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Chapter 376: The Story After (8). [Side Story 8]

[You… you…]

The serpent staggered as it rose, forcing out words through its pain.

[You dare… you dare try to kill me, who was promised immutability since the beginning…?]

“Think I can’t?”

Ketal smiled faintly.

The serpent froze.

For the first time, fear of death appeared in its eyes.

Tap.

Ketal leapt.

His body soared above the serpent’s head, fist clenched, overwhelming aura condensed within it.

Kwaaaaang!

The fist smashed down onto the serpent’s head, driving its massive body into the earth.

[Kaaagh! Kaaaargh!]

A crushing sensation, as though its head was caving in.

The serpent screamed in agony at the unbearable pain it had never known before.

Ketal stomped down on its writhing neck, pinning it.

“I didn’t kill you back at the White Snowfield because there was no meaning in doing so.”

He could have used his authority that overlays the world itself.

If he had, he could have slain even a monster like the serpent back then.

The only reason he did not was because it was meaningless.

“To be honest, my thoughts haven’t changed even now. Killing you and then disposing of your carcass would be a bothersome task.”

The serpent’s body was enormous.

If stretched fully, it could reach the sky—just clearing it away would take considerable time. Incredibly tedious.

But only that much.

“There’s no particular reason not to kill you, either.”

Ketal smiled again.

“Choose. Will you meet the end of your long life here? Or will you return inside and rule over your own domain once more?”

[…]

The serpent could not answer.

It feared death, yet its pride prevented it from meekly agreeing to return.

Ketal understood that sentiment.

“If you want to die proudly, I’ll grant you that.”

Ketal lifted his axe, aura gleaming on the blade.

Only then did the serpent cry out frantically.

[I yield! I yield! I’ll return to the White Snowfield!]

“You should have said that sooner.”

Ketal lowered his axe as if he had expected it.

“Swear it upon your authority—that you will never again leave the White Snowfield, that you will remain there for eternity.”

[…I swear upon the Authority of Immutability. I shall never again emerge into the outer world.]

“Good. Now begone.”

[…]

The serpent seemed about to say more, but fear stopped it.

Instead, it lay down, slithering across the ground until it vanished back toward the White Snowfield.

Watching its retreating figure, Ketal flew over to the Tower Master.

“It’s done. It will never again invade this world.”

[…You. You lied to me. You said that with my strength, I would surely have a chance against a legendary beast. But I had no chance at all.]

“My apologies. I didn’t mean to mislead you.”

Ketal smiled awkwardly.

In his judgment, the strongest class of heroes should have been able to contend with monsters of the White Snowfield.

But from the Tower Master’s experience, the gap seemed larger than Ketal had thought.

‘So the heterogeneity of Authority holds a greater advantage than I expected?’

Absolute superiority in compatibility—apparently the gap was far greater.

[Yet Bayern… that one claimed he wounded a legendary beast. Perhaps it’s a matter of magic, or something else entirely.]

“You’ll have the chance to see for yourself before long. Then you’ll know.”

Ketal supported the Tower Master, who paused.

[See for myself? What do you mean?]

“I received a request.”

Ketal stroked his chin.

“I wasn’t eager to accept, but I owed some favors. Soon enough, you’ll see. If you wish, I’ll tell you more.”

[Please. Tell me, I’m dying of curiosity.]

Ketal replied, and the Tower Master nearly lost his grip on Ketal’s arm.

“The King of the North. The Barbarian King of the outside world. Bayern. He declared he would challenge the White Snowfield.”

* * *

Hwooosh!

The wind blew.

Harsh, bitter wind filled with hostility—cold enough to strip flesh and freeze lungs.

Ketal exhaled.

He was back in the White Snowfield.

But this time, he was not alone.

Behind him stood the Tower Master and the Red Dragon, Ignisia.

Ignisia let out an exclamation.

“So this is the White Snowfield.”

[Remarkable.]

“Tower Master, are you sure you’re well? You only just fought the serpent.”

[I cannot miss the chance to explore this Forbidden Land.]

The last time Ketal had returned here, the Tower Master had fainted from the Old One’s attack.

Later, when he learned that Helia, priestess of the Sun God, had explored the White Snowfield in his stead, he regretted it bitterly.

Now, with the chance to explore the magical realm safely, he would never let it slip away.

“…Cold.”

Ignisia exhaled, her breath scattering in the air.

She was a Red Dragon, born of flame.

She had never once in her life felt cold.

But here, for the first time, she felt the sensation of freezing.

“This isn’t mere cold. The wind itself holds hostility.”

“From here on, follow my lead. If something happens, I can’t promise I’ll be able to protect you.”

“Understood.”

[Understood.]

“And you?”

Ketal turned his head.

Not only the Tower Master and Ignisia followed him—Bayern, King of the North, nodded firmly.

“My resolve is complete.”

“Then let’s move.”

