Beyond the space that Beatrice had leapt to in search of coordinates was a pure white 'glacier'.
"This is...."
Massive ice, from the ground she stepped on to the horizon and beyond. A vast glacier, as if an entire continent had been frozen.
"It's amazing, it's like a land of ice...."
"Isn't it cold?"
Leon asked, concerned for Beatrice at the unusual chill.
"I'm fine. If I raise my body temperature with magic──"
Beatrice performed a magic trick to raise her body temperature, but realized that it was less effective than she thought.
"Magic… I'm limited in the use of my magic power. The consumption rate has increased, and the effectiveness has decreased."
"Same here. I can't summon any holy objects, and I'm not able to unfold the Holy Law properly."
Beatrice's expression was one of despair. Unlike her own magic, Leon's Holy Law was a different kind of power.
What kind of place was this that even such a power can be restricted?
"Don't get me wrong. I can use the Holy Law if I want to, it's just that the cost/benefit ratio would be too low."
"That's good to hear… let's just… get back to it, shall we? I can open the gate at least once with all my power."
"No, going back won't change anything. The power that freezes this space is something tantamount to holy law, and it's not something we can overcome by wearing a coat."
In other words, this place must be explored at this penalty.
"Beatrice, you won't use any magic since you'll have to open the gate when we leave."
"I will do so, Your Majesty, rather than...."
Beatrice held up the Ritual Dagger of Vulcanus.
The old dagger burned brighter than before. The lava-like flames flowing from within are slowly revealing themselves.
"We are closer to Lord Vulcanus. His dagger will be our guide."
Leon takes the dagger from Beatrice and begins to walk across the Glacial Continent,
* * * *
The Glacial Continent gave the two of them all sorts of penalties.
There's not much they can do about it, given its 'freeze in time and space' nature. All they can do is walk in the direction pointed by Vulcanus' flashing ritual dagger.
But it's not just the cold, icy continent that plagues them.
"It's an ice storm."
Beatrice clicks her tongue at the blizzard she's encountered many times already.
This glacial continent is a never-ending weather phenomenon that threatens to destroy everything that lives.
"...."
It was a chill that seeped into their bones without even touching them and only a few superhumans could survive here.
"Whoa...."
"Are you okay?"
"Yes… but we'll have to hurry and get out of here, I'm sorry."
"The forces here sealed your magic. Don't blame yourself."
Beatrice, who had her magic sealed to keep it intact, is no different from an ordinary woman.
"Let's get out of the ice storm."
She turns and heads back. The frozen glacial ground makes walking uncomfortable, the only consolation being the lack of slippery snow but the snow is ankle-deep with every step.
"Forgive my rudeness."
"Your Majesty…?!"
Leon sweeps her up in his arms and walks away. Her purple eyes widen in surprise, but he doesn't care.
"We have to go. I need you to hold on."
"I'm… I'm fine, Your Majesty, but...."
Of course, carrying a woman wasn't enough to make Leon worry about his stamina.
"You're too light as a feather to worry about the load."
"Hee hee hee, isn't that obvious for a lady?"
"Oh, no. Did this king's words come across as pretentious?"
Beatrice smiled and let herself fall into Leon's arms.
"No, I'm light-hearted, to say the least."
"Ha-ha. You're surprisingly nonchalant about saying blatant things."
"It's a logical fact."
The two flirted more than usual. They instinctively know that in this harsh environment, it's comforting to have someone to talk to.
"If I'd known it was going to be like this, I should have brought Ha-ri with me."
"Miss Ha-ri is very talented."
Of course, anything Ha-ri can do, Leon can do better. But in order to minimize the consumption of holy power, he needed someone to do it for him.
"She's very talented. It's rare for two gods to favor someone so much."
"Would Ms. Ha-ri or Ms. So-yeon become the next Holy Knight of the TTG Temple?"
Beatrice asks, suddenly curious.
All the Holy Knights in the TTG Temple are survivors.
Not to mention Leon and Yappy, whose karma is enough to make them heroes.
But Leon needs more Holy Knights. The number of Holy Knights they saw in the Lionheart Kingdom gate was not even half of what Lionheart was at its peak.
"Hmm… Both of them are talented enough to become Holy Knights."
"You think highly of them?"
"Talented people are everywhere but few actually fulfill it."
