'I don't want to do it!'

Despite Kang Oh's protests, the Whispers of the Earth continued. "Stop the Yuki-Onna, Saila, who absorbed the power of the Ice Soul and went mad. She is a calamity that threatens to freeze half the continent."

Then, a quest popped up.

[Guardian of the Continent Quest: Stop Saila]

A shaman of the Great Temple of the North Sea, Saila.

She absorbed too much of the Ice Soul's power, becoming a catastrophe that threatens the peace of the continent.

If she passes through the north and reaches the central, western, or eastern regions, then she will freeze half the continent.

The power that she absorbed from the Ice Soul is finite. The wider her icy domain, the weaker she becomes.

Stop her before her cold breath covers the central, eastern, or western regions in ice!

Saila's Current Location: She is heading for Alkasha Canyon (a path that leads out of the north).

Difficulty: Hell.

Minimum Requirements: Future Guardian of the Continent.

Rewards: None.

Failure: You lose your right as Guardian of the Continent, and the effects of the Earth's Blessing disappear.

[You cannot refuse a Guardian of the Continent Quest.]

[The quest has been accepted.]

Kang Oh thoroughly read through the quest info.

'Stop Saila.'

He'd never heard of her before, but he had heard about the Ice Soul and the Great Temple of the North Sea.

'Was it from Song Lee Shen's book?'

Arth's most well-known geographer, Song Lee Shen, had, after studying various books, relics, and observing the areas firsthand, wrote a masterpiece called Arth is Bigger than China!

According to this book, the game's most dangerous areas were Despia, the Devil's Sea, the Great Forest's central region, etc.

Anyhow, the Temple of the North Sea was the largest and most mysterious temple in existence, and was completely made up of ice.

The World Tree, which was the source of life, transformed the entire southern part of Arth into a giant forest.

Similarly, the Ice Soul covered the northern region in bitter cold, heavy snow, and biting winds. It was a tremendous source of power.

'She absorbed its power until her body couldn't take it anymore... How powerful would she be?'

If left unchecked, she was capable of freezing half the continent! She had to be extremely powerful and dangerous.

But why did it have to be him that had to stop her!? There was no reward for stopping her at that!

'It won't be easy.' A scowl wouldn't leave his face.

Sometime later...

"Oppa," Soren said.

"Yeah?" Kang Oh, who'd been scowling, widened his eyes at her call.

"I finished setting up the transfer magic circle." She pointed at the room. A circular magic circle was etched on the floor.

"Good job."

"It was nothing." Soren grinned.

"Can I use it right away?"

"Yes. It'll activate by voicing the location. If you want to come here via another gate, then just say 'Talastrum'. I set it up so that only you, me, Karin, and Mr. Sephiro can use it. People we're in a party with can use it too."

"You did good." Kang Oh patted her head.

"Let's get back to hunting," Sephiro plucked his bowstring and said. He wanted to try out his bow's new ability, Tempest Arrow, some more.

"No. We'll have to end it here for today," Kang Oh said.

"We're done already?" Sephiro asked. 'What's the occasion?'

"Yes. I have some business to attend to."

"What kind of business?"

"So..." Kang Oh briefly explained what was happening in the north. And ended it with... "I have to stop her."

"I see. Then, good luck." Sephiro waved his hand.

It was clearly fraught with danger. He still hadn't recouped the levels, experience, and proficiency he'd lost from dying to the Tuslam, so he didn't want to risk dying again.

'I'll pass!'

However, Kang Oh wouldn't let him weasel his way out, and grabbed his wrist.

"Let's go together. It'll be a good experience." Kang Oh smiled evilly. 'I won't go alone!'

"No thank you." Sephiro tried shaking him off, but Kang Oh was stronger.

"Oppa, I want to go too!" Karin yelled. Her eyes gleamed, seemingly saying, 'It sounds like fun!'.

"Me too." Soren shyly raised her hand.

"Of course. Then let's go!" Kang Oh dragged Sephiro along with him.

"Hey, wait. I don't..." Sephiro struggled, but it proved futile.

"Let's go together."

"It'll be fun!"

Soren and Karin pushed Sephiro forward.

Once the party stood atop the magic circle, Kang Oh yelled, "Santana!"

Santana was a city situated right in front of the northern region, the land of ice and illusions.

* * *

Saila had killed several beings in the north, but there were some that survived her wrath.

Borora! She was the Temple of the North Sea's Great Shaman, as well as Saila's mother! In order to stop her daughter, she had contacted all of the northern tribes for aid.

"We have to stop Saila!"

The Great Shaman's power was absolute within the northern region! The most powerful northern tribes, the Yuki-Onna, the Yetis, the Polar Bear Tribe, the Seal Tribe, the Sea Lion Tribe, the White Wolf Tribe, the Ice Giants, etc. responded to her call.

The tribes' elite troops were sent to Alkasha Canyon, the path that led out of the north.

From an airborne view, the Alkasha Canyon looked like a giant Swiss roll. In between the long, giant frozen walls were small roads that people could pass through.

Igloos of all sizes lay on the snowy fields behind Alkasha Canyon. Yuki-Onnas and Yetis, which were talented in manipulating ice, had created them for the northern troops to use.

