Sirka was dreaming.
That was a few years ago.
It was a memory of the day I first met 'Chacha'.
But as always, Sirka's dreams had one thing in common that never changed, no matter what the content.
That is 'color'.
Sirka's dreams were always white.
From the moment she was born until now, the world surrounding her was always pure white, so she only knew that world.
Whioooooo-
A bitter cold blizzard.
Pure white snowfield.
A life of struggle, running barefoot across the cold snowfield and fighting countless spirits.
Because that was all the world Sirka knew.
but.
It was from 'that day'.
-Sirka! We're in trouble!
-The spirits have invaded the village!
The world of Sirka, which seemed like it would last forever, began to change.
-The spirits have gone wild!
-Everyone, raise your weapons!
One day, the spirits of the Echo Forest went berserk and attacked the village.
For days on end, they fought fiercely against the endless stream of spirits.
One day, as she watched the old elves dying one by one near her, Sirka also prepared herself for her own death.
Shwaaaaak-!
-Look at the sky!
-A monster is coming down from the sky!
-It's a dragon!
Ah, why on earth... ... .
Why do misfortunes strike all at once like this?
The moment I witnessed a giant dragon descending from the sky through a blizzard.
Perhaps Sirka felt such a sense of overwhelming despair.
But surprisingly, that despair turned into a bright hope in an instant.
From the moment a human riding on top of that giant dragon suddenly appeared and landed on the ground.
-Where is this?
From the moment I saw the tremendous magical power flowing through the entire body of that human being, who immedia
tely grasped the surrounding situation with sharp eyes even in the midst of a snowstorm.
and.
-Hey, I don't have a weapon, so can you lend me a weapon of any kind?
Have you finally figured out the situation?
Sirka ended up handing over her weapon in a panic to the human who suddenly approached her and offered her his hand.
Two extra daggers tucked into his waistband.
-A dagger... ...I somehow miss it.
Then, as if something had suddenly occurred to the man, he held the two daggers in his hands and smiled faintly.
And that was it.
Swaaaah!
That man began to dance the 'sword dance' in earnest, his hair fluttering.
-Kiaaaaaaaah!
And right behind him, a huge dragon roared ferociously and started hunting the spirits together with the human.
That day.
The village barely regained peace.
By a stranger who suddenly appeared.
But the stranger did not leave the village even after the battle was over and continued to harass them.
-This won't work. I don't know where this is, but I need to take care of you first.
Seriously... ... .
Looking back, I still think he was a really strange person.
-Is everyone okay? All the injured kids, gather here! And you over there!
-Me, me?
-Yeah, you. If there's any bandages or medicine in the village, could you bring them to me? And has everyone eaten? Why
are you all dressed so coldly? Aren't you cold?
... ... Oh my.
Although I was the one who felt the coldest.
The meticulous hands that suddenly appeared and saved them, tightly opening their collars as the cold wind seeped throug
h.
It really wasn't funny.
... ... Instead, tears came to my eyes.
It was tears of relief at realizing once again that I had survived.
And it was from that day on.
That broad-minded stranger settled down in the village and was called 'Chacha'.
Chacha is like that... ... .
He stayed with the young elves who barely survived and became their family.
Sometimes as a swordsmanship master.
- Sirka! Waist! Lower your posture! You won't fall over if your center of gravity is low!
-What is the center of gravity?
-Ah, should I explain from there... ... .
It taught me tactics and strategy, and how to defend myself.
Sometimes like a mother.
-Kids, let's eat!
-Wow!-!
-Sirka! If you eat first again, you'll get in trouble! You have to eat together with your friends!
-I don't like it! I already have a mug.
In the midst of the still bitter cold and snowstorm, he made warm food and gave them cozy clothes.
and....
-Hey, our Sirka! You look so cool with your hair braided! This way, your vision won't be obstructed during battle, right?
-Hehe. Yeah!
-Elves' hair is truly amazing. How can it be so pretty and shiny, yet so strong and tough that it could be used as a bowstrin
g?
-Ahem. Aren't you jealous? Just wait a minute. When my hair grows longer, I'll make a bow for Chacha myself.
-Oh, thank you. Then, in return, I will make you a bracelet with my hair.
