They were still resting when Wor-en finally stood, brushing snow from his cloak. The fire beside him was dying, its embers crackling weakly in the freezing wind.

  “Suri,” he said, his voice steady but tired. “Any word from the principal?”

  Suri’s eyes went distant, glassy — the same way they always did when she sent her illusions far from her body. A faint shimmer flickered across her irises like rippling water. After a moment, she frowned and scratched the back of her head.

  “Can’t reach him,” she said. “The principal’s in a place where my illusions can’t get through. It’s like the air folds around that room — no image, no sound, nothing gets in. But they’re somewhere in the fortress.”

  Wor-en grunted softly, exhaling a pale mist that coiled in the air before the wind scattered it.

  “Well,” he said, “that settles it. We’ll stick to the original plan.”

  A ripple of unease passed through the students. Some exchanged weary looks; others stared into the fire as if hoping the warmth might burn away their doubt. Leo muttered something under his breath. Rin’s shoulders slumped, and Yuri sighed in quiet resignation.

  The silence stretched until it was broken — by humming.

  Kana sat a little apart from the others, crouched near the flames with her bow across her lap. She hummed a light tune, soft but oddly cheerful, tapping her finger against the wooden curve of her weapon.

  Suri gave her a look. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

  Kana tilted her head, eyes still fixed on the fire. “Of course. You don’t get this kind of opportunity every day.”

  “Opportunity,” Rin repeated flatly. “Monsters are always dangerous, Kana.”

  Kana smiled faintly. “And we lived. That means we can do better next time.”

  She nodded in satisfaction as she looked at the text of god in front of her, showing the list of their levels. The next battle would be much easier.

  Wor-en watched her, an unreadable look in his eyes. There was something about the girl — not just her skill, but the calm way she accepted danger, as though every fight was just another page in a story she’d already read.

  He turned toward the horizon, where gray clouds gathered over the endless stretch of white. Somewhere out there, more monsters were waiting —dungeons spilling their contents into the world.

  “Pack your things,” he said finally. “We will move out.”

  The students groaned but obeyed. Suri’s illusions shimmered like faint mirages, checking their perimeter. Boris tested the edge of his spear, a bit concerned if the spear durability would last a day. Adam tightened the strap on his modified gauntlets.

  Kana stood last, slinging her quiver over her shoulder, her eyes bright despite the cold.

  The others saw exhaustion, danger, maybe even fear.

  Kana saw something else — a battlefield of possibilities. A rare chance to lvl up a lot.

  ….

  Roy was now being carried on Adam’s back like a sack of potatoes, his arms dangling limply, the wooden case full of the Shadow Man’s bones strapped awkwardly across Boris’s broad shoulders.

  “You should enroll in the Physical Enhancement class, Roy,” Rin teased, brushing snow from her hood. “We’re not even halfway.”

  Roy groaned. “I hate hard labor. I’ll be fine once my mana’s back.”

  Adam huffed. “You’re paying me for this.”

  “Don’t forget me,” Boris added, the corners of his mouth twitching into a grin.

  Roy only managed a tired smile.

  The trail stretched ahead, a winding line of footprints vanishing into the white horizon. The northern soldiers marched easily, boots crunching through the frost, but the students’ steps grew slower, heavier.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  Leo shivered violently. “Toby,” he said, glancing sideways, “how in the world are you not freezing? You’re wearing that?”

  Toby glanced down at his thin battle robe. He already removed the thick clothes he was wearing before. “Strangely… it doesn’t feel that cold here.”

  “You sure about that?” Yuri said through chattering teeth. “Because I’m freezing down to my soul.”

  “You might have northern blood in you,” Suri said dryly, rolling her eyes toward Toby’s small frame. “Uhm.. Somewhere deep, deep inside.”

  Yuri looked ahead. Even the northern soldiers had their arms folded tight, steam curling from their breath. “I doubt it,” she muttered. “They’re shivering but not as worse as we are.”

  Kana raised her gaze toward the dim gray sky. The air here felt different — sharp and heavy, like something unseen pressing against her skin. The cold wasn’t natural. She could feel it, that subtle hum of wrongness her [High Awareness] always whispered when the world twisted around her.

  A curse, maybe. Or a dungeon’s influence leaking through the snow.

  She glanced back at Toby, who still walked calmly through the chill as if he were basking in a spring breeze.

  Right.. A curse.

  “Toby,” Kana said, “use your skill on me.”

  He blinked. “Are you sure? It might—”

  “I’m sure.”

  Toby hesitated only a second, then raised his hand.

