"I smell a beast..."

  The words came from Feral, the Lord leading the group. He paused for a moment, lifting his head and sniffing the icy air, as though trying to pick up a st on the wind.

  Then, without warning, he leapt down from the massive bear, nding on the snowy ground. A few of his men followed, struggling to move through the deep snow, before standing by their Lord’s side.

  "Has anyone passed through here retly?"

  "They’re likely not far from here," Feral said, sniffing the air once more.

  "I’m sure it’s some amateur group running scared after hearing we’re ing," one of his men responded with a scoff.

  "But iher this extreme, they couldn’t have gotten far, right? We catch up to them and sughter them immediately."

  "They might have run or found a pce to hide," another said, gng around the snow-covered terrain.

  "How?" someone else cut in. "How would they hide in a pce like this?"

  "Is it possible they have stealth skills?"

  Feral remained quiet for a moment, sidering the possibility before responding. "Even if they do have stealth abilities, they would’ve run far by now. But if they’re hiding close by, it likely means their numbers are signifit."

  A grin spread across his face. "That would make them a very iing target."

  [Ats]: "Beast st?"

  [Kurogasa]: "This Lord is a Beast Master, My Lord. He's aced to monsters, includikin. His sense of smell is sharper than normal."

  [Edrik]: "As long as they don’t move closer to us, our position won’t be promised."

  [Baldric]: "There are only twenty of them, fewer than us."

  [Edrik]: "True, but the troops aren’t used to an envirohis cold. We ime to adjust. If we fight them now, we might win, but the ces of losing some of our own are high."

  [Ats]: "No, it's fine. We stick to the inal pn. Scouting and assessing both the battlefield and the enemy e first. Once we have a full uanding, then we’ll decide our steps."

  [Edrik]: "Defeating an opposing Lord would certainly give us a big boost in Dominion Points, but yeah, I agree. Let’s wait for now and take no a."

  After several tense moments, the sheer stress of hiding in pin sight began to wear on Ats and his troops. The cold crept into their bodies, numbing fingers and toes, as if they were freezing from the i. Despite the growing disfort, they khey had to stay perfectly still until the Lord and his group lost i a.

  "Let’s go..."

  Feral, the Lord, finally spoke. He leapt bato his bear, and the others followed, climbing onto their mounts without hesitation.

  But one man remained.

  He lingered behind, eyes sing the area, as if something didn’t sit right with him. His posture was tense, curiosity or suspi keeping him from leaving with the rest of the group.

  Slowly, the man began to walk toward Ats and his team, each step g through the thiow.

  Closer.

  Closer.

  Until he was standing directly in front of Ats.

  The tension was unbearable. One more step and he would walk straight into the stealth barrier, colliding with Ats himself.

  The man’s eyes narrowed, sing the empty-looking area as if he sensed something was off. His gaze flickered left, then right, as the wind howled around them.

  Then, with a slight shake of his head, he turned around and walked back toward his mount.

  Ats remained motionless, his grip tightening on his spear, his breath slow and steady.

  Moments ter, the group resumed their jourhe massive beasts trudging heavily through the snow and ice, their rge, muscur bodies struggling to move across the harsh terrain. Even for creatures of their size and power, the enviro seemed to weigh them down.

  As the sound of their footsteps faded into the distahe freezing air grew eerily quiet again.

  Ats deactivated the stealth mode, and the shimmerihat had cealed them faded away. As the cover lifted, several of the troops could be seen sitting in the snow, their bodies trembling as they g to the thin liween giving up and pushing through.

  "Let’s go, you zy bastards!" Baldric’s booming voice broke through the silence. "Either you die in the snow, or you die while fighting our enemies! Ha ha!"

  The harshness of his words sparked defian the troops. They began to rise to their feet, shaking off the snow that g to their clothes. Their eyes burned with determination, each of them silently fighting off the temptation to give in to the deadly cold that sought to sap their life away.

  "My Lord," Kurogasa stepped forward and gave a respectful bow toward Ats. "I will scout the area to find our dire."

  Ats he Mountain Leaper Band and the Mana Glider Cloak—two items he had entrusted tasa—gave him the ability to leap across difficult terrain and hover briefly in the air. These tools were perfect for navigating an enviro where mobility was essential for survival.

  Ats’s system map only covered the immediate area surrounding their current location. The rest of the map remained fogged over, and it would only expand oneone physically explored the unknions. There was no need for Ats to do this himself. It was Kurogasa’s job to scout ahead.

  "Thank you. I’ll leave this task to you," Ats said firmly.

  Kurogasa gave a final nod before his body became cloaked in shadow.

  In the blink of an eye, he vanished—not disappearing into thin air, but leaping high into the storm, pierg through the howling blizzard. His silhouette was swallowed by the swirling snow, and soon, he was gone from sight.

  Ats watched the map in his system as it slowly began to uncover more of the area, revealing the terrain that Kurogasa was scouting ahead.

  "Ats," Edrik called out, stepping closer.

  "Yes?" Ats responded.

  "We move in the dire Kurogasa is heading."

  "Uood."

  Without hesitation, Ats raised his spear into the air, the blue and gold aura around it crag faintly in the frigid air.

  "We came here to fight. We came here to give everything we’ve got!" Ats shouted. "This isn’t the first time we’ve faced harsh ditions, and we’ve overe them before. We’ll do it again!"

  "FIRE!" the troops roared back, their voices eg through the blizzard.

  Despite the biting cold, they shouted from deep within their chests, fighting off the creeping numbhat sought to freeze their bodies.

  "Keep moving!" Ats anded. "Walking will keep our bodies warm. We move forward, no matter what."

  The group began marg through the snow, each step a battle against the whipping winds and blinding white ndscape. The snow was deep and heavy, almost threatening to swallow them whole, but they pressed on.

  The storm tried to push them back, but their will to survive and quer was strohey moved forward.

  Almost everyone, including Ats, used their ons to support themselves as they marched forushing through the numbness spreading through their bodies or clearing away the snow that threateo swallow them whole.

  At the front of the group, Baldric, with his fire-wreathed body, led the way. His fmes melted through the snow, creating a clear path behind him that made it easier for the rest of the troops to follow.

  After a while, a notification appeared on Ats’s system—a message from Kurogasa.

  [Kurogasa]: "My Lord, I’ve found a suitable pce for us to take shelter."

  Ats opened his map and saw Kurogasa’s marker, indig a high ground position not far from their current location. It recisely the type of elevated area they had been aiming for.

  The spot wasn’t just a safe haven from the storm—it was also a strategitage point. From there, they could observe the surrounding terrain and defend themselves more effectively against potential threats.

  Ats o himself and spoke through the Mind-Link Proje.

  "We’re heading your way, Kurogasa. Hold your position."