-What's the bracelet for? It's useless in battle.
-too bad.
-Hehehe. Just kidding.
... ... taught me how to smile brightly even in the bitter cold.
-Sirka.
In this way, thanks to Chacha, Sirka was able to learn new colors for the first time in the cold, harsh winter world where she
had been trapped all her life.
The color is warm.
I had no doubt that if there was such a thing as spring, it would be of these colors.
-Sirka.
and.
A voice that strangely resembled Chacha's had been heard from afar.
-You are already qualified enough.
Heart pounding.
A voice that resembled Chacha, but had a strangely low resonance, was calling out to him.
-So get up.
Wake up?
What do you mean?
The voice reached Sirka, who was having a happy dream.
At that moment, I instinctively realized something.
Whioooooo!
... ... !
The fact that he was once again surrounded and targeted by hungry spirits, just like that day.
WHHHHHHH!
Just like before Chacha appeared, the village was on the verge of being eaten by numerous spirits that invaded it.
The first thing that comes to mind at that moment is the instinctive fear I felt that day.
The next image that came to mind was Chacha's smile, which always looked straight at him and smiled.
-Get up and take control of those spirits yourself.
... ... !
The sound of someone's voice again awakened Sirka's courage.
Just like that day.
-Become a monarch.
... ... Flash!
At those words, Sirka instinctively opened her eyes and saw Suho's face, which resembled Chacha's.
Sirka asked with a bewildered expression.
[... ... Where is this?]
'If you wake up, take out your weapon first.'
No answer came back.
Instead, a long black shadow spread out behind Suho's broad back as he turned to look forward again.
Phew! Phew!
[Use 'Skill: Monarch's Realm'.]
And beyond that, he watched Silad hunting the spirits and shouted at Sirka.
'Wake up and look ahead! The former Lord of the Cold himself will show you how to fight the spirits! Watch and learn for yo
urself, not me!'
[... ... ?!]
Sirka was surprised.
It was exactly as he said.
Swaaaah!
The dead monarch was radiating tremendous force in front of me, overwhelming the spirits.
But at the same time I realized.
[No. It's impossible. I still... . . ]
The fact that my abilities are woefully inadequate to dare to imitate that tremendous momentum.
'Impossible, my ass!'
phut!
-Ugh?!
Suddenly, Suho's palm flew and mercilessly struck Sirka's back, causing Sirka to come to her senses.
A familiar taste!
This pain was the taste of Chacha's hands that he had experienced countless times while learning swordsmanship from Cha
cha.
At the same time, it was also the taste of his mother's cooking that Suho had experienced more times than the number of t
imes he had been touched.
Suho said.
'Don't worry, just trust me and follow me. I've already learned the tricks.'
[What? That power is definitely different from what you're handling. How?]
'That's why I said it was a trick. Use what you have as needed. Alright, let's go!'
[Okay, wait a minute... ... !]
WHHHHH!
Suho suddenly jumped forward, dragging Sirka along.
In a panic, Sirka jumped into a whirlpool of hungry spirits, and Suho snickered beside her.
'Okay, take out your weapons first.'
[... ... The Ice Tree's Spear.]
Tsk tsk tsk!
As Sirka obediently followed Suho's words, frost appeared on her hand and the ice tree's spear extended out.
As soon as she held the weapon in her hand, Sirka's body instinctively began to attack the spirits, following the movements
she had learned from Chacha.
'Good. You fight well.'
[There's no way this will work... ... !]
'Then it starts now. I'll teach you the tricks.'
Suho's eyes sparkled.
[Use 'Skill: Rigid Body Technique'.]
Swish!
In that moment, black energy enveloped Suho's two fists and two arms.
Sirka's eyes widened.
I noticed it instinctively.
The fact that that power is not a normal skill.
The strong and sturdy black aura rose up to Suho's shoulders, forming a gigantic armor.
Suho stretched out his huge hand, snatched one of the spirits, and blew it up.
Boom!
Suho, who had crushed and exploded one of the spirits, looked back at Sirka and smiled with his teeth exposed.
'This is power. It is the power that the King of the Strong Body used.'
[Huh, how did you get that power... ...?!]
'I learned it. You learn it from now on.'
Kwak! Kwaang!
