The Ice King's Warning
The Ice King's words echoed in her mind. "Be wary of the contractor..." Mina wanted to ask what a contractor even was, and more importantly, why she should be wary of one. But she never got the chance.
The ground they stood on began to shake violently. She soon understood why. The mirror-like walls clinging to the cave began to crack and crumble, starting from the point where her sword had struck.
"It seems my time here is up," the Ice King muttered.
As expected, with his core pierced and shattered by her blade, his entire body was beginning to collapse. Yet Mina couldn't simply watch the sight with joy.
"Ahh! What do we do? I don't have any mana left!"
They had fallen deep into the cave during the battle, and the very ground supporting them was likely part of the Ice King's body. If everything came crashing down, there was no way they would survive.
At that moment, Seok-jun hurled a rope made of mana upward.
"Miss Mina, hold onto me tightly!"
Under normal circumstances, her lack of mana would have been a problem. But right now, she had almost none left to strengthen her body anyway. If Seok-jun had conserved his mana this whole time, they might just make it.
"What about Mr. Jun?!"
"I'm already holding on."
"When did you get here?!"
Either way, with both of them clinging to Seok-jun, their feet began to leave the ground. The rope extending from his body contracted, pulling them upward.
Just as she was beginning to feel relieved that they might actually escape the cave, a massive chunk of ice came hurtling down from above.
"Watch out!"
If it kept falling like this, they would all be crushed. A chill ran down her spine. Then—
"Hup!"
Skang!
A slash flew up from below, splitting the falling rock in two. Startled, Mina looked toward the source of the strike. The Ice King was holding the same crystalline sword as before, watching them as they were pulled upward by Seok-jun's rope.
"Why?"
"It would be rather unpleasant if the ones who defeated me vanished without even leaving their names behind."
To the question Mina had unconsciously muttered, the Ice King answered while lowering his sword.
"And if you're going to take a part of me, I'd prefer you take it in one piece."
She wanted to ask what he meant by that, but Jun was faster. He opened a section of his armor, revealing something inside.
"The loot is safe and sound!"
"Why is it coming out of there?!"
Mina was stunned by the sight of the core glittering like a ruby inside Jun's armor. When on earth had he picked that up?
"Cores are always expensive. Not taking one would be a loss!"
"No matter how expensive it is!"
It was true that when processing monster byproducts, the core usually fetched the highest price. Still, the fact that he had thought to grab it even after fighting something like the Ice King was astonishing.
"To think I would witness such power in a place like this," the Ice King murmured, watching Seok-jun's group grow distant as his own body gradually crumbled away. "Though I must step down from the stage, it seems there will be some entertainment in watching. I wonder what kind of variable you'll become."
And so they climbed up the cave using Seok-jun's rope.
"Haaah... It's over now, right?"
Mina barely kept herself from collapsing the moment her feet touched the cave floor. With the Ice King's body gone, the cave had become nothing short of a sheer cliff. The passage they had entered through remained, thankfully, allowing them to stand safely.
"We still have the request to complete, don't we?"
"Now that you mention it, the reason we came here was..."
They had been so focused on fighting the Ice King that they had completely forgotten. They had originally come to investigate the village because the circumstances surrounding a missing family's disappearance seemed suspicious.
If there was one thing they had realized—
"That man definitely said he was going to offer us as sacrifices, right?"
The village chief who had led them here had said exactly that.
"Yes. It's highly likely that the missing family was offered to the Ice King as well."
"Then shouldn't we have asked about that earlier?"
Mina felt a pang of regret for missing the chance to solve the case. That was when Seok-jun spoke.
"Don't be too disappointed. If there had been no evidence, I would have asked right away."
"What? You mean..."
He pointed toward one side of the cave. Following his gesture, Mina saw a new passage that hadn't been there before.
"What do you think all of that is?"
It wasn't as wide as the entrance they had come through, but it was still large enough for them to enter without issue.
"What is all this?"
Inside, the floor was covered with what appeared to be human clothing. Most of it was worn and tattered, but it looked like ski gear. Small rings, necklaces, and brooches were scattered among them.
"When we first entered the cave, I noticed this area had been blocked off by ice."
"Which means..."
"It seems the Ice King created this space for the sacrifices offered to him."
