Chapter 364 - Of His Own Free Will...
While she might have been mostly powerless to resist the Force, Tanya was not powerless to at the very least lessen the impact of the blow with the use of her superior cultivation base.
*BAM!!*
Elsa's impactful blow landed squarely onto Tanya's palm which had been raised to intercept the blow.
With Elsa not being the first she had actually sparred against who had gained Ordinance Harnessing, Tanya knew the Ordinance was more than capable of covering up for the one-stage lower cultivation of its wielder.
As such, she knew what to expect and the resultant backblast that knocked her against what could only be described as the boundary of the space available by virtue of the Void disk did not really catch her by surprise.
What did surprise her or at least caught her unprepared was Elsa's viciousness as she was already upon her opponent in a second and ready to deliver a decisive victorious blow.
Tanya was not having that as she rolled out of the way.
Elsa smirked and grabbed at the air in front of her in an attempt to use her ordinance to bring Tanya closer but the Princess was quicker than her, having laid down Astral Rune traps on the very spot Elsa now stood upon.
As she did not have Astral sense, there was no way Elsa could have known about it, and even if she had, there was no assurance that she would not have still fallen victim.
Her eyes widened and she attempted to use Force to protect herself but it was not such an easy transition which had been what Tanya had been banking on. Especially since the Runes she had cast were Nullifying Runes which while only effective for a second was enough to allow her to close the distance between she and Elsa with her Ordinance of speed and then slam her palm against her chest to repel her with a Blasting Rune before she could reenact her protection.
*Bang!!*
While Elsa was still in mid-air, and before she could even attempt to ignore her aching pains and bring back her Ordinance Harnessing whose rhythm Tanya had now interrupted, the Princess was already in mid-air with her and casting another Spell.
This one however made contact and instantly repelled Elsa from the air right to the ground where it chained and restrained her to.
Now with her feet back on the ground, Tanya condensed a Cosmic attack infused with Semi-Saint energy which she charged up.
However, before she could actually go through with whatever she had planned (either intimidation or actual hurt and damage) a pink pentagram formed between Elsa's palms which could still wiggle around,
"I was wondering when you would cast a spell" Tanya grinned as she saw her old friend begin to make sure of a mischievous Bloodline spell of hers,
Elsa grinned as well, albeit slyly,
"Remember how it was only a passive spell? Not anymore." In a flash, the spell morphed into a thin and small pink arrow that shot right into Tanya's chest.
The Princess knew what her mistake was. She had allowed her old familiarity with Elsa to cloud her judgment and had been taking action based on things she knew about her when a lot had clearly changed in the space of Sixty years.
Then again, Elsa was mostly doing the same.
Anyway, the spell caused her green eyes to gain a pink tinge as it placed her into a suggestion where everything Elsa said seemed like a command, and knowing the spell's effect would not last on someone with a lot of willpower like Tanya,
"Loosen my Bonds"
Elsa stated her command quickly,
The tranced Tanya began to loosen the bond but almost immediately snapped out of it.
Clearly, her willpower was getting stronger as the years went by, however, the loosening had been enough for Elsa to free herself with the strength of her cultivation base, blast Tanya back with her Forceful Ordinance and then she summoned her pink-colored spear cosmic armament that was thick with Semi-saint energy and attempt to run Tanya through.
Tanya upon stabilizing herself summoned her Rose-colored sword cosmic Armament and parried away the spearhead just as the void space around them fizzled and showed signs Of collapsing.
A second later, they are back in Tanya's room and staring at each other while observing their various bruises and feeling a sense of satisfaction.
"I fell that was... Cathartic" Elsa said and pulled one of the other chairs in the room to sit in front of Tanya who was now seated atop her bed with her head down and not saying a single word.
Eventually,
"You Left" she spoke out and Elsa sighed.
Tanya then looked up and the hardness on her face showed how hard she was working to not let it show how much this subject got to her.
"You left me. You left the Royal Academy. You left the Imperial City. You... Left"
Elsa shrugged,
"I was needed at home"
Tanya scoffed,
"Come on, I don't need those false excuses. I know why you really left"
Elsa raised her brow,
"If you are about to say that I could not understand your determination to get involved in Imperial politics. Then you are half right."
Tanya frowned,
"When you decided to befriend the one you were meant to compete against, you should have at least attempted to understand her goals."
"I did understand your goals and I also understood how dangerous it would be. I always hoped you would grow out of it. But as the years dragged on, your ambition and interest in it only seemed to increase.
That said, it is a little narcissistic of you to think you were the only reason I left the Imperial City.
Anyways, fun as it is to reminisce, there was a reason for me seeking you out today."
Tanya looked her in the eye,
"And that brings me back to my question of how you knew I was here or did you just come in here to meet whoever was inside this room?"
Elsa began lightly tapping her thighs before speaking,
"While I was performing reconnaissance on a particular someone called Hal, he came in here and I was intrigued. Thanks to my espionage and Detective skills which I have gotten better at as well, by the way, and some deductible reasoning, I was fairly certain it was you.
Also, 'Rose Petal Restaurant', The rose being your favorite flower, was a big giveaway. If that was not what you would name your information gathering network, I don't know what is.
That said, I was not absolutely certain."
Long as Elsa's words had been, there was one main part of it that stuck out to Tanya who proceeded to inquire,
"Hal? You know Hal?" She asked.
"I don't just know him, I know his mother... Svetlana Doxon."
Now, this was information that was definitely news to Tanya who seemed to finally understand why those sapphire blue eyes had been so familiar to her. Clearly, they reminded her of the Blue-eyed witch. However, she never knew the Duchess of Doxon had a son. Which she was quick to relay to Elsa who gave her a few details on the circumstances.
"And does Hal know who his mother is?" She asked.
Elsa nodded,
"He does. So you can't involve him in your plots. You know that won't sit well with her." She said.
Tanya was silent for a while and then,
"No"
"What?"
"I said no. I do not deny that I was the one who approached Hal with a Proposition but I never pressured or threatened him to accept. In fact, he was all too glad to be in my service as long as he was adequately paid."
"Paid?"
This surprised Elsa as she had thought Hal was much more likely to be doing it for Merit points which he was sure Tanya would have promised and also have been capable of giving.
Tanya nodded and then shrugged,
"Regardless of who his parents are, he decided to accept my proposition of his own free will. Besides, what is it to you?" She asked.
Elsa frowned,
"I'm... a friend of the family"
"Well, that's all good and dandy, but my transactions with Hal who by the way never made any mention of having connections with any nobility and whose relationship with his mother is clearly estranged is between him and me alone.
Also, he's a talent. The kind of talent that I need in my corner in the pursuit of my goals which you have made very clear you have little to no interest in..."