A frozen-solid troll.

When I struck its body with my hand, there was a "thump-thump" sound, just like knocking on ice.

If I hit it with a hammer, it would likely shatter into pieces.

Only then did I look behind me and was startled.

Russell was also coming down the stairs with his sword drawn but couldn't move at all.

Fortunately, it wasn't because he was frozen—he simply couldn't move.

I placed my hand on Russell's unmoving back and absorbed some of the chill for a moment.

Since I could even absorb body heat, I had to be very careful as I drew out the cold.

Only then, after a cracking sound, was Russell able to move again.

Shivering, Russell opened his mouth.

"Phew! At first, I wondered... what on earth just happened."

"That's why I told you not to come down."

"Uh... how did you do that?"

"I told you before. I got a power here."

"How did you cast such a great magic..."

"First, let's warm up."

For Russell's sake, I made a campfire on the floor.

How much should I tell him?

It seems better to tell him only as much as he can accept, even if I act recklessly.

Unless, perhaps, I discover more demon essence later.

"I honestly don't know what kind of power I obtained. I got lost and wandered in this cave, and before I knew it, this happened."

"Is that what you call ice magic?"

"As you saw."

Russell was at a loss for words as he looked at me.

Since I didn't know the level of magic in this world, I had no idea how powerful what I'd shown him was. Perhaps it was at the level of a great mage.

"Let's go."

"Are we going to leave the giant like this?"

"If we just leave it, it'll stay like this. Once we mine the firestone, this cavity will turn into an ice warehouse."

I wanted to draw the troll's blood to use as a recovery potion ingredient, but I couldn't get the additional ingredients right now, so I decided to postpone it.

Since it was an ingredient for the highest-grade recovery potion, the auxiliary ingredients would also be quite hard to obtain.

Together with Russell, I headed toward the seaside this time.

Russell wondered where I was taking him yet again, but only when we reached the coast did he realize that the place I'd escaped from was a cliffside cave.

A sea with chunks of ice floating.

If a thirty-year cold wave came, even this sea would completely freeze.

Judging by the intensity of the wind, signs of a cold wave were already appearing.

I stood below the cliff I'd climbed down from.

The rope I'd used to escape was still dangling, swaying wildly in the wind.

"Is that where you came down from?"

"That's right! Wait here! There's no need for both of us to climb up!"

"Why go back in there again?"

"There are things I need to bring out from inside!"

I climbed up the cliff using the rope.

Russell, seeing me do this, shook his head in disbelief.

No child could have that kind of strength.

I lit a torch I'd prepared and went inside the cave. After arriving at the cavity, I placed candles all around so the whole area would be illuminated.

Only then was I struck by awe.

It looked like I'd entered the treasure vault of some wealthy den.

Previously, pressed by cold and survival, I'd been too overwhelmed, but there were far more ancient coins scattered on the floor than I remembered.

I picked up one of the gold coins and examined it.

I couldn't read the inscription at all.

Maybe it was because of the writing, but I felt as if there was some magic spell on the coin.

There seemed to be about a hundred gold coins, and over a thousand silver coins.

There were countless coins made from some unidentified material, too. These dark red coins also emitted a strange energy.

For now, I swept up the gold coins and jewels first.

I picked up as much as I could carry and sent it down over the cliff inside my backpack.

It goes without saying that Russell was utterly startled by the unexpected appearance of the gold coins.

Next, I gathered up and sent down the silver coins, then stuffed my backpack full of the dark red coins and lowered them too.

It was pretty much manual labor, but for some reason, I was reluctant to show Russell this whole area.

Finally, I carried out whatever items from the demon legion's armory that could be repaired and used.

Strange-metal helmets, gigantic swords... I also collected things that could be used as equipment materials.

"There's more to bring?"

"This is the last trip!"

After dumping the load of dragged equipment below the cliff, I climbed down using the rope.

It was hard to see in the dark, but Russell's face was so pale he looked like a corpse.

Only then did I realize.

Since I didn't feel the cold, I had no idea how chilly the temperature currently was for Russell.

He was hanging on by sheer willpower.

"Can you keep moving?"

"I can walk!"

"Let's leave the rest of the coins and hurry out!"

But it was just talk. Russell couldn't even walk properly.

Since he was too big for me to support, there was nothing I could do.

