The frozen wasteland stretched endlessly ahead of Elias.
"System," he said after a while. "So, you're telling me the most dangerous being in this place disappeared, and you, being my companion, have no idea where the 'danger' is?"
[ Unknown. ]
Elias kicked a loose shard of frost as he walked.
"…Fantastic."
He walked in silence for a few minutes.
Eventually, the terrain started to change.
At first, Elias thought it was just another sheet of ice. But then, he heard a soft, rhythmic sound.
Water.
He slowed down.
Ahead of him stretched a wide frozen river. Its surface looked like a thick layer of pale, smooth and unbroken glass.
But beneath that frozen sheath, dark water flowed.
The current moved steadily, pressing against the underside of the ice with dull, lapping sounds.
Elias approached carefully.
He crouched near the edge.
The water kept flowing
"…Is the river flowing away from the centre?"
The flat terrain made it hard to judge, but the movement of the water seemed to be heading away from the crater. Away from the centre of Cocytus.
[ Affirmative. ]
Elias blinked.
The system began explaining:
[ Cocytus is the frozen lake at the centre of the Ninth Circle, where the Devil was kept. It was formed from his tears, which gather at the frozen heart of the Ninth Circle. From that central lake, the water spreads outward through the wasteland, carrying the sorrow and betrayal that define this realm. ]
Elias looked back toward the distant crater.
"So, the river starts there."
[ Yes. ]
"…Because the Devil wept enough to make one."
[ Correct. ]
He folded his arms.
"I'm starting to see why this place is considered hell."
Curiosity pulled him closer.
Half-buried in the frost across the river was something that didn't belong to the endless white. It was glistening faintly beneath the ice. Something small, maybe a locket or some kind of pendant, though the frost and cloudy ice made it impossible to see it clearly.
Elias squinted.
"…Hmm, that's looks interesting."
He glanced up and down the riverbank. The current beneath the ice moved steadily but the frozen surface itself looked thick enough to walk on.
He stepped onto it, intending to cross over to the other side.
The frozen surface groaned faintly beneath his weight.
"…Probably safe," he muttered.
Another step.
Then another.
The ice creaked again.
Elias leaned forward slightly.
"I wonder how deep this thing – "
CRACK.
The ice shattered beneath his feet.
"OH – "
Freezing water swallowed him whole as he plunged beneath the broken surface. The current grabbed him immediately, dragging him along with it with violent force.
Elias thrashed wildly.
"– HELP!"
The freezing water roared in his ears as the river carried him along the dark channel beneath the ice.
His body slammed against the sides of the frozen tunnel. The current dragged him away faster and faster beneath the thick frozen layer above.
He struggled to orient himself.
Which way was up?
The rushing water spun him sideways.
For a split second, Elias fumbled at the cloth tied around his waist, trying to grab the dagger tucked inside. If he could just stab it into the ice, maybe he could stop himself from being dragged away.
But the current was too strong.
His fingers slipped against the soaked cloth as the river yanked him forward again, spinning him violently.
The current slammed him against the far bank of the river.
After several seconds of chaos, the system spoke up:
[ Alert. Reach towards the bank. ]
Elias twisted his body, barely managing to see the jagged edge of the riverbank.
"There's nothing to grab!"
[ Now! ]
Elias lunged.
His hand slammed into a jagged ridge of ice protruding form the side of the river. The sharp edge tore into his palm, but he clung to it with everything he had and anchored himself against the violent pull of the current.
The water fought to rip him away.
For a moment he thought his arm would tear straight out of its socket.
"COME ON – "
He steadied himself against the edge, then twisted his body upward and drove his elbow into the ice above him.
THUD.
The surface cracked slightly.
But it didn't break.
The current shoved him sideways again.
Elias gritted his teeth and pulled himself back into position.
Again.
He slammed his elbow upward.
CRACK.
A thin fracture spread across the ice.
"Almost!"
The river surged harder, trying to drag him away from the opening he was making.
He struck the ice again.
CRACK.
The fracture widened.
"One more!"
With a desperate shout, Elias drove his elbow upward with everything he had.
CRASH.
The ice finally shattered.
Cold air rushed in as the broken surface split apart.
Elias forced himself upward through the opening, bursting out of the river with a gasp.
He didn't stop.
Using the last of his strength, he hauled himself over the broken edge and immediately leapt towards the opposite bank, scrambling across the frozen ground before the current could drag him back.
He collapsed onto the ice, out of breath and choking on water.
