Chapter 70 – 68. The Three Jewels
After a night that felt unusually long, morning came.
After getting out of the tent, Arthur glanced at the place where the battle had taken place, but all he could see was a snow field where all traces had been erased due to the snow that had fallen during the night.
“Ugh. My legs…”
However, he had no time to indulge in sentimentality.
He took a minor recovery potion, but since everything from the environment to the condition of his body was the worst, it only served to prevent his wounds from getting worse.
Since he didn’t know when he would collapse, he had to find that person as soon as possible.
“But there’s no need to move hastily, right.?”
It was true that time was short, but Arthur took his time.
Because I have a new ability.
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〈Whereabouts of Muyeon〉
Only those who walked a seemingly impossible path could become the warrior’s companion.
They never took the easy path.
Clear conditions: Reach the snowy mountain where Muyeon resides
When successful: Obtain linked quest 〈 ?〉 of Snowy Mountain
In case of failure: Link quest 〈 Snowy Mountain ?〉 disappears
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Even though I didn’t know the way just a day ago. Not anymore.
All I had to do was follow the mission shown by the blue window.
He was even so kind that he almost spoon-fed him, to the point where Arthur started to think that the power was kind to him.
“Thank you. Dad.”
Arthur closed her eyes and thanked her father.
There was no possibility that this ability had arisen suddenly, and no matter how much I thought about it, it was clear that it was a gift from my father.
Therefore, Arthur, who was confident that his memories of his father were not lies, went on in a better mood and spoke happily.
“I will succeed in my revenge and come see you quickly!”
It was a gift given to Arthur in the hope that he would be happy, but unfortunately, it became a bomb that accelerated Arthur’s distortion.
If the warrior had seen this, he would have hit the ground and regretted giving Arthur the status window.
Because this is not what Arthur wanted to use.
…
Finding where to go was easy for Arthur.
All I had to do was find out the true meaning from what was written in the blue window.
“We have arrived!”
The place where Arthur arrived was the largest snow mountain she had ever seen.
The reason I chose this place was simple.
This is because I realized that I should head to the highest snowy mountain through the saying that I did not take the easy path, but only the impossible path.
And as if to prove that the guess was not wrong, a blue window appeared again in front of my eyes.
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〈The Trial of the Snow Mountain〉
The snowy mountain presents trials to test the qualifications of the intruder heading to the top.
However, the snow mountain that lost its owner has lost most of its power.
Clear conditions: Walking three steps in the frozen space
When successful: Obtain permission to view [Status Window (S)]
In case of failure: death
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After examining the contents, Arthur’s eyes widened at the last part.
On failure: death
From discussing death for the first time, I could see that the level of difficulty was not easy.
Arthur read the same content dozens of times to prevent any unfortunate events and devise a perfect strategy.
“I have to go up eventually…”
The problem was that it was not clear what the space of freezing was.
A rough guess would be that it is a space so cold that everything is frozen.
Since the clear condition was only ‘walking three steps’, I wasn’t too worried.
No matter how cold it was, all I had to do was wrap my body in mana and run.
I was even more concerned that upon success, I would receive something completely unknown as a reward, such as the right to view the status window.
“Okay… There’s no point in thinking about it anymore. Just prepare for the cold and go up quickly. It will take a year to reach the top.”
Deciding to climb to the top, Arthur adjusted his clothes and slowly walked towards the still-unseen peak.
And it only took 5 hours to realize something was wrong.
“Hehe! Hehe!”
The height where the heads of other mountains begin to appear.
I had climbed to a fairly high point, but even when I looked up, I still had a long way to go to the top.
On the other hand, Arthur’s physical strength was crawling along the floor.
Especially because of the injury to her thighs, I wonder if it was a handshake that she moved using mana.
As the amount of mana in the body decreases. Symptoms of altitude sickness such as nausea, headache and difficulty breathing appeared.
Because of this, she was strongly tempted to sit down and take a rest, but Arthur did not give in and walked in front of her.
Moving forward without stopping.
In some ways, it seemed foolish, but in the end, Arthur’s judgment was right.
In fact, her physical condition was so bad that once she stopped, there was a high possibility that she would not be able to move again.
Then, if you ask how about just settling down and getting enough rest… That was also impossible.
This is because there was no terrain in the snowy mountains to avoid wind and snow like in the snowy plains.
Of course, there was another biggest reason.
Immediate time limit.
Because I realized while climbing that once the sun goes down, Arthur will never be able to withstand the cold.
In order to reach the goal while the sun was shining, he did not stop walking even though he was in the worst condition.
Pout.
Arthur’s body shakes every time he moves, as if he is losing his balance. However, the steps were directed precisely upward.
Puuk.
