NOVEL NEXT Chapter 78
“Ugh…”
As I opened my eyes and tried to move, a weak groan escaped my lips. Every part of my body—arms, legs, back, and neck—ached. It felt like I had just finished an intense workout and was suffering from severe muscle soreness.
At that moment, something wet licked my cheek. Squinting at the oddly familiar sensation, I turned to the side and saw a giant horse head staring back at me.
“Nightmare?”
The Nightmare continued to lick my cheek as if asking why I had only just woken up.
I pushed the creature’s massive head away and got up. The surroundings were a bit dark, but I had no trouble recognizing the landscape around me.
“This place…”
No wonder it felt dark; I realized I was surrounded by enormous ice walls. It seemed I’d fallen down here after being hit by a giant bird’s breath.
Is this what they call a crevasse?
Sighing, I gazed at the gently shining moonlight. The moonlight filtering down from above illuminated the transparent ice walls softly.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
Brrrr—
The Nightmare jumped up as if to show it was perfectly fine in response to my question. Seeing both me and it moving without any issues indicated that the hastily activated Mana Barrier had done its job well.
I patted the Nightmare’s head and looked up.
“Do you think you can climb up?”
The Nightmare looked up at the sky upon my question. It seemed to contemplate for a moment, then stretched out its front legs and tapped the transparent ice wall.
Curious about what it was doing, I watched closely as a sharp crystal stone sprouted from its hooves with a loud “crack!” It then embedded the crystal stone into the ice wall and pushed against the wall.
That motion really resembled someone putting on spike shoes to climb a snow-covered mountain.
“Do you think you can make it?”
Hiyah—
In response to my question, the Nightmare flapped its tail and made clattering hoof sounds. I immediately climbed onto its back.
With me on its back, the Nightmare began to run vertically, inserting sharp crystal stones into the transparent ice wall.
It seemed like the transparent ice wall preserved the ecosystem that had existed here over time.
Inside the ice, the forms of fish-like monsters were trapped, and deeper down, the vague shapes of giant monsters mirrored beneath the surface.
However, I couldn’t appreciate that for long. As the Nightmare’s legs kicked against the transparent ice wall, bright white cracks spread across it, obscuring everything.
Crack!
We were climbing vertically against gravity, yet the Nightmare moved as if it were on flat ground. It took less than three seconds to ascend the dozens of meters high wall.
Boom!
Just as the cracks in the ice wall began to expand, the Nightmare leaped up into the sky. It couldn’t hold back its speed while running along the ice wall and took off into the air.
For a brief moment, I felt weightless as we flew above. I confronted the icy, white landscape surrounded by winds blowing from all directions.
I spotted a white, frozen forest, the towering snow-capped mountains, and a gigantic lake.
I frowned at the sight. It didn’t make sense for a place this cold to have a lake that hadn’t frozen over.
Of course, I knew it was foolish to judge this world by my own common sense. As I briefly gazed at the shimmering, blue-tinted water surface, I had to turn my head.
The Nightmare, which had soared into the sky, was beginning to descend.
Thud—thud—!
The crystal step shattered into white flakes like snow.
The Nightmare gently landed between the frozen trees. Contrary to its rough gallop, it executed a perfect landing.
The place we arrived at was a white mountain shrouded in clouds. The trees, frozen stiff, were sprouting white ice flowers instead of green leaves, and the white snow mingled with clouds, drifting like mist.
I tugged at the reins of the Nightmare and glanced around. The thickness of the ice covering the trees was substantial enough to make me doubt if they were alive.
Just then, a suitably sized icicle caught my eye. I snapped it off and took a bite.
Crunch—
The icicle broke nicely, and it had a slightly bland taste. I crunched on the icicle, making my way through the white mist.
To be honest, I could have used the Guiding Star to find the way to the Base Camp, but right now, I wanted to explore this mysterious mountain.
And so, after wandering aimlessly in the mountains for a while…
I suddenly noticed a phenomenon where the clouds surrounding me seemed to be drawn toward a specific spot.
Light snow began to rise, carried by the wind along with the clouds as I stared at the sight in a daze.
And in that moment.
I came face to face with a gigantic eye revealed between the clouds. At first, I thought it wasn’t an eye. Its vast blue shimmering made me think it was a new ice wall unfolding before me.
However, it was indeed an eye. As I recognized it, the massive eye that had been inside the cloud shifted, locking its gaze on me.