Only a few had the talent to become Holy Knights, but even fewer are recognized as Holy Knights.
"The seat of the Holy Knight is not one that can be attained by mere talent. Strength and talent can be… surprisingly unrelated."
Leon remembered the oldest Holy Knight.
A noble and faithful old knight, whose beliefs and faithfulness to the end had made him a Knight of the Goddess.
"Sir Jerea was...."
Just as Leon was about to reminisce, the sound of light breathing drifted up his chest.
Beatrice was fast asleep, looking exhausted in more ways than one.
"We'd better hurry."
After picking her up, Leon began to walk quickly across the glacial continent.
* * * *
The outbreak of Gates had spread rapidly enough that not only the Association and the Hunter Guilds, but also the civilian population felt it.
-Crazy, there's a gate in front of my house.
-What color is it?
-Yellow!
-No big deal. It's orange here.
-I live in L.A. and it's crazy here too. The National Guard is out in full force.
-I was traveling in Turkey and a gate appeared in the middle of the tourist area....
Gates are popping up all over the world, not just in Korea. It felt like a harbinger of something.
"Why is there a gate in the middle of the ocean?"
"Isn't that a dragon palace?!"
The gate appeared off the coast of Mokpo, and the coast guard ships went into a state of emergency.
They sent fishermen home early and warned shipyards.
"Isn't the Dragon Palace the first priority to be cleared? If that dungeon breaks, the sea here will die!"
"The whole country is in such a mess right now, if we're going to dispatch an invasion force...."
Captain Oh of the 3009th stared at the gate on the surface of the water while stomping his feet.
With the shortage of raiders right now, would there be any raiders who could clear the tricky Dragon Palace Gate?
"What? Oh Kyung-jung! Look at the radar!"
It was then. The Coast Guard officer who was checking the radar of the guard ship reported to him.
"We've got a lot of activity on the radar! Chinese fishing boats… no, this is coming from the direction of Mokpo!"
"Huh?"
Were they friendly vessels? No, they're too small and too numerous for that.
"Distance 100! 90! 70! No, what's going so fast?!"
The officers are alarmed. They're approaching the 3009 at a speed greater than the speed of light!
"Chu, collision?"
"Armament ready!"
At the captain's command, the 3009's 40mm twin 40mm guns and 20mm Balkans are pointed in that direction. But there is nothing on the surface, which means it's a submarine....
'A large fleet of submarines in the middle of South Korea? North Korea?'
But how can a North Korean submarine come to the coast of Mokpo, even on such a large scale?
Even though we haven't received any information from North Korea lately, is there any reason for such a hasty offensive?
"Captain, give me permission to fire…!"
As the situation grew more urgent, Captain Oh was about to order the attack, but then something caught his attention.
"Don't open fire!!"
Almost simultaneously with the urgent voice something broke the surface.
It was a small submersible, about 500 tons, similar to the South Korean Navy's Dolphin-class infiltration submersibles, which could have carried ten men.
"Bam!"
The sub's hatch opened and out stepped a familiar mascot from Mokpo. It was a Kikiruk.
Fully armed with large claws and distinctive "cannon armor," the warrior saluted in human fashion and asked for greetings.
-Crackle, crackle, crackle, crackle!
The warrior's words were translated in real time by the machine.
"Greymion Andrew Maximus Clygent, senior warrior, 1st Assault Landing Battalion."
"Uh, I'm Officer Kang-tae Oh, Captain of the 3009th, Mokpo Coast Guard."
After confirming each other's affiliations, the chirpy warrior spoke.
"This unit is scheduled to destroy the hostile forces off the coast of Mokpo. We advise you to withdraw from the area of operations."
"We can't do that! These are our waters and we…No, more than that, you don't have the right to operate in them and to act like this is...."
"Direct orders from Lord Yakt Spinner. Authorized by the Hunter's Association. I am also an official Hunter. No legal issues."
It's real. The hunter's card that the Kikiruk warrior displayed was emblazoned with his pompous and majestic name and official certification as a Class B Hunter.
"Hmph…! Then this ship will proceed with the mission to return the fishing boats that have yet to be evacuated….Senior Warrior Greymion, please clear the Dragon Palace Gate."
"No problem."
The Kikiruk warrior then enters the sub again as dozens of stalled submersibles begin to move again.
