**Two weeks later…**
At the borders of the Unknown North, above the Kingdom of Orwin in the northern part of the continent of Astarion.
The place lay just beyond the kingdom's borders. Vast plains stretched endlessly, dotted with countless mountains. Snow covered everything, sometimes reaching a full meter in height. Icy fog swallowed visibility entirely, and ice-type monsters roamed everywhere—hundreds of races.
But… the team had not reached that far yet. They were still at the beginning.
Jin and Reinhardt were sitting a little distance away from the rest of the group, watching them.
The girls were complaining about the cold. Martin was trying to keep himself warm by moving around, and Kevin… was building a snow castle.
Reinhardt:
"You still haven't told us why we came here. What would make us endure all this hardship just to reach this place?"
Kevin came running over.
Kevin:
"Jin, you bastard! We suffered on the way here and went through hell just to be allowed to cross the Tower!"
Jin stayed silent for a moment… then said:
"It's not my fault you can't hide yourselves."
Reinhardt looked at him in disbelief.
Reinhardt:
"Man, seriously… you were moving through the shadows. Of course you wouldn't feel what we're feeling. Fine—what matters is, why are we here?"
Jin hesitated at first, then spoke:
"There's a branch of the Demon Sect here."
The two were stunned, and before they could speak—
Jin:
"Shhh. The girls must not hear this. Bring Martin here."
A few minutes later—
Martin:
"You're a piece of shit. Damn you."
Jin stared ahead at the vast expanse before him with a face that was both shocked and stupid at the same time, and said:
"They insult me while I'm innocent and undeserving. *Sob sob.* The weather is nice and beautiful—beautiful, beautiful—and… wow, wow, there's a swarm of monsters coming. It's big and scary."
Reinhardt:
"My ass… do you think your poetry is beautiful? What are you even saying?"
Jin looked at him with complete lack of enthusiasm and said:
"Kevin… look over there."
Kevin looked for a moment.
Kevin:
"Hm… that's… huh? It's a monster swarm."
Jin, excited:
"Haha! See? I told you I was right!"
He paused, then added:
"You idiots, there are hundreds of monsters coming!"
A chaotic, comedic battle began, while Jin watched without moving at all.
Reinhardt and Kevin had grown much stronger—their fighting was fiercer now. They might soon enter the Fourth Star.
Martin's spear techniques had become extremely elegant—smooth and beautiful.
Emily was sometimes casting four spells at once. She was already at the early stage of the Fourth Circle.
As for the two girls, they were the same as always—a perfect duo. Their combat was like a work of art, and they were both at the peak of the Third Star.
After some time, exhaustion began to take its toll on everyone.
Kevin:
"Where's Jin?"
Everyone turned around, searching for him and—
Reinhardt:
"Jin… I won't ask how you brought cigarettes here, but… how did you make a cup of coffee?"
Jin:
"Of course, I used fire magic—specifically First Circle fire magic, and—"
Everyone at once:
"Are you seriously going to explain it, you lunatic?!"
Jin paused for a moment… then took out a bag of chips from his storage ring and started eating.
After that nonsense, no one could speak anymore, and they continued fighting.
After a while, an ice giant appeared, nearly 34 meters tall, and they engaged it.
Kevin:
"Damn it, its skin is incredibly tough!"
Shuang Yu:
"It's extremely strong too. One hit could kill us."
The fight continued. The giant shattered the ground with every strike, and they could only inflict shallow wounds on it.
Reinhardt:
"Guys, we've been like this for seven minutes. If we want to defeat it, we'll need a formation where we—"
Martin's voice cut through the air as he shouted at the top of his lungs:
"Get away from the monster and look behind you!"
Everyone followed his words and turned around.
Jin was standing in a thrusting stance, his eye closed.
Then…
He opened his eye and unleashed a Momentum Thrust.
But this time, the momentum beam was not the color of normal mana—it was the color of dark mana.
Jin released an extremely powerful thrust. The momentum beam shot forward for dozens of meters, piercing straight through the giant and soaring into the air.
Three seconds later, the momentum ended.
The giant's abdomen had been completely blown away, leaving only its limbs on both sides.
The monster collapsed, dead.
Everyone stood frozen in shock, unable to move.
As for Jin, blood flowed from his nose and mouth. The attack had been executed in an instant and had drained most of his energy, taking a heavy toll on his body.
If he hadn't released the attack into the air, it would have left a scar stretching dozens of meters across the ground.
Reinhardt spoke with difficulty. The power unleashed in that thrust was so immense that it terrified him.
"This… this attack. I've never seen anyone perform something like it in my life… except that madman."
After a while, everyone was sitting down, and Jin spoke.
Jin:
"Alright, now that I've told you the information, the base should be a few kilometers to the east, and… guys, why is no one talking?"
No one answered him.
Seeing someone make a cup of coffee in a place like this—and then that attack—was enough to make them certain of one thing.
Their friend… had gone insane.
**End of Chapter**