The wind still carried particles of ice across the battlefield as the Kingdom heroes and the newly arrived Imperial forces regrouped after the Frostwither's retreat.
Snow was slowly beginning to cover the frozen corpses of the legionnaires.
Some remained trapped in combat positions.
Others had died trying to escape.
And a few lay motionless beside comrades who had never managed to leave the battlefield.
The silence was heavy.
Almost unbearable.
The only thing breaking the stillness was the crackling of melting ice beneath the lingering heat of Alejandro's flames.
Alejandro took a deep breath.
He tried to ignore the burning sensation running through every muscle in his body.
He surveyed the battlefield.
Everyone who was still capable of standing remained there.
Lusian stood several yards behind them, alongside the troops that had followed his order to protect the caravan. He watched the battlefield with that unsettling calm that rarely left his face.
Kara remained tense.
She still could not relax after feeling that monstrous pressure.
Emily, meanwhile, remained kneeling beside the wounded, trying to stabilize the soldiers who could still be saved.
Leonardo could not tear his eyes away from the frozen figures.
Some still wore expressions of such clear terror that it was difficult to accept that they were simply made of ice.
They looked like people trapped in the exact instant of their deaths.
On the other side, the two newly arrived Imperial heroes were also watching the Kingdom group.
Erik kept one hand on the hilt of his runic sword.
Frost covered parts of the blade, and small blue flashes traveled along the runes.
Selene held her fractal bow partially drawn.
She was not aiming at anyone.
But she had not put it away either.
The Frostwither had disappeared into the storm.
And yet, none of them felt that it was truly over.
The creature had simply left.
That was different.
Kara was the first to break the silence.
"How many survived?"
An Imperial officer, covered in partially frozen armor, slowly lowered his head.
His eyes were red.
Exhaustion.
Frustration.
Pain.
"...Less than half."
His voice came out hoarse.
"The two legions sent to this region were decimated."
He clenched his teeth.
"Most died frozen before they even understood what was happening. And the few who survived... are no longer in any condition to keep fighting."
Emily looked away.
Even she, accustomed to treating wounds and facing death, felt a knot form in her stomach.
This had not been a battle.
It had been a massacre.
The wind blew again through the frozen ruins of the forest.
Lusian watched in silence.
But behind that calm expression, his mind was working relentlessly.
He knew the Frostwither.
Far more than anyone there could possibly imagine.
He had fought it countless times.
Though not in this world.
Not in this life.
Every movement the creature made was familiar to him.
The way it observed before attacking.
How it used the storm to isolate its prey.
How it slowly drained their energy before going for the killing blow.
It was patient.
Intelligent.
Methodical.
A predator that never wasted energy pursuing prey it considered impossible to kill.
It did not hunt out of rage.
It did not attack on instinct.
It observed.
Calculated.
And only advanced when it was certain it could survive.
That was precisely what made it dangerous.
The Frostwither did not fight unless it had enough of an advantage to guarantee its survival.
Emily approached Alejandro.
She was still trembling slightly.
"I can't believe you managed to stop it."
She looked at the melted ice.
Then at the devastated battlefield.
"That was... incredible."
Alejandro did not answer immediately.
He was still standing.
But his breathing was irregular, as though even breathing had become more difficult than usual.
The light still surrounding his body began to fade unsteadily.
The flames of the Solaris Sword flickered.
Once.
Twice.
Then almost disappeared.
Alejandro's arms trembled.
Emily immediately caught him.
"Alejandro."
"I'm fine."
"You're not."
He tried to respond.
He couldn't.
He lowered his gaze toward his own hands.
Thin reddish lines had appeared beneath his skin.
Like cracks.
The divine power was still burning inside his body.
It pressed from within like an alien force.
Too vast.
Too ancient.
Too powerful to belong to a human being.
Because it was not his.
It had never been his.
The heroes did not create that power.
They couldn't.
They could only open their bodies, souls, and wills enough to allow a small fraction of divine power to descend into the mortal world.
And even that fraction was monstrous.
Every vein burned.
Every muscle strained against its limits.
Even breathing felt like dragging blades through the inside of his chest.
And the more power descended...
the closer they came to breaking.
To being consumed.
Or worse.
To dying.
Alejandro closed his eyes and breathed slowly.
The remaining embers of the Solaris Sword went out one by one.
"I didn't defeat it..."
His voice came out strained.
"That creature... is absurdly resilient."
Kara let out a dry laugh.
