'Tsk… it's so cold!'
Arthur rubbed his arms as he walked calmly through the freezing streets of Aurora Vale.
The first city he had arrived at in the Antarctica Campaign—which had already been several weeks underway.
The streets were covered in a light layer of snow, while the tracks of PTVs and trucks could be distinguished on the asphalt.
The sidewalks in the area he was in were occupied by citizens waiting in line for the evacuation process. Which had only just begun that day.
In the first few days, only citizens with the highest priority would be evacuated—mostly scientists, some politicians, and other important figures.
The rest of the citizens would be evacuated from the city throughout the week, following the priority order established by the government.
Arthur was walking alongside the sidewalk but on the street, and his goal was to find somewhere without many civilians to sit and relax a few minutes before continuing with his tasks.
A week and a few days had passed since the incident with the Corrupted Tyrant that had sent him and Jet tumbling into the interior of a mountain.
Since that day, they had done nothing but face countless Nightmare Gates that the government sent them to resolve for the creation of safe routes from the interior capitals to Mount Erebus.
With that first step of the plan complete, his current task was to supervise the evacuation of this city until no civilians remained, and then leave to do the same from Mount Erebus to Falcon Scott.
Obviously, this plan could fail at any moment with the appearance of some powerful creature demanding their attention, causing the task of clearing the routes to be passed to some other irregular cohort.
In fact, another reason they were inside the city and not outside clearing the nearby zones was the appearance of multiple Gates to the north of the city.
Fortunately, the city's position gave them a slight advantage, being located on one of the highest mountains in all of Antarctica—nearly five kilometers high. Additionally, it was almost on the edge, so the entire southern area of the city was at the limit.
The mountain had internal street systems through which the evacuation would be carried out without complications.
To the north, it was another problem.
Exactly three Category Three Gates had opened just a few kilometers apart from each other, and as if that weren't enough, multiple Category Two Gates surrounded them.
From the first ones, multiple Corrupted emerged, but the most dangerous were two Corrupted Devils and one Corrupted Terror. The first two had already been killed by the cohort, while the Terror remained alive.
Adding the number of creatures that emerged from the Category Two Gates, plus the rest that remained loose from the other Gates and other swarms that had found their way to the city, Arthur estimated that there could easily be more than a thousand Nightmare Creatures north of the city, being controlled by a Corrupted Terror.
The situation wouldn't have gone so badly if they had been able to kill the Terror as soon as it emerged, but it was impossible. They had managed to kill both Devils and the rest of the Corrupted, but that was already a lot.
At that time, it was only Sylvie, Jet, Regis, and Arthur, because Seishan was in Ravenheart informing the Queen of the situation on the continent. Meanwhile, the Awakened from the cohort were carrying out other tasks within the city.
Another reason they hadn't managed to defeat the Corrupted Terror was the creature's own strength—mainly two abilities that made it very difficult to deal with.
One of them was very basic—it could turn invisible. The other was the ability to have an extremely resistant body.
Arthur knew this because even though it turned invisible, he could still detect it thanks to his Aether Sense, and from a great distance, he had launched multiple deadly arrows with the combination of [Drowned Oath] and [Tempest Shafts].
The former was a strength multiplier with each accurate hit, while the latter made arrows that traveled farther become stronger. Even so, none had managed to pierce the Terror's body enough.
He let out a sigh and continued walking through the streets. It didn't take him much longer to reach his destination—a simple bench in one of the city's squares.
This one was relatively basic, with swings and different games, plus football courts, trees, and some food stalls.
The square had a small number of civilians—mostly children playing among themselves while their parents talked peacefully with each other.
Although the city was under constant attack by the Corrupted Terror's minions, the civilians who weren't going to be evacuated anytime soon continued with their daily lives.
That was exactly what his cohort was for—to ensure they could keep doing so, and in return, they would leave them alone, understanding perfectly the tension of being in constant combat mode.
Though that didn't stop some civilians from asking for photos or autographs… The corner of Arthur's mouth curved slightly at the memory.
Arthur wasn't currently fighting because it was his turn to rest. Even though he had greater endurance than most, he still needed to rest, or Sylvie and the rest would get angry with him.
He understood the reason for their anger, but at the same time, he needed to keep fighting. Because of what happened with Jet, he had lost three cores—he had only been able to recover one, and Arthur wanted to become a Titan again as quickly as possible.
