The frozen cavern had finally gone silent.
The terrifying scream of the ant queen had vanished beneath layers of thick ice. Frost covered the walls, pillars, and ancient floor like a second skin. Even the air itself seemed frozen.
The ant queen remained trapped at the center of the cavern, its monstrous body encased inside a gigantic glacier of pale blue ice.
Ella was frozen as well.
Half of her body was buried beneath thick frost, her expression locked in shock.
The remaining ants had become lifeless statues scattered across the battlefield.
Only two people still moved freely.
Jade.
And Aaron.
Cold mist drifted around Jade's body naturally. His Ice Vine still released traces of freezing aura into the surroundings. Snowflakes formed around his shoulders before melting away moments later.
Aaron rubbed his arms dramatically while walking beside him.
"I'm beginning to suspect you're secretly trying to kill your allies before the monsters do."
Jade didn't reply.
His expression remained calm.
Too calm.
Aaron glanced sideways at him and sighed.
"You know," he said casually, "smiling increases survival rate by at least three percent."
Jade finally looked at him.
Aaron nodded seriously.
"I completely invented that statistic, but it sounds believable enough."
Jade stared at him silently.
Aaron continued talking anyway.
"My brother once told me that if you smile during danger, people assume you know what you're doing."
"And?"
"And if people think you know what you're doing, they panic less."
Aaron smirked.
"So technically, smiling saves lives."
Jade finally snorted softly.
Aaron widened his eyes dramatically.
"Oh? The Blood Slayer actually laughed? Amazing. The ancient ruin has witnessed a miracle."
Jade shook his head lightly.
"I'm not being serious," he admitted quietly. "I'm just nervous."
Aaron blinked.
For a moment, he genuinely looked surprised.
"Nervous?"
Jade nodded slowly.
The cold aura around him weakened slightly as they continued walking deeper into the ruin.
"I thought I understood everything," Jade said calmly. "But the more we move forward… the more I realize how dangerous this place really is."
Aaron folded his arms.
"That makes two of us."
Jade looked ahead into the darkness.
"When I gathered the survivors… I thought I was being clever."
Aaron raised an eyebrow.
"The freedom speech?"
Jade nodded.
"I told them their lives were in their own hands."
His voice became quieter.
"And their freedom was in mine."
Aaron's smile slowly faded.
Jade continued walking while speaking.
"At that time… I thought freedom through death was still freedom."
The frozen cave echoed softly with their footsteps.
"But now…" Jade exhaled slowly. "They're dying like chickens."
Aaron stayed silent.
Jade's voice became colder.
"What if I was wrong from the beginning?"
"What if I'm supposed to defeat the grand monster myself instead of sacrificing people to reach it?"
Aaron's expression dimmed slightly.
For once, he didn't joke immediately.
The ruins suddenly felt heavier.
Then Aaron rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
"When you say things like that," he muttered, "I suddenly remember we're still teenagers."
Jade looked at him.
Aaron sighed dramatically.
"I hate responsible conversations. They make my bones hurt."
Jade almost smiled again.
Almost.
Aaron glanced toward the frozen tunnel ahead.
"But I think you need to change your plan."
Jade frowned slightly.
"What plan?"
Aaron pointed at him lazily.
"You promised people freedom."
"Yes."
"But secretly you meant freedom through death."
Jade stayed silent.
Aaron shrugged.
"Now you have to give them the freedom they actually wanted."
Jade looked at him quietly.
Aaron grinned slightly.
"The freedom of surviving."
Silence filled the cavern again.
Only the sound of cracking frost echoed around them.
Jade lowered his eyes slightly.
Then he nodded once.
Aaron stretched his arms casually.
"Good. Glad that emotional speech worked."
Jade frowned.
"You planned that?"
Aaron looked offended.
"Of course not. I just say random things and hope they sound wise."
They continued walking deeper into the ruin.
The cave became darker the farther they moved.
Ancient pillars stood crookedly along the pathway, some broken, some half-buried beneath rubble and bones.
There were bones everywhere.
Human bones.
Monster bones.
Some looked ancient enough to crumble from a single touch.
Others still had rusted weapons beside them.
The atmosphere felt suffocating.
Even Jade's vines moved more carefully now, extending quietly along the walls and ground like living shadows.
Then—
Jade suddenly stopped.
Aaron almost walked into him.
"What now?"
Jade pointed forward.
A skeleton sat against the wall.
Unlike the others, this one looked strangely intact.
It wore a long warrior's cloak covered in dust.
Its empty skull faced downward as though it had died while thinking.
Aaron narrowed his eyes.
"That looks suspicious."
Jade walked toward it carefully.
His instincts warned him something was strange.
Yet—
Nothing happened.
No aura.
No movement.
No danger.
Jade slowly crouched beside the skeleton.
Then instinctively—
He touched the cloak.
The reaction was immediate.
The skeleton collapsed instantly.
Its bones turned gray before crumbling into dust.
The cloak dissolved moments later as though thousands of years had passed in a single second.
Aaron stepped backward.
"…Well that's horrifying."
The dust scattered across the icy ground.
Nothing remained.
Jade frowned.
"That was weird."
Aaron knelt beside the area where the skeleton had sat.
Then he noticed something nearby.
Broken stone tablets.
Several of them were scattered across the ground beneath layers of dust.
Ancient engravings covered their surfaces.
Aaron brushed one carefully.
The symbols glowed faintly.
Jade looked at him.
"You can read those, right?"
Aaron smirked slightly.
"What do you expect from someone raised by a transcendent?"
Jade rolled his eyes lightly.
Aaron stared at the ancient writing carefully.
The symbols were damaged.
Some words were completely missing.
Others were cracked beyond recognition.
Still—
Aaron slowly began translating aloud.
"The gods who entered this place…"
He paused.
His expression changed slightly.
"…never returned."
The air suddenly felt colder.
Aaron continued reading quietly.
"They sought freedom…"
"…but became part of the ruin instead."
Jade narrowed his eyes.
"That sounds encouraging."
Aaron ignored the comment and continued reading.
"The path beyond the cave…"
"…belongs to the dream prisoner."
Aaron stopped.
Jade looked at him immediately.
"Dream prisoner?"
Aaron frowned.
"That's what it says."
Then—
A scream echoed through the ruins.
A woman's scream.
Both of them froze instantly.
The scream sounded horrifying.
Not because of pain—
But because of terror.
It sounded like someone trapped inside a nightmare.
Aaron's expression changed completely.
"That voice…"
The scream echoed again.
Closer this time.
Much closer.
It sounded unstable.
Like someone crying while trapped inside endless fear.
Jade's eyes narrowed immediately.
Aaron had already begun moving forward.
Fast.
But this time—
Carefully.
The joking atmosphere vanished completely.
Both boys moved deeper into the darkness silently.
The frozen cave behind them slowly disappeared from view.
And ahead—
The woman's terrified cries continued echoing through the ancient ruin.