"Defeat it?"
She raised an eyebrow.
"We're not even close to that level yet."
Alejandro looked at her.
"Don't be naive."
No one answered.
Only the wind passed through the battlefield as several soldiers began removing the frozen bodies.
Then Kara turned her head.
Her eyes settled on Lusian.
He had arrived alongside the troops that had remained behind, carrying out his order to protect the caravan.
He stopped several yards from the group and crossed his arms.
He said nothing.
Even after seeing the Frostwither with his own eyes, he seemed strangely calm.
But behind that indifferent expression, his mind continued calculating.
If the creature returned, they would have to lure it away from the caravan at any cost.
And later...
Hunt it.
It would be difficult.
Extremely dangerous.
Even for him.
But it was not time yet.
His priority remained the same.
Elizabeth.
Making sure she reached the Imperial capital safely.
Everything else could wait.
One of the Imperial commanders slowly advanced through the ruined snow.
His armor was damaged, and part of his beard was still covered in frost.
"The Empire is already assessing the losses," he said in a grave voice. "Without immediate reinforcements, this entire region will be left completely undefended."
Lusian barely turned his head toward him.
He did not seem worried.
Nor surprised.
"It is not our responsibility to save the Empire."
The commander frowned.
Lusian glanced toward the caravan.
"Our task is to ensure the princess arrives alive."
His eyes swept across the battlefield covered with frozen corpses.
"Everything else can wait."
The silence that followed was uncomfortable.
The Imperial heroes exchanged glances.
To them, those words sounded cold.
Even cruel.
One of them finally stepped forward.
It was Erik.
The icy air around his sword intensified again.
"And who the hell are you?"
His voice was filled with tension.
"If you're so calm, then fight alongside us."
Several gazes turned toward Lusian.
The Kingdom soldiers remained tense.
The Imperials watched suspiciously.
Even Alejandro and Leonardo remained silent.
Lusian held Erik's gaze for several seconds.
There was no challenge in his eyes.
No fear either.
Only indifference.
Finally, he spoke.
"I'm Lusian Douglas... of Mondring."
The effect was immediate.
The name fell over the battlefield like another blast of cold.
The Imperial soldiers widened their eyes.
Some even took unconscious steps backward.
Murmurs began among the veterans.
"Douglas...?"
"Laurence's son?"
"That Lusian?"
"That can't be..."
Kara stepped forward when she noticed the tension spreading through the Imperial ranks.
Her voice lowered slightly.
"He protects the princess."
She looked directly at the soldiers.
"Nothing else matters."
Elizabeth nodded firmly.
She made no attempt to soften the words.
Nor did she deny who Lusian was.
There was no need.
The Imperial heroes were still processing the weight of that surname.
And the man standing before them.
Lusian was not a hero.
At least, not in the traditional sense.
He was not someone destined to inspire hope.
He did not carry a banner.
He did not seek recognition.
And he certainly did not seem interested in earning the Empire's approval.
In the distance, the storm left behind by the Frostwither still covered part of the horizon.
The creature had disappeared.
But the cold it had left behind seemed to have become attached to the world itself.
Snow continued falling over the battlefield, slowly covering the frozen bodies of soldiers and civilians.
A brutal reminder of what had happened only minutes ago.
The camp began to take shape quickly.
Everyone understood that remaining exposed in that forest overnight would be suicide.
Tents were raised among the frost-covered pines.
Thermal runes were activated around the main areas.
Bonfires of bluish flame began illuminating the camp, partially driving away the unnatural cold that still permeated the surroundings.
The wounded were carried from one place to another.
Priests.
Healers.
Soldiers.
Everyone worked without rest.
Emily coordinated the treatments alongside several followers of Kara and Elizabeth, using healing magic until she pushed her mana reserves to their limit.
But even with all that help...
many would not survive.
The Frostwither did not merely freeze bodies.
It drained life.
Some wounds had destroyed tissue too deeply.
Others had left parts of the body completely devoid of mana.
There was damage that even healing magic struggled to repair.
It was then that two more Imperial heroes began to stand out amid the chaos.
Sir Cael Veyron moved among the ranks with an almost supernatural calm.
His Omega affinity for ice manifested in an elegant and terrifying manner.
With simple movements of his hand, enormous crystal barriers rose around the camp.
The structures grew from the ground within seconds.
Crystal.
Ice.
Compressed snow.
