The biting cold wind howled like an enraged beast roaring among the mountains. Veronica and the knights accompanying her braved the blade-like Ice Wind up a mountain slope. Their view stretched over the steep, knife-hewn peaks. The mountains lay silent in the night, their outlines barely visible. One side was as smooth as a mirror, glittering beneath the Moon of the Golden Sea and radiating a pale light.
At the foot of the mountain, a mass of dark creatures was gathering. They flowed together like water, forming a vast black expanse numbering roughly ten thousand. More creatures soared through the sky. The monsters were guarding Odus Pass, completely blocking the road leading to the Alka region.
Every so often, the howls of monsters were carried from that direction by the wind. In the heavy darkness, they sounded all the more chilling.
"These monsters really did slow us down while circling ahead to block our path. Odus Pass is the only mountain road nearby that leads to the Alka region. Otherwise, we can only detour farther north. But the monsters' main force is already behind us, and we don't have much time left to choose."
The speaker was Laurenna. The daughter of the grand master of the Templar Knight Order, she had once traveled with her fiancé, Firas, as part of the Imperial entourage accompanying Brando on an expedition into the Dead Frost Forest. After the great explosion, she and Firas returned home. Before long, the Silver Queen and Veronica imprisoned them both, but Brando later rescued them together.
After the upheaval in Rushta, she left Bankel with Veronica, Vala, and the others via teleportation and arrived in East Metz, where they suffered that disastrous defeat. With officers in short supply after one defeat after another, Faina had not only taken