The sheer number of clothes made it hard to take in at a glance. It showed just how many people had vanished here. Yet the way each item had been carefully arranged revealed that the master of this place had never treated them carelessly.
"If we show this to the police, it should be more than enough evidence."
Click, click. Seok-jun took photos with his smartphone as he spoke.
Mina was looking around at the clothes with a complicated mix of emotions she couldn't quite put into words when—
The ground is collapsing!
"Whoa?!"
The ground suddenly lurched as if it were about to give way. Mina's legs, which had been barely holding her up, gave out completely and she collapsed on the spot. With virtually no mana left in her body, even that small impact sent a sharp, stinging pain through her backside.
"Ugh... What now?"
She had no strength left to fight. Feeling anxious, she asked Seok-jun. He walked over to the edge of the cliff, checked something, then returned.
"It seems the Ice King's body itself wasn't made of ordinary ice."
"Well, that makes sense, doesn't it?"
Monster bodies were usually composed of something similar to yet different from the mana-infused matter of this world.
Seok-jun shook his head.
"That's not what I mean. If you know about methane hydrate, you'll understand quickly."
"The burning ice used as natural gas?"
It was the famous substance often mentioned when talking about alternative energy sources.
"The explosions seem to have stopped for now, but we should get out of here quickly."
Mina tried to stand, but she realized her legs wouldn't move.
"Um, Mr. Seok-jun?"
"What is it?"
"My legs have completely given out."
In the end, Mina had no choice but to be carried on Seok-jun's back.
"Hmm?"
Jun poked at something with his finger. It was a familiar rapier. Mina pretended not to notice.
"I'll check if we can get a signal."
When they reached the cave entrance, Seok-jun stopped and pulled out his smartphone. Wondering why they weren't leaving immediately, Mina soon realized the villagers might be waiting outside. She stayed quietly on his back. After a few rings, someone picked up.
The voice sounded familiar. It was definitely Detective Lee Hyung, the one who had given them the request. But in the background, there was a chaotic buzz of many people talking over one another, like a crowded market.
"Where are you right now?"
"I'm always busy! Another scene, of course!"
His answer didn't quite match Seok-jun's question. Just as Mina was starting to find it strange, the sound of a car door closing cut off the background noise.
"Perfect timing. Where are you guys? I'm in the village right now. No matter who I ask, they say they've never seen anyone like you."
Crack!
Right then, the sound of something shattering came through the phone, followed by a distant shout of "Who the hell do you think you are, just because you're cops?!"
"Damn it! You bastards! You think you're all lifelong bachelors or something?!"
He yelled for a moment, caught his breath, then continued.
"Anyway, I came using the missing persons case as an excuse. You hear that mess? Fuck, I can't even tell if I'm at a protest or conducting an investigation."
It must have been really bad for him to start swearing. Seok-jun stroked his chin.
"Then the villagers must all be focused on that gathering."
"Probably. A lot of the elders are mixed in, so it's awkward to use force."
"Once the call ends, I'll send you a few photos. That should be enough to bring in the riot police without issue."
"What? Hey, what are you—!"
Detective Lee Hyung seemed about to say more, but Seok-jun hung up and immediately sent the photos he had taken.
"Let's take a detour and circle around to the back."
Mina wondered if this was really okay, but fortunately there was no one near the cave. From far away, however, they could hear the loud commotion.
When they looked down the mountain, sure enough, several police cars were facing off against a crowd that appeared to be the villagers. Perhaps because they had taken the long way around through the rough terrain, by the time they arrived, several bus-like vehicles and a strange car with a megaphone mounted on top were already parked there.
When they reached the rear of the police line, Detective Lee Hyung greeted them.
"Man, you guys really saved my life."
"What's the situation?"
"The riot police are having a hard time too. There's not much to hold against them, but I don't know what gives them the confidence to act like this."
He clicked his tongue, saying it was worse than most protests. Seok-jun and Mina exchanged glances.
"It looks like we might be able to handle that part."
"Huh? How?"
There was no need to explain.
"Kiyahho! Look over here! Your god's gone off to America!"
At some point, Jun had climbed on top of one of the vehicles. He opened a panel on his armor, revealing the red gem-like core, and shouted at the top of his lungs.
The villagers, Detective Lee Hyung, and even the police officers all stared at him in stunned silence. Seok-jun let out a small chuckle.
"Not America. Heaven."