The thirteenth world of the World Tree, the land of permafrost.

The eastern outpost of Neverwinter, inside the central watchtower.

The locked door was opened, and the sentry, wrapped in a cotton coat, stepped into the circular hallway outside.

Looking down against the heavy snow, the rapid cold wind made it difficult for him to open his eyes.

The snow fog limited his vision, and he couldn't see the distant scenery - everything was hidden in the thick white snow mist.

Why is the snow fog so thick today...... I'm afraid that even the torches held by the captains and others will not be able to see clearly after a while, right? Looking at the several blazing braziers and torches under the watchtower, the sentries were a little uneasy: it was still sunny and snowless this morning...... In order to increase the reserves of cured meat in the cellars of each household, many hunters went to the mountains to hunt in the north.

However, just an hour earlier, two hunters who had gone hunting in the morning had fled to the watchtower tremblingly, claiming to have witnessed the spreading black ice. After sending a sentry to escort the two back to Neverwinter to report to the lord, the captain immediately decided to lead the sentry into the mountains to explore the black ice.

To be on the safe side, the captain also sent a snow raven to deliver the message, believing that if Neverwinter did not learn this information in time, it would probably cause serious consequences.

Almost everyone went out to investigate Black Ice, including the coward Brenda ...... The sentry muttered to himself: Just leave me, a new soldier, in the watchtower to watch over the house.

He asked to go with him, and all he got was that this operation was not for the recruits, so let's wait until you were more experienced - and besides, you were too frizzy to be cautious right now.

I don't have to take anything exciting with me...... He felt very helpless at the captain's words: although he also felt a hint of fear, curiosity always prevailed. He desperately wished he was walking in the line instead of staying in the watchtower.

Sighing, he felt chills all over his body. Walking back into the house with his heavy cotton coat, the sentry locked the door behind him.

Sitting in front of the window that controlled the northern vision, the sentry, who was just without gloves, rubbed his stiff hands, as if something was wrong.

Half of the fuel in the stove was extinguished—he was stunned for a moment before he realized.

What's going on? Just as I stepped outside, it crackled......

Probably blown out by the wind?, looking at the unshrouded hearth, the sentry muttered to himself.

Perhaps the charcoal in the hearth was damp, and as he crouched down close to the hearth, the sentry reached out and picked up a piece of extinguished charcoal: it was dry and still had the heat of burning.

Pinching it, the sentry was stunned: he had just realized the stupidity of his initial thoughts: if the charcoal was damp, it would not have been lit at all—how could it have burned for an hour?

Looking up, the sentry suddenly had another thought in his mind: someone had just come in to make trouble.

But how is this possible...... Shaking his head, the sentry denied it: although the wind was loud outside, he would not be unable to hear the loud old wooden door. Besides, there is no point in extinguishing half of the fire.

Knowing that this idea was nonsense, but in order to completely disprove this speculation, he got up and walked to the door, and looked at the deadbolt that was still locked.

The sentry, who rekindled the fire and sat back in his chair, looked out the window at the snow and mist, feeling bored: he could only wait patiently for the captain to return.

To refresh himself, he placed a jug of water on the stove and prepared to make some hot tea for a while.

I don't know when they'll be back...... Looking at the steam coming out of the kettle, the Sentinel leaned back in his soft chair, closing his eyes slightly as he thought about the recent rumors he had heard from the Hunter and the news from the Ravens of Neverwinter: it seemed that everything was getting worse.

The hunters who had come to hunt in the eastern snow-capped mountains were housed in this outpost, and the hunting group numbered fifty men - the captain said that he had never seen a hunter go so far to the eastern mountains to hunt, so this alone showed how urgent the food storage had been.

Every afternoon, Winterfell's carriages come and haul away large numbers of prey. And these hunters make a lot of money for it, and Mace has always been very generous in this kind of thing.

Only two hunters came back today...... Looking out the window at the blizzard, he was very worried about the lives of the forty-eight people. Today all the hunters have gone up the mountain.

The snow-free day is over...... According to Maestro Nadia's theory, Winter's Breath has arrived.

If only Winter's Breath hadn't come as promised...... The sentinel prayed from the heart. However, Mace is afraid that a lot of the money spent on the purchase of supplies will be wasted: he buys prey on a large scale and sells it to every household at a very low price to ensure that everyone's ice cellar can be filled with vats of cured meat.

Also delivered cheaply by Mace in large quantities, there is also charcoal and firewood. These things, no matter how much they are stored, are not usable. Food can be minimized, but in the cold, you can't save money on heating – unless you have a hot spring in your home.

If only the outpost also had a hot spring...... The Sentinel felt unusually cold since the blizzard fell - maybe it had been because it hadn't snowed in a long time.

He was glad to have a lord like Mace, as did all the inhabitants of Neverwinter - as far as he knew, the relationship between people and lords in the warm lands beyond the Frozen Lands was often extremely bad.

How did the stupid lords, who constantly loudly declared their lordship and personal power, and demanded that people obey him, maintain their rule? The Sentinel had always been puzzled by this—it seemed to him inconceivable and illogical.

A dark winter that can take everyone's life...... The sentry shuddered: he had heard many terrible stories, and people were instinctively terrified of everything about the Dark Glacier.

The water boiled, and he sprinkled the tea leaves into it, put the lid back on and waited.

Sensing that the tea was almost ready, the sentry picked up the teapot and poured a cup of tea. However, at this moment, he caught a glimpse of some red light close at hand outside the window. Excitedly rising, he leaned down in front of the window and looked at the road in front of the outpost: the light of several torches was shining in the snow and mist.

Delighted to open the door, the sentry rushed down the stairs: he couldn't wait to hear if they had seen Black Ice with their own eyes.

Pushing open the gate of the watchtower, the sentry covered himself with his overcoat and walked slowly down the long steps against the oncoming blizzard - the watchtower was built on the high ground in the center of the post.

Tightening his hood, the sentry jumped down the last step and his boots dug deep into the snow.

Captain, their team is coming back...... Thinking of the approaching light of the torch from the window at the top of the tower, the sentry rushed eagerly towards the closed gate of the outpost.

Listening to the sound of his comrades jumping off their horses and the captain's distinctive knock on the door, the sentry quickly untied the crossbar from the deadbolt and leaned it on the rope beside the door.

Without much thought, the door opened, and the sentry was about to say something when a long sword stabbed him in the chest.

Bowing his head sluggishly, the sentry looked in shock at the long sword buried deep in his chest.

"Team...... Long?"

The sword was drawn in an instant, and the sentry fell to his knees, clutching a large amount of blood.

The wind pounded the sentinel's face twisted by pain, and he looked up in fear at the people standing in front of him.

The last thing that appeared in the pupils was a stiff face covered in festering dark spots and dark blue corruption, and eyes glowing with a cold blue light.