The storm had not truly ended.
It was merely...
holding its breath.
WHOOOSHHH...
The wind still swirled above the valley, carrying snowflakes and frozen dust through the air.
The black sky slowly cracked apart beneath a pale blue glow rising from the Core.
The ground beneath their feet continued to tremble.
CRACK...
CRACK...
The fractures spreading from the bottom of the valley continued to grow.
No one was truly safe.
Amid the devastation—
Arga was still standing.
Barely.
The left side of his body had frozen all the way to his neck.
His breathing came in short, ragged gasps.
The tips of his fingers had turned pale blue.
The MBG Lunchbox in his hand continued to shine.
Inside it—
the seventeen glowing grains of rice revolved slowly.
With every rotation, Arga's body trembled even harder.
Kai stood beside him.
"Stop."
Arga weakly shook his head.
"If I stop..."
His eyes remained fixed on the Core Manifestation.
"...it will fall apart."
Before them, the Ice Core Manifestation knelt silently upon the snow.
Its crystalline body was covered in countless fractures.
Blue light leaked from every crack.
It looked at Arga.
Its eyes were no longer savage.
They were afraid.
Beside it stood the Ice Guardian.
The colossal white beast was covered in burns left by concentrated energy.
Frozen blue blood stained its thick fur.
Yet it remained standing.
Like the last fortress protecting the northern world.
GRRRRRRRR...
Its growl was low.
Not a threat.
A promise.
Bimo stared at the two ancient beings, breathing heavily.
"Well..."
He wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
"...I'm starting to like these monsters."
Farhan stared at his laptop, his face pale.
"The stabilization worked..."
"...but only temporarily!"
Lila turned toward him.
"What do you mean?"
Farhan pointed at the monitor.
"The Dominion generator is still draining the Core!"
On the opposite side of the valley—
the colossal machine continued to roar.
WHOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMM!!
Blue energy conduits pierced through the storm, relentlessly drawing power from the fractured Core.
Standing before it—
the Dominion Commander remained perfectly calm.
Untouched.
Not a single wound marked his body.
As though every tragedy unfolding across the valley was nothing more than numbers on a screen.
He looked at Arga.
"Remarkable."
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
"What a pity..."
"...you're too late."
He pressed a control panel.
WHOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!
The suction force doubled instantly.
The Core Manifestation screamed.
AAAAAAAAAAHHHH!!
The fractures across its body spread even farther.
The Ice Guardian roared in fury.
ROOOOOOOOOOOAR!!
Sinta stepped forward.
"BIMO!"
"I'm on it!"
Bimo charged straight into the storm.
WHOOSH!!
Dika rushed in from the left flank.
Tono leaped from an enormous block of ice above.
The Dominion turrets came back online.
ZAP! ZAP! ZAP!
Explosions ripped across the frozen ground.
Ice shattered in every direction.
Tono spun through the air.
CRASH!!
One of the turrets exploded beneath his spinning kick.
Dika slipped beneath the incoming fire and drove a powerful kick into the generator's side panel.
CLANG!!
But the main engine continued running.
Bimo hoisted the massive steel pole onto his shoulder.
"My turn!"
Just then—
someone stepped directly into his path.
The Dominion Commander.
His expression remained calm.
"You're amusing."
Bimo grinned.
"And you're ugly."
He swung the steel pole with all his strength.
WHAM!!
The Commander caught it with one hand.
The frozen ground shattered beneath their feet.
Bimo's eyes widened.
"Okay..."
"Now that's just weird."
In one swift motion, the Commander drove his fist into Bimo's stomach.
BOOM!!
Bimo was hurled backward, tumbling across the snow.
"Damn it, Bimo!"
Dika shouted.
But Bimo pushed himself back to his feet.
He coughed up blood.
Then let out a faint laugh.
"Alright..."
He spat onto the snow.
"...now you've made me mad."
He charged again.
Faster.
More ferocious.
WHOOOSH!!
His first punch was blocked.
The second grazed the Commander's cheek.
His third strike smashed into the generator's side panel.
CRASH!!
The generator's alarm blared.
Farhan shouted,
"Good! Keep going!"
At the center of the valley—
Arga dropped to one knee.
Kai caught him by the shoulder.
"That's enough!"
Arga pushed his hand away.
Frozen tears clung to his face.
"It will never be enough..."
His eyes remained fixed on the Core Manifestation as fresh cracks spread across its body.
"Someone..."
"...always ends up getting hurt."
The lunchbox in his hand began to shake violently.
The seventeenth grain glowed with unbearable brilliance.
Farhan glanced at the new readings.
His face turned pale.
"Arga!"
Lila turned toward him.
"What is it now?!"
Farhan swallowed hard.
"The seventeenth grain..."
"...is absorbing his body heat."
Kai froze.
"You mean..."
"If he keeps using it..."
Farhan looked at Arga.
"...he'll freeze from the inside out."
Arga heard every word.
Yet he remained standing.
With trembling hands, he slowly raised the lunchbox.
"We..."
His breathing faltered.
"...didn't come here..."
His knees nearly gave way.
The Ice Guardian stepped closer.
The Core Manifestation lowered its head as well.
As if both ancient beings were listening.
Arga looked at them.
"...to take anything from you."
Golden light erupted from his body.
WHOOOOOOM!!
A wave of warmth swept across the valley.
The blizzard weakened dramatically.
The cracks covering the Core Manifestation slowly began to close.
The Ice Guardian lowered its head.
Kai whispered,
"It acknowledges you..."
Then—
a deep voice echoed from behind them.
Pak Rahmat.
"I'm not celebrating just yet."
Everyone turned.
He stood at the edge of the largest fissure.
His eyes were fixed upon the endless darkness beneath the ice.
The calm expression he always wore...
had disappeared.
"That sound..."
he whispered.
"...I know it."
Even while fighting, Bimo glanced toward him.
"Sir..."
"...now isn't the time for a trip down memory lane!"
Pak Rahmat didn't answer.
Instead—
he slowly stepped backward.
For the first time...
he looked afraid.
The spreading fractures beneath the valley suddenly stopped.
Silence.
Then—
DUUM.
A heavy impact echoed from deep underground.
DUUM.
Even louder.
DUUM!!
The entire valley lurched violently.
Farhan dropped his laptop.
"No..."
Lila stumbled backward.
"What now?!"
The ice at the center of the valley shattered completely.
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!
A colossal abyss split open.
From the darkness below—
two enormous blue eyes opened.
They were not the size of a human's.
Not even the size of the Ice Guardian's.
Each one was as large as a city gate.
The Ice Guardian instinctively stepped back.
The Core Manifestation trembled.
Pak Rahmat slowly closed his eyes.
Then, in a voice barely above a whisper, he said,
"The final prison..."
"...has fully opened."
Something began to rise from the abyss.
Scales of ancient ice.
Horns of crystalline stone.
A breath so cold it froze the very air.
And the moment its head emerged from the darkness—
everyone realized the truth.
The Ice Guardian...
was never the guardian of the Core.
It had only ever been...
the jailer.