They advanced through the White Snowfield, contending with the monsters and natural threats along the way.

Eventually, they reached their destination.

[…This is unlike anything we’ve seen before.]

The Tower Master groaned.

The White Snowfield was a vast world of glaciers—mostly flat, but each glacier itself was so alien he had once needed Ketal’s help to cut even a fragment for study.

But now before him stretched glaciers shattered and ruined, as if by an earthquake.

The Realm of Destruction.

And deep within it, a colossal bear.

A bear the size of a mountain.

Smaller than the serpent, yet far too massive to be considered mere life.

Instinctively, they knew what it was.

The white bear of legend, said to cause earthquakes.

Ketal stepped forward, raising his hand.

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“Bear. It has been a while. Greetings.”

[…Grrr.]

The bear rumbled as if to ask why they had come.

Ignisia, the Tower Master, and Bayern instinctively summoned their powers, feeling threatened despite the lack of malice in the growl.

Ketal only smiled faintly.

“I’ve come with a small request. Bayern.”

“…Understood.”

Bayern strode forward, standing tall before the massive bear, and shouted.

“I am Bayern, King of the North, master of the Barbarians! O White Bear of the Snowfield! I challenge you to a duel!”

Bayern, the Northern King—he had fought the Filth Rat that invaded the outer world, and even defeated the white bear’s corrupted cub.

In that battle, he had gained a single purpose:

to fight not the cub, but the true White Bear, a legendary beast.

For that purpose, he had shamelessly begged Ketal’s aid.

Ketal had reluctantly agreed, leading them back into the White Snowfield.

[Grrr…]

The bear growled softly, as if to say, Why should I accept such a challenge?

Bayern understood, and disappointment flickered on his face—until…

“Please, bear.”

The bear was calmer than the serpent or the rat, more open to reason.

Ketal spoke.

“He is the one who brought peace to your child.”

[…Grr?]

The bear’s eyes shifted.

‘Is that true?’

Ketal nodded.

“The rat corrupted your cub, enslaving it to invade the outer world. It was this man who gave your child rest.”

[…]

Rumble.

After a moment’s silence, the bear rose.

Ketal smiled.

“Thank you. Then Tower Master, Ignisia—we step back now.”

[…Confirmed.]

“Don’t die, eh?”

“I’ll try.”

Bayern grinned, gripping his axe tightly as he strode forward.

“Then, O White Bear of legend, I beg you! Grant me battle!”

With a roar, Bayern leapt.

The bear swung its paw lazily.

* * *

Kwoooom!

A deafening roar.

The glaciers trembled, the air itself shuddered.

The battle between Bayern and the White Bear had begun.

And it was utterly one-sided.

“…Ketal.”

“What is it?”

“Why did you lie to me?”

Ignisia frowned.

“You told me someone of my strength could stand against the legendary beasts. But it isn’t true.”

[Grrr.]

The White Bear stepped forward, shattering glaciers beneath its paws.

A single lazy swipe sent the very air rippling.

This was the White Snowfield—not the outside world.

Here, every natural phenomenon carried alien power, and even so, the bear overwhelmed it.

“He won’t fall easily. He can wound it, drag the fight on for days if he pushes himself. But…”

Ketal could not say that Bayern could win.

Stroking his chin, he muttered.

“Hm. As I thought.”

Even if their raw power was similar, the overwhelming superiority of Authority made the difference insurmountable.

Even the strongest of the outer world could not truly face these primordial monsters.

This was the White Snowfield—the strength of beasts that had existed since the dawn. Neither Ignisia nor the Tower Master could conceal their awe.

The fight was naturally one-sided.

Bayern was a hero, a powerful warrior who had grown stronger even after the war, but still clearly beneath the Tower Master’s tier.

Kwoooom!

A kick sent Bayern flying.

Claws ripped away his limbs.

The White Bear’s Authority was limitless strength—utterly mismatched against Bayern.

[Shouldn’t we intervene? He looks to be in real danger.]

“He’s at his limit.”

“Khak! Ghhk!”

Bayern spat blood, staggering to his feet with his axe.

“I… I can still fight…”

[Grrr.]

The bear growled as though annoyed, faint killing intent in its eyes.

It raised a massive paw to crush him.

Bayern roared, swinging his axe in defiance.

“This is as far as it goes.”

Ketal stepped in.

He caught Bayern’s wrist and raised his own hand to block the descending paw.

Then he pushed.

Kwaaang!

“Ghhhk!”

[Guahhh!]

Bayern’s body was blown back.

Ignisia summoned fire to catch him.

The bear itself staggered backward from the impact.

[Grrr?]

Such a simple motion—and yet it had been forced back.

Shock filled its eyes.

This was not how it remembered things.

“How about we stop here? Life’s too enjoyable to waste on killing and dying over something so trivial, don’t you think?”

Ketal dusted off his hands.

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