My mind went blank at the appearance of a creature that far exceeded my scope of understanding.
This was the third encounter. Although I had previously only observed from afar, I was now directly in front of it while both of us were aware of each other’s presence.
At that moment, the gigantic eyelid descended like a dash. Although it was merely a blink, a strong wind erupted from it.
Gulp—
I swallowed hard and pulled on the Nightmare’s reins. I aimed to remain as quiet as possible so as not to provoke the immense creature before me.
However, the Nightmare did not change direction. Instead, it took a step closer to the gigantic eye.
Crunch—
The snow beneath my feet crunched as the wind blew away the clouds, revealing the enormous creature.
“Wow…”
A gasp escaped me involuntarily. I stood entranced as I gazed at the giant whale floating in the sky. At that moment, the enormous whale looking down at me began to move its fins. One of its widely spread fins was enormous enough to envelop this entire mountain.
Woooom—
Although it moved slowly, the wind generated by its massive bulk blew away all the snow in the mountain.
The fin came directly in front of me and stopped, as if beckoning me to climb aboard.
My mind became tangled in confusion.
Was it okay to get on the whale’s fin that it was requesting?
It didn’t seem like this whale had any intentions of harming me. Seeing the Nightmare, who usually reacted immediately to danger, remain calm made that clear.
Yet hesitation lingered because of that gigantic size.
“Hmm…”
The giant whale patiently waited for me. How much time had passed like that? I wiped the small beads of sweat forming on my forehead and tugged at the Nightmare’s reins.
Crunch— crunch—
The Nightmare understood my intentions and moved forward. Over the white snowfield, toward the giant whale’s fin.
As I walked upon the whale’s fin, I abruptly realized that the seed I had stowed away in my leather pouch was reacting intensely.
I pulled the seed out just to check, and sure enough.
The seed resting in my palm was radiating a green warmth.
“Could it be…”
I clutched the seed tightly and gazed at the whale’s back. It was enveloped in white clouds, rendering it impossible to see beyond, but I could feel a similar energy beyond the clouds.
I felt almost enchanted as I pulled the reins of the Nightmare, heading onto the cloud-covered whale’s back.
The whale’s back was truly vast. If I were to take the capital of the Karma Empire and plunk it down here, it would be about this size, right?
After walking for a while, the white clouds obscuring my view began to vanish, revealing a new sight ahead.
Glistening in green was the foliage of plants overflowing with life, and the massive wall made of twisting trees grew haphazardly.
I stared at the enormous forest with a bewildered expression. Did all the giant monsters in this world have a hobby of carrying around forests?
It was a fleeting moment of a tiny question. Suddenly, the tightly spaced trees began to rustle and split apart with a roar.
What formed was a narrow passageway made of thick roots. It stretched endlessly through the entire forest.
Just then, a little breeze, which had always been swirling nearby, tugged at my golden hair as if inviting me to enter.
Having come this far, turning back was not an option. I swallowed hard and stepped forward with the Nightmare toward the wooden passage. The moment we entered, a rich, grassy scent wafted over, filling me with vitality.
Had it reacted to the forest’s energy? The seed I held in my hand began to glow brightly. The vibrant green energy that poured out began to bloom flowers around us.
It was the first time I had experienced flowers blooming along my path. I ventured onward along with the Nightmare, lost in thought.
Clack— clack— clack—
After walking for a long while, listening to the sound of the Nightmare’s hooves, we finally reached the end of the endlessly stretching wooden passage.
As I emerged from the passage, I shaded my eyes with my hand. The sunlight shining down from above was blinding.
Upon exiting the wooden passage, what unfolded was a city built atop a giant tree. Thick, broad branches served as pathways, and wooden buildings sat beautifully upon them.
It felt as if I were peering into the forest where a King-like monster lived.
At that moment, a large shadow leaped down from above me. It seemed like a dizzying scene due to the height from which it jumped, but the shadow approached me with such lightness, as if it were walking on air.
A figure with platinum blonde hair fluttered like threads in the wind descended. It was a female elf with long ears protruding sideways. She landed right in front of me, her green eyes sparkling.
“I was waiting for you.”
A gentle melody flowed from the elf woman’s lips. However, I couldn’t grasp the meaning of her words.
“Hello…?”
“Elves…”
Just as I couldn’t understand the elf woman’s words, it seemed she too was unable to understand mine. The elf woman fumbled with a puzzled expression at my greeting, then muttered something softly while glancing back at the giant tree.