"Whoa… when did they build those?"
"We almost shot them."
The coastguards breathe a sigh of relief.
-Kaaaaaah!
A huge wave hit the 3009. It was big enough to rock a 3,000-ton ship.
"What, what!"
"What passed under there?!"
It took them a moment to realize what it was.
* * * *
The Korean Hunter Association has issued a general mobilization order.
Everyone knew why the Hunter Association, which usually frowned on interfering with private guilds, had urgently called the ten guilds.
"This isn't a normal pandemonium."
Golden Lion Guild's leader, Golden Chul, came forward to give the eyewitness account of the gates he had seen.
"That's two gates a minute. Who's raiding them?"
"The auction hasn't even started yet, it's a complicated process."
Yong-wan had flown in by helicopter, but he could see that the nation was in an uproar, and it wasn't a normal uproar. Right now, Vice Guild Leader Ha Yuri is at the headquarters trying to figure out which gate to bid on first.
"Everyone's here."
Oh Kang-hyuk, the head of the Association who called the ten guilds, enters with a tired expression. Behind him, Yappy and Ha-ri enter together.
-Where are the Lion King and the Magician Queen?
-Did they leave?
-Are they attacking another gate?
The face of the Temple of Ten Thousand Gods is, of course, Leon. Sometimes, when he was busy, Beatrice would fill in for him.
The appearance of Yappy, who has been invisible in public, came as a surprise to everyone and there are some people who are not happy that Yappy is taking a seat at the roundtable.
"No matter how multicultural you say you are, should you treat machines like people?"
"Mr. Kim Jin-cheol!"
Jin-cheol Kim of Shark Guild. He's the biggest guy in the room, covered in tattoos and looking dangerous.
As a former thug, he has no qualms with his behavior, unlike the other guild leaders who are relatively gentle.
-Cringe!
But Yappy put Ha-ri in his seat and stood on top of her, despite Kim Jin-cheol's words.
"Huh, is this what you do in meetings?"
-Complaint? Organism?
"Nope...."
Ha-ri thought that Yappy on her head was like a monster from an old creature movie. The kind that climbs on top of people's heads and manipulates their brains.
-Straighten up, organism. Keep your eyes level, warning.
"Yes!"
Ha-ri sat upright with a snap.
"Hmph… That's too much. I'm an S-class Hunter now, and a priestess of two gods...."
-I'm a Holy Knight, a being who exists above the law.
"No, Lord Yappy, isn't the supreme being the King?"
-Is the king here?
"He isn't."
Yappy didn't say anything more, just slapped Ha-ri on the cheek with his mechanical leg.
-Good one.
"I have...."
Watching the scene, Yong-wan thought.
"The end of the...human era has arrived.
He realized that the terrifying killing machine was uncontrollable without the Lionheart King.
"These assholes are ignoring me now!"
With a bang, the big man stood up from the round table. Kim Jin-cheol stomped towards Yappy and Ha-ri with a fierce expression on his face.
"...."
Oh Kang-hyuk watched the scene but he sighed and pretended not to notice.
"Hmph!"
Kim Jin-cheol, who must have taken that as a tacit rebuff, looked down at Yappy, who was perched on top of Ha-ri's head.
"I don't know if you're Cheongju killing machine or the Holy Knight of TTG Temple, but don't talk about machines in the presence of humans. Bring a human!"
"Uh, I'm a human, too?"
Jin-cheol bellowed at Ha-ri, who cautiously raised her hand.
"The end of the Association is woven!"
"Ugh…!"
Ha-ri cowered under the S-class Hunter's tirade. Yappy's camera eye glowed red as he looked at Ha-ri, wondering what was wrong with her.
"Mr. President, is it okay for a machine to appear in a place like this? Huh?"
"Sir Yakt Spinner is fully qualified. His Majesty King Lionheart has vouched for him."
Oh Kang-hyuk sneaked a glance at Yappy but Yappy was obviously staring at Kim Jin Chul.
"What are you doing?"
-Considering, putting together a conversational paragraph befitting the intellect of an ancient organism.
"Huh?"
-Composition completed. Completing an appropriate sentence.
Yappy's emoji is somehow distorted, as if he had been studying Kim Jong-Cheol.
-What a fucking asshole.
Learning too well was a problem.