Chapter 1: The Ice Witch's Savior

'The Ice Witch.'

That was what people used to call A-class hunter Han Seolbin.

A moniker tainted with negative connotations.

Considering how top-tier hunters were usually the objects of public adoration, it was highly unusual for Han Seolbin to be branded with such a title.

But looking back at her history, it was not entirely incomprehensible.

It all stemmed from an incident during an Open Rift.

Unlike closed rifts, an Open Rift was a dangerous dimensional anomaly where monsters tore open space to emerge directly into the human world.

To contain these Open Rifts, top-tier hunters were urgently deployed.

They had to carry out high-difficulty missions: protecting civilians, eliminating monsters, and closing the rift.

And that was precisely where Han Seolbin, then known as the 'Frost Witch,' made her catastrophic mistake.

Highly praised for her immense potential and deployed to defend against an Open Rift, Seolbin had lost control of her magic.

She froze not only the monsters but everything in her vicinity.

The tragedy was that the other hunters deployed alongside her, as well as innocent civilians, were frozen solid.

Following the incident, she was suspended from all missions for a long time.

Crippled by trauma, she herself grew terrified of stepping onto the battlefield.

Then, one day, an unprecedented crisis struck as multiple Open Rifts erupted simultaneously across various locations.

With the sheer number of active rifts, there was a severe shortage of available hunters, forcing her back into active duty against her will.

But haunted by her past, she was too terrified to use her magic, unable to unleash her true power.

The hunters deployed with her were too busy keeping their distance, treating her like a ticking time bomb.

Inevitably, she found herself cornered by a monster that had lunged right in front of her.

Just as the jagged spike of an unnamed beast was about to pierce her eyes—

The creature's ash-grey spike snapped in two right before her eyes, falling powerlessly to the ground.

And the man who stepped forward to shield her...

...was Lee Siwoo, a hunter whose name was barely known at the time.

He looked back at her with a bright smile and asked,

“Are you hurt?”

His eyes were entirely different from those who shrank away from her, whispering of the 'Ice Witch.'

A face that perfectly blended masculine charm with a boyish warmth.

Han Seolbin stood dazed, utterly speechless.

Meanwhile, a colossal monster loomed in the distance.

The mastermind that had torn open the rift.

A boss-class monster.

With the S-class hunters scattered across other battlefields, defeating that behemoth seemed nigh impossible.

But then...

Swoosh—

Like a diagonal line sliced across a sheet of paper, a blood-red streak appeared on the giant monster's neck.

As if snipped by a pair of scissors, the beast's massive head slid cleanly off its shoulders and crashed to the earth.

It was Lee Siwoo's space magic that had decapitated the boss in an instant.

With the boss-class monster slain, the rift began to collapse.

The boss was dead, leaving only weak stragglers on the battlefield.

The tide of battle had completely turned, leaving a cleanup job that even the remaining hunters could easily handle.

Seolbin stood frozen, staring blankly at the reality-bending magic Siwoo had displayed and the instantaneous shift in the battlefield.

Soon, Siwoo walked over to her.

“You're the Ice Witch, right?”

“Yes...”

“I've heard the rumors. Seeing you in person, I can see why people call you that.”

“W-what?”

“Haha, I'm not criticizing you. I just thought I could help.”

“Pardon?”

In that instant,

the world around Seolbin shifted.

Whoosh—

Before her eyes stretched a vast, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠endless plain of ice.

A chilly breeze brushed against her ears, but it felt crisp and refreshing rather than freezing.

“What is this...?”

“It's space magic. Don't be startled.”

“Are you a mage?”

“Yes. Forgive my rudeness for bringing you to a place only I know without your permission.”

“W-where are we?”

“It's a wasteland that was devastated in the past because an Open Rift couldn't be stopped. But isn't it beautiful?”

“...”

Seolbin was utterly speechless.

This place was a stark reminder of the catastrophic mistake she had made.

The vast plain, stretching all the way to the horizon, was blanketed in thick frost.

A cold, desolate landscape.

Yet, it was breathtakingly beautiful.

As she stood overwhelmed by the scenery, Siwoo spoke again.

“When I heard the rumors, I wanted to show you this if we ever met.”

“...”

“Because among all the famous hunters, I thought only one person could create a landscape like this.”

“W-who?”

“You, Seolbin.”

“M-me?”

“Of course. You use ice magic better than anyone else.”

“Is... is that so? Thank you for thinking of me that way.”

“Haha, it's nothing. I just wanted to show you because you looked so downcast, and it pained me to see you that way.”

“...”

