After what felt like hours, Khione opened her eyes in the blue depths of the lake.
Something had changed.
The cold no longer pressed against her. It flowed through her, as if she had become part of it, as if the ancient chill of this place recognized her as kin. Her body felt different—lighter, yet more solid. Her core pulsed with a new rhythm, deeper and stronger than before.
She had reached the peak of Adept Mage. One step from Master Mage. One step from her own demiplane (A/N: Equivalent of Domain for Purple level Knight)
But more than that, she had understood.
The cold of this lake was not just temperature. It was time, frozen. It was stillness given form. It was the patience of ages, the waiting of the world, the moment between heartbeats stretched into eternity.
And she had learned how to use it.
