Essence of Snow (2)
Countless B-Grade weapons. Rapiers and longbows, small hand axes. Weapons of every shape and kind flaunted themselves before me — but I was not swayed.
I moved my hand without hesitation and tapped a weapon. A colossal axe filled the screen.
"Oh..."
A gasp of admiration slipped out before I could stop it. The handle rose as high as a grown man's shoulder, and the twin blades were monstrously huge — each one larger than the torso of the avatar holding the axe, mounted front and back.
The name was pretty good, too. Dragon Hunter's Great Axe. True to that name, the broad face of each blade was lavishly engraved with the image of a man slaying a dragon.
"So the lore is that a dragon hunter used this axe?"
A great axe used for hunting dragons. These developers clearly understood the romance of oversized weapons. Taking down a massive beast with a massive weapon in one clean, satisfying swing — that was the whole appeal.
"Once next month's paycheck hits, I should look into whether there's a large-weapon package."
My loyalty to developers who appreciated the coolness of big weapons was growing by the second.
I moved my hands and crafted the weapon at once, using the Refined Gold I'd already stocked in my inventory. Being B-Grade, it ate up a full eight units of the mineral.
"Ugh, it sure burns through ore."
◈ Acquired for the first time!
Looking at the enormous axe that had just landed in my inventory, a satisfied smile rose on its own. This was why I played games.
I locked the weapon so I wouldn't forget, then shifted the screen toward the dwarves and the mine.
"Looks like auto-crafting for B-Grade still isn't unlocked."
When I'd first made the Worn Longsword, a message had appeared saying Worker 1 would auto-craft it. Nothing of the sort showed up this time, so B-Grade auto-crafting was apparently still off the table.
"What do I have to raise to unlock higher auto-craft grades..."
I spun the screen around, poking at this and that.
"...Might as well get the dwarf count right while I'm at it."
Having five dwarves had been bugging me, so I rounded them up to ten. Uneven numbers just sat wrong somehow.
"There's got to be a place that shows which grades can be auto-crafted..."
No matter how hard I looked, nothing turned up. I was spinning my wheels with zero progress when something flashed through my mind.
"Ah — wasn't there something called Fame?"
I'd spent five days logging in, crafting weapons, selling them, and logging out, so I'd completely forgotten Fame even existed. I tapped the icon tucked in the corner of the screen and opened it.
Current Fame is at the level of "a nationally famous popular singer."
Fame, explained with a strangely real-world flavor. It seemed to have climbed quite a bit since the last time I'd checked.
"What was it last time? A circus famous in the city, or something? Jumping up to a national scale means it's gone up some. Is this related?"
I muttered to myself and closed the Fame message. In the end, I hadn't found a single useful thing.
I was about to shut the game down when the Buildings icon started blinking.
"What's this?"
Curious, I tapped it. A list of buildings unspooled down the screen, and at the very top, something shaped like a triumphal arch was glittering.
"Did something unlock? I haven't done anything."
Still puzzled, I tapped the arch-like building.
! Insufficient Fame to construct this building. !
So it was an event building that required a certain Fame threshold. Fame climbed gradually just from selling weapons, so I didn't need to worry about it.
"Aaah~"
I stood up and stretched long and hard. I'd made the weapon I wanted — now I just needed a hero-class adventurer to show up. The Adventurer Grand Expedition Package was still active, so one would arrive soon enough.
Mid-stretch, my eyes fell on that strange smartphone I'd put on the charger earlier.
"...Does it even turn on?"
I held the power button down hard. The phone gave no response at all.
"If I leave it alone, it'll turn on eventually."
I left it plugged into the charger and sank deep into bed. Lying there for a while, drowsiness crept in thicker and thicker —
and I sank into a deep sleep.
When the sun hung high overhead, the carriage Duke Lushan had sent arrived before the temple. Emblazoned on its side was the crest of House Nix — a shield crossed with twin axes.
Kenis and Commander David boarded and rode swiftly toward the ducal estate.
The clatter of hooves filled the carriage interior as it raced along the paved road and arrived at the estate.
"Lord David and Lady Kenis! Confirmed!"
Past the massive gates and the guards, a waiting butler guided them inside.
"This way, if you please. His Grace is expecting you."
Unlike the day before, the butler led them up the stairs toward the top floor of the castle. Kenis followed and asked,
"Where is His Grace?"
"In the study on the uppermost floor. He said an urgent message had arrived."
The three of them climbed the stairs at a brisk pace and arrived before the study. A door of dark brown wood stood firmly shut.
The butler knocked with careful formality.
"Your Grace, I have brought Lady Kenis and the Commander."
"Good. Come in."
The door opened with a soft creak. Inside was a stark study — a desk, chairs, and a fireplace in one corner for warmth, and nothing more.
Duke Lushan sat at the desk, staring hard at a single sheet of paper.
"Welcome. I'd meant to treat you to lunch and then talk, but an urgent report just came in. Bear with me a moment."
"Not at all, Your Grace. We're fine."
The Commander — who still felt as though last night's meat hadn't digested properly thanks to the awkward atmosphere — was privately relieved by the Duke's words.
"But this report... it concerns the two of you as well. That's why I called you to the study."
