Chapter 26: 26. A road towards B rank!
THE NEXT MORNING
ALEXANDER
The next morning started peacefully, which should have warned me immediately. I was halfway through breakfast when the system appeared.
"DING."The system said.
I froze. Across the table, Michael froze together with Scarlet, as Noa sighed. Rosalia slowly lowered her cup, even Isabella looked nervous. Nobody trusted system notifications anymore. A glowing screen appeared.
"Daily event triggered. Special promotion examination available. Objective: Complete guild B-rank qualification mission. Reward: rank advancement, experience, special summoning progress."The system said.
I blinked, then blinked again.
"B-rank?"I whispered.
"What?"Michael nearly choked on his tea.
"Mission assigned. Retrieve Frostheart bloom from the northern forest. Danger level: High. Environmental hazard: extreme cold. Expected temperature range: -34°C."The system continued.
"No."Michael stood up and the system ignored him.
"No." Michael repeated.
The system still ignored him.
"The system appears unwilling to negotiate."Aiko adjusted his glasses.
"I noticed."I sighed.
Michael grabbed the mission screen as if that would somehow help.
"The Frostheart bloom is not a normal promotion mission!" Michael said while looked horrified. "The flower only blooms in the deepest section of the Northern forest."
"The frozen region?"Scarlet frowned.
"Yes."Michael said. "The place where experienced adventurers lose fingers if they make mistakes."
"Wonderful." I sighed.
"No." Michael pointed at me. "You are not saying wonderful."
"You just did."I sighed as I already got used to it.
Michael looked offended.
"-34 degrees." Noa crossed her arms.
"That sounds unpleasant."Rosalia blinked.
"That is because it is unpleasant." Michael replied.
One of the nearby guild workers overheard the conversation and nearly dropped a tray.
"The Frostheart bloom exam?"He asked.
"No way."Another adventurer looked over.
"My old party attempted that mission."A third adventurer immediately joined the conversation.
"What happened?" Isabella asked.
"We turned around."The adventurer looked uncomfortable.
"That was smart." I nodded.
"Exactly." The adventurer nodded back.
Michael opened a drawer and pulled out a thick file. Very thick, suspiciously thick as he slammed it onto the table.
"This." He pointed dramatically. "Is the official survival guide."
I stared as the guide was larger than some books.
"That is not a guide."I said nervously.
"It is."Michael said.
"No."I said.
"It absolutely is."I groaned.
"Seven hundred and twelve pages."Aiko picked it up.
The room became silent.
"WHY DOES A FOREST REQUIRE SEVEN HUNDRED PAGES?"I said shocked.
"Because people keep freezing."Michael looked tired.
Fair point. Then the guild master sighed heavily.
"The exam itself is simple."Michael said.
I narrowed my eyes, whenever people said that, it was never simple.
"Travel into the Northern forest."Michael continued. "Find a living Frostheart bloom, bring it back and survive."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"No." I said.
"Exactly."Michael nodded.
The entire party looked at the mission. Outside the guild windows, the weather was pleasant, sunny, warm, and comfortable. The mission wanted us to voluntarily walk into a place that reached -34°C. I looked at the system, and the system looked back, well, metaphorically.
"I hate this exam."I groaned.
"Duly noted." The system replied.
Five minutes later, I was standing in the middle of the guild hall with my arms crossed.
"No."I said.
Everyone looked at me.
"What do you mean no?"Michael looked confused.
"I mean absolutely not."I said and pointed at the mission file. "-34 degrees. You are getting winter clothes."Then I pointed at Scarlet.
"I already have robes."Scarlet blinked.
"No."I repeated and pointed at Noa. "You are getting winter clothes."
"I have traveled in cold weather before."She said.
"No."I said and then pointed at Rosalia. "You too."
"It is functional."Rosalia looked down at her usual outfit.
"It is not functional at -34 degrees."I explained.
"You are definitely getting winter clothes."Finally, I pointed at Isabella.
"I already bought travel cloaks."She groaned.
"No."I said.
"They are very good cloaks."She repeated.
"No."I said.
"They have pockets."She tried again.
"NO."I said angrily.
"Master appears determined."Aiko adjusted his glasses.
"I am."I nodded.
Michael slowly smiled and for some reason that worried me.
"I support this decision."Michael said.
"Of course you do."I sighed.
"Everyone dismissed."Michael immediately stood, and then he pointed toward the market district. "Go shopping." The entire party stared at him. "Now."
Thirty minutes later, we were standing inside the largest clothing store in the city. I had never seen so much fur in one place, a merchant immediately approached us.
"Welcome! Looking for winter gear?"He asked.
"Yes."I nodded.
"How cold?"He asked.
"-34."I said calmly.
The merchant froze and then he slowly turned around.
"BRING OUT THE EXPENSIVE SECTION."He said.
People immediately began moving and a few minutes later the store looked like it was preparing us for war against winter itself. Scarlet emerged from a changing room wearing a white fur lined coat.