“Well then—”

Siwoo prepared to dispel his magic and return Seolbin to the battlefield.

But then,

“Wait! Just a moment!”

Seolbin called out, stopping him in his tracks.

“T-this is a gift for you.”

What she handed to Siwoo...

...was a wristwatch intricately carved from ice.

And it was ticking with perfect precision.

“Wow—did you just make this? It's truly amazing.”

“Thank you! I... I've awakened because of you.”

“Pardon?”

After Siwoo brought her to this frozen wasteland, she had awakened as an S-class hunter.

“Thanks to you, I finally realized. Magic can be beautiful, and it can be something to enjoy.”

The dark shadow that had hung over Seolbin's face was completely gone.

Instead, she wore a serene, confident smile.

Siwoo smiled back, looking at her.

And just like that, they became lovers.

In truth, it was a meticulously crafted script.

Siwoo had cleared the game dozens of times and knew Seolbin's awakening conditions inside out.

Back then, his mind had been set on building a harem, and he was busy planting seeds of affection in the hearts of the women around him in his own calculated ways.

His actions toward Seolbin were merely a part of that grand harem plan.

Or so he had intended.

But Siwoo found himself utterly speechless.

The Seolbin he faced in person was breathtakingly beautiful. The other women he had baited so far were certainly beauties, but Seolbin was on an entirely different level.

She was in a league of her own.

A noble, sublime beauty that practically paralyzed the mind of anyone who looked at her.

Staring at her sculpted features, an overwhelming emotion—as if standing before a goddess—naturally welled up inside him.

From that very moment, Siwoo abandoned his harem plans.

An attraction so powerful it compelled him to rewrite his entire life plan.

They say people feel an undeniable intuition when they meet their lifelong partner.

For Lee Siwoo, the moment he met Han Seolbin was that exact epiphany.

A wonderful premonition.

A racing heart.

The two of them gazed into each other's eyes.

And Han Seolbin felt the exact same way.

Having regained her composure, Sodam set the table for Seolbin and me before retreating to her room.

She was clearly trying to give us some privacy.

She was a timid girl, but incredibly thoughtful.

And so, Seolbin and I sat across from each other and began our dinner.

A cruise ship in the middle of the ocean, with no land in sight.

Enjoying dinner with her in the ship's restaurant, watching the sun dip below the horizon.

It was pure bliss.

The childish ambitions I had harbored when I first transmigrated into this world had now been completely replaced by Seolbin's presence.

While many high-ranking male hunters built harems, there was no rule saying I had to follow in their footsteps.

As long as Seolbin was happy.

If her happiness could bring me joy,

then she was the only woman I would ever need.

Just as I was savoring the warm, pleasant atmosphere of our meal, a message from the Cruise System flashed across my status window.

Seolbin's pupils shook, indicating she had received the exact same message.

She had seen the penalty: the death of the Captain upon failure.

The brief warmth I had felt toward this cruise ship instantly curdled into hostility.

This wasn't just some elaborate roleplay.

It hadn't hired Seolbin as a crew member and provided her with a uniform out of some twisted sense of hospitality for me.

Though I couldn't grasp its full nature yet, I could clearly sense a deep, underlying malice behind this mission.

Seolbin and I immediately stopped eating and locked eyes.

With trembling lips, she was the first to speak.

“S-Siwoo...”

But I had to keep my composure. I had faced hundreds of unexpected crises during my active hunter days.

It was just deeply unsettling that this was happening aboard the cruise ship I had purchased for my retirement.

But if I treated this cruise ship as a type of Rift, there was no reason to panic.

I quickly steeled my resolve.

And reassured Seolbin.

“Seolbin, it's okay. I don't know what its intentions are, but how hard could it really be?”

Instantly, Seolbin's gaze shifted.

A sharp, freezing look ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠that felt like it could cut to the bone.

It was the Ice Empress herself, the look she wore when conquering Rifts.

“Yeah. You're right, Siwoo. There's bound to be a way.”

As we immediately restored our mental state like a party entering a Rift, another message appeared.

I never expected there to be a Captain Level. It seemed accepting the mission had granted me ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠some form of experience.

Opening my status window, I was able to check the newly acquired skill.

It was a skill perfectly suited for the owner of the cruise ship.

Since the VIP hadn't arrived yet, I could only view the crew's stats.

I opened Seolbin's status window.

With that, Seolbin's crew status ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠window materialized.

She seemed to be checking her own status window as well.

As I quietly stared at the status window, comparing it with mine...

But there was something slightly off.

An entry that was visible only to me, and completely hidden from Seolbin herself.