Zach watched as the bird's blood seeped into the snow.
Wow.
He looked at the blade.
Previously, he hadn't been able to defeat a fiend, but now…
Zach's eyes trailed off to the overgrown pelican's dead body lying at the side.
He can kill a fiend.
Zach looked at the expanse of white ice beyond the cliff.
Something occurred to him. Seeing the huge scene made him realize something:
There is always someone higher.
If you think that's the greatest threat already—there's always something greater.
If someone reaches the stage of curiosity, capable of cutting boulders in two, there are people who can split mountains.
If a person can split mountains…
There are people who can tear through continents.
The world is an endless grind.
For the first time, Zach's future seemed unclear.
To him, his future had always been: once he becomes a seeker, he'll be rich. That was his mindset up until now.
Now he was a seeker, and wealth was guaranteed… so what was the way forward?
Zach sighed.
"What now…"
The ground below his feet trembled.
What?
What is that…?
Zach's instincts spiked as he looked around.
Then it happened.
Zach's eyes widened as a huge tentacle peeked through the cliff bottom, covering his entire body in a gargantuan shadow.
The beast's tentacle towered above him like a skyscraper.
"Did it notice me?" Zach gritted his teeth, his pupils shrinking as he looked at the black tentacles before him.
What is this…?
His legs were frozen, his vision blurred.
Fear reached every bit of his nerves.
But he had to move.
The tentacle wiggled, then fell lifelessly at the edge of the cliff—right where Zach was standing.
He had to move.
He had to get out.
He channeled flame energy into his legs, his boots igniting with fire.
Blood seeped from his nose as he shot away from the tentacle's range.
If that thing came down on him, he would definitely die.
As Zach ran, the shadow of the tentacle loomed above.
He could be crushed.
He had to get out of the way.
He had to survive.
The tentacle's body was about to collide with him. Zach ran faster than he ever thought possible, leaving a trail of flames behind him as he accelerated.
Something inside him didn't want to die.
Something in him refused to be turned into meat paste.
Zach's back grazed the monster's massive tentacle, barely escaping death.
The shockwave blew him back a few meters.
He landed on his back, blood still seeping from his nose.
The monster's tentacle was massive even from this distance—like two SUVs stacked on top of each other.
Zach's heartbeat steadied a little. The beast wasn't moving.
He looked down the cliff. What could have forced such a massive beast to the surface?
The monster's tentacle wiggled slightly, and Zach instinctively stepped back.
So this…
He wasn't sure what he was looking at.
Thankfully, the system tried to answer:
[Monster: ????]
[HP: ????????]
[Rank: ??????]
[Weakness: ?????]
[Strength: ??????]
[Attack: ???????]
[Poison Type: ??????]
[Existence Stone Drop: ????]
[Blood Essence Drop: ????]
[?????]
Wow. Real helpful.
The info said basically nothing. That meant the creature in front of him was way above his skill level.
The creature pulsed with malice.
Zach knew he should be running, but something else overcame him—
Curiosity.
Or stupidity.
He walked into the tentacle's massive shadow.
Its shadow was deep, pulsing with an aura that made him shiver.
Dragging his feet, Zach touched the monster's tentacle.
It was hard.
Too hard.
Not like rock or metal.
But like…
Zach caressed it. "Like glass…?"
The monster moved again, and Zach charged up his legs.
If anything happened, he'd run before its massive body could move.
He walked all the way around the gargantuan tentacle.
At its end, he found a bloody stump oozing black liquid.
The stump was uneven and jagged—Zach could tell it had been ripped apart by a set of teeth.
The leviathan, the size of a town, wasn't enough. Now Zach knew there was something far more dangerous in the sea.
The icy shores below were littered with hundreds of smaller creatures feasting on chunks of the leviathan's flesh.
From high above, Zach could make out their figures—they looked like crabs. Millions of them.
Even from here, he could tell they were the size of elephants, if not bigger.
With his awakened senses, Zach could clearly see into the icy canyon below.
Now he understood what Old Man Leon had meant.
The island was the safest place out there.
His mind shifted to the red-haired girl.
What was her name again… ah… Elisabeth.
When Elisabeth came into the store, Zach had been confused by all her bruises and cuts.
"Wait…!"
Zach walked to the edge and looked down again.
The island was elevated by ice, which meant…
Did she really arrive from the sea? And claw her way onto the island with countless crab monsters trying to kill her?
Surely that wasn't the case…
Was it?
Zach looked down.
Because if his assumption was right, and she really did all that, then the calm, quiet girl he'd pictured was actually a strong-willed fighter.
"I was wondering what happened."
Zach flinched, turning around.
Standing there—before the massive tentacle that cast its shadow over them—was the very person he had been thinking about.
It was Elisabeth.
She walked over and looked down with an unreadable expression.
What is she doing here?
She probably heard the earthquake and came to check it out.
That seemed more likely.
The red-haired seeker wore her tight black bodysuit, highlighting her neat curves. Her crimson hair cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall of blood.
Her cold hazel eyes scanned the surroundings before landing on Zach.
"What could you be doing at this time?" he scratched his head.
Elisabeth held an unreadable expression, then after a moment of thought, spoke:
"To explore."
Zach knew she wasn't the chatty type, but this was still a little much.
Explore? Does that mean she's leaving? To where?
Zach looked across the glassy sheet of ice.
Silence loomed between them.
"You're going out there…?" he gestured towards the sea.
Elisabeth looked at him for a moment.
"Yes," she replied.
"You know there are monsters the size of cities out there, right?" Zach tried to make sense of her madness.
"I've seen worse."
Worse? What's worse than that?
Zach frowned.
"Is that how you got here the first time? Through the crabs?"
Elisabeth gave him a distant gaze, no reply.
"How many…" Zach's eyes widened.
"I didn't count them." She shrugged.
A chill ran down Zach's spine—but it wasn't from the cold.
She's strong.
Hell, she's even stronger than me.
"So… umm…" He hesitated. "What do you want with me?"
She raised a brow.
"This isn't proper terrain to descend the island. And I'm sure you know that," Zach implied.
"So that means you came to see me. Why is that?" He raised a brow.
"Or maybe you were just drawn by the earthquake and I'm an idiot…"
Elisabeth's lips curled into a faint smile.
"I guess so…" she looked into the horizon.
Wait—she actually came all this way looking for me?
"Zach—or whatever your name is—as you already know, the ruins are a dangerous place filled with horrors beyond human comprehension," she continued.
"And in such a place, you can't afford to be alone."
"Teaming up would increase the chances of survival." She coughed lightly.
"So, Zach… what do you say?" She smiled.
Zach was astonished. He had been so focused on looking like a good listener that he forgot to listen.
"What did you say?"
"You've got to be kidding me."
"Ah, sorry, sorry." He waved her off. "I was just joking. I heard everything you said. And yeah… I've been thinking about that too."
Elisabeth was right. If he wanted to reach the end of the fissure and complete the assignment, he would have to step off the island and head toward the center.
The Fissure's Anchor.
So that's what Ivy said…
Zach had finally remembered.
And to increase the chances of surviving, he'd need to team up with strong people.
His blade dissipated into a flurry of snowflakes.
"Yeah, I'll team up with you… I guess." He scratched his head.