"This is surprisingly comfortable."He said.
"Good."I nodded.
Noa appeared next. Dark blue winter gear, heavy boots, insulated gloves.
"It doesn’t restrict movement."She moved her arms experimentally.
"Good."I nodded.
Rosalia stepped out wearing a black winter coat. The entire store became nervous for some reason.
"Warm."She looked down.
"Excellent."I smiled.
"Oh wow!"Then Isabella appeared. She spun around dramatically.
The coat had somehow acquired decorative snowflake patterns.
"Why does yours look expensive?"I asked.
"Because I have taste."Isabella grinned.
"No, you have a shopping addiction."I frowned.
Aiko appeared next perfectly dressed. He somehow looked like a noble servant from a royal family.
"Sir has excellent fashion sense."The merchant looked impressed.
"Thank you."Aiko bowed politely. Then everyone looked at me.
"What?"I asked.
"You need winter gear too."Noa pointed.
"I know."I said.
Twenty minutes later I was wearing enough layers to survive an ice age.
I hated it, but the merchant disagreed.
"You look prepared."The merchant said.
"I look like a blanket."I groaned.
"You look alive."The merchant said.
Eventually we finished buying everything. Coats, gloves, scarves, boots, emergency blankets, portable heaters, winter tents, cold weather rations. The pile became enormous, Michael stared at the final bill, then he looked at me, then at the bill, then at me again.
"This costs more than some missions."I said.
"-34 degrees."The merchant said.
"Approved."Michael nodded.
Nobody argued, not even Noa. That alone proved how dangerous the Northern Forest was. As we left the store, Aiko glanced at the mountain of supplies.
"I believe our survival odds have improved significantly, good."Aiko said.
I looked at everyone, then at the mission, then at the winter equipment. For the first time since receiving the quest, I felt slightly better. Only slightly because we were still voluntarily traveling toward a forest cold enough to kill experienced adventurers. But at least now we would be warm while making terrible decisions.
The moment we crossed the North forest treeline, the world changed its mind about us. It wasn’t gradual, it wasn’t subtle. It was like reality itself slapped us in the face with frozen air. The wind hit first. Sharp, dry and violent. Even through the winter gear, it felt like needles trying to argue with my skin.
"Yeah. This is bad."I stopped walking for half a second.
Scarlet adjusted her hood immediately, light mana forming a thin protective layer around her breath so it wouldn’t freeze mid air.
"This is beyond ordinary cold." She said quietly.
Noa crouched, touching the snow covered ground.
"It is stable. Not natural fluctuation. Something is sustaining it."She said.
"I do not like forests that feel like they are watching."Rosalia pulled her coat tighter, eyes scanning the tree line.
"They usually are." I muttered.
Isabella, somehow still energetic, bounced once in place.
"It is so pretty though!"She said happily.
"It is aggressively trying to kill us." I replied.
Aiko walked ahead a few meters, then suddenly stopped mid air. His entire body stiffened.
"Problem?" I asked.
"DING. Environmental condition detected: extreme frost zone. Temperature estimate: -34°C confirmed. Additional anomaly present: mana crystallization in atmosphere."The system said.
"Mana what?"I asked.
"That is not normal."Scarlet narrowed her eyes.
"It means spell usage will destabilize."Noa stood slowly.
"That is inconvenient."Rosalia checked her gun.
"Master, thermal degradation is within predicted limits."Aiko said.
"That is not comforting language."I said.
"It was meant to be precise, not comforting."Aiko sighed.
"Try again."I said.
"It is cold."Aiko paused.
"Better."I nodded.
The trees were wrong, not twisted, not dead. Just... still. Like they were waiting for something to continue. Scarlet raised her light slightly, illuminating the path ahead.
Snow was not falling, it was already there, settled in unnatural layers between roots and stone.
"Movement ahead." Rosalia said calmly.
We all stopped.
"Faint heat signatures detected. Subsurface."Aiko tilted his head slightly.
"Subsurface?"I asked.
"Something is moving under the snow layer."Noa crouched, touching the frozen ground.
"Of course there is."I exhaled slowly.
"Is it... big?"Isabella looked down nervously.
"Yes."Rosalia answered first.
"Multiple."Aiko corrected gently.
Silence spread through the group.
"This forest was marked as dormant territory."Aiko said as he read all the seven hundreed pages of the book.
"It is not dormant."Noa stood back up.
"It is awake."Scarlet’s light brightened slightly.
A distant sound echoed through the trees, not a roar, not a howl. More like ice cracking from beneath the world.
"Master."Aiko stepped slightly forward, eyes focused ahead.
"Yeah?"I asked.
"I recommend immediate formation adjustment."Aiko said.
"We just got here."I sighed.
"Yes."Aiko nodded.
Another crack echoed, closer this time. I tightened my grip on my weapon.
"Fine." I muttered. "Formation first, surviving second."
"Good plan."Rosalia smirked faintly.
It seems that this forest was not as dormant as expected, and it seems that it has began hunting us instead.
