#56 Frost Valley (2)
#56 Frost Valley (2)
Hong Yuri came to in the biting cold, her brow furrowing. Why had she blacked out? As her last memories surfaced, she ground her teeth.
She'd tried to raise her mana when she'd plunged into the deep snow, but it hadn't been as simple as she'd thought. Mana was the very source of a mage's power. The dense concentration here was like pure elixir to a mage—but the problem was the sheer excess of it. The mana was so intense that she'd struggled to project any outward. Her reactions had lagged; she'd nearly been swept away by the avalanche, and Alpha had stretched out a tentacle to catch her. The fact that she'd collapsed into that helping hand flooded her with miserable self-loathing. Could she even overcome this? Like this, she couldn't do anything... Warmth lingered in one spot even through the cold, and a wave of despair made her want to throw it all away and give up. Then she looked down at Baek So-yul absorbing mana and shook her head.
'It wasn't me they needed in the first place...'
It was Baek So-yul, wasn't it... As she wondered if there'd even been any point in coming, she turned her head and met the White Deer's deep-set eyes, swallowing hard. And why could she see Baek So-yul down below? Only then did Hong Yuri realize she was lying across the White Deer's back.
"You're awake. This mage does seem particularly afraid of you, though..."
"She has her reasons."
"Hm..."
Hong Yuri frowned at the incomprehensible remark and pushed herself upright against the White Deer's body. When Alpha abruptly extended a tentacle, she flinched—then relaxed when she saw it wasn't aimed at her. The tentacle stabbed into the ground, and red blood bloomed across the white snowfield.
When she activated Mana Detection, countless presences filled the area. But she couldn't see a thing with her naked eyes. Strange things were hiding beneath the snow—and the moment Alpha's tentacle pierced the ground, they began to swarm.
What emerged from the snow were huge monsters resembling stick insects with countless centipede-like legs—creatures Hong Yuri had never seen in her life. Their mana wasn't impressive, but their shape triggered an instinctive revulsion.
The Wolf began cutting them down with tentacles and shadow. The centipedes weren't exactly weak, but they couldn't even get close, let alone land a hit. Complete domination—Hong Yuri bit her lip. He'd grown incomparably stronger since their last fight. She'd felt it several times now, but his growth rate was unnatural.
"Teacher!"
Baek So-yul's cry snapped her back. Hong Yuri saw a monster that had crept right up behind her and raised her mana. It still didn't want to cooperate—but the mana she pulled out forced its way through the dungeon's dense magical concentration. The moment she snapped her fingers—chains of fire lashed out and seized the centipede's movements. She watched it thrash helplessly, then clenched her fist, and the chains burrowed in, burning and constricting.
"A formidable mage... but you mustn't push the mana away. You have to accept it."
She couldn't understand the words, but she knew they were meant for her. The White Deer shook his head, and mana rose from his whole body. Not overwhelming mana, but it blended with the dense atmosphere, gathering together. Not absorbing and making it his own—just using it as it was.
'How?'
She could see it, but she couldn't grasp it. He was doing it so naturally, but Hong Yuri knew exactly how absurd that was. In the next instant, a massive ice lance skewered a centipede, and she caught sight of Baek So-yul with her hand outstretched.
"As expected..."
The White Deer nodded, but Hong Yuri couldn't hide her shock. A large ice lance wouldn't normally kill a centipede, but this wasn't something Baek So-yul—still just a student—should have been capable of. Something had changed. Baek So-yul's own eyes were wide with surprise as she began chanting again. Hong Yuri set aside her earlier brooding and watched carefully. Whatever else she was, the girl was a born mage.
***
'...Looks like they've handled it.'
I'd dealt with most of the swarming centipedes, and when I glanced back, Hong Yuri and Baek So-yul were already casting. Looked like I wouldn't need to intervene. The White Deer fired a mana bullet, and another centipede collapsed, cleanly pierced. I checked with Clairvoyance—the vitals had all been hit dead-on. Maybe related to his Appraisal skill.
Baek So-yul chanted next, and when Hong Yuri stepped up in earnest, the remaining centipedes went down fast. Before they could retreat from the red mana—
"Glonț de flacără."
—the crimson bullets punched through them all. Their corpses sprawled across the red-stained snowfield.
[Greed Centipede consumed. Experience Points and Satiety increase.]
I devoured them. Level 18 wouldn't be long now.
'The surface is cleared, at least.'
—What remained was the valley below. But as the name Frost Valley suggested, the real threats were down there. The avalanche had scoured away the snow that had covered the valley, and I could feel the hibernating monsters below waking up one by one.
"You all right?"
I doubted Hong Yuri would get hurt by creatures like that, but Baek So-yul was another matter. When I looked her way, she hugged me tightly, still a little dazed.
"...Yes. It feels a little strange. I'm a bit stunned."