When he took a step, he stabbed the sword sheath into the ground with one hand and used it like a cane.
Pout.
The repeated actions looked like a machine, and even seemed stable at first glance.
But in reality, one mistake could lead to a fall.
In the current situation, falling meant death.
Arthur, who had been going through such a hellish time for a long time, was about halfway to the top.
As soon as she saw the sentence appear before her eyes, she stopped walking, which she had never wanted to do.
You have entered the space of freezing.
Of course, it wasn’t stopped arbitrarily.
It’s as if my whole body was suddenly wrapped in a spider’s web and I just stopped because I couldn’t move.
Arthur tried to force her breathing to move her motionless body.
But the air was so cold that it felt like it was freezing her lungs, so even though she just stood still and focused on breathing, the situation didn’t get any better.
Rather, the feeling in parts such as her fingers and toes was disappearing due to the sudden drop in temperature.
‘It’s not time to worry about her. Let’s use all our mana.!’
The judgment was quick.
All the mana she had been using to maintain her body temperature was sent to her legs, and the legs that seemed like they would never move finally began to move.
Pout.
Daily News.
After a lot of effort, this was the distance Arthur could barely travel.
She felt that Arthur was capable of doing this. It was hard enough for her to die, but not impossible.
The moment when she was about to take her second step.
“Huh.?!”
‘Su, my breath.!’
Her temperature has dropped again, and she seems unable to allow any more entry.
The frozen space took the breath away from Arthur.
The good news was that the sword sheath had already been placed on the floor for the next step.
Thanks to this, I was able to barely take the second step without losing my GPA even in unexpected situations.
Lee Bo.
There is only one step left until the three steps.
I felt my breath getting harder and harder, but Arthur didn’t act hastily.
This is because I was clearly guessing that another change would occur. Because it was rather strange that it wasn’t there.
‘The wind has changed.’
That change is the wind.
Of course, it was not an ordinary wind. It was a wind like a blade that tore the skin weakened by the cold.
‘Now, if I get stronger here for a moment…’
It wouldn’t have mattered if only the skin was torn, but unfortunately, the wind became so strong that it was difficult to even hold on to avoid falling backwards.
‘It’s okay. Just one step.!’
A moment of despair has arrived.
All that remains is a handful of mana and one step.
With a burning will to live, Arthur strengthened his legs for the last step,
The legs didn’t move at all.
‘Why.?’
The cause was immediately apparent. It’s because of frostbite.
And there is no way to fix the frostbite at the moment.
The entire body gradually loses its senses.
I felt death approaching as much as the sense of it disappearing.
Fear began to dominate my emotions.
‘Si, I hate it. I don’t want to die like this… There’s only one step left…’
What I feel in the face of death,
Regret.
‘Why do I have to die like this.! I’ll curse you. I’ll curse you even after I die!!’
Anger.
‘If there is a next life, I wish I had never been born.’
Finally, resignation.
‘It’s over now.’
Arthur, who predicted death, closed his eyes.
The moment when I felt comfortable and tried to adapt to my gradually sinking spirit.
A sound like glass breaking was heard in Arthur’s ears.
Grumbling.!
When she opened her eyes, she saw a warm fire rising from his chest.
Not unfamiliar, no. A feeling of nostalgia that I haven’t felt in a long time.
However, the situation was too bad to feel grateful or reminisce about the past.
Now that the warm fire was protecting my body, I had to breathe as much as I could and move my body to take the final step.
‘Please. Please move. ‘It’s a bridge.!’
Did you read Arthur’s earnestness?
Flames gathered on the leg, which was still motionless, and cured the frostbite.
Finally, I was able to take the last step with all my might.
Three Jewels.
Finally, Arthur, who had exhausted all his mana, collapsed without being able to read the new message that appeared before her.
And the being hidden inside Arthur entered a unique space that deceived even ‘God’ and completely erased her existence. Waiting for the time to come someday.
…
The flame burned all the remaining energy in her necklace to protect Arthur, who was left alone in the snowy mountain.
However, the extreme environment was draining energy quickly, and if the fire eventually went out, Arthur was destined to die.
“I felt a familiar vibe, so I came and saw a face I had never seen before.”
A man wearing a black military uniform that does not suit the snowy mountains.
Muyeon found Arthur.
“In the end, did things go as fate would have it? If so, this child would be the only one left.”
Should I say I’m lucky? Should I consider it a miracle?
Muyeon felt the energy of his colleague Hilda at the top of the mountain, and Muyeon was able to come.
“I was really lucky. Even if he was just one step away, he wouldn’t have noticed. It’s like God’s prank.”
After looking at the sky, Muyeon lifted Arthur up and headed to the summit.
It was three days later that Arthur, who had received Muyeon’s treatment, woke up.