The tribes' representatives were gathered within the largest igloo there.

"Saila's current location is Jamra Lake. Based on how fast she's going, she'll be here in six hours," the White Wolf's representative, Large Teeth, said.

The White Wolves were the fastest tribe in the north. Thus, they were given the task of scouting Saila out.

"Six hours... We don't have much time," the Sea Lion Warrior said. Their fangs protruded from their mouths like tusks.

After escaping the Temple of the North Sea, Saila had gone straight south. Thus, the tribes were forced to gather here, at Alkasha Canyon, as fast as possible.

"Do you know anything about her power?" the Yeti representative asked.

"She has the power of the Ice Soul, the source of cold. I heard she froze the temple's shamans and broke them into pieces," the Yuki-Onna representative, who wore blue clothes, said.

She possessed pale, white skin, and her blue eyes lacked pupils. These blue eyes were the most distinguishing trait of the Yuki-Onna Tribe.

"Mm. To think she was able to freeze the shamans..." From beside her, the Seal representative furrowed his brow.

It was said that the Yuki-Onnas were born from ice due to their inherently high resistance to the ice element. And yet, Saila was able to freeze them? That just showed how powerful and dangerous the Ice Soul's power was; power that Saila now possessed.

"Which means she can freeze us, even though we've adapted to this harsh environment. We need to be ready," the Yeti representative said.

"But we don't have much time," the Sea Lion Warrior said.

"We have to make use of the time we're given," the Yeti muttered.

"By the way, isn't Saila your only daughter and the next Great Shaman? Is there any way to bring her back to normal?" the Polar Bear representative asked.

"Even the Great Shaman can't do anything about it," the Yuki-Onna representative said regretfully.

When Saila had gone mad with power, her mother, Borora had been the first to try and stop her. However, even she hadn't been able to stop Saila.

"So we have no choice but to kill her," the Polar Bear Warrior said.

The gathered representatives agreed, sporting solemn expressions. That was the only thing they could do for Saila at this point.

Six hours later...

"Saila is here!"

"Get ready for battle!"

"Let's go!"

* * *

Kang Oh's party arrived in Santana via the intercity transfer gate. Large snowflakes fell on the quiet city.

Snow was a constant in the north, and any city nearby would be affected too.

"Let's prepare for the cold," Kang Oh said.

The system prevented players from feeling excruciating pain, so the harsh environment merely felt cold to them. But that didn't mean they could withstand the harsh environment without any special measures.

The bitter cold would slow a player's movements, freeze their hands and feet, and gradually lower their HP. Thus, they needed fur coats and/or fur boots, a fur hat, and something to cover their eyes like goggles.

Santana was a city that bordered the north. You could easily procure fur clothes, fur boots, and fur hats here, which were made from the creatures that'd adapted to the harsh environment here.

A short while later...

Kang Oh's party gathered, wearing thick fur coats, boots, gloves, and hats. Their goggles differed from person to person.

Kang Oh pulled out the Phoenix's Feather from his inventory. It had a special ability that maintained its wielder's core temperature.

He placed the feather over his chest, and then adjusted his fur coat. His chest felt warm, as if he'd placed a hot pad there.

Whistle!

He blew on his whistle, calling his black horse over. Then, he covered the muscular black horse's body in thick fur clothing.

Neigh.

The horse snorted and then licked his face. Kang Oh stroked its neck.

"Please take this." Sephiro, who'd also covered his horse in winter clothes, passed Kang Oh, Soren, and Karin vials. "It's a potion that gives you high resistance to the ice element. If you find your movements slowing or your HP beginning to drop, please drink it."

"Thank you very much."

"Thank you."

Kang Oh's party finished their preparations and passed through Santana's north gate.

"Where are we going?" Sephiro asked.

"Alkasha Canyon," Kang Oh said.

The Guardian of the Continent Quest stated that Saila was heading for Alkasha Canyon. If they waited at Alkasha Canyon, then they were sure to meet Saila there.

"Alkasha Canyon?" Sephiro tilted his head. He'd never heard of it before.

"I asked Santana's Adventurer Guild about it. Apparently, Alkasha Canyon is one big wall made of ice. If we just follow the road, then we'll reach a snowy field. From there, we just keep going north and we'll find it," Kang Oh said.

"Let's go!" Karin yelled.

Neigh!

Their horses forcefully stomped on the ground.

"Do you have a solid plan?" Sephiro asked from atop his sprinting horse.

"We have to learn more about her first," Kang Oh said.

"So you're not going to fight her right away." That was a huge relief.

"If she's weak, then we'll take her on immediately. But if she's not, then..."

There was no way she'd be weak. Kang Oh's experience was telling him that.

"We need to gather information on her first?"

"Yes."

Kang Oh would take a look at her first, and then decide his next course of action.

Sometime later...

Kang Oh's party passed a sharp, coniferous forest and reached a vast snowy plain. They'd finally entered the northern region.

[You have entered the Land of Ice and Illusions, Arth's Northern Region.]

[The harsh cold, the crevasses, and the starving monsters are just a taste of the danger that lurks within! Be careful!]