She said it felt like the magic hadn't even been hers, still startled by herself. The centipedes only seemed weak by my standards—they were stronger than orcs or one-eyed giants.
'Witch.'
That word hadn't been an exaggeration. Baek So-yul's strength wasn't exceptional magic—it was wielding an inexhaustible well of mana no one else could hope to approach.
"That's why you brought me, isn't it?"
"......?"
"So I could learn to protect myself..."
I nodded. I could clear the dungeon without waiting, and Baek So-yul could absorb mana—two birds, one stone. Her hug tightened, getting a little suffocating.
"Kyuuuu~!"
Perry, who'd been coiled around the White Deer's neck, flew over and shoved Baek So-yul off me as if telling her to let go. In the freed moment, the White Deer spoke.
"Shall we descend?"
"We have to. How long do you think it'll take?"
"Two days... perhaps less."
Two days... I glanced back toward the boundary and considered. Clear the dungeon once she'd absorbed enough mana, or leave a few monsters alive and keep absorbing... I felt something touch me and turned my head. Hong Yuri's hand rested against me.
"......?"
***
She could do this. Just as the White Deer and Baek So-yul had done, Hong Yuri fumbled her way through handling external mana. Not by instinct—by thinking, observing, and imitating, she was growing accustomed to the dungeon's mana. As using it became easier, the centipedes stopped being any match for her. Once they were all dispatched, crimson eyes stared down at her own hand. Now that the fight was over, the thoughts she'd pushed aside came flooding back.
'It's not me he needs...'
Alpha had brought Baek So-yul because she was useful. Hong Yuri had no intention of denying that. —So what?
'So what, I'm going to be dead weight?'
Faint again? Tremble and drown in self-loathing every time? She didn't think she was being diligent, didn't think she was being helpful—but she had absolutely no intention of clinging to anyone's ankle like a pathetic burden. Alpha was terrifying, yes. But he didn't harm her. She knew that. She knew that perfectly well, and... Hong Yuri clenched her jaw and shook her head fiercely. No more useless thoughts. She didn't need thoughts. She needed action.
"......!"
Hong Yuri strode across the snowfield. Her feet sank deep into the snow, her trembling legs practically begging her to stop. —There's no turning back. The thought that she could still turn back now twisted the corner of her mouth.
'Bullshit.'
Over something this pathetic...! She reached out before she could second-guess herself, and her hand touched coarse fur before she could even feel hesitation. A chill shot up her spine. Hong Yuri clenched her teeth so hard they creaked and raised her mana, forcing herself to endure. When those red eyes turned on her, her mind went to pieces—but she hadn't fainted. That single fact made her lips curl in a bitter smirk.
—But that was her limit. As Hong Yuri began to crumple, Baek So-yul caught her before the Wolf could extend a tentacle.
"Well done, Teacher."
***
I'd expected her to faint. Instead, she was holding on even with a sheet-white face. I nodded. Maybe overcoming her phobia wouldn't take as long as I'd thought.
'She has to reach Eun-ha's level at least.'
To fight the Volcanic Horned Dragon, she needed to ride on my back like Eun-ha had against the Juggernaut. I decided we'd descend into the valley rather than wait for more mana absorption. A steep slope. Baek So-yul and Hong Yuri climbed onto the White Deer's back, and we began striding down the cliff face.
"Is she going to be okay? Teacher is still..."
"Shut up."
Hong Yuri scowled at the worried voice and steadied her breathing.
"If we're doing this, better to get it over with fast."
"......."
By the time we reached the bottom—the waterless Frost Valley—countless presences were fixed on us.
"Fucking tons of them... they got nothing better to do?"
I snorted at Hong Yuri's caustic remark. To be fair, we'd woken them from hibernation with an avalanche. Getting glared at made sense. The numbers alone were bad enough, but most were stronger than the Greed Centipedes up on the ridge. Monsters that barely scraped their way into B-class. Huge yetis, whales swimming beneath the ground, and all manner of other things had made this place their home.
"Will this be all right?"
Baek So-yul had spread her mana and sensed them belatedly, her voice worried. Hong Yuri just scoffed. To a high-ranking mage given time to chant, numbers were meaningless.
'The real problem is...'
Baek So-yul apparently hadn't noticed, but the real problem was this dungeon's boss—Hong Yuri frowned at the colossal presence she could feel not under the snow, but deep within the cliff face. The Wolf had sensed it long before, and could see its identity clearly.
[Frost Lord (Frost Bone)]
[Length 21.96m] [Height 5.23m] [Weight 17.2t]
[STR 475] [AGI 504] [VIT 478] [MP 631]
[Skill List]
[Great Magic Power (B)] [Mana Concentration (C)] [Mitigation (C)] [Eye of Freezing (C)] [Mana Armor (C)] [High-Speed Flight (D)]
—A huge skeletal dragon was beginning to stir within the cliff.