Water soaked through the thin scraps of cloth covering his body. His hair clung to his face, dipping steadily onto the frozen ground.
He stayed there, sprawled on the icy ground, breathing hard. For several seconds, he didn't move at all, just staring up at the endless sky above while the sound of the river rushed behind him.
"…What the fuck did I get myself into?"
Then, he realized, he didn't feel cold.
"I should be freezing… yet I'm not?"
[ The Ninth Circle itself is preserving your body. ]
"…So the ice is protecting me, but is also trying to kill me at the same time?"
[ You could say that. ]
Elias sighed and pushed himself to his feet.
"Well, whatever's protecting me, thanks."
He looked around.
The river continued flowing behind him
But something else caught his attention. Something enormous.
Ahead of him rose a massive wall.
Elias stared upward.
"…What?"
The wall stretched infinitely in both directions.
A colossal barrier made entirely of blackened ice and ancient stone. It towered so high that its upper edge disappeared into the gray haze above.
The wall curved slightly, forming an enormous ring around the wasteland.
Elias slowly approached it.
"System, what… is this?"
[ A boundary. The perimeter of the Ninth Circle. ]
Elias looked along the endless wall.
"So this entire frozen wasteland…"
[ …is enclosed. ]
He sighed.
Elias walked along the base of the wall.
The structure was smooth and completely impossible to climb. Frost clung to its surface in thick layers, making it even more hostile.
"…This is ridiculous."
His voice sounded small against the gigantic scale of the wall.
Elias reached out and pressed his palm against the wall.
The surface was colder than anything he had touched so far. The chill seeped through his skin instantly.
"…How thick is this thing?"
No response came.
He stepped back and looked along the endless stretch of the barrier.
"An entire prison wall for one circle of hell," he muttered.
Curiosity got the better of him.
Elias untied the small dagger from his waist and held it up.
"Well, let's see what happens."
He swung the dagger and struck the wall.
CLINK.
The sound rang sharply through the empty air.
He leaned closer and examined the spot where the blade had hit.
Nothing. Not even a scratch.
"…That's it? This dagger is kind of useless for being forged out of the devil's blood."
Elias adjusted his grip and stabbed harder.
CLANG.
The impact vibrated up his arm, forcing him to shake his hand afterward.
"Okay, that one hurt."
Still, he wasn't ready to give up.
He stepped back, took a breath, and began striking the wall repeatedly.
CLINK.
CLANG.
CLINK.
The sounds echoed faintly across the frozen wasteland.
Elias chipped away at the same point repeatedly, slowly widening the fracture. Small flakes of frozen material broke loose and fell to the ground.
Eventually he stepped back, breathing heavily.
The result was… underwhelming.
A shallow dent no larger than a coin.
Elias stared at it.
"…That's it?"
He looked up at the towering wall again.
Then back at the tiny mark he had made.
"…Right."
He slid the dagger back into the cloth at his waist.
"Breaking through that would take about… a thousand years."
He sighed and continued walking along the base of the wall.
After several minutes of walking, something appeared in the distance.
An opening.
A narrow passage carved into the wall.
Elias slowed down.
"…Wait, is it what I think it is?"
He approached it carefully.
The passage was tall but narrow, like the entrance to some ancient fortress gate.
But something stood in front of it.
A tall, overarching, unmoving figure.
The figure stood perfectly still.
It was enormous, easily twice or even three times of Elias' height. Its body looked like it had been forged from dark metal. The surface was cold and smooth like polished iron.
Frost covered its shoulders and arms in thick layers.
The armor was sharp and angular with long, blade-like ridges jutting out from its shoulders and spine like the bones of some monstrous creature trying to tear its way out.
In each hand, it held a massive claymore. The blades were long enough to split a man in half. And the way the creature held them – effortlessly, as if they weighed nothing – made the threat even more horrifying.
Elias stopped several metres away.
"…System."
[ Yes. ]
"…Please tell me that's not the Devil."
[ Negative. It's the Gatekeeper of the Ninth Circle. The Guardian. Thalion. ]
Elias rubbed his face.
"So if I want to leave…"
[ You must pass the gatekeeper. ]
"…Of course."
He stared at the silent figure.
It hadn't moved once.
Snow had gathered along its shoulders and helmet, making it look more like a statue than a living being.
Elias hesitated. His thoughts began drifting to the long path behind him and whether he should just turn back.
CRUNCH.
His foot came down on a thin shard of ice.
The sound shattered the silence.
Suddenly, the figure moved.
The snow slid off its shoulders as its head slowly turned towards him.
