Night had fallen.
Yuria and I, dressed in thick clothing, prepared to leave. Our destination, of course, was the Hughes Snow Mountain.
Travelling to Hughes Snow Mountain at night was dangerous and not advisable. I was well aware of this, but I had no choice. If we wanted to move without being noticed, we had to act under the cover of darkness.
There were two reasons why I came to Hughes Snow Mountain.
'A trip? Why would anyone come to a place like this for a trip? There's nothing to see but a boring snow mountain.'
If the trip were the real purpose, I could have just relaxed at a decent spot near the Pruckus Count's estate instead of coming all the way to Hughes Snow Mountain.
I tightened the warm winter clothes I had brought from the real world and made sure my dagger was secure before glancing at Yuria.
Yuria was no longer wearing her usual maid outfit but was instead wrapped in a coat and cloak, covering her entire body. With a black mask on, only her blue eyes were visible. Around her waist were equipped weapons like a sword, gun, dagger, and axe.
"Are you ready?"
"Yes. All the necessities have been stored in the shadow."
I nodded. Even if she hadn't packed the essentials, I had my smartphone, so it wasn't a problem.
"We need to be back by lunch tomorrow at the latest. Let's go."
"Yes, Master."
We concealed our presence and left the mansion. Then, after taking a detour, we headed toward Hughes Snow Mountain. We didn't go straight there to avoid leaving traces. If the knights discovered our tracks tomorrow, it could cause unnecessary trouble.
At the entrance of Hughes Snow Mountain, I pulled something out of my inventory.
"Master, what is that?"
"This? A snowmobile. It'd take too much time and effort to go on foot. Surprisingly, it wasn't that expensive."
It was a two-seater snowmobile. The front had skis, and the back was equipped with tracks. I had obtained this from the 'Vampire Detective' world. Since it wasn't an item with special powers, its performance wouldn't degrade even when used in another world.
I put on a helmet and grabbed the handlebars. Yuria sat behind me, wrapping her arms around my waist.
We began ascending Hughes Snow Mountain on the snowmobile. It was definitely faster and more comfortable than walking or running.
'We need to find the rock that looks like an ogre's face. In the original story, it was located around the mid-slope of Hughes Snow Mountain.'
But soon, a problem arose.
It wasn't an issue with the snowmobile or us. The snowmobile was running fine.
"Master, three ice trolls are chasing us from the right."
"Ice trolls?"
I turned my head to the right.
Large ice trolls with blue skin were chasing us at a rapid pace. I furrowed my brow.
Ice trolls. The name sounds impressive, but their physical abilities are similar to regular trolls. The only difference is that they've adapted to cold environments. They're monsters that exist in reality too. The author probably just borrowed them from real-life myths.
'Trolls are D-rank monsters. They're not a significant threat to us.'
In my current state, as long as I use mana, dealing with three trolls wouldn't be difficult. Yuria, of course, was more than capable.
"They're persistent. Annoying… Let's kill them."
"Yes."
Yuria aimed her pistol at the trolls. Just before she pulled the trigger, a magic circle appeared in front of the barrel. Once the circle was fully formed, she fired.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The bullets passed through the magic circle. It was a power-enhancing magic circle. Regular bullets wouldn't harm a troll, so magic was needed to amplify their power.
The bullets precisely pierced the trolls' weak spots—their eye sockets—and penetrated their brains. The three trolls collapsed onto the snow.
"As expected of Yuria."
"It's nothing… Master! Ahead!"
Yuria urgently called out. I noticed what was ahead a bit later than she did. It couldn't be helped. I wasn't as adept at seeing through the darkness as Yuria.
"Damn. What's that now?"
Ahead, there was something pale and ghostly. It was floating in the air, unmoving, and staring at us. It didn't seem too dangerous. Since it wasn't moving, we could just go around it.
"It's a wraith. I overreacted."
"It's one that hasn't fully formed its shape. No need to turn back."
Wraiths are monsters with significant individual differences. Proper ones are tricky even for veteran hunters. But this one was just a pale, smoke-like wraith without a clear form. Aside from being immune to regular physical attacks, there was nothing special about it.
"I'll handle it."
Yuria gripped her dagger.
A blue aura formed around the blade.
Whoosh!
I didn't slow down the snowmobile. As we passed beneath the wraith, Yuria swung her dagger.
Screeeech!
The wraith let out a shriek and vanished.
The simplest and most efficient way to kill a wraith is to attack using mana. Strengthening the body with mana, as I do, wouldn't work rather you need to possess aura.
I still couldn't generate an aura, so I couldn't kill wraiths like Yuria.
'Instead, I can kill them with lightning.'
The lightning I use consumes mana and vitality. Since lightning originates from mana, it can effectively harm wraiths.
"Are there any more chasing us?"
"..."
For once, Yuria didn't respond to my question. It was rare. It meant her mind was elsewhere.
Yuria was staring diagonally to the front left. My gaze followed hers.
A figure stood on a pure white hill.
"…It's a yeti. I don't think I can handle it."
"It's watching us, right?"
"Yes. It definitely saw us."
The yeti waved its hand. No, it seemed like it was pretending to throw something.
It was too dark for me to see clearly.
"Ice spears are coming! Dodge to the right!"
As Yuria said, I steered the snowmobile to the right.
Thud! Thud! Thud!
Three large icicle-like spears embedded themselves where we had just been. I felt a tension that made my lips burn.
