this point onwards until the aforementioned period of time.

The spirit roared inside Alena. Its terrifying shriek echoed inside Alena's mind, haunting her.

"Ilyin.. heed my words- akh!" Alena finally broke down and fell to the ground after she felt her internal organs start to warp.

Ilyin's majestic figure finally materialized in the air, revealing a beautiful woman's naked body that started to create a hail. A wave of cold mist was sent towards the hordes, and the insects were finally frozen mid air, leaving them completely no chance to break free for the time being.

Alena dragged her body towards Aria's way, heavily huffing and puffing her breath in an attempt to bear the pain. Cold sweat formed over her skin. Her internal body was feeling a strange sensation of being hot and cold at the same time. It made her want to die just to let the suffering end, but she knew that her journey must not end here.

She was a chosen one, one of the seven special people picked to become <Players>. Even though she didn't know what the term's purposes were right now, she knew that she was picked because she had something in her. Something that differentiated her from the rest.

She was a special case, and she refused to die in this sort of rundown dungeon. She couldn't let herself pass out even though the freezing cold was slowly putting her to sleep.

Alena grunted as she picked up Aria's sword and slashed her palm, making her yelp in even more pain. However, she was finally able to get a grip on herself and keep her awareness.

As long as she didn't faint, as long as she bore this pain, she would be fine in just a bit.

The golden hour for her. The period of time she had to wait for.

"Ilyin.. I will overcome you at all costs!" Alena angrily tugged on her hair, tears streaming down her face as she held back the pain.

After a few minutes, everything finally came down to a stop. Ilyin was pacified under the puppetry skills, and the pain Alena was feeling became better. Aria was also slightly relieved. The insects that approached them were dead for now, and there weren't any additional swarms chasing them down anymore. A path of corpses had been formed, everything was frozen by Ilyin's terribly cold gust of air.