Everything fused together into a defense capable of withstanding the freezing gusts still sweeping through the forest.
Cael did not need to raise his voice.
Nor did he need to demonstrate authority.
The precision with which he wielded his power spoke for itself.
His eyes constantly swept across the perimeter.
Evaluating vulnerable points.
Calculating escape routes.
Watching the direction of the wind.
It was obvious that he was accustomed to surviving situations where a single mistake meant death.
There was no arrogance on his face.
Only concentration.
The dangerous serenity of someone who had learned to remain calm while everything around him collapsed.
A few yards away, Miriel worked without rest.
A young commoner chosen by the gods.
Her affinity for earth and nature contrasted completely with the devastating cold dominating the region.
She knelt and placed one hand against the frozen ground.
She closed her eyes.
Her mana descended into the earth.
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then...
CRACK.
Roots began moving beneath the snow.
Thick roots emerged from the ground.
They intertwined.
They rose.
And eventually formed natural walls around the wounded and the most vulnerable refugees.
The earth compressed between them.
Rocks and mud fused together, becoming defensive parapets.
Hardened vegetation blocked the currents of wind.
Little by little, the camp began to feel less fragile.
There were no speeches.
No grand displays.
Only work.
Precise.
Fast.
Efficient.
Alejandro watched both of them as he finished checking the defensive positions.
Leonardo watched them as well.
And for the first time since arriving in the Empire, they both understood something.
There was no true rivalry here.
Not tonight.
They had all seen the same thing.
They had all felt that pressure.
And they all now understood that there were creatures against which even a hero could prove insufficient.
Alejandro finally broke the silence.
"Once the wounded are secured, we can reorganize the march at dawn."
Cael nodded.
"The residual storm will continue worsening for a few hours."
He looked at the barriers he had raised.
"But my defenses should hold until then."
Miriel adjusted the shield strapped to her arm.
Several green runes moved across the earth beneath her feet as she reinforced the roots.
"The priority now is keeping the camp stable."
She looked at the soldiers.
"If panic spreads, we'll lose more people before dawn than we did during the attack."
No one argued.
Night was beginning to fall.
Continuing forward in the middle of that storm would have been suicide.
There were too many wounded.
Too many exhausted soldiers.
Too much fear spreading through the ranks.
The caravan had no choice.
They would stop there.
Orders quickly began circulating among the surviving legions.
Raise defenses.
Light fires.
Treat the wounded.
Recover supplies.
Bury the dead.
And above all...
Wait.
Little by little, an improvised camp began forming in the middle of the absolute cold left behind by the Frostwither.
An ocean of silent snow surrounded the tents.
The wind constantly battered the reinforced canvas, and from time to time, the groans of the wounded broke the silence.
Some were still struggling to survive the residual cold that had permeated their bodies.
Inside the main tent, the atmosphere was tense.
A large map of the territory was spread across an improvised wooden table.
Several stones marked cities, supply routes, and the areas where the Imperial legions had suffered their greatest losses.
Torchlight cast shadows across the exhausted faces of those present.
Emily led the meeting.
She tried to remain calm, but exhaustion was beginning to show in her eyes.
Kara leaned against one of the tent poles, arms crossed and expression serious.
Alejandro studied the map while trying to ignore the pain still running through his body after using Solaris's power.
Leonardo, meanwhile, remained apart.
He said nothing.
He simply analyzed the map and the military positions marked across the table.
Across from them, Cael and Miriel stepped forward.
Both seemed to have made a decision.
"If we're going to face the Frostwither, we'll need every resource available," Cael said firmly. "The army must advance with us."
Miriel nodded.
"If we leave that creature unchecked, it will continue destroying everything in its path."
Emily closed her eyes for a moment.
She understood them.
She had seen villages disappear too.
She had heard the screams.
She had seen the fear in the refugees' eyes.
But even so...
"No."
The word came out firmly.
Emily placed both hands on the table.
"That army is not under our command."
Silence fell over the tent.
Outside, soldiers could be heard moving supplies and priests tending to the wounded while snow continued accumulating over the canvas.
Cael frowned.
"We can't remain here doing nothing," he insisted. "The Frostwither will keep moving. Every hour we waste means more deaths."
Miriel stepped beside him.
Her eyes, faintly illuminated by the green runes of her magic, remained firm.
"If it reaches another city before we react, it will be a massacre."
Emily slowly exhaled.
Fear and helplessness weighed heavily on her chest.
Because she knew they were right.