Yeti. In reality, they're B-rank upper-tier monsters. They have the ability to manipulate ice. Most of them act alone, but sometimes they form groups. When they do, even A-rank hunters avoid them.
'In this world, yetis also have the ability to control wind.'
Therefore, that yeti could be considered an A-rank monster. Only someone at the advanced level of an aura expert would stand a chance against it.
"Make a U-turn to the left!"
I followed Yuria's instructions and steered the snowmobile.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
Ice spears struck the ground.
'Damn… Just looking at it is terrifying.'
I'd love to send that yeti to the afterlife, but fighting it wouldn't be easy. Plus, the yeti was so far away that I could barely see it. Even if we fought, our chances of winning were slim.
Awooooooo!
The howl of a wolf echoed. I reflexively looked up at the sky. It was a full moon. A perfect night for chaos.
'If it's a wolf in Hughes Snow Mountain… it must be a dire wolf.'
A C-rank monster.
I looked in the direction of the sound. Twenty dire wolves were charging toward us. Individually, dire wolves are weaker than trolls, but they always move in packs and are highly agile.
Sssssssss.
Wraiths began appearing here and there. These ones had more defined forms than the pale ones from before.
"Seven ice trolls and a group of ice boars are coming from the left."
"Even the wild boars have caught our scent. Feels like we've become a buffet."
I spoke casually, but inside, I was burning with tension. This was a life-or-death situation. If we stopped here, we'd become monster food.
'Damn. I didn't expect it to be this bad.'
But it didn't end there. Of course, monsters appeared from the front too. Thanks to Yuria's quick handling, we didn't have to worry much about them, but the monsters chasing us from behind were the real problem.
We were already dealing with over 80 monsters.
'More will gather as time goes on. If it were daytime, it might have been better… Did I make a mistake by moving at night?'
The silver lining was that the yeti started throwing ice spears at the monsters instead of us. From the yeti's perspective, both us and the monsters were just prey, so it went for the easier targets first.
'It's a good thing it's far away. The yeti probably doesn't even realize we're humans.'
If it knew we were humans, it would have targeted us first. Monsters instinctively prioritize humans as prey. Just look at the monsters chasing us.
'The ogre-faced rock… The ogre-faced rock…! Where is it?'
Screeeech!
A monstrous cry came from above.
Yuria, sitting behind me, reacted quickly. She threw her dagger toward the sky.
Something fell to the ground with a thud. It was a monstrous bat over 1 meter long.
'Now there are even more monsters here.'
Whoooosh!
The snowmobile's engine roared loudly. If necessary, I planned to use hacking to push the snowmobile beyond its limits. I had learned from 'Vampire Detective' that hacking could temporarily surpass performance.
"…Found it!"
There it was—the ogre-faced rock.
I glanced back. The monsters were still chasing us.
"We need to shake them off…"
"I might be able to lose them temporarily using Dark Shift."
"Do it now!"
"Yes."
Darkness emanated from Yuria's shadow. This wasn't magic.
Shadow Flow: Dark Shift.
It releases darkness to envelop the surroundings. Only the caster can see through the darkness. Alternatively, someone with mana control surpassing the caster or a special ability could also see through it.
I hadn't mastered Shadow of Yeongcheon Style, so I couldn't use Dark Shift, but I knew about it in theory.
My vision went dark. I estimated the distance in my mind and then stored the snowmobile in my inventory.
As I was about to fall to the ground, Yuria caught me. She began running forward with me in her arms.
"Yuria! There's a space below the ogre-faced rock. Jump into it!"
"Understood."
Thud!
Our bodies plunged into the snow, and I felt us sliding downward. The darkness lifted, and my vision returned.
'It's still dark, but I can see if I use mana.'
We landed on relatively firm snow. I looked up at the ceiling. There was a hole about 5 meters above us.
"…Will the monsters chase us here?"
Yuria asked worriedly.
I shook my head firmly.
"They won't. This place is protected by a barrier. Even if dire wolves have an incredible sense of smell, they can't follow us here."
"A barrier… Is this a dungeon?"
"Something like that."
We brushed the snow off our bodies. Going back wouldn't be a problem. There's a safe secret passage. Using it, we can quickly descend the mountain. The only issue is that it's a one-way path.
"It's probably this way. Let's go."
We began walking inward, stepping on the pure white snow.
As we went deeper, the snow gradually disappeared, and the temperature grew warmer.
"It's a cave. I can feel the warmth."
"One of the secrets of Hughes Snow Mountain is that while the outside is cold, the inside is warm."
We walked through the cave. Coming from the cold into the warmth felt like a rebirth.
"…Is this cave warm because of a dragon vein?"
"Oh, you caught on quickly. You're right. To be precise, it's a place where dragon veins converge—a spiritual vein. Do you remember the legend of Hughes Snow Mountain?"
"The one about the Ancient Silver Dragon dying on the mountain, causing the snow to never melt?"
"That legend is true. To be exact, this was the nest of that Silver Dragon. Hughes Snow Mountain became a perpetual snow mountain because the Silver Dragon used its last bit of power to make it so."
The reason wasn't explained in the original story.
"Is the dragon's lair your goal, Master?"
"No."
The legend of Hughes Snow Mountain is a tale from the distant past.
The dragon's lair? It was probably discovered by adventurers long ago. You can't call it a dragon's lair anymore.
"The dwarves living here are the goal."
***
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