How long had he been running across the iceberg?
In the distance, lights began to appear.
A small fishing village at the edge of Greenland.
He pulled out a mirror and checked his clothes.
The sun was already setting.
If he showed up suddenly, they might mistake him for a thief.
He was wondering which house to go to when—
A small boat came in from the shore.
An elderly couple stepped off with a single lantern.
Fishing rods and nets that looked freshly used were visible, but their hands were empty.
He approached as quietly as possible so as not to startle them.
"Hello."
"What the hell—!"
Despite his efforts, the old man flinched and stumbled backward.
Jinhyuk swallowed dryly.
*Hell.*
He'd never heard Greenlandic before, but the meaning came across loud and clear.
"Sorry. I didn't mean to sneak up on you."
"You're human, right? Geez, my heart nearly dropped. You okay, old woman?"
"You're the only one who got scared, so quit your yapping. Where'd you come from, young man, soaked like that?"
"I'm from Korea. I was wondering if there was a place nearby to wash up, so I came here shamelessly."
"Came a long way, huh. It's a bit cold, but there are two open-air hot springs. One for men, one for women."
"That sounds great. Can outsiders like me use them?"
"Of course. It's nature's gift—who'd dare say no? Do you have clothes to change into?"
"Yes, they're in my bag. Here, let me carry that for you."
He took the luggage from the old man and woman.
"Thanks. I was about to toss this damn stuff anyway—couldn't catch a single fish."
"Toss it? Don't you dare, you old fool! Grandfather left us that gear!"
"Just kidding. Let's head home first. I'll give you a hot cup of tea."
"Yes, sir."
He followed the elderly couple.
The old man let out a deep sigh.
"What in the world did we do to make the sea go so barren? Today I even heard a vicious roar from across the water. My whole body froze—I have no idea what's going on."
"Have you lived here long?"
"All our lives. We're descendants of the Inuit. Our ancestors have guarded this land for generations."
He looked around.
It was a beautiful village, like something out of a fairy tale.
"Up until recently, we lived pretty well. I don't know how things ended up like this."
"Maybe it's time to leave."
"There you go again! We can't abandon our ancestors' land."
"So we just stay here and starve to death? Maybe the ancestors are giving us a sign to leave."
The old man let out a frustrated sigh and stared at the distant mountains.
Jinhyuk, reading the mood, cautiously spoke up.
"Don't you think the sea's friends will come back soon?"
"That'd be wonderful, but I'm not sure. I've never seen anything like this."
"They'll be back soon."
It wasn't pollution or some other reason that drove them away.
It was purely to escape a powerful predator.
Now that the predator was gone, they'd return to their home.
"I hope so. Ah, we're here. Thanks for carrying that. Come inside and have some tea."
"No, it's fine. My shoes are soaked through. I'll head straight to the hot spring."
"Then I feel bad."
"Just telling me about the hot spring is thanks enough. Which way do I go?"
"The men's is this way. Women's is that way."
"Thank you! And—"
Jinhyuk raised his thumb.
"Just wait a little longer. It'll be back soon."
The elderly couple looked at each other, then smiled.
"Even just saying that means a lot. Stop by after you've washed up. I'll give you some dried fish."
"Yes, sir!"
He bowed his head and walked in the direction they'd pointed.
Watching Jinhyuk's retreating back, the old man spoke.
"What a bright young man."
"His energy is so clear and good too. We only talked for a moment, but I already feel better."
"Energy? What are you, a fortune-teller?"
"It's cold. Let's go inside. Stop your yapping."
*Thud. Thud. Thudthudthudthudthud!*
After confirming the door had closed, Jinhyuk picked up speed.
He felt too gross and wanted to wash up quickly.
"Let's split here!"
He manifested Kamela, Elia, and Seira.
Momo was already hanging from Seira's neck.
From here, there were signs, so it'd be easy to find.
He waved at them and then ran hard, following the arrows.
Smoke came into view.
"A hot spring! I need to get in!"
He quickly washed at the simple shower station by the entrance and then threw himself in.
*Splash!*
The water wrapped around him at just the right temperature.
"Gyaaah!"
Khancho scrambled back out, startled.
Guess it was a bit hot for the yodel friend.
"It's lava!"
"This part is less hot. Just avoid the spots where bubbles are rising."
Khancho avoided the source of the hot spring and dipped in.
"This is excellent! Pure bliss!"
"This is killer."
Renya and Dark, who had manifested late, also got in.
Seeing them all submerged up to their necks, they seemed thoroughly satisfied.
As expected of an open-air hot spring.
A cool face and a warm body—absolutely fantastic.
He tilted his head back.
"Whoa."
An incredible sight unfolded before him.
A cluster of stars filled the sky, leaving no empty space.
There seemed to be more stars than the black background.
"It's so pretty!"
"Yeah."
He fiddled with his pointed ears and smiled.
A hot spring close to paradise, plus stargazing.
This open-air hot spring was really no—*Huh?*
Jinhyuk's eyes widened.
"Wooooah!"
Khancho raised his voice.
A pastel-colored wave streaked across the dark night sky.
The wave mixed with the stars, creating a spectacle.