"It concerns us...?"
"Mm... Originally, the plan for exploring the Essence of Snow was to have the holy knights and our warriors advance together, slowly carving out a path as we went. But..."
His throat seemed to go dry; the Duke swallowed once.
"It doesn't look like we have that kind of time. Today the border sentries reported anomalous signs on the Mount of Demonic Beasts."
"Anomalous signs?"
"Yes. On the Mount of Demonic Beasts — more precisely, near the Essence of Snow colony we were heading for — a massive explosion is said to have gone off."
"An explosion on the Mount of Demonic Beasts...?"
Kenis murmured, her face gone blank. The Mount of Demonic Beasts was a place even seasoned warriors could not linger easily. An explosion there was no good omen.
"The blizzard was too fierce for a clear look, but they said they saw blue flames. This was no natural event."
"...Someone is meddling."
"Right. I don't know what bastard is up to what on the Mount of Demonic Beasts, but it can't be good for us."
The atmosphere in the study grew heavy under the Duke's words. He looked down at the report and muttered under his breath.
"I can't say for certain how it connects, but the way the demonic beasts have been driven down from the mountain lately... it seems tied to this as well."
"We'll need to move as quickly as possible."
The Commander looked at the Duke with a hardened expression. An unknown enemy had taken root on the Mount of Demonic Beasts. Demonic beasts kept pouring down from the mountain. And now a massive explosion had been observed near the colony.
Every hour counted.
"Exactly. Which is why I'm requesting military cooperation from you."
Duke Lushan spoke in a low voice.
"Our warriors will finish all preparations within the hour and head for the Mount of Demonic Beasts."
"One hour..."
"I'd ask for the cooperation of whatever holy knights the Pantheon can field within that hour. Will that be all right?"
The Commander grinned as he looked at the Duke, his tone almost offended.
"You wound me, Your Grace. Not whatever we can field — every last holy knight will go."
"I'm grateful. That's a relief, at least."
The Duke rose from his chair and walked to the window. His gaze stretched out toward the distant Mount of Demonic Beasts.
"In one hour, we depart from the gate that leads to the mountain."
"Understood. Then we'll see you at that gate."
"I won't be going."
The Duke shook his head.
"Someone has to stay and guard this place against the worst. With so many warriors deploying, I've decided that I and a portion of our forces will remain behind."
Kenis nodded as if she understood. If the castle were attacked while it stood empty, the damage would be severe.
Someone had to hold the rear.
"Friga will go in my place. Look after her."
"Yes, Your Grace. Understood."
Leaving the study, Kenis and the Commander hurried out of the castle and climbed into the carriage.
Time was desperately short.
The coachman drove hard, cutting across the main avenue.
Thanks to the racing carriage, they reached the temple in no time. Kenis and the Commander practically leapt down.
"Kenis! I'll rally the holy knights — grab only your personal gear and head straight for the gate!"
"Yes, sir!"
The Commander rang the bell in the corner of the temple like a madman.
"Holy knights, assemble—! Assemble—!"
At the sound of the emergency bell, holy knights began appearing one after another.
While the Commander rapidly briefed the gathered knights, Kenis headed for her room to collect her personal arms.
"Greaves, elbow guards, chain armor..."
She equipped her defenses in a rush. Shouldering a massive spiked shield that could be driven into the ground in a crisis, and taking up her holy sword as well, Kenis left the temple at once.
Breathing hard, she pounded the ground toward the gate. After running for some time, she saw a throng of warriors milling before the gate.
In front of them, black hair streaming, stood Friga.
"Lady Friga!"
"Oh, Kenis. You're here?"
"Hah—yes. Wait just a little longer before we set out. Our holy knights will be here shortly."
"Yeah? Father told me too. We've still got plenty of time before departure, so go rest over there for a bit."
Following Friga's words, Kenis sat in a corner and caught her breath. Breathing slowly, she swept her eyes over the surroundings.
The heavily armed warriors were fully prepared, clustered together and murmuring among themselves. Not a trace of fear among them.
Just like northerners — they don't fear battle.
A little more time passed, and the murmuring grew louder.
The Commander's here!
Kenis sprang to her feet and looked toward the holy knights approaching from afar. They came on quickly and formed up in neat ranks before the gate.
With every force assembled, Friga stepped out in front of the warriors.
"Hey — anybody still missing?"
"Captain, One-Eye says his stomach hurts."
Snickers erupted among the warriors. Friga snorted a laugh.
"Ha, that ridiculous bastard. Somebody dig a hole on the Mount of Demonic Beasts. We're burying One-Eye in it."
"Aww, Captain, that's harsh. It's not like I dump that much."
"You, you little shit. You dump more than a reindeer. Couldn't tell you apart from a reindeer dung pile."
One-Eye groaned in protest. Even among the slightly tense holy knights, small laughs slipped out.
Grinning, Friga swept her eyes over the crowd, then hoisted her massive axe in one hand and bellowed,
"All right, move out! Time to go take the head of whatever bastard's been screwing around on the Mount of Demonic Beasts!"
"Ha!"
A band of warriors punched through the blizzard and began to climb the Mount of Demonic Beasts.