How to Clear a Gate (6)
“Serena... you mean the one from Serena's Ice Palace?”
“Yeah.”
I gathered up the letters. Only some lacked replies, but these one-sided notes were enough to piece together what had happened.
Lee Hyewon and Lee Jae-eun caught their breath beside me as I skimmed through them frantically. Once I'd read them all, I looked up. Meeting Lee Hyewon's expectant gaze, I spoke slowly.
“I think I've got a rough idea of what went down here.”
“What happened?”
“Better to explain when everyone's together.”
With that, I asked Ray silently.
'You got all that, right?'
━Of course.
I picked up the leather pouch on the desk. If the letters were accurate, the item should be inside. The moment I opened it, a window appeared before my eyes.
You have discovered the 'Key Item' of the Repeating World.
Key item?
As I read the words on the window, my vision went black.
When I opened my eyes again, I stood alone in an unfamiliar space. Even my body wasn't normal—it was transparent, like a ghost. Grimacing at the sight, I wondered what the hell this was.
Everyone around me had vanished. I tried calling out, but it was like being underwater; no sound escaped my lips.
'Ray!'
I called for Ray, but there was no response. Even he was gone.
Abandoning the effort, I scanned my surroundings.
Soon, I realized this was the castle—without the ice.
Though I'd scoured it for days, the castle bare of frost felt utterly alien, like my first time here.
I moved forward slowly.
Since touching the key item brought me here, it must be showing me what happened in this place.
If so, I had a hunch.
And I knew exactly where to go—a place I'd never considered visiting myself.
The spire.
Emerging into the corridor, I soon encountered servants milling about, but as expected, none noticed me. I studied their faces closely. They looked much like people from Earth.
Maids chatting while cleaning caught my eye, but their words were gibberish.
Unlike my three-stroke Translation talent, Interpretation required five strokes. Pity I couldn't understand them, but they weren't important.
I ascended the spire leisurely. Guards stood watch, barring strangers, but I slipped between them effortlessly. Being a ghost has its perks.
Finally, I reached the room at the top and passed through the door to confront the culprit behind it all.
Count Herman had called the thing in this spire a monster, but the woman before me was too beautiful for that label.
Silver hair like molten ingots, blue eyes gleaming like gems, skin pale and translucent. Her innocent, pure expression made her seem years younger.
Like a fairy from a storybook, she sat on her canopied bed.
I slowly surveyed the tower room Han Seohyun had described. As he said, it was cozily furnished. Count Herman's wife, Serena Helen, had brought in the furniture for this empty space.
The girl's life had divided sharply before and after Serena's arrival.
Which explained why.
The girl adored Serena. Despite never meeting face-to-face.
Knock knock. A maid entered, forcing a smile over her fear. The girl, oblivious, greeted her warmly.
As always, the maid handed over “Serena's letter.” Though hungry, the girl reached for the letter first. After delivering it, the maid fled like she was escaping.
The girl's eyes fell on the letter.
Dear one,
I hope you're doing well today.
I worry about you, alone in that always-chilly spire.
It pains me that I can't do more for you.
Do you know winter is coming soon?
This land of Heron is warm year-round, but winter brings biting winds that claw at your cheeks.
So today, I've included a special potion to keep your winter warm.
Drink it after your meal—it'll help you through the cold season.
With all my love,
Your would-be mother,
Serena Helen.
The girl read it and smiled like a child.
But I couldn't smile. I knew what that potion in her hand was.
After eating, she swallowed the glowing red potion innocently.
I closed my eyes.
The effect was swift. Thump, thump. Mana surged wildly through her heart. Panicking, she clutched her chest, but it pounded madly.
As a half-demon, half-human, immense mana slumbered in her blood.
And that potion...
...forced it to rampage.
Blood racing through her veins carried the mana into frenzy, her vessels glowing bright.
“Gaaahhh!”
She writhed in agony, screaming. Her light-emitting, twisting body was grotesque. Unable to watch, I squeezed my eyes shut.
“H-huh, huerk!”
Her pained groans echoed through the tower, but no one cared.
Not the maid or guards who must have heard. No one came.
To them, her life meant nothing. Or rather, they'd long wished her dead.
But this wasn't just her torment.
It was the beginning.
In agony, she unleashed all her suppressed mana. The destructive force seized her mind. Rising unsteadily, she unleashed a ear-shattering shriek instead of groans.
Having lost her reason, she truly became a “monster.”
Frost began spreading around her. In moments, the lovely room turned to ice.
Then came the events I'd anticipated.
Shattering a window, she descended the spire and scanned the area. People rushed to stop her, too late.
Fully awakened, she wasn't weak enough for mere soldiers.
Ice chunks materialized at her gesture, raining down. Those hit froze solid instantly.
Even dodging left you freezing nearby. Frostbitten toes meant the end.
Some screamed, clutching their slowly encasing bodies.
Temperatures plummeted; breaths fogged the air.
Lush grass whitened, trees and black brick walls followed.
Everything in her path turned white.
People, objects—everything.
Realizing this, they fled. Servants screamed first, nobles behind.
Brave knights, seeing comrades freeze, dropped swords and ran.
But none escaped her.
Thus, the vibrant castle froze as I'd seen it.
An ice palace devoid of life.
Stripping all vitality, she wailed sorrowfully.
Then a faint voice echoed in my mind.
━I want to stop.
'Ray?'
No, not Ray. Too high-pitched, almost feminine.
━No.
The voice, soaked in anguish, resounded within me.
'You...'
━I want it to end.
'I get it, I know you're suffering...'
━Please, make me stop.
How? I wanted to ask.
Suddenly, the “key item” was in my hand. As if it alone could end this.
━Please.
The yellow potion had slipped from the pouch into my grasp.
'What, throw it at you?'
Before I could continue, I was expelled from that world.
When I opened my eyes, I was lying on the bed. Lee Jae-eun screamed at my face.
“Kyaaah!”
“What?”
“Y-you collapsed out of nowhere and then just woke up! You scared me!”
“Sorry about that.”
“Are you alright?”
At Lee Hyewon's question, I nodded.
“By the way, you said I collapsed? How long was I out?”
“Not long. Just about ten minutes.”
I rubbed my face.
“I think I've figured out how to clear this gate.”
Everyone's eyes lit up at my words.
“First, gather everyone here.”
Lee Jae-eun rushed out at my request. Team Leader Lee Hyewon asked,
“What did you find out?”
“Yeah. I saw what really happened here that day—the truth.”
“You saw it?”
I held up the pouch.
“Yep. The moment I touched this, it all flooded my mind. We'll go into details once everyone's here.”
Soon Lee Jae-eun returned with the group. Even Yuseonje, looking thoroughly displeased, leaned against the wall. He eyed me, conveying silently:
It better really be the clear method.
I'd uncovered the full story of this ice palace.
“The one who turned the castle into this? Serena. The lady of this room, Count Herman's second wife.”
I slowly unraveled her tale.
Serena had come scheming for the count's power, and the spire girl was a thorn in her side. But killing an unkillable “monster” wasn't easy.
Then one day, a man whispered to her:
The surest way to kill the child.
Serena followed his words.
To poison the girl, she hid her malice and acted affectionately through letters.
Not hard, really.
Just sweet words on paper, no need to visit.
When the girl trusted her, feeling happiness for the first time.
Serena delivered the potion to turn her into a monster.
But instead of self-destruction, she rampaged, freezing the entire castle.
I pulled out the potion from the pouch.
“Sprinkle this, and the rampage stops. If she regains her reason, she's no longer a threat.”
I recalled the desperate voice echoing in my mind.
The plea to be saved, to be stopped.