Two faint blue lights ignited where its eyes should've been.
For a moment, it stood still, as if examining him.
Then, it spoke.
Its voice sounded like grinding metal dragged across frozen stone.
"…You."
The figure tilted its head slightly.
"…You were not meant to be here."
Elias blinked.
"…What?"
The gatekeeper's gaze did not waver.
"…Why are you here?"
Elias slowly took a step back.
"I – "
His foot slid slightly against the frost.
Another step.
The claymore raised.
Elias felt the pressure increase.
The creature's head tilted slightly.
Then –
It disappeared.
Elias barely had time to proceed what happened before a violent impact exploded through his stomach.
A blunt shock tore through his body. Pain erupted through his abdomen like a bomb going off inside him.
Elias was launched across the frozen ground.
His body slammed into the distant wall with a sickening crack.
The impact knocked the breath out of his lungs as he collapsed onto the ice, crumpling at the base of the massive barrier.
For several seconds he couldn't breathe.
His vision blurred. Blood spilled from out from his mouth, splattering across the frozen ground in dark red streaks.
His stomach burned.
He forced himself to look down.
"…That… was fast."
The gatekeeper stood several metres away now.
Elias tried to inhale. But pain exploded through his ribs.
[ WARNING. HOST CONDITION CRITICAL. ]
The red warnings flickered violently across his vision.
Elias coughed again, more blood spilling onto the ice.
The gatekeeper began walking toward him.
Elias forced his body to move.
The narrow passageway behind the creature, the way out, it was still there.
Still open.
"…Just… there…"
He rolled onto his side and dragged himself forward.
His arms trembled violently as he pushed against the frozen ground.
One step.
Then another.
He fell onto his hands and knees.
Pain shot through his stomach with every movement, but he forced himself forward anyway.
"Just… a little… more…"
[ WARNING. ]
"…Shut up…"
His fingers clawed against the ice as he crawled towards the passage.
Behind him, the wind roared.
The gatekeeper moved. It swung its arm and threw one of its claymores.
The sword cut through the air. Elias only saw the flash.
Then –
CHUNK.
For a moment, he didn't understand what had happened.
Something warm splattered across the ice in front of him.
His shoulders felt strangely light.
Elias slowly looked down, and realized that his hand was gone.
Blood poured out in thick streams.
A scream ripped from his throat.
"AAAGHH!"
The severed hand lay several metres ahead of him.
Elias collapsed forward, shaking violently.
"…No… no…'
The pain was unbearable.
[ WARNING. SEVERE LIMB LOSS. HOST IS ADVISED TO - ]
"…SHUT UP!"
His remaining hand clawed desperately at the ground. He tried to move. To crawl. But his body barely responded.
The gatekeeper reached the fallen sword and pulled it free from the ice.
The blade was now stained red.
Elias could barely lift his head.
The towering figure stood over him again.
"…Your biggest mistake," the creature said, "was existing in a place like this."
Elias stared up at it.
A weak, dry laugh escaped his blood-filled throat.
"…Heh."
The gatekeeper paused.
Elias coughed again.
"…You know…"
His fingers fumbled weakly at the cloth around his waist.
"…That's… a terrible… welcome speech."
With the last of his strength, he yanked the small dagger towards the creature.
The blade spun through the air.
CLANK.
It bounced harmlessly off the gatekeeper's armored chest and fell down to the ground.
The creature looked down at the dagger.
Then back at Elias.
Elias stared at the weapon lying just out of his reach.
"…Ah."
His remaining arm dragged across the ground as his fingers stretched desperately towards the blade.
"…Almost…"
Still too far.
"…Come on…"
The gatekeeper watched silently.
Elias dragged himself another inch.
His hand finally brushed the dagger's handle.
For a moment, relief flickered in his eyes.
Then, the creature slowly clapped.
CLANG. CLANG. CLANG.
"A commendable attempt."
The gatekeeper raised its sword again. The massive blade cast a long shadow across Elias' broken body.
"…But futile."
Elias lay on the ground, soaked in blood.
Slowly, he lifted his head and looked up at the towering monster standing over him.
His vision blurred. But he forced a faint smile.
"…Hey."
Blood ran down the side of his face."
"…B-Before you… k-kill me…"
His voice was weak.
"…Can I ask… o-one question?"
The blade rose higher.
[ Host death imminent. ]
The frozen wind whispered across the Ninth Circle.
For a moment, Elias heard nothing at all.
Just silence.
And then, nothing.