The Extra's Rise-Chapter 196: Seraphina Zenith (4)

"You’re really good with the cold," I remarked, adjusting to the frigid temperature.

Seraphina shrugged, entirely unaffected by the icy temperature. "I told you—I’m a half-elf," she said, as if that explained everything. "My strongest affinity is ice mana. My Gift is ice mana. This?" She gestured around, where the freezing waterfall crashed into the basin around us. "This is a given for me."

I nodded. Fair enough. With her lineage, it wasn’t just expected that she’d be good with the cold—she thrived in it.

"Are you too cold?" she asked suddenly, closing the distance between us in a way that sent a very different kind of chill down my spine.

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Her face, as usual, was hard to read, but I could feel her concern.

"I’m fine," I said, flashing a smile. "And since I get to swim with you, it’s worth it."

Seraphina blinked at me, processing that for a moment. Then—

"You’re very good with words, Arthur," she said, her ice-blue eyes narrowing slightly. "Is that how you seduce all these girls?"

’Wow, she’s blunt.’

I tilted my head, smirking. "I thought you liked it?"

Her eyes narrowed further. Then, before I could react, she grabbed my hand—and threw me over her shoulder.

One moment, I was standing. The next, I was airborne.

As I flipped through the air, arms folded, I realized I could very easily use wind mana to right myself. Or even land on the water’s surface without making a splash.

But instead, my mind was stuck on one simple fact—

Seraphina’s ears had turned pink.

’Cute,’ I thought absently—right before I hit the water.

Cold.

’Cold.’

’God, this is freezing.’

I immediately cycled more fire mana through my body, heating myself up just enough to avoid going into shock.

When I surfaced, gasping, Seraphina was watching me with undisguised amusement.

"Pfft!" she giggled, her shoulders shaking slightly. "You’re terrible with the cold."

I narrowed my eyes at her, but I couldn’t help the small laugh that escaped me.

She was swimming in the same freezing water, yet she was perfectly fine—without any mana circulation to keep her warm. Meanwhile, I was actively battling for my life against hypothermia.

Unfair. Completely unfair.

"You look pretty when you laugh," I said, mostly just to see her reaction.

Seraphina exhaled through her nose, unamused. "Stop trying to seduce me." And then she disappeared under the water.

"Why?" I asked, half-laughing, half-curious.

Then—she reappeared.

Very close.

Her hands found my stomach.

Cold.

The second her fingertips touched my skin, I felt it—a sharp, numbing chill seeping into my core, sending a shiver up my spine. My ears burned with the contrast between the heat in my body and the coolness of her touch.

Not for long.

Because the next moment—

She blasted me with ice magic.

I barely had time to react before my body froze over, a thin layer of frost creeping over my skin.

"It’s not fair," she said, her voice perfectly level as she actively lowered my body temperature.

"S-Sera," I hissed, forcing more fire mana through my core, heating myself just enough to counteract her magic. The water around me bubbled slightly from the conflicting temperatures.

Thankfully, my mana rank was higher, meaning I could just barely hold my ground.

Seraphina tilted her head, watching as I struggled between not freezing solid and not overheating myself into unconsciousness.

Then, just as quickly as she had struck, she let go.

The ice magic faded. The cold water settled.

She blinked up at me, expression unreadable. "That was fun," she decided.

I exhaled.

This girl was dangerous.

"How was that fun?" I asked, still trying to recover from the cold shock she’d just inflicted on me.

"It just was," Seraphina said with a shrug, completely unbothered, as she continued swimming.

She moved through the water effortlessly, cutting through it with a grace that made me narrow my eyes.

’At this point, isn’t she more of a mermaid than an elf?’

Yes, her superhuman strength definitely played a part, but it wasn’t just that—it was the way she belonged in the water, like it was her natural habitat. Like she had never known anything different.

I watched her for a moment.

Then, an idea formed.

’I should prank her back.’

I grinned, swimming closer to the rocky edge of the basin as Luna’s sigils flared to life on my arms.

’Using my Gift for something like this?’ Luna sighed dramatically in my head.

I ignored her.

Activating Black Star, I wove dark magic around myself, cloaking my presence even from Seraphina’s sharp senses. The water stilled where I had been just moments before.

Seraphina surfaced, scanning the area. "Arthur?"

I stayed quiet, slowly moving toward her, hidden beneath the water.

She frowned. "Arthur?" she called again, this time with a hint of concern.

And then—I moved.

I shot up behind her, arms wrapping around her waist, the exact same way she had grabbed me earlier.

Seraphina startled—which, given how composed she usually was, was incredibly satisfying.

"W-what are you doing?" she stuttered, whipping her head toward me.

"Just wanted to see if you feel cold," I said, grinning as I channeled ice mana into her.

She shivered.

Not dramatically, but enough for me to notice.

Her teeth clenched slightly.

Oh, this was good.

I pressed more ice mana into her, feeling the temperature around us drop ever so slightly.

Seraphina moved.

Fast.

She twisted with ease, breaking my grip like I was nothing more than an inconvenience.

"Idiot," she said, her ice-blue eyes narrowing dangerously.

I raised my hands innocently. "Did I do something wrong?"

Her face was warm now—blushing, despite the cold.

"You know what you did," she muttered, her usual composed voice cracking just a little.

And then, in a voice just barely above a whisper, she added,

"I don’t mind if you want to do that. Or more… but surprise..."

I heard it.

A chill—completely unrelated to the cold water—ran down my spine.

’What does that mean?’

I narrowed my eyes at her.

She narrowed hers back.

Then, without another word, she dove under the water.

And suddenly, I had a very bad feeling about what she was going to do next.

Seraphina moved fast—too fast. But I had already predicted her.

Or at least, I thought I had.

Before I could counter, the water beneath me solidified in an instant, freezing over with an almost effortless precision. My body locked in place, pinned against the ice.

I blinked. "Sera?"

"Idiot," she muttered, tucking a loose strand of silver hair behind her ear. She exhaled, her breath visible in the sudden chill she had created. "You… you said you weren’t ready. And then you touch me."

I swallowed.

’I may have made a mistake.’

"Stay still," she ordered.

I wasn’t exactly in a position to disobey, given the whole being trapped in ice situation.

My gaze met hers—ice-blue eyes, cool and unreadable. Then, inevitably, my focus drifted. Her cute button nose. The soft pink of her lips. The graceful line of her collarbone, barely visible in the moonlight—

Seraphina’s eyes narrowed.

She noticed.

"Pervert," she accused flatly, though there was no actual malice in her voice.

If anything… was she pleased?

"Cecilia already did this to you, right?" she asked, tilting her head slightly.

I barely had time to process that statement before she leaned in closer, the warmth of her breath ghosting against my skin.

"Can I?"

There was no universe in which I could refuse.

She leaned in.

Our noses brushed, her breath mixing with mine, before she tilted her head ever so slightly—

And then, our lips met.