Chapter 629: Thawing

The troop marched steadily eastward, encountering almost none of the anticipated enemies.

No elite crystal legion, no large reinforcements. Along the way, the force personally led by Gawain only ran into a few small bands of wandering crystals—monsters that had lost control, aimlessly roaming the plains and hills. They charged recklessly at the tanks but were easily wiped out, posing no real threat.

This situation persisted until the shattered walls of Boulder City came into view.

The scout returned to the vehicle, removing his multifunction tactical goggles, his face showing surprise. “Report: large areas of freezing detected ahead, with widespread magical energy readings!”

Amber peered through the observation port, taking in the ruined streets outside. Vast swaths of frost coated the collapsed bricks and wooden beams. Tiny bloodstains tinged the ice crystals hanging between the broken walls. At the city’s outskirts, the snow and ice were sparse, but as the group pressed deeper, a world of ice and snow gradually unfolded before them.

Thick, solid ice blanketed the entire inner city. Countless corpses had turned into frozen statues. The howling wind whipped up flurries that pelted the steel armor of the tanks. The city’s core had been struck by a powerful freeze—so intense it made one wonder if winter had returned to this world, despite the season supposed to be warming.

Amber stared in shock at the scene outside, whispering, “What… happened here?”

“A very powerful… wide-area spell. Legendary level,” Leight muttered, clearly impressed. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

“White Knights, dismount and proceed on foot,” Gawain said thoughtfully, gazing at the frozen city through the viewport before suddenly ordering, “The rest of the crews and soldiers, stay alert and move at reduced speed.”

The armored truck carrying the White Knights soon came to a halt. Leight led his elite priests off the vehicle, war hammers in hand, moving to the front of the formation.

Gawain also stepped down with Amber and Maggie. His heavy metal boots struck the hard ice, which cracked with a clear, ethereal sound—not the usual noise of normal ice.

He bent down, picking up shards of the fractured ice. As he infused them with magic and crushed them slowly, the seemingly solid ice shattered crisply before dissolving into drifting motes of magical dust, vanishing into the air.

Amber’s eyes widened. “Ah… all this ice was magically created?”

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this… Snow’s ‘Frostbane’,” Gawain murmured, memories surfacing. He glanced at Maggie, who looked a bit dazed. “When did Victoria break through to the peak of legendary power?”

“Peak legendary? No… Victoria should only be at the early legendary stage,” Maggie hesitated, then asked nervously, “You know what happened here? Why is it so quiet—no enemies or mountain legions in sight…?”

“Don’t worry,” Gawain interrupted. “Since this place is frozen, she and the mountain legion must still be alive. Of course, some other things are probably still alive too…”

Before he could finish, a scout ahead suddenly shouted, “Sir! There are many frozen giants here!”

The sight was unforgettable—countless crystal giants trapped inside thick ice, their bodies encased in translucent layers that looked like strange armor, standing motionless in the sunlight. They were gathered in groups across the castle’s plazas, steps, and roads, frozen in various poses as if unaware that winter had come at the very moment they were immobilized.

It seemed most of the crystal giants that had besieged Boulder City had been left here.

Amber stared at the eerie scene, then finally spoke, “Is this the Northern Duke’s doing? If she had this power… why didn’t she use it sooner?”

“This is the legendary spell ‘Frostbane,’ but I doubt Victoria can wield it skillfully. When used unskilfully, Frostbane can’t kill a single enemy—it only freezes them temporarily. Victoria probably cast it after realizing reinforcements were coming, to hold the crystal legion that could have quickly returned to Red Maple in place,” Gawain speculated, a hint of nostalgia in his voice. “Not quite like Snow back in the day—he really mastered Frostbane.”

Leight approached Gawain. “What do we do with these… ice sculptures?”

“Break them while they’re still frozen,” Gawain said, glancing at the heavy war hammers in the White Knights’ hands, then at the surrounding vehicles and soldiers, and finally back at the crystal giants. “Leave only the largest one intact and lock it down. Once it thaws, it might be useful for research.”

“They’ll thaw out?!” Leight was startled, then quickly ordered his men, “Get to work—break these ice sculptures!”

The White Knights swung their hammers, attempting to save the souls trapped in twisted form. Gawain strode toward a nearby slope. “Let’s check on Victoria inside. The center of the Frostbane seems to be the castle courtyard. She should be waiting for us there.”

Inside the castle courtyard, Gawain and Amber soon found the mountain legion frozen as well, clustered around Victoria, the Grant Duchess, surrounded by knights and mages.