But she also knew something else.
Lusian would never abandon Elizabeth.
And forcing him to change course could completely shatter the group's balance.
"I understand what you're saying," she finally replied. "But Lusian will not leave the princess."
She raised her eyes.
"Our mission remains escorting Elizabeth to the Imperial capital. That hasn't changed."
Cael clenched his jaw.
"And in the meantime, we just let that creature keep killing?"
Emily did not answer immediately.
She had no good answer.
The heroes exchanged tense glances.
They all understood the problem.
Protecting Elizabeth meant allowing the Frostwither to remain free.
But abandoning the princess could trigger even worse consequences for both countries.
Alejandro finally spoke.
"Then let's make it quick."
Everyone turned toward him.
The Solaris hero kept his gaze fixed on the map.
"We'll go after the Frostwither."
Cael immediately nodded.
Miriel did the same.
"We can't wait any longer," Alejandro continued. "If that thing reaches a city, there won't be time to organize a defense."
Leonardo spoke from the back of the tent.
His voice was calm.
Too calm.
"And we can't chase it blindly either."
His eyes slowly moved across the map.
"We don't know where it will stop. We don't know how much territory it can cross during the night."
He pointed toward the marked routes.
"And after what it just did, we don't know how many soldiers we'd need to face it."
Alejandro frowned slightly.
Leonardo continued.
"Look at us."
He pointed at Alejandro.
"You can barely stand."
Then he pointed at the map.
"Two Imperial legions have just been decimated. Most of the survivors are wounded."
His finger stopped over the place where the Frostwither had disappeared.
"And that thing just proved that it can choose when to fight and when to retreat."
The silence grew heavier.
"We're not in any condition to hunt it."
Leonardo slowly raised his eyes.
"Not yet."
Cael clenched his fists.
"Then what do you propose?"
Leonardo pointed to one of the main routes.
"Reach the capital."
He paused.
"Regroup our forces. Reorganize the Imperial army. Gather information."
His eyes swept across those present.
"And from there..."
A brief pause.
"Prepare a real hunt."
No one answered.
But this time, it was not because of indecision.
The decision had been made.
Emily slowly left the tent.
Snow gently struck her face as she stepped outside.
The camp was still in motion.
Exhausted soldiers moved between the fires.
The healers continued working.
Some men were removing the frozen corpses.
Others reinforced the defenses.
But the fear remained.
Invisible.
Floating among the people like a shadow.
Emily looked up.
She found Lusian near the outer perimeter.
He stood facing the distant storm, watching the horizon.
Elizabeth stood beside him, wrapped in a thick white coat as she spoke quietly with him.
Emily walked toward them.
"Lusian."
He turned his head slightly.
"What is it?"
Emily stopped in front of him.
"The heroes want to pursue the Frostwither."
Lusian remained silent.
"The entire region is in danger if we let it continue forward," Emily continued. "Cael and Miriel want to mobilize the surviving legions. Alejandro is willing to go as well."
Lusian turned his gaze toward the storm.
For several seconds, he said nothing.
Then he sighed.
His expression remained calm.
But Emily could see it.
The exhaustion.
The pressure.
The weight of every decision he had made since the journey began.
And, for an instant, something else.
Something he rarely allowed others to see.
Lusian looked at Elizabeth.
She was watching him silently as well.
Finally, he spoke.
"Then we'll go to the capital."
Emily lowered her gaze slightly.
She already knew that would be his answer.
"Elizabeth will not leave my side."
His voice left no room for argument.
He paused briefly.
"And I will not leave hers."
Emily pressed her lips together slightly.
Part of her wanted to argue.
To insist.
To tell him that he had to help the others.
But she knew Lusian.
She knew that when he decided to protect something...
there was no force capable of pulling him away from it.
"Very well..."
The answer came out softer than she intended.
Lusian watched her for several seconds.
Then he raised a hand and lightly touched her arm.
A small gesture.
Almost imperceptible.
Emily felt a strange warmth pass through her in the middle of that unbearable cold.
"Just take care of yourself," Lusian said quietly. "Don't push yourself too far."
Emily looked at him.
A simple sentence.
But coming from him...
it meant much more.
She smiled faintly.
"You too."
Lusian did not answer.
He simply turned his gaze back toward the storm.
In the distance, lightning briefly illuminated the white sky.
Emily remained beside him for a few seconds.
The Frostwither had retreated.
It had not been defeated.
And that meant it would return.