  [Dispel Curse]

  A faint warmth pulsed from his palm, washing over Kana like a splash of warm water. The bite of the cold vanished instantly — and now, with all her layers, she felt too warm.

  “I knew it!” Kana said, grinning. “The whole area’s under some kind of cur—I mean some sort of dungeon influence. For some reason, your skill cancels it out!”

  That was all it took. One by one, the others lined up before Toby like pilgrims seeking blessing. Each time he cast his skill, the air shimmered faintly, and the students sighed in relief, shedding coats and scarves.

  Even the northern soldiers exchanged surprised looks, they didn’t hesitate to get the warm buff from Toby.

  When Toby finally turned to Zia, the ancient woman only smiled faintly. She stood still in her simple cloak, steam curling gently from her breath.

  “I need no buff,” she said, her voice carrying that soft, timeless cadence. “Cold and heat are nothing to one who has walked long enough.”

  Kana wasn’t sure whether Zia was joking or serious—but she suspected it was both.

  “You sound like an old woman sometimes, Miss Zia,” Boris said, kicking a chunk of snow from his boot.

  Zia’s golden eyes flicked toward him, narrowing ever so slightly. “Some habits,” she said, voice soft but edged like polished glass, “are difficult to forget. I’m still learning how this generation of humans talk.”

  She leaned a little closer, her golden gaze catching the faint blue light of the snow. “And, Boris… never tell a woman she’s old.”

  Boris blinked. “Oh, uh— I didn’t mean—”

  Kana sighed, already walking past them. “She likes women,” she said over her shoulder. “But he’s so clueless.”

  Boris spun to her, face twisting between confusion and protest. “What do you mean by that?”

  Suri laughed softly, a lilting sound that carried over the cold wind. “You’re kinda hopeless, Boris,” she said, tilting her head with mock pity. “I feel really bad for Elle.”

  Boris frowned, scratching his neck. “What?”

  Kana just shook her head. “Exactly.”

  Zia chuckled, the sound low and rich, like a distant bell. “You humans really are entertaining,” she said, slipping her hands behind her back as they continued walking through the pale drifts. “Almost makes me forget how fragile you are.”

  “See?” Boris said. “That sounded like an old woman again.”

  A loud smack could be heard.

  “Looks like we’re going to have a casualty.” Wor-en sighed as Boris groaned.

  ……

  Kana trudged through the thick snow until she reached Suri, her boots crunching softly against the frost. “Hey,” she murmured, her breath fogging the air, “will there be another wave of monsters ahead?”

  Suri closed her eyes for a heartbeat, her mana tracing faint ripples through the cold wind. “Hmm… not as many as before,” she said finally. “One group on our route, another off to the east. After that, there’s a dungeon entrance.”

  Kana’s lips curved in determination. “Then we’ll get all the remaining exp before anyone else does.”

  Before Suri could respond, Kana darted forward, snow scattering behind her boots. She caught up to the front line where the northern soldiers marched in perfect rhythm, their armor glinting faintly beneath the overcast light. She called out, “Sir Jarl!”

  The captain—broad, bearded, and silent as an iceberg—turned his head slightly.

  “There are only a few monsters left on our route,” Kana said quickly. “But I want to clear the other side as well. Let’s increase our pace.”

  Jarl studied her, his expression unreadable. The cold wind pressed against them both, the only sound the steady crunch of boots behind them. Then, finally, his deep voice rumbled through the chill that they couldn’t feel any longer.

  “Heard there’s quite a competition in your academy,” he said. “It must be that, you’re in a hurry to kill more.”

  Kana forced a smile. “Something like that,” she replied, though her heart beat faster for another reason entirely.

  A moment later, Jarl raised his hand, signaling his men. The northern soldiers quickened their pace, long strides cutting through the snow. The students groaned, boots slipping, but they followed anyway—because Kana did.

  The air grew sharper as they descended into a hollow blanketed by mist. The next wave came fast—frost wolves bursting from beneath the drifts, ice lizardmen crawling from the frozen ridges. But this time, the fear was gone.

  Kana’s daggers flashed in her hands like silver sparks. She moved with precise confidence, bending with the rhythm of each strike. She ducked beneath a frost wolf’s leap, spun, and drove a blade into its flank. Steam burst from the wound.

  “Next!” she called, voice bright with adrenaline.

  The others joined in—Leo’s shield shone from enchantment, Adam’s now using an axe cleaved through a lizardman’s chest, Suri’s illusions split the field into ghostly duplicates that confused the enemy.

  It was no longer survival. It was a hunt.

  Kana’s heart pounded as she felt the rhythm of combat flow through her veins. Each kill, each flash of light, each sound of steel echoed a single truth: more exp.