The last of the mountain legion and their ruler were encased in a massive artificial ice formation, far thicker than the ice outside. It froze nearly two-thirds of the courtyard into a single block. Even the White Knights’ hammers likely couldn’t break it. Through the crystal-clear ice, Gawain could see the exhausted but resolute soldiers, the scarred knights, the mages and attendants with drawn daggers—and, of course, Victoria Wilde herself, clutching her staff, frozen with the last expression she wore before the freeze.

Seeing Victoria frozen like this, Gawain’s expression showed surprise.

Everyone was awed by the power and brilliance of this legendary spell. Gawain set aside his surprise and began explaining from memory: “Snow Wilde created Frostbane. It’s a spell that temporarily freezes an entire battlefield. The summoned ice can even trap weaker legendary warriors inside. But it doesn’t actually kill—the ice is a magical construct, and those frozen are merely suspended in a magical field. When Frostbane ends and the field dissipates, the frozen regain their freedom. So it’s only for crowd control, not direct damage.”

“Something about this spell seems off…” Amber frowned, staring at the huge ice block in the courtyard. “If the caster gets frozen inside too… what’s the point? Everyone just freezes together, cools off, then keeps fighting once the ice melts?”

Gawain glanced at Victoria, pondering briefly. “Back then, Snow never froze himself inside Frostbane… I can’t figure out how Victoria ended up frozen with it.”

Amber: “…Huh?”

Leight and his priests took some time to carry out Gawain’s orders, smashing all the “ice sculptures” found in the castle’s inner city—that is, killing every frozen crystal creature. Gawain waited longer by the courtyard, until the Frostbane’s effect finally ended and the magic dissipated.

Before their eyes, the massive ice block shattered and vanished almost instantly. The mountain legion survivors trapped inside gradually regained consciousness. Their minds seemed stuck in the previous state; they first moved in a flurry of instinct, then slowly realized they were surrounded by fully armed strangers.

Once the confusion settled, Gawain stepped forward, crossing through lingering magical crystals in the air, and extended his hand to the stunned Victoria. “I didn’t expect to meet you like this—luckily, I wasn’t too late.”

“You… you’re the one attacking Red Maple?!” Victoria seemed to finally register the situation, reaching out hesitantly. Such a breach of etiquette was rare for the Grant Duchess, but given what she’d just endured, it was understandable. “I never imagined… those monsters outside the castle…”

“They’ve been dealt with. I know Frostbane,” Gawain smiled. “But I’m curious—aren’t you worried about people who don’t understand Frostbane approaching? Once the ice melts, those suddenly reanimated crystal giants could be a huge threat.”

“Anyone capable of rescuing the mountain legion in Ansu definitely knows Frostbane—it’s the Wilde family’s signature power,” Victoria said. “But… I really didn’t expect it would be you.”

“Right now, I think only the southern border still has intact military forces,” Gawain shook his head, then looked at Leight, who had just returned from his task. “You and the White Knights treat the wounded—there are many who need urgent care and disease removal. Also, bring food and prepare clean water…”

The soldiers sprang into action. A tense but orderly rescue operation began. The injured mountain legionnaires quickly received effective treatment and comfort, while the food and water replenished their exhausted bodies.

Amid the busy relief efforts, Victoria forced herself to ask Gawain about the outside situation.

“Unfortunately, the capital’s knight orders lack the strength to turn the tide. They’re probably fighting desperately to defend Saint Suniel now. The western legion hasn’t appeared near the Gorgon River—they may be thrown directly into the Saint Suniel battlefield. The eastern legion has been wiped out. The entire east is now lawless. I’m trying to maintain order there…”

Gawain relayed the grim news, each piece weighing heavily on Victoria’s mood.

“I never imagined it had gotten this bad…” The duchess frowned deeply. Usually reserved, today her emotions were laid bare, her whole demeanor unusually vivid. “I thought the east would hold some main forces against this disaster… but it’s worse than the mountain legion.”

“This disaster started there,” Gawain said, then looked at Victoria with curiosity. “Actually, I’m really curious—why did your Frostbane freeze you too? From what I know, Snow never froze himself inside when he created the spell.”

Victoria fell silent for a moment, and the atmosphere in the room grew slightly awkward during those few seconds.

“Actually, I don’t truly possess the power of this spell…” The duchess finally admitted with a hint of embarrassment. She took out a pale gold snowflake-shaped amulet, a family heirloom, her voice tinged with guilt—as if she were letting down her ancestors. “The ‘Frost Calamity’ was lost generations ago. The strength of the Wilde family has always been symbolized by this amulet.”

So the northern Wilde family had lost the legacy of the Frost Calamity many generations back…

Gawain felt a sudden pang of melancholy, reflecting on the relentless passage of time. But soon, his gaze was drawn to the unique luster of the amulet’s material in Victoria’s hand.

“Do you know where the material for this amulet came from? Did you melt down a piece of Eternal Stone?!”

(End of chapter)