After a long journey, we were finally at Sunforge Realm.
As we were flying, keeping my eyes open was getting difficult. They felt so dry that I didn't think even tears could make them wet.
The rays of the sun were so harsh that my blood felt like it was bubbling inside my veins — not evaporating only because it was sealed inside my body. My whole body felt like I had a fever.
This kingdom was very, very hot. In the entire continent, very few kingdoms had such high temperatures. This one even had a vast desert.
But that's not where I was going. Nature Force was not in the desert and I don't have a hobby of torturing myself.
Before I could go anywhere, I needed water.
And I just found a river.
I quickly descended, and it looked like Flash had the same thought — instead of landing on the ground, he jumped straight into the river.
The others soon followed.
Finally, my body temperature lowered. My eyes felt wet again, and my blood felt like a normal liquid.
Emma said, almost crying,
"Finally… I feel cooool!"
Emilia followed,
"Who the hell lives here?"
Brock replied,
"I had no idea it was this hot when I heard about it from others."
Lucas added,
"Good thing we don't work in this country."
Raven was still underwater.
I asked, worried,
"He didn't drown, did he?"
Emma said blissfully,
"It's his fortune if he died drowning in this river."
Brock nodded in agreement,
"Yeah, drowning here isn't such a bad idea."
Raven suddenly came up from under the water and asked,
"Should I help you?"
Lucas started laughing.
I suggested,
"Now that we've already landed and we're near a river, we might as well eat and rest a little."
Raven agreed,
"Yes, that's a good idea."
So we took out our food, refilled our water, and spread out some cloth to sit on.
The meal wasn't exactly fresh or tasty, but it was nutritious and filled our stomachs.
There were also some fruits that kept our tongues satisfied.
After eating, we rested.
While resting, we discussed how to continue.
Raven asked,
"So, are we visiting any city to rest?"
I thought for a moment and replied,
"No, let's just go straight to the destination city."
Lucas asked,
"Where are we going?"
Raven was about to reply, but I cut him off.
"How much do you know about this place?"
Lucas thought and said,
"Nothing much."
The others nodded too.
I smirked.
"Well, enjoy the heat then."
They all had expressions that clearly said, What do you even mean by that?
Raven just shook his head.
Lucas said again,
"Why don't you practice some magic for a bit?"
I thought that was a great idea and asked,
"So, a new spell?"
Lucas looked at me like I was a troublesome child and said,
"Well, I meant practicing one you've already learned. But you can try a new one too."
He thought for a bit and added,
" the Lightning Grace spell suits you well — it makes your sword sharper."
I asked,
"Will it shock enemies?"
He denied it,
"Nope, it's not that kind of spell. Actually, that's why it doesn't waste much mana and works well for you."
And like that, we wasted about an hour before deciding to continue.
We rode our Sky Dogs again, with the wind still harsh. It felt like those hot winds were threads of fire brushing against our skin.
However, soon the temperature started to cool down.
Emma said,
"Wow! Finally, I feel good. Those hot winds were too much for me."
But after another hour passed, the temperature dropped even further, and I started to shiver.
The others were also struggling.
Lucas asked,
"Was this your surprise?"
I laughed.
Emma said, shivering,
"N-Never throw m-me a surprise p-p-party, sir."
I laughed even harder, though mostly to distract myself from the cold.
Soon, snow-covered fields began to appear.
After another hour, we were flying over what looked like a vast white cloth — but it wasn't cloth, it was snow.
The Sky Dogs were also feeling the cold. I hoped Flash didn't realize it was my idea to come here, or he might just throw me off.
The wind now bit into my skin as it passed over me. My hands were numb and painful — I couldn't even feel small objects anymore.
My eyes, which had been dry before, were now watery. I wanted to close them just to warm them up. My sneezes came frequently, and for the first time, I actually wanted to go back to that scorching heat we had left behind.
Finally, when the sun began to set, we saw a city. It was big and looked tough — like it stood there to wage war against the cold itself.
The name of the city was Everice Citadel.
We landed at the gate and approached the guards standing there.
One of them asked in an authoritative tone,
"Who are you?"
Raven replied,
"We're tourists."
The guard frowned,
"Tourists? Show me some papers so I can check your identities."
Raven presented them.
The guard looked them up and down several times and then nodded.
"So, adventurers and their client, is that right?"
Raven nodded.
The guard asked again,
"Purpose of visit?"
Raven said,
"We've heard a lot about Frostmaw Mountain, so we came to see it for ourselves."
Everyone except me looked at Raven like, What the hell is this bastard saying?
The guard noticed their reaction and looked at Raven suspiciously.
I smiled and said,
"It's a surprise for them."
The guard frowned,
"Give them surprises like that and you might not come back from the mountain."
I grinned.
Raven said next,
"We'd like to take our Sky Dogs inside."
The guard shook his head,
"We can't allow those in."
Raven argued,
"Look at the temperature — they're not made for this."
The guard frowned,
"You should've thought about that before bringing them."
Then he sighed and said,
"If the lord allows it, that's a different matter."
I nodded, then asked,
"Is there anyone who can go directly to the lord?"
The guard nodded,
"The army commander is here right now. In that sense, you're in luck. The lord meets him anytime he requests."
I nodded and quietly passed a bribe to the guard.
"Can you call him?"
The guard took the bribe and said,
"I'll see what I can do."
He went inside and soon came back — with the commander. I had no idea how he convinced him to come.
The commander asked,
"Are you the one who's been cursing the Lord of Everice Citadel?"
I looked at the guard — he looked away.
This bastard!
I quickly said, trying to calm things down,
"No, I think there's been some misunderstanding. I was cursing him," I pointed at Lucas, "he just happens to have the same name. The guard must've misunderstood."
The commander looked at Lucas, who smiled awkwardly, though his lips twitched.
The commander reached for our papers, and I paled. Quickly, I took out a platinum coin and said,
"Commander, sir, we wanted an audience with the lord."
He looked at the coin, then at me, and stared for a long time before smirking.
"I see now."
He glanced at the guard, who immediately began sweating.
The commander shook his head,
"Money can't give you everything, kid. You lack the power to meet the lord."
He meant political power — but since he didn't specify, I smirked and said,
"Then what if I defeat you? Will you help us?"
He frowned,
"Why bother, kid?"
I shrugged,
"I want to take the Sky Dogs inside. It's too cold for them."
He seemed to realize my intention and smiled.
"Alright, kid. Listen — I may not have too much authority, but I can do something, and no one would dare question me. The lord trusts me. I can allow your beasts inside."
I started saying,
"Thank y—"
But he cut me off,
"Seeing your nature, I might've allowed you anyway. But you challenged me, and challenging a knight means something. Still, I'll give you a chance. I'm SS-Rank. If any one of you disarms me, you can take your beasts inside. I'll even give you three chances. I won't attack."
Saying that, he stepped outside and drew his sword.
Raven and the others just stepped back, already knowing what was about to happen.
I asked, just to be sure,
"If by chance I hurt you?"
The commander smiled,
"I don't cry when I get hurt."
I shrugged,
"Apocalypse."
In an instant, the commander was blasted back over a hundred meters, his sword lying several feet away.
He lay there for a minute, then stood up and said,
"Well… you're allowed to take your beasts inside."
I was impressed. A man like that deserves respect anywhere he goes.
I said to him,
"My name is Adrian Lewin. If you ever need my help, come find me. Here's a token — keep it with you always."
The commander smiled and took the token.
And like that, we entered the city with our Sky Dogs.
We went to the most expensive inn and booked rooms.
But the inn didn't allow beasts — which made sense. If they weren't even allowed inside the city, why would an inn have space for them?