"It's been a while since I've seen the aurora."
"Oh? You've seen the aurora before, Dark?"
"I saw it occasionally in Frostheim. They called it the song for dead angels."
Renya stared intently at Dark, looking displeased.
"What's with that? That sappy sentiment doesn't suit you."
"It's something my childhood friend said."
"Then say that sooner. I almost felt sick."
"How strange. You only *almost* felt sick now. I've been feeling sick since earlier."
The two bickered as usual.
Jinhyuk quickly moved on to evolution.
It was too much of a waste to fight over this spectacle and the hot spring.
*Ding-dong! Ding-dong!*
"Huh?"
He opened his bag.
The communication seemed to be back.
His phone rang nonstop.
"Ugh."
He decided to skip the pile of Kotalk messages and missed calls for now.
He sent a message to Black Wings.
His business here was done.
Now it was time to go back and resume the tower climb he'd put off.
* * *
Two or three hours later.
The elderly couple left the house.
The Korean young man had gone to the hot spring a while ago but hadn't returned.
They wondered if a polar bear had shown up and were about to check.
"Huh?"
Just as they were about to step out.
A large bundle placed in front of the door caught their eyes.
# Thanks for telling me about the hot spring! It was heaven!
As soon as they untied it, an enormous amount of food spilled out.
Judging by the Korean writing, it seemed to be Korean specialties.
There was so much it would take them a long time to eat it all just the two of them.
"What's that now?"
A pitch-black boat was moving away from the shore.
It was a state-of-the-art model rarely seen around here.
The elderly couple walked to the dock and stared at the boat side by side.
*Could've stayed for a cup of tea! In such a hurry!*
"Let's go in. It's cold."
"Alright."
They shrugged and were about to turn around when—
A splashing sound reached their ears.
The moment they turned back, the elderly couple fell flat on their backs.
Unlike before, this time the old woman was also down.
"Oh my…."
An incredible number of fish and dolphins were swimming in the sea.
They'd lived here their whole lives, but they'd never seen anything like this.
The old man rubbed his eyes.
Was it because of the beautiful aurora?
He couldn't tell if this was a dream or reality.
The elderly couple, staring in a daze, looked at the boat that had become a tiny dot—the boat carrying the young man from Korea.
-It'll be back soon.
The young man's words echoed in their heads.
They'd thought he was just a positive, bright young man trying to cheer up some old folks.
But thinking back, that wasn't it.
That was certainty.
A strong conviction that it would definitely happen that way.
How did he know?
"He was an angel."
The old man muttered quietly, alternating his gaze between the aurora and the sea.
The Inuit ancestors had said this:
The aurora was the trace of an angel descending from the sky.
"Right. An angel came to visit."
The old woman, who would normally have told him to stop his nonsense, nodded this time.
The elderly couple stared at the sky and the sea for a long time.
They smiled.
They probably wouldn't forget.
Tonight. For the rest of their lives.
* * *
A small airport on the outskirts of Greenland.
Jinhyuk boarded the private jet, *Sky Palace*, and took a deep breath.
*Mmm!* It felt like coming home.
"Nice. So nice."
He sank into the seat and pulled out a tablet.
On the way, Captain Dominic had told him.
Iceland was in an uproar because of Admiral Robion's arbitrary decision.
'Was that the boat running away earlier?'
A boat he'd passed on the way to Ilulissat.
They must have been on it.
# Robion, who drove the nation's talents into a death trap with a wrong judgment.
# Estimated 10+ players dead.
# What did Admiral Robion hide?
Articles poured in as soon as he searched Iceland.
Every headline had the name Robion.
Many articles said Iceland's already low defense ranking would drop further.
# The admiral and his aide claim there was a dragon. But no trace was found in Ilulissat, so it's presumed to be a lie.
He swallowed dryly.
Of course they couldn't find it.
Our great Great-Grandmother Teacher had packed it away without leaving a single speck.
The black dragon Drakkan was now frozen solid and stored in the Infinite Storage.
# The Icelandic government also dismisses it as a baseless claim. Admiral Robion appears unable to avoid responsibility.
He nodded.
In a way, it was an expected response.
From Iceland's perspective, they'd want to deny it as much as possible.
The connection between Robion's blunder and the vanished marine ecosystem.
'I told them not to take it out.'
He clicked his tongue and put the tablet down.
Then he leaned his head back.
On the way back, he'd sent a Kotalk message to Jin Yunho.
Telling him not to worry—he was fine with no problems.
That he'd just paused the climb temporarily because he lacked holy-type weapons.
*Heh!*
He curled his lips and rubbed his hands together.
A reply had come saying he could open even the head office-level storage and take whatever he wanted.
His heart was already racing, wondering what to pick up.
He glanced at his watch.
Just before midnight.
Soon, another ticket would pile up in the ticket storage… *Ring!*
'Huh?'
He opened his eyes.
What was that sudden notification sound?
[The day has changed!]
[It is the birthday of Yodel Ranger Deputy Commander Khancho!]
[The promotion quest begins!]
[Myth Tower Floor 16 changes to the World of Toys!]
[With the tower change, the previous entry conditions are removed! You may enter immediately!]
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T/N:
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