Beneath the Absolute's Gaze
Hundreds of insect monsters prostrated themselves on the ground all at once. The usually proud Icicle Arachne and the elegant Frost Moss crawled across the floor like mere bugs before the absolute sovereign. Watching the scene, I was reminded once again of this world's strict hierarchy.
"To think she can even control the bugs..." Frostia marveled.
"Rico, you're truly amazing..." Her words left me puzzled. For the absolute ruler of Sia Kalt not to know the abilities of her own possession.
The growth of Ricoris that we'd observed over the past fortnight might have been something new even for Frostia.
Seeing it, memories of the past fortnight flashed through my mind. A being that had once terrified me was now writing words and expressing emotions.
"Ah... she can even write letters now." Frostia's voice brimmed with emotion.
"But Owner? Actually, Frostia... no, this is nice too..." Her smile held genuine affection.
In that moment, I realized there was a profound bond between them beyond anything we could imagine.
"By the way, what are those humans?"
Her tone shifted in an instant, freezing me solid. Every cell in my body sensed the danger. Even for someone like me, who'd spent a lifetime on battlefields, this absolute terror was unprecedented.
"You've... been interacting with humans?"
The temperature plummeted in an instant. This wasn't mere chill—it was the aura of death. Everything inside me felt frozen solid. I heard Brian's sword clatter to the ground, but I couldn't blame him. I could barely grip my shield myself.
"We were just..." Marianne opened her trembling mouth. Her courage was admirable. But foolish, too. Our words meant nothing before the absolute sovereign.
"Silence."
As expected. Her words were cut short.
Frostia's expression shifted subtly at Ricoris's scrawl. Like she was calculating something—or discovering new possibilities.
"Hmm... interesting..." she murmured.
A spark of hope flickered in me. Maybe we could survive this.
"I was going to kill you all and feed you to Rico..."
Oldin's face went pale in an instant, and Kevin looked half-unconscious already—the weakest I'd ever seen them. I wasn't much better.
Ricoris's script was rougher than usual, frantic. I heard the scraping of roots gouging the snow. In that moment, I felt something strange. Was Ricoris truly worried about us? Or just acting to protect her toys?
Frostia gently stroked Ricoris's petals. Her icy gaze softened, like ice melting under spring sunlight.
"Very well..." She sighed. "Ephemeral humans living but a fleeting moment..."
The contempt in her words stabbed at my chest. To her, we were mere specks, transient dust.
My pride as an A-rank adventurer crumbled in an instant.
"I'll spare you. If that's what Rico wants."
The deathly chill receded slightly. Only then did I realize I'd been holding my breath.
"But..." Her voice turned frigid once more. "If you cross my sight again, your blood will nourish her, and your corpses will be fertilizer."
Ricoris's roots whipped toward us. In that instant, I saw her petals tremble faintly. As if... apologizing.
We stumbled back in panic. As we fled, Frostia's voice echoed behind us.
"Now, shall we have some time just for us?"
Sweet scents and pastel pollen bloomed across the snow. Frostia's tender laughter echoed through the Sia Kalt mountains.
We walked for a long while. No one spoke. Different thoughts swirled in each of our minds.
"We... we survived."
Hafel broke the silence first. Her trembling voice shattered our tension.
"Arthur..." Brian ventured cautiously. "Was that really the ruler of the great labyrinth, Frostia?"
I didn't answer. Everyone knew. That was the legendary being, the absolute sovereign of Sia Kalt.
All I could do was press forward.
"Hurry."
My voice came out weaker than expected. It felt like we were still there, shrunken to bugs under the sovereign's gaze—that moment replaying endlessly.
The village came into view, and we halted. The peaceful daily life unfolding there felt strangely alien. So different from the terror we'd just endured.
People browsing the market as usual, children playing in the alleys.
"They have no idea," Oldin muttered. "What being has awakened beyond those mountains..."
"But Ricoris... she helped us, right?" Marianne said.
Hafel laughed coldly. "Helped? She just protected her toys in front of her owner."
"I can't agree," Brian shook his head. "The conversations we had over the fortnight, that sincerity..."
"Sincerity?" Lien cut in. "From a monster? What were you expecting?"
I pondered silently. Had Ricoris truly spoken up for us? The time we'd spent together replayed—the clumsy, slow conversations in shaky script. It felt too pure to be mere pretense.
"To the guild first."
...
On the way to the guild, people swarmed us.
"The A-rank party's back!"
"What happened!?"
"What were that scent and the blood-red moon?"
"Why'd it take so long?"
"Where'd all the monsters go?"
Questions poured in. But I was searching for one person.
"I need to see the guildmaster."
The crowd parted at my words.
As we climbed to the second-floor office, I wrestled with how to begin. Who would believe this?
"Come in."
His voice came before I even knocked. Stepping inside, his sharp eyes scanned us. He stood by his desk, gazing out the window.
"You've seen something..."
His instincts, honed over decades leading this small village's guild, never failed.
Brian stepped forward. "This... might be hard to believe, but..."
He spoke. "We saw Frostia."
The room's air froze.
"What... did you say?"
"The legendary being, ruler of Sia Kalt..." Brian's voice shook. "The one that destroyed a kingdom centuries ago..."
"Nonsense!" someone shouted.
The office had filled with villagers unnoticed.
"Frostia's just a legend."
"An old tale."
"You can't seriously believe..."
Skeptical voices rose. A natural reaction. I would've thought the same.
"I saw her."
My words silenced them. Testimony from an A-rank carried weight.
"A massive ice dragon appeared..." My voice wavered. "And in an instant, transformed into a silver-haired woman. And then..."
Everyone held their breath as I continued—our encounter with the floral monster, Frostia's arrival, the absolute terror we'd felt.
"When I was young, my grandfather told me a story," the guildmaster said, staring out the window. "A pitch-black winter. Black snow fell for a week, and even at noon, only moonlight-like glow lit the sky. People didn't know it was Frostia's omen."
He paused, then continued. "Then the dragon appeared. Centuries ago. A kingdom knelt before the absolute sovereign—that's what Grandpa said. But after that... no one who's seen the dragon has returned."
His voice grew quieter. "And now she's awakened... though the black snow hasn't fallen yet..."
No need to finish. We all knew.
"This is..." Oldin sighed deeply. "Something terrible's coming."
The room buzzed again. Voices mixed with fear and anxiety.
"Frostia's returned..."
"What about our village..."
"Will a kingdom fall like in the legends..."
I gazed out the window. The endless Sia Kalt mountains stretched before me.
Did Ricoris truly speak for us? Or just to save her playthings?
Did Frostia really spare us? Or is there a greater plan?
One thing was certain. We'd faced a being we'd thought was mere legend.
And that fact plunged us all into terror.
"Saintess, you're heading to Sia Kalt...?"
The high priest of the Temple of Light asked with worried eyes. Moonlight filtered through the stained glass, illuminating the saintess's white robes.
"Michael gave me a revelation."
Seraphina's voice was serene. "Every night in my dreams. The snowcapped peaks of Sia Kalt, and... her flower."
She hesitated, then added, "A flower stained in blood, praying in Michael's name. It's surely an omen. A being I must meet..."
Her words trailed off. With a wistful smile, she gazed toward the distant snowy mountains beyond the window.