Pushing the increasingly rigid Russell, I managed to get him back to the cave.

Only after pushing the frozen Russell into the warm cave did I feel some relief.

It seemed I barely survived every time I went to that cavity. I hope the reward is worth it.

"What's wrong with him? Where did you guys go?"

"There were coins in the cave, so I went to pick them up."

"Coins?"

Fortunately, the Dran tribe was here.

They might know something humans don't.

I took a gold coin out of my pouch and showed it to them.

"Oh! That's an ancient sacred coin."

"Sacred coin?"

"This gold coin was a blessed currency distributed by the high priest of the ancient Apeon temple to their priests. Seeing how much divinity is contained in the sacred coin, I'd say that cave must have been a sanctuary for Apeon priests in ancient times."

"A sanctuary?"

"A holy place where divinity gathers. Even now, priests of the divine order pray and train in such sanctuaries. A priest who trains in a sanctuary gains divine power."

"What is divine power?"

"Healing and purification. Haven't you learned about that?"

So.

The underground cavity wasn't built by demons, but was actually a place where ancient priests trained.

The coins weren't owned by demons, either.

That means, the demons attacked the Apeon sanctuary and were wiped out at once.

The ones who destroyed the demons would have been Apeon's high priests, or possibly one of the seven heroes who possessed divinity.

And healing and purification—

It seems priests have healer abilities.

To heal injuries and fend off darkness.

"So, this coin contains divinity?"

"That's right. Just carrying it should help you recover."

"What happens if a demon holds one?"

"What do you mean? They couldn't even hold it."

I see.

The demons didn't possess these—rather, the priests scattered them.

I don't know the circumstances, but it seems they were trying to bind the demons.

"What about these silver coins and the other coins?"

"Let's see... The silver coin was just standard currency of the era. As for this reddish coin... I've never seen it before. It's not something humans used."

"Did demons use them?"

"Demons? Let me see that."

Urald examined the red coin closely.

His brow furrowed.

"Judging from the evil magic inscribed on it, it's definitely used by demons. To think something like this would be in a place that used to be an Apeon sanctuary—remarkable. Were these in the same spot?"

"Yes, with the remains."

"Demon remains, you mean?"

"I think so."

Reverence and astonishment showed on Urald's face.

I had no idea why he was so surprised. I knew the place wasn't ordinary, since demon essence was found there.

"This must be the place the legends spoke of!"

"What do you mean, this place?"

I felt my heart pounding in excitement too.

Could it be that I've discovered a legend?

Urald spoke.

"During the great demon war in ancient times—when the entire continent was on the verge of destruction. Three of the seven races' heroes were on the brink of death, and even the remaining heroes were on the verge of dying. Then, the last guardian of Rac, known as [Sublime Dignity], appeared."

"Is Sublime Dignity a name?"

"That's right. A mighty and majestic dragon. No one knows exactly what Sublime Dignity was protecting, but that being never revealed itself, even when demons covered the entire continent—until that very moment. And with just a single strike of [Radiant Breath], it annihilated the demon legion."

Radiant Breath.

Was that the power imbued in the demon remains?

But the phrase "last guardian" weighed on my mind.

If you went northeast from the fortress, you'd reach the highest snow mountain in the north. There, in a giant cavity, was what players called a raid-level boss monster—a Guardian.

They're called guardians for a reason.

Every one of those monsters' lairs held enormous treasure. The "treasure guardian" eventually became simply "guardian".

Guardians are scattered across the continent, and no guild in the world has ever succeeded in defeating one.

They're hard to find, and before anyone could attempt anything, they'd be wiped out in a single blow.

Upon dying, you'd return to the real world and have to reenter, but by then, countless mobs swarmed the guardian's nest.

Most raids gave up at that point.

"So Sublime Dignity prevented the world's destruction."

"Humans might think that way, but we Dran believe Sublime Dignity appeared to keep demons from advancing into Aindel. Aindel is where all races were born."

"You mean the continent of the magical race Elin?"

"That's right. Anyway, after that, a veil of light appeared over the sea on the far side of this continent. Nobody knows who created it, though."

"Then why did Sublime Dignity appear here?"

"Because this was the closest place to Aindel."

"Oh!"

The arctic sea at the cliff.

That was the sea connecting to Aindel.

The north of the Aindel continent!

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