Right now, he was a little beyond halfway to the fragments needed to become a Terror.
Remembering Jet, he couldn't help but let out a deep sigh.
'…That was a big mess.'
Jet breaking two cores with a single blow, then him sacrificing one more to save her, and everything that happened afterward…
Because of the trust they had in each other, Arthur decided to be honest with Jet. So now the list of people who knew about his Divine Aspect had increased by one. She had already figured out that there was something strange about his cores, so there was no point in lying to her.
He also told her the story of the Djinn, though only the basics—nothing more, nothing less. Enough for her to understand her new Attributes and the potential she would have, which was not going to be low…
They had spent more time together than usual because of that, as he had also started teaching her about the Djinn language, and Jet had been absorbing his teachings at an absurdly fast rate.
'Are all people from the Outskirts like this?' Arthur wondered.
First, Sunny learning to fight better following his advice in just a few months, and now Jet learning a new language in a short time as well…
Still, he also made sure to teach her that while she was learning the runes quickly, that didn't mean she could generate rune arrays or combine them effectively yet.
That was something Arthur also struggled with, so Jet would have to wait a little longer for him to teach her.
What bothered Arthur the most wasn't Jet's rapid learning, nor the fact that he had to expose some of his secrets to her. In fact, it wasn't related to Jet at all.
It was his Aspect Legacy.
Specifically, his Legacy of Life branch. Which was intertwined with his fame and the number of Struggles Answered.
He had obtained the second mastery relatively quickly compared to what he had thought it would take, and when he calmed down, he learned the reason—which wasn't hard to imagine.
The news of him in Antarctica had become public just one week after the operation began. Which hadn't been in his plans or the Queen's.
And although Valor might have found out before the news became public, it wasn't in their interest to leak it—they would lose popularity against Song if they did.
So neither clan leaked it, and the government didn't either, due to their deal with the Queen and because only four people within the government knew about it—one of them being Jet, his parents, and Saint Cor.
With that in mind, the possibility of the news being leaked was almost nonexistent. Yet it happened. And Arthur didn't know who could have done it, though he had ideas.
First, he thought of Nephis—maybe this could be a way for her to force him to help her in her impossible mission—but that wouldn't make sense either.
So who could it have been? Who could gain any benefit from this?
In fact, the second question was a trick.
Because only two people could benefit from this news, considering what had already happened… One of them was him, while the other was Jet.
This didn't mean Jet had leaked them, but rather that someone benefited from leaking the news so that both beneficiaries would survive exactly what happened against the Corrupted Tyrant.
And who could know what happened against the Tyrant without being present?
An Oracle, or better said—Cassie.
Maybe she had a vision and saw Jet dying, so she leaked the news so that he could somehow save her… Although this theory of Arthur's doesn't explain how Cassie knew he could save Jet with his second mastery of his Aspect Legacy.
Or how she knew his Aspect Legacy depended on his fame…
'My head is starting to hurt…'
Although it bothered him not to know, he couldn't do anything about it right now, and regardless, it helped him save Jet.
A Jet who was completely grateful to him and who looked at him with different eyes now—similar to the gaze of the children in the square who watched him with admiration and reverence.
Looks he didn't like at all, but that he also understood. Right now, he was the hope for these children to have a future—to defeat the Nightmare Creatures so they could keep living.
Something similar happened with Jet, whose life had been in his hands without her knowing. That was why, when she woke up that day with everything resolved, she was more than anything amazed by the things she had obtained. It was only afterward, when he explained what he had done, that she realized the sacrifice and effort he had made.
That was why she thanked him tremendously afterward, and also agreed to stop bothering him about Seishan, so Arthur was satisfied in that regard.
He took a deep breath and let his thoughts calm down as time passed slowly.
Small snowflakes fell on his shoulders as he remained seated, and he decided to start meditating until it was his turn to go back on guard.
His surroundings began to disappear little by little until his mental state was in complete peace, making his essence recover quickly, and soon his five cores were full of Aether essence.
It didn't take long until Sylvie's voice sounded in his mind.
'Art?' she asked.
He opened his eyes—which he didn't remember closing—and replied, 'Is it my turn, Sylv?'
She replied immediately.
'Yes. Seishan is on the verge of running out of essence, and Jet was just called to an urgent meeting related to the evacuation.'
'Okay, I'm on my way.'
Arthur stood up from the bench and watched the children still playing while their parents talked with the parents of other children—everything was peaceful in the square.