Suho grabbed the spirits again and blew them up.
'One more here.'
[Use 'Skill: Giant's Armor'.]
Phew!
Suho's entire body was covered in armor.
This was a common skill, but Sirka had an expression on her face as if she had already realized something.
'Sirka.'
Suho was asking.
'Silard became the monarch after fighting against the sudden cold. Then what does the cold mean to you?'
There was no need to answer that question.
To Sirka, the cold winter meant nothing in the first place.
If Silad fought against the sudden cold, for Sirka, the cold was just something she had seen since the moment she was bor
n.
Night and day, nothing but white... ... .
Kwajik!
The spear of the ice tree that Sirka extended stabbed the spirit that was targeting her.
... ... Yeah, I knew it.
He is still young and weak.
I will not be able to control all the spirits like the great former monarch Silad.
but.
I assert here,
[At least the spirits that I can touch... ... .]
Jjeong!
The spirit stabbed by the Ice Tree's spear froze.
[Dominate.]
Damn it!
One at a time like that.
Sirka began to freeze the hungry spirits swirling around her, one by one.
-Kkiiiiiiiiaaa-
In the midst of the screams and cries of those spirits.
Along the tip of Sirka's spear, all the spirits that Sirka had killed began to freeze like frost.
And the shape was that of a giant armor that Suho had personally shown.
Jjeong!
In that moment, a cold majesty appeared in Sirka's eyes.
[Spirit Armor]
(Spiritual machine)
Damn it!
Then, the armor began to cover Sirka's entire body, expanding its area in proportion to the number of spirits Sirka had killed.
Just like the martial arts and giant armor that Suho himself showed us.
As a result, Sirka surrounded herself with a huge suit of armor that was two to three times larger than her own body.
and.
Crunch!
He extended his huge fist, made up of ice spirits, forward, grabbed another spirit, and blasted it.
As Suho showed.
'Yeah, you're good at it. If you learned it from your mom, you should be able to do that much.'
Suho smiled at that sight and said.
[...oh my god.]
On the other hand, the eyes of the former monarch Silad, who was hunting the spirits in front of me, widened in shock.
But that only lasts for a moment.
Immediately afterwards, pride filled Silad's eyes.
[Well, not a bad start.]
Spirit control, not spirit magic.
To take that first step successfully by imitating the techniques used by none other than the King of Rigidity.
[No, it's so wonderful.]
Yes, that's right.
As expected, his choice was right.
Do you see, Fores?
Look at that majestic sight of spirit mastery, not just spirit magic, but even the ability to consume spirits as mere materials f
or making weapons and armor.
Isn't that young elf more worthy of a monarch than a high elf who just ran away from the cold winter?
[Hehehehe!]
Silad burst into laughter, genuinely delighted.
Tiring!
[The King of the Snowmen, the Lord of the Cold, expresses his gratitude to his priest.]
[The King of the Snowmen, the Lord of the Cold, salutes the deeds of his priest.]
'hmm?'
Suho looked back at Shilad as he saw the system message that suddenly appeared.
Then, Silad smiled with a very satisfied smile.
[Son of the Shadow Lord. Do you remember what I said to you when I first met you? I originally intended to kill you the mo
ment I saw you. But I saw your mother. The companion of the Shadow Lord who became a mother to my young and weak tri
be.]
The misery that Silad felt the moment he learned that fact was indescribable.
The moment he saw that sight, he was reminded of his mother's face, who had died protecting him until the end when he
was a newborn.
[I decided not to kill you because I was grateful to your mother. But not anymore.]
Kwajik!
Even as Silad tore apart another spirit and killed it, his gaze was still fixed on Suho's face.
[Thank you. For proving that my choice was right.]
Tiring!
[Would you like to recruit 'Descendants of the Cold' as your companion?]
(Y/N)
At that moment, a new message appeared before Suho's eyes again.
And even the quest.
[The quest has arrived.]
But Suho already knew what Silad's request was.
[Please take good care of my descendants in the future.]
Shh.
With those words, Suho and Sirka, wearing black armor and spirit armor, simultaneously grabbed the spirit and blew it up wi
th their eyes shining.
Boom!
'Then get out of here. From now on, we'll eat all the spirits.'