As if a few kilometers away, there weren't hundreds of Nightmare Creatures trying to break through the wall to kill them…
Still, he smiled at them and headed north.
Due to the gravity of the situation and the required urgency, he decided to use Godstep to arrive faster, and moments later, he used it for the last time.
Feeling the Aetheric Pathways, they left him on the wall, about eighty meters high, made of black stone.
A few meters ahead, Sylvie abandoned her dragon form and stood beside him, watching the distance.
About eight kilometers to the north, on one of the mountain peaks, two Category Two Gates and one Category Three Gate could be seen, which for the moment were not expelling any Nightmare Creatures.
Slightly to the east and a few kilometers further away, the terrain was flatter, and Arthur, using his sharp vision, could see Regis's figure having fun as he tore apart Awakened and Fallen creatures that were unfortunate enough to cross his path.
The rest of the Nightmare Creatures were even further away—almost fifteen kilometers from the city—but would only take minutes to reach it. The higher-ranked creatures were at the back of the swarm, covered by the lower-ranked ones.
While the Corrupted Terror was impossible to perceive at that distance.
Looking to the side, Arthur asked, "Ready?"
"Always," Sylvie replied with a smile, returning his gaze.
Arthur nodded, and she took her dragon form again beside him. He used Godstep to appear on Sylvie's back, and she headed toward the swarm.
Slowly, Djinn of War appeared over his body, covering him in dark purple plates with gold details between them, forming the design of his Aether-related Attributes. The process finished right at his chest with the symbol of a golden spear pointing toward a red heart being held by gold lines that seemed to want to crush it.
Every time he used the Attribute, Arthur truly felt ready for war.
He felt both lineages coming together to create the perfect weapon—and that weapon was him.
Then, Dawn's Ballad appeared in his hand, ready to take lives and continue its path to becoming a Supreme-rank weapon.
With everything ready, Arthur smiled darkly, and it didn't take long for the sound of battle to be heard again through his ears in the snowy mountains of Antarctica…
***
In Bastion at that same moment.
Morgan knocked lightly on the door before her and waited a few seconds. Upon hearing a voice granting her entry, she pushed the door open and stepped into the room.
To her left, with his hands clasped behind his back, stood Sebastian. The butler was wearing an impeccable black suit.
In front of her, seated behind the desk, was her father. The King of Swords. Sovereign of the Valor Clan.
He was a man with broad shoulders and a posture as straight and sharp as a steel sword. He wore impeccably designed armor and a long vermilion cloak.
He had black hair like hers, but his eyes were gray. Compared to Morgan's vermilion eyes, her father's were completely cold—like tempered steel.
Upon entering the room, she remained silent while her father continued reading some papers at his desk. She didn't dare make a sound. It wasn't fear—simply respect. At least, that was what she told herself.
Morgan began counting internally how long it took her father to lift his gaze from the papers and focus on her. Exactly four minutes and thirty-two seconds. That was how long she stood without moving or breaking her composure.
Eventually, her father looked up from the papers and focused on her.
Without changing his expression, he said, "Why am I only learning about Paragon of Purity's presence in Antarctica this week?"
'Because you spend all your time locked away making swords.' Morgan said mentally.
She didn't respond immediately, so as not to sound rushed, and informed him in a neutral tone:
"The information was leaked a week and a few days ago. We haven't discovered its origin, but we've been able to confirm its veracity."
Morgan didn't directly answer her father's question, but she made it clear through her wording that it was mostly his own fault for not finding out sooner.
The King remained silent for a few seconds and continued speaking in his cold, dry tone.
"Sebastian, give the order to accelerate the plans in Antarctica and send a Master cohort after Paragon of Purity. If they confirm visual identification and the circumstances are right, they are to attack on the spot."
Then he looked at Morgan.
"Contact Nephis—I want the two of you to make more public appearances together. Also, communicate with the government to acquire more Gates to resolve."
Sebastian and Morgan gave a small bow.
"As you wish, my King."
"You may leave now, Morgan," her father added, lowering his gaze back to the documents.
She didn't respond but nodded, withdrawing from the room and heading toward Nephis's quarters.
Unbeknownst to Morgan, inside the room she had just left, the King looked up again and addressed Sebastian.
"Summon Madoc immediately. I have a mission for him."
Sebastian gave another bow and replied, "As you wish, my King."
After that, he